DUBOIS – The City of DuBois will be looking to raise sewer rates in order to pay for needed repairs. The current base rate is $7.50. City Manager John “Herm” Suplizio suggested an increase of $0.50 to $0.75. The sewage treatment plant was stated to need the following work completed: older pumps replaced, a roof constructed over the centrifuge, a wet test performed, and the bridge to the sewage treatment plant repaired. The increase will affect the city and township customers.
The wet test is needed to find the source of a soap leak at the plant. The plant is currently leaking soap in high enough quantities that it is killing tadpoles and fleas in the immediate water ways. Suplizio stated that if the bridge continues deteriorating that it may soon be forcibly closed by the state.
Suplizio told the council that he had met with Nancy Micks of the Greater DuBois Chamber of Commerce, Sandy Township Manager Dick Castonguay, and PennDOT over traffic through downtown DuBois. According to Suplizio an alternative to reroute truck traffic through was drafted. However, he wanted the council and public input into the suggested route as he feared it would be moving a bad traffic situation through a commercial district into a bad traffic problem in a residential district.
The current route sends the traffic through the city. The alternative route would run truck traffic down Main Street and by the DuBois Regional Medical Center. None of the council commented on the pathing during the meeting. City Controller Lisa Labrasca and Police Chief Mike Dilullo voiced concerns with the suggested pathing. Labrasca stated that the suggested route already gets backed up on occasion with existing traffic. Dilullo stated that some of the turns would be hard to make with larger trucks.