Deputy clerk yet to be hired: Uniontown hires city clerk

Uniontown hired a new clerk Jan. 27, one of the last positions to be replaced after several city staff members departed at the end of last year.

Melani Roach of Genesee will now work at least 20 hours a week, if not more, as part-time clerk for the town.

“She’s very well experienced,” said Uniontown mayor Joyce Mayer. Roach has worked in accounting for other companies, but she has not yet worked as a municipal clerk, the mayor said.

Acting clerk Patty Kelly, the mayor’s daughter, has been performing clerk duties for the town since the resignation of the town’s full-time clerk, Cheryl Waller, in November.

The town must still hire a deputy clerk to work about six hours a week. Roach was scheduled to be introduced to the town council at its council meeting Feb. 1. She was selected from among 10 final applicants. The town received more than 25 applications for the position.

In the midst of a heated struggle over balancing the 2011 budget, city clerk/treasurer Waller and temporary deputy clerk Kelly both resigned in December. Kelly later came back at the invitation of the council.

Uniontown police officer, David Lehmitz, who served the town for more than 15 years, resigned Nov. 30. The town’s other part-time officer also left in the same month because of a training complication with the Police Academy.

The town last month hired a new police officer, Casey Green of Moscow. Green patrols the town part-time. He works as a full-time officer for the City of Moscow.

Because of the budget crisis, the town cut back their 2011 budget. They reduced the full-time clerk position to part-time and reduced the two part-time police officer positions to one part-time police officer position.

Those changes were made after the resignations of both Waller and officer Lehmitz.