Fawn nearing three decades with no tax increase

It’s been 27 years since Fawn property owners have seen a property tax increase, and that streak is likely to be extended.

Supervisors have proposed a $1.8 million preliminary budget that holds the tax rate steady at 3.04 mills.

If approved, the owner of a home with the township’s median assessed value of $72,750 will again pay about $221.

“We don’t spend a lot of money and if we spend, we’re careful about it,” Township treasurer Pam Ponsart said. “It has to be a need, not a want.”

Supervisors will consider road projects this spring if the township is awarded grants.

“We’re always looking to do roads,” Ponsart said. “We’d like to get the last part of paving on Thompson Road near Hemphill Road done. We didn’t have enough of a grant to finish it.”

Supervisors are also considering new equipment for the public works department. A dump truck could be among purchases in the next year or two but “nothing is concrete yet,” Ponsart said.

The township in recent years was denied $600,000 in federal funding to complete a landslide remediation project along Sun Mine Road. That project remains on hold. The costs are expected to top $1 million to fix a 150-foot section of the road.

Supervisors will vote on the final budget during the regular meeting at 7 p.m. Dec. 16.