Connoquenessing Township takes action against owner of mobile home park with recurring water issues
CONNOQUENESSING TWP — As Rolling Valley Estates residents facing their third well water issue in a year, township officials are working to find ways to hold its operator, Stackhouse Management, accountable.
Connoquenessing Township supervisors discussed what is being done and took action of their own against the property owners during a meeting Wednesday evening, Sept. 2.
Residents have been without potable water since Aug. 24 and are reporting brown and discolored discharge.
“We are seeing what you guys are going through. We empathize. It’s not right and we’re not OK with it. We’re here to help you and advocate for you and I want you to know that we’re doing a lot to address all of the issues, not just the clean water problem,” Supervisor Angela Fleeger said at the meeting.
Some residents of the mobile home park came to Wednesday’s meeting to see what the township was doing about the issues and to share their experiences.
One Rolling Valley resident, Robert Tekac, expressed concerns over the water as well as how Stackhouse Management bills its tenants.
“Three months ago, they supposedly put on satellite water tracking so they can give us an exact amount of well water that we use. The last three months, the bill has been the exact same thing. They get estimated and that’s it,” he said.
He thanked the board for trying to resolve the situation as he said he struggles to convince himself that his water is safe to use.
“I can’t even give my dogs that water. I don’t even want to take a shower, because you feel like crap after you get out. Like you’re not clean. The water is still brown no matter what you do,” he said.
Dawna VanTine, another resident, claimed she feels a burning sensation when she uses the water at her mobile home.
“When I wash dishes now, when I’m done, my arms and my hands feel like they’re burning. And it’s not because I’m using a lot of water. It’s because the chemicals they use is burning our skin. I don’t even like taking a shower because my head hurts afterward,” she said.
She said she takes care of her three grandchildren, who are also subjected to the water issues at the park. She also said she had not been provided bottled water since the issue started.
Resident Dixie Heath said her concerns go even deeper than the water issues plaguing the community.
“We love the help, but when you guys bill them, they bill us,” she sad. “It goes onto our water bill. It goes onto our sewer bill or you’re in violation for X, Y and Z.”
Fleeger gave a statement on behalf of the township later in the meeting, saying the township submitted a formal complaint to the state Department of Environmental Protection on Monday. She said the township has had further communication with the DEP urging a full review of the situation and looking for permanent solutions.
“We need to stop treating this as a series of isolated incidents and start looking for a permanent solution,” Fleeger said.
She said she reached out to Stackhouse Management personally and did not receive any response, which she called consistent with resident experiences.
She said the township contacted the state attorney general’s office, state Rep. Aaron Bernstine, R-8th, and state Sen. Scott Hutchinson, R-21st, looking for solutions. A statement from Bernstine’s office was read aloud during the meeting.
“As a board, we are taking this with the utmost seriousness. We are frustrated for the residents in Rolling Valley Estates and we are not willing to simply accept another temporary fix and wait for the next failure,” Fleeger said.
The township also took its own action regarding the issue by voting unanimously for solicitor Andrew Menchyk to draft a formal violation notice to Stackhouse Management for violating an ordinance pertaining to water supply in mobile home parks. He said the ordinance requires water that corresponds to the DEP’s standards for potable water.
“The first step through the township is to send a formal violation notice to the owner of the mobile home park. If there is not compliance, then the township has its own ability to seek legal action, which includes, among other things, fines,” he said.
Menchyk said the notice has to give Stackhouse Management a reasonable time to address the violation, but due to the severity of concerns, its deadline would be “sooner than 30 days.” He said the township would be able to fine $500 per day until the situation is resolved.
The next Connoquenessing Township Board of Supervisors meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 7.
