Governor’s Award for Local Government Excellence

Each year, the Governor’s Award for Local Government Excellence recognizes local governments and officials that have found creative ways to improve their communities. To view the Application Guidelines and Apply, click here. The Governor's Award for Local Government Excellence is a celebration of successful local government initiatives in many areas. In total, eight local government leaders and eight communities across the state received awards that were presented at the 16th Annual award ceremony on Tuesday, April 17, 2012 at the state Capitol in Harrisburg.

Learn more about the 2012 award winners and for regional press releases, please click here.  

“Serving as local government officials you face important issues everyday and are tasked with developing solutions,”
Lt. Gov. Cawley said at the 16th Annual Governor’s Award for Local Government Excellence. “Today we celebrate and recognize your hard work; Pennsylvania communities are fortunate to have dedicated individuals whose commitment helps create better places to live and work.”

INNOVATIVE COMMUNITY/GOVERNMENTAL INITIATIVES

  • Neshannock Township School District and Neshannock Township 
    The Neshannock Township School District and Neshannock Township have had a community partnership since 2006. Through their partnership, they have provided safety programs to the community, computer classes to the senior citizens, and the development of the state of the art safety and emergency planning for the township, school district and the county.
     

INTERGOVERNMENTAL COOPERATION

  • Blair County Tax Collection Bureau
    Act 32 of 2008 provided the framework for municipalities and school districts to collaborate and select a more efficient method of collecting earned income tax starting January 1, 2012. The Blair County Tax Collection Committee, consisting of seven school districts and thirty-one municipalities, dedicated their time and effort to establishing and implementing a long-term solution that best served the needs of employers, taxpayers and the taxing bodies with an efficient and user friendly intergovernmental arrangement for tax collection.

INNOVATIVE PLANNING AND SOUND LAND USE PRACTICES

  • Char-West Council of Governments 
    After decades of dramatic change, McKees Rocks Borough, Stowe Township and Neville Township have planned their futures by transforming their obstacles into opportunities. Economic decline has limited each community's ability to maintain streets, sewers, gateways, parks and other civic spaces. The Char-West Multi-Municipal Comprehensive Plan, developed collaboratively among the communities and the Char-West COG, provides a blueprint for the rediscovery of their greatest assets.

INNOVATIVE PLANNING AND SOUND LAND USE PRACTICES

  • Central Carbon County Regional Comprehensive Plan Committee 
    The Central Carbon County Regional Comprehensive Plan Committee adopted a multi-municipal comprehensive plan with East Penn Township, Franklin Township, Lehighton Borough, Mahoning Township, Weissport Borough. This plan identified critical regional issues early in the planning process and organized the plan around these issues rather than containing separate discussions on background data analysis and planning elements. The need for economic development and job creation, improving area roads and bridges, improving the sense of community, preserving natural resources, and providing community facilities and services clearly surfaced as priorities during the public participation process and were used as the foundation and framework for the plan. Traditional planning elements, such as plans for natural resources, land use, housing, economic development, transportation, water resources, and community facilities were incorporated into the focus areas where appropriate.

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

  • City of Philadelphia
    In September 2010, the City of Philadelphia released “SERVE Philadelphia: a Blueprint for Promoting Service as a Strategy for Impacting Challenges and Strengthening Communities”.Since the launch of www.SERVEPhiladelphia.com in January 2011, almost 40,000 citizens have visited the site, with many returning on a regular basis. This has translated into thousands of volunteers engaged across the city in a wide range of important activities, including building community gardens, delivering meals to home-bound seniors, supporting neighborhood health fairs, increasing recycling efforts and coaching young people to graduate from high school and succeed in college.

FISCAL ACCOUNTABILITY AND BEST MANAGEMENT PRACTICES

  • Borough of Lansdale
    Over a two year period, the Borough of Lansdale studied its system of fiscal and internal controls and implemented changes that will safeguard the interests of all taxpayers. By improving its system of internal controls, the borough has created a reliable and creditable process that will enhance the financial and policy decision making process for elected officials, management and staff.

BUILDING COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS

  • Lower Swatara Township
    Over the last few decades, the area of Lower Swatara Township that encompasses the Penn State University's Harrisburg Campus, Harrisburg International Airport, Capital Business Center, and Jednota Estates has experienced an evolution of uncoordinated, varied development and infrastructure improvements. The varied properties and uses have generated an equally varied pattern of traffic types, origins, and destinations that are often incompatible and counterproductive to the economic development of this area. In 2002, the Lower Swatara Township Commissioners addressed these challenges by creating a stakeholders group to encourage all parties to work together to create a Transportation Improvement Study that would be most beneficial to all. The Township played an instrumental role in organizing the effort and ensuring that the process continued to move forward through to project completion.

BUILDING COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS

  • Triple Divide Watershed Coalition
    The nine Potter County Public Water Supplies, in partnership with numerous county agencies and regional organizations, have formed the Triple Divide Watershed Coalition. The Coalition's purpose is to work collaboratively to identify efficiencies, lower operational costs, and protect public drinking water resources. Potter County is the first Pennsylvania County to have an approved “Source Water Protection Plan” for all public water supplies in the county. The coalition is really an effort to implement those plans and protect the water resources of this Headwaters Region. Potter County is home to the only triple divide watershed east of the Mississippi and it is where the Allegheny, Susquehanna, and Genesee Rivers begin. The coalition was formed in part through a Water Resources Education Network Grant, and meets regularly.

BUILDING COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS

  • Pennsylvania Wilds Planning Team
    In 2006, leaders from 12 rural PA counties signed a ground-breaking Intergovernmental Cooperative Agreement – the largest geographically of its kind in PA – vowing to work together with the Commonwealth and other partners to grow their region's nature and heritage tourism industry in order to create jobs, inspire stewardship and improve quality of life. This agreement formed the PA Wilds Planning Team. The Planning Team has since become a critical component of the PA Wilds Initiative with more than 50 stakeholders. The group has accomplished many things, most notably forging partnerships to create real collaboration across municipal boundaries; working together to secure regional funding from a variety of sources to help local communities with tourism development; promoting responsible planning to local communities; creating the PA Wilds Design Guide for Community Character Stewardship; and engaging in business outreach by partnering and supporting the PA Wilds Small Business Ombudsman project.

For photos of the award winners, please click here.

The Governor’s Center for Local Government Services honors the following individuals for outstanding service to their communities and their local government associations. For photos of the recipients, please click here. 

PSATS           The Honorable Brian McGrath, Township Supervisor, Millcreek Township, Erie County
In Erie County, Millcreek Township Supervisor Brian McGrath was recognized for his dedicated service. During his 30-year tenure in public service, McGrath has climbed the ranks now serving as administrator of streets, planning, and recreation. In his short time serving as supervisor, McGrath helped create a local ambulance service and also took charge turning a Superfund dump site into a golf course. McGrath also serves on the executive board of the Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors and was awarded with the President’s Leadership Award, the group’s highest honor.
 

PACOG            Mr. James C. Steff, Executive Director Centre Region COG
Mr. James C. Steff served as executive director of the Centre Region Council of Governments (COG) for over 25 years. Steff has been instrumental in the growth and development of the COG ensuring cost-effective and high quality public services are offered to the area. His leadership and focus on intergovernmental cooperation have resulted in the Centre Region COG acting as an example of how local governments can work together successfully and save tax payers money. Steff also serves as president of the Pennsylvania Association of Councils of Governments.
 

PSATC            The Honorable Robert Spandler, Commissioner Swatara Township, Dauphin County
In Dauphin County, the Hon. Robert Spandler was recognized for his dedicated service as commissioner of Swatara Township. A lifelong township resident, Spandler has served as the township commissioner for six years. He began his public service career as a volunteer firefighter in the area for 20 years. Due to his leadership skills, Mr. Spandler has been appointed to numerous committees including the Chesapeake Bay Commission’s Local Government Advisory Committee and serves as president of the Pennsylvania State Association of Township Commissioners.
 

PLCM              The Honorable Richard Vilello, Mayor City of Lock Haven, Clinton County
The Hon. Richard Vilello is currently serving his fourth term as mayor of Lock Haven, Clinton County. He was elected in 1999 after two years on city council. Vilello continues to serve on numerous local, county, and state boards including legislative co-chair for the Pennsylvania League or Cities and Municipalities, the State Planning Board, and the Pennsylvania Rural Partners. He has provided his expertise to local advisory boards concerned with planning, zoning, and community and economic development.
 

PSAB              The Honorable John Dorin, Mayor Montoursville Borough, Lycoming County
Montoursville Borough Mayor John Dorin has been serving the public for 34 years, including 30 years as mayor and four years on borough council. While serving as mayor, Dorin continues to participate in regional and statewide organizations, including as president of the Lycoming and Sullivan counties Borough’s Association for 10 years; president of the Pennsylvania State Association of Boroughs in 2003 and currently as a member of that association’s Board of Directors.

APA                Mr. Alexander J. Graziani, Manager City of Latrobe, Westmoreland County
Alex Graziani was recognized for his services as executive director of the Smart Growth Partnership of Westmoreland County. The organization works to support community development in the county. Graziani served as the partnership’s director for 10 years before becoming Latrobe’s city manager last August. Graziani has served on the Pa Chapter of APA Board of Directors, and most recently as president.

PMAA              Mr. Michael Schober, Secretary-Treasurer Columbia Municipal Authority, Lancaster County
In Lancaster County, Michael Schober was recognized for his services as the secretary and treasurer for the Columbia Municipal Authority. Schober serves on the executive committee and is the president of the Pennsylvania Municipal Authority Association. Most recently, Schober has been appointed to serve on the Governor’s Local Government Advisory Commission.

CCAP              The Honorable Pam Tokar-Ickes, Commissioner Somerset County
Somerset County Commissioner Pam Tokar-Ickes was recognized for her years of public services to the county. Tokar-Ickes is a longtime member of the County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania (CCAP) serving on the Human Services Committee. Currently, she is working on the governor’s new block grant proposal with members of CCAP and the legislature to strengthen local communities.

The Governor's Center for Local Government Services in partnership with the below organizations, sponsors the Excellence in Local Government Awards Program to honor local governments and officials who serve their communities and improve their quality of life.

  • Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors
  • Pennsylvania State Association of Boroughs
  • Pennsylvania Association of Councils of Governments
  • PA Chapter of American Planning Association
  • Pennsylvania State Association of Township Commissioners
  • Pennsylvania Municipal Authorities Association
  • Pennsylvania League of Cities and Municipalities
  • County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania