![]() “We need electricians, plumbers and carpenters to build this,” he said. “We have to work more with our housing authority and see what we can do to promote better and affordable housing for seniors.”Īhner said the county should partner more with Carbon Career and Technical Institute. “The cost of rent is unaffordable not only to our seniors but also to our young families just starting out with low paying jobs,” he said. Nothstein said affordable housing for seniors is one of the biggest problems currently facing the county. If we don’t communicate, the taxpayers are going to pay.” We need to sit with every row officer and department head and get a vision of where this county will be two years from now and five years from now. “The county borrowed $5.5 million from last year’s budget to balance this year’s budget. “The number one priority is fiscal responsibility,” Sofranko said. Nothstein, meanwhile, said the county’s responsibility is to retain and train employees who are providing services to the public. Taking advantage of grant writing, Schnaiter said, would be one of his top priorities. “In the sheriff’s department it is costing us $15,000 to train someone and that is money we could use to pay them to stay.” “There are grants available for salaries that we can give bonuses for and we never do that,” Ahner said. We want to stop being the training field for other counties who are paying their employees much better.”Īhner said his top three priorities if elected would be improving salaries, working on needs and not wants, and using grants more often. ![]() “If we narrow that down a little bit, that will help. “There are job descriptions that need changed,” he said. ![]() Taking care of employees, Schnaiter said, should be a top priority. We do have enough money in this budget to pay salaries that are generous. “We had people that didn’t get a raise that should be and that is where this hostility comes from. If we can do that, we can take care of the employees and their families and all of the taxpayers.”Īhner, an incumbent commissioner, said refining county employee job descriptions will lead to better pay. “Fiscal responsibility is how you handle the money they taxpayers have entrusted you with. “A lot of people say fiscal responsibility is not spending money or cutting money,” Sofranko said. Sofranko, current Jim Thorpe mayor, said the county must focus on fiscal responsibility. “Our biggest problem right now is employee morale,” Nothstein said, “There is a lack of trust in the commissioners’ office due to salary board issues, followed greatly by the budget, which is really in shambles.” Nothstein, who is the current commissioner chairman and seeking his seventh term in office, said the number one goal right now is retention and recruitment of valued employees. ![]() Panelists included Marta Gouger, Times News editor Marlyn Kissner, vice president membership and community relations for the Pocono Mountain Visitors Bureau and Ben Stemrich, BRCTV13 reporter and anchor. The two Republicans on the ticket, Wayne Nothstein and Michael Sofranko, joined Democrats Rocky Ahner and Jeff Schnaiter at the Lehighton American Legion in an event sponsored by BRC13 and the Lehighton 912 Project. The four candidates vying for Carbon County Commissioner answered questions Monday night on a variety of topics including county employee salaries, blight and finding a balance between tourism and the quality of life of local residents in a debate ahead of next week’s general election. ![]()
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