William Dunsmuir 
July 27, 1996 
William D. Dunsmuir Of Pennsauken, N.j., Died Saturday At Home.

Andrew Gorto 
July 25, 1996 
Andrew Frances Gorto, 77, Of Parrish Street, Dallas, Died Thursday In The 
Wilkes-barre General Hospital.

By MARK GUYDISH and JENNIFER LEARN; Times Leader Staff Writer
 Sunday, July 28, 1996 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 3 





HAZLETON -- Does this mean council members have to start wearing gauntlets
to throw down? &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 During Monday's work session council member John Tarone repeated his belief
that some debates about how government should work have to be settled by a
judge. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Tarone contends the state laws controlling Hazleton's form of government
are vague and have not been adequately tested in court. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 While discussing whether council can force the mayor to fill department
head positions, Tarone asked what alternative there would be to settle the
dispute outside a court ruling. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "If we don't go to court to resolve it, would the other option be a duel,
with weapons to be chosen by the challenger?" Tarone quipped. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Council member jokes about his stipend &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Jake Ripa III joked last week about how much time he spends earning his
$3,850 per year as a council member. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "I think I'm going to call the federal government and tell them the city is
in violation of the minimum wage law," Ripa said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The federal minimum wage is $4.25 per hour, though Congress is considering
raising it. Council holds 46 scheduled meetings and work sessions, plus
occasional special meetings, during the year. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 At $3,850 a year, a council member would have to work 906 hours -- nearly
20 hours for every scheduled meeting -- to earn minimum wage. Or he would have
to do council work over 17 hours per week all year, or work 40 hours a week
for 22 weeks. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Last-minute bid spawns mystery &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 At Thursday's meeting, council continued its new practice of asking a
member of the audience to observe the opening of bids to assure the public
that the price read upon opening is the price written. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Council convinced John Molendini to watch over council clerk Joan
Rovinsky's shoulder while Rovinsky opened the bids. But Molendini, one of
council's most persistent and vocal watchdogs, was not immune to a quick jab. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "You sure you have the right glasses on, John?" one council member quipped. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 On a more serious note, council puzzled over a sealed bid discovered after
the meeting. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Council had started the meeting promptly at 7 p.m. by opening bids for a
street project. The bids had to be turned in by 7. Council had only two bids
to open. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Shortly after adjourning council discovered a third bid, from Slusser
Brothers Inc., Hazleton. The envelope was stuffed in the mail slot of the
council clerk's office door, which was locked before the meeting. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Council briefly debated whether the bid should be opened, but Tarone
squashed the idea, insisting it had to be returned. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "And what do you want to bet it's the low bid," Tarone said, only
half-joking. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Executive session faces challenge &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Tri-County United Taxpayers spokesman Mark Johnson questions the legality
of a July 15 executive session held to present information about the costs of
replacing bricks at the Hazleton Area Career Center. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Hazleton Area School District Business Manager/Board Secretary Donald Boyer
said he "believes the law allows" informational executive sessions, but
Johnson said he believes the information should have been presented in public. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Johnson has asked his lawyer to come up with an opinion on the issue. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 A similar question about executive sessions for information came up last
October when the School Board met behind closed doors to get information about
Hazle Elementary School renovation bids. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 At that time, Pennsylvania Newspaper Publishers Association legal
spokeswoman Theresa Vitzthum said the informational executive session violated
the state Open Meetings Law, or Sunshine Act. Vitzthum said information about
the cost of repairing a building is public information and should not be
discussed behind closed doors. There is no exception for informational
meetings, she said. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Age Of Chivalry Makes Inroads Into Hazleton City Council