Incumbent supervisor chairman and challenger vie in Summit Township
Lifelong Summit Township resident Chester “Chad” Spohn III is challenging township supervisor chairman Willie Adams in the May 16 primary election for a seat on the township board of supervisors.
Both candidates are running on the Republican ballot. No Democratic candidates filed to run for supervisor in the township.
Spohn, an oil and gas worker who attended Gannon University, said this is his first run for public office, and he was inspired to run because of the growth he has seen in the community.
“There's a lot of growth in the community and a lot of changes happening,” Spohn said. “I just wanted to get involved in those efforts, do what's best for residents in a cost standpoint.”
Adams has been chairman of the board of supervisors since he assumed office in 2012. He works as a watch and clock repairer for his company, Sights and Sounds Unlimited, and said he initially ran for office to give his input on the township sewage plan; a project he wants to see through.
“I didn't like the indecision; I thought I could make a difference,” Adams said. “Really we're still trying to come up with a sewer plan. We’ve got the engineering 95% done; now we need to get it financed. We're trying to get it feasible for residents.”
Spohn said he has attended planning commission meetings in the township, and the planning for sewage also influenced him to run for supervisor.
Spohn said he is most concerned with budgeting and would like to keep development costs down. On that front, he said he wants to address paying Saxonburg police to provide police coverage for the township.
“I want to control housing development and keep the township. Change is a good thing, but not too much change,” Spohn said. “The state police are still responding quite a lot, so why are we spending money to hire Saxonburg. It's not the most economic route for the township.”
Adams said the supervisors have to maintain a lot of township roads, and he would like to continue being a voice on maintenance and zoning issues.
“The big storms we've had makes extra issues for road work,” he said. “We've got zoning; there are a lot of zoning issues, and I try to treat all the residents fairly.”
Spohn said he would like a voice in development decisions in the township, saying that he doesn’t want to see Summit become like Cranberry Township. He also said he would like to back the Herman Volunteer Fire Company because of the township’s reliance on it for emergency response.
“I think we need to support the fire department because that's an important part to our township,” Spohn said. “I know they are trying to get some new equipment we can support.”
Adams said population in Summit Township has been fairly steady over the years, not growing or shrinking much from year to year. He said the sewage project could bring more people to the area, which the township has to be prepared for. Additionally, township supervisors are focused on objecting to the sale of the Butler Area Sewer Authority to Pennsylvania American Water.
“Our sewer is being constantly worked on between sewer authority and engineer, so that's an ongoing project,” Adams said. “The BASA sale, there is constantly something that needs to be done; we need to meet deadlines.”
