Sandy Township, PA — In a 4-1 vote, the Sandy Township supervisors voted against consolidating with the city of DuBois.
"As a resident of Sandy Township, I took that as a slap in the face to be honest with you. I went to the meeting and explained to them that they have basically taken away each resident's right to have a constitutional vote," said Barry Abbott, a Sandy Township resident.
That vote came after a survey of area residents in which 49% were in support of consolidation, 33% were against it and 17% were undecided.
Now the one lone supervisor who voted in favor of consolidating is starting a position to give the community a voice.
"This is not just for the people who are for it it's also for the people who are against it they deserve a vote too," said Sam Mollica, Sandy Township Supervisor
Sam Mollica said they'll need 209 Sandy Township residents and 162 DuBois residents to sign the petition in order for it to be placed on the ballot in November.
"I just saw the problems created by not having a unified government. There's been lawsuits throughout the year between DuBois and Sandy that have literally cost millions of dollars in legal fees," he said.
"When we consolidate and become a third-class city one of the things that Treasure Lake would see an advantage is people would be coming to our area looking to build homes," said Abbott.
Abbott and Mollica both agree that consolidating will save the township and city thousands.
Mollica said they'll need the petitions to be ready by august 3rd in order to get it on the ballot in November.
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