Connoquenessing Township officials aren’t doing themselves any favors when it comes to the municipality’s Act 537 plan revision process. The topic has been a hot-button issue since early last year, when proposed updates to the township’s plan raised the eyebrows of residents and got supervisors an earful from people upset with the possibility of a multi-million-dollar sewage treatment plant.

On Monday supervisors held another public meeting to present revisions to last year’s proposal. But they failed to fulfill even the most basic planning requirements for making the event successful.

There was no microphone for township officials or the public to use, which left people straining to hear and frustrated.

The township declared that it wouldn’t be answering any questions about the plan during the meeting.

And supervisors decided to effectively limit public comment on the plan by requiring people to sign up to speak, and then restricting the window for signing up to a brief period right after the meeting convened at 5:30 p.m. Those who showed up even a little bit tardy were simply out of luck, no exceptions.

In all, it was an amateurish and fly-by-night effort on what township officials already knew was going to be a hot-button topic. If they wanted to foster trust and goodwill among residents upset with the sewage proposal, they couldn’t possibly have done worse.

[naviga:h3]Cheer [/naviga:h3]

Cheers to the Early Bird Toastmasters of Butler. The chapter celebrated its 60th anniversary on Saturday at Butler Family Bowlaway.

The group, if you’re not familiar with it, is focused on helping members become better communicators and leaders — whether it’s speaking up during a board meeting, preparing for a job interview, or presenting information to a group of people in a professional setting.

The Toastmasters provide an invaluable service to members of the community, and it’s incredible that they’ve been able to keep at it for six decades now. Perhaps that’s because the group’s clubs are, by design, small collectives that are constantly renewed and refreshed as members come and go.

Regardless, keeping a collective like the Toastmasters cohesive and active for 60 years is an achievement worthy of praise and celebration. They’ve managed to achieve the equivalent of bowling a perfect game.

[naviga:h3]Jeer [/naviga:h3]

Last week Gov. Tom Wolf took the appropriate step when he requested a federal hate-crimes investigation into incidents and threats that have targeted Jewish communities in Pennsylvania.

In a letter to U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, Wolf emphasized that the acts aren’t random or unconnected. Whether or not that proves to be the case makes little difference. The incidents in Pennsylvania follow a nationwide trend that has seen Jewish community centers plagued by bomb threats and cemeteries filled with defaced headstones.

Whether these crimes were perpetrated by organized groups or individuals, their actions were heinous and motivated by a desire to inflict suffering and fear on an specific group of people.

That requires a swift and harsh response under the law. Whoever perpetrated these acts must be brought to justice and prosecuted to the fullest extent possible.