By Jimmy Fisher

jfisher@timesleader.com

AVOCA — Borough council members approved John Boone as the new council president and Frank Marriggi as vice president at their monthly meeting on July 9.

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The motions come after the passing of president Joseph Satkowski Sr., who died on Saturday, June 13 at the age of 69.

“I don’t know what to say about it,” said Boone about being named council president. “It’s the first time in 31 years that the torch has been passed. I’m humbled and I’m appreciative. Those are big shoes to fill.”

Boone said the council will advertise and hold a special meeting for a new council member in the near future.

Also at the meeting, the council members closed on a loan with Fidelity Bank for $1,350,000 which includes paying off a loan of $125,912.83 with PNC Bank. The rest of the money will go into a Money Market account with Fidelity Bank.

The council also deposited $8,927.33 into a church equipment account. That money came from the sale of items, such as furniture, from the former Ss. Peter and Paul Church. The church building was purchased by the borough council for $144,000 and torn down in early 2014 for the purpose of constructing a new borough building.

In other business, the council members:

• Made a motion to accept a Local Share Account (LSA) grant award of $300,000 towards a new borough building.

• Awarded the following borough building construction bids: general construction to Spotts Brothers for $617,800, plumbing construction to L.H. Reed and Sons for $29,622; heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) construction to Aircon Service Co. for $65,700 and electrical construction to Spotts Brothers for $106,700.

• Renewed the borough’s workman’s compensation insurance policy at an annual premium of $21,253 to run from Aug. 1, 2015 until July 31, 2016.

The next borough council meeting will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 13 at the borough building, 752 Main St.

Reach Jimmy Fisher at 570-704-3972 or on Twitter @SD_JimmyFisher