Public commenters and council debate proposed transfer of Lock Haven water assets as resolution passed

A public commenter who identified himself as Rich, a member of the filtration authority and an administrator with the city authority, told the Lock Haven City Council on April 7 that the city's recent push toward a joint municipal water authority had not been openly discussed with other affected parties and raised concerns about asset transfers, legal costs and undisclosed proposals.

Rich said the idea to combine two water systems into a single joint authority began with a city manager's request for customer and flow data in August 2023 and that later documents circulated by the city departed from the joint-authority approach the committee had discussed. He told council the city's outside counsel produced a draft in September 2024 that differed from earlier committee discussion and that the city had'before later meetings'engaged attorneys and pursued work without clear input from the suburban authority and other parties.

The matter moved from public comment to formal action.…