Connellsville council appoints Carol Tiberio after procedural revote; approves event permits and reappointments

Connellsville City Council met on Jan. 20, 2026, and appointed Carol Tiberio to fill a council vacancy through a vote taken after a solicitor advised the council to reopen the appointment to public comment and revote.

The revote followed an initial roll-call in which the mayor read a resolution to appoint Tiberio to a term expiring in 2028. After the solicitor noted the agenda required public comment before finalizing that appointment, the mayor re-read the nomination, opened the floor (no public comments were offered), and the clerk recorded a second roll-call vote approving the appointment.

The council also approved a block of reappointments across boards and authorities. Items passed included reappointing Tara Addis to the Zoning Hearing Board (term to 2031), Denise White to the Planning Commission (term to 2030), Beverly Cuneo to the Board of Health (term to 2031), Joe Mancuso to the Redevelopment Authority (term to 2031), William Hughes to the Housing Authority (term to 2031) and Rod Guntherton to the Municipal Authority (term to 2031). The council accepted resignations from Michael Kamisky and Karen Sanzone on the Carnegie Free Library Board, creating at least two vacancies the council said it will fill after reviewing submitted letters of interest.

Kelsey McKinney presented a resolution authorizing Connellsville to enter a cooperative agreement with O'Hare Enterprise Ltd. to serve as the local governmental sponsor for Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program (RACP) funds for a proposed Connersville Micro Resort Project. Council members voted in favor; McKinney and staff noted the state requires a local governmental entity to receive and disburse the grant proceeds to the ultimate project recipient.

Public works items included a resolution to participate in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania cooperative purchasing program (CoStars) for sodium chloride purchases for the August 2026–July 2027 season and authorization to close Meadow Lane for the Lions Club summer concert series on designated summer evenings, pending final sign‑offs from the police and fire chiefs and public works. Council also authorized advertising for bids to pave the East Park parking lot and discussed applicable bidding thresholds under the Third‑Class City Code.

The council ratified the termination of employee number 6421 effective Dec. 31, 2025, and authorized advertising for a Public Works laborer position (salary to follow the current union contract; funding from line item 430.11144). The city controller reported account balances including a General Fund balance of $853,664.53 and noted $3,134.07 in fines submitted to the treasurer.

During public comment, Bonnie Henry, representing the Connersville America 250 Festival Association, outlined a slate of community events for 2026 — from trivia fundraisers and Black History Month programming to a June parade and a June 27 carnival and parade — and requested volunteers, historical materials and donations to support fireworks and other activities. Mayor Lincoln and festival organizers discussed PennDOT’s historical reluctance to allow closing Crawford Avenue for parades and agreed to submit formal road‑closure requests and alternative routing plans.

Mayor Lincoln spent substantial time describing the city’s warming center operations and volunteer needs. “We do not have a homeless shelter here. It’s just not works for us,” the mayor said, urging churches and community groups to help staff warming-center hours and noting the city is seeking grant funding to offset added utility costs if the senior center or other facilities are used evenings as warming spaces. Fayette County Emergency Management offered assistance with shelter guidelines and Red Cross coordination.

The fire chief delivered December and year‑end reports, noting 24 alarms in December and 386 total calls in 2025, including 108 vehicle accidents and 19 structure fires; he urged residents to avoid running multiple extension cords or unvented heaters.

The meeting closed after routine minutes approvals, the consent resolutions described above, and a motion to adjourn.

What’s next: Council encouraged residents to submit letters of interest for library and board vacancies; staff will solicit bids for the East Park paving project and will seek additional engineering proposals after tabling action on the single engineering proposal received.