Harrisville officials are looking at adjusting the solicitor's role.

Joe Nash of Slippery Rock currently serves as the borough's solicitor, but council members are exploring other options too, according to council President April Anschutz.

Meeting minutes show Nash has not attended a council meeting since September 2017.

Anschutz said council had simply not requested Nash to attend and opted to send questions to him afterward. She said Nash has served the borough well when he has been used.

“It's nothing that Nash has done at all,” Anschutz said. “He's done a very good job with what he's done in the past.”

Anschutz said the council is looking at other attorneys to see if a better fit exists, and exploring a retainer system that could be a cheaper option when having a solicitor who attends meetings regularly.

“We're just trying to be more efficient and practical with our funds,” Anschutz said. “It's going to be cheaper for the borough and cheaper for the community.”

Anschutz said the council is also considering looking at attorneys who specialize in municipal law.

Nash is a general practitioner.

Anschutz said Nash is still being considered, and the council has sent a request for a quote on his retainer.

Nash said he has been working on his quote, but has not yet sent a response.

“I wouldn't be against it,” Nash said. “That's a common way for attorneys to work, through a retainer system.”

Nash said he has served as solicitor for about two years, and he was rarely asked to attend meetings.

“The arrangement is if I'm requested to be at a meeting, I will come,” Nash said. “There were a couple times where they asked if I was available.”

Nash said with or without a retainer, he would attend meetings if asked.

“The retainer doesn't have anything to do with attending meetings. If I'm asked to attend every meeting I will, but that wasn't what I was asked to do,” he said.

He said Harrisville is the only municipality he serves, but he is confident in his ability to serve the council moving forward.

“It's not uncommon for an attorney who doesn't specialize in municipality law to be a solicitor,” Nash added. “I'm always available. If ever there was a question that has been given to me by council, I've always responded promptly.”

Anschutz said Nash still could be the solicitor next year. She said the council is looking at options as they try to prepare for this group of council members' first and only guaranteed year working together in 2019.

Anschutz took over for David Rager, who resigned in September, and three new council members — Linda Moore, Heather Krenn and Christopher Todd Simmons — replaced those that quit at a different time than Rager in September.

Anschutz said one year isn't much time to work with, so they need to set their goals quickly and move forward. She said the first and primary focus is finishing the budget for the coming year.

“We're really trying to finish that up before the new year,” Anschutz said.

She said discussion on other matters like the solicitor are only talk until they can finish the budget.

“I do want to act on it in the next couple months. Once the new year comes, I want to have a lot of things in place,” Anschutz said. “I think next year, things we're talking about now will come into play.”