Douglas Brown, Township Manager

Hired by the Board of Supervisors, the Township Manager keeps Antis Township running. The Manager oversees township services, manages community relations, keeps the supervisors informed, creates the township budget, and much more. The Township Manager is appointed by and serves at the pleasure of the Board of Supervisors.

Overview

The position of Township Manager was created by Ordinance Number 7-2000 on October 6, 2000. Douglas Brown was named manager in Autumn 2021, replacing interim manager John Frederick. (Longtime manager Lucas L. Martsolf moved onto Cranberry Township in Butler County in late 2020.) The township manager is the Chief Executive Officer and is responsible for the operation of the township government. The Manager has the responsibility of administering the policies of the Board. He is responsible for all day-to-day operations of each department providing service to the township. The Manager is responsible for preparing the annual budget, administering the personnel system, enforcing the various ordinances of the Township and negotiating contracts.

Contact

If you would like to speak with the Township Manager directly, please call the Municipal Office during regular business hours:

Monday through Friday
8:00am to 4:30pm
Douglas Brown, Township Manager
Antis Township Municipal Building
909 North Second Street
Bellwood, PA 16617
Phone: (814) 742-7361
Fax: (814) 742-9820

The Board-Manager Form of Government: Answers to Your Questions (as taken from the ICMA publication of the same title)

FAQ

Managers serve at the pleasure of the board or governing body. They can be fired by a majority of the board, consistent with local laws, ordinances, or employment agreements they may have with the board. Control is always in the hands of the elected representatives of the people.

All managers belonging to ICMA are bound by its Code of Ethics, which states that every member of the Association shall refrain from participation in the election of the members of the employing legislative body, and from all partisan political activities which would impair performance as a professional administrator.

No. Local residence should not be required in the appointment of a manager. Managers are professionals who might serve several communities during their careers, bringing extensive experience coordinating public services and applying management techniques to a community.

The manager makes policy recommendations to the board, but the board may or may not adopt them and may change or modify them. The manager is bound by whatever action the board takes.

No. One of its most attractive features is that it is adaptable to local conditions and preferences. For example, some communities have boards that are elected at large while other councils are elected by district. Some local governments have mayors who are elected by the voters at large; others are elected by their colleagues on the board.

The vacancy is usually announced in advertisements, and managers, assistants, and others who are interested apply directly to the board. The board conducts a search for candidates, often by inviting managers in other places to apply if they are interested. Further information is available in the handbook Recruitment Guidelines for Selecting a Local Government Administrator, published by ICMA.

Over 100 million.

Unlimited citizen participation is encouraged by whatever means the citizens decide to utilize, including joining citizen groups, serving on advisory boards and commissions, attending board meetings, participating in hearings, or serving on the board. With political power concentrated in the board instead of in one elected official, more citizens have an opportunity to be elected to a position with significant influence over the future of their community.

In Board-manager government, Board members are the leaders and policy makers in the community elected to represent various segments of the community and to concentrate on policy issues that are responsive to citizens’ needs and wishes. The manager is appointed by the Board to carry out policy and ensure that the entire community is being served. If the manager is not responsive to the Board’s wishes, the board has authority to terminate the manager at any time. In that sense, a manager’s responsiveness is tested daily.

Yes, the National Civic League, a nonpartisan citizens organization founded in 1894. Its purpose is to serve as a clearinghouse for information on methods of improving state and local government; to encourage citizen participation in state and local government; and to provide guides, model charters, and laws on specific subjects. The League’s Model City Charter, now in its seventh edition, has endorsed council-manager government since 1915.

No. In fact, it is not restricted to cities. It is used by counties too. Over 3,000 local governments operate under this plan. They vary greatly in size and characteristics, including independent cities, center cities, suburbs, and hundreds of counties. In fact, many counties adopt some kind of professional management structure each year, becoming the fastest growth area for some form of board-manager government.

The Code specifies 12 ethical principles of personal and professional conduct, including total dedication to the cause of good government. ICMA members believe in the effectiveness of representative democracy and the value of government services provided to all citizens in a community. They are committed to standards of honesty and integrity more vigorous than those required by the law. Contact ICMA for a copy of the Code of Ethics.

Since 1914, ICMA has been the professional organization for appointed chief management executives in local government. Its goals include strengthening the quality of urban government through professional management and development and disseminating new concepts and approaches to management through a wide range of information services, training programs, and publications. For further information on items referenced in this brochure, contact ICMA’s Office of Member Services, (202)289-4262.

The Board-manager plan is the system of local government that combines the strong political leadership of elected officials in the form of a Board of Supervisors, with the strong managerial experience of an appointed local government manager. The plan establishes a representative system where all power is concentrated in the elected Board as a whole and where the Board hires a professionally trained manager to oversee the delivery of public services.

Local governments have found that overall costs have actually been reduced with competent management. Savings may be in the form of reduced operating costs, increased efficiency and productivity, improved revenue collection, or effective use of technology.

The Board is the legislative body; its members are the community’s decision makers. Power is centralized in the elected board, which approves the budget and determines the tax rate, for example.  The board also focuses on the community’s goals, major projects, and such long-term considerations as community growth, land use development, capital improvement plans, capital financing and strategic planning, rather than the administrative details. It hires a professional manager to carry out the administrative responsibilities and supervises the manager’s performance.

The plan is an American concept. The first position legally defining, by ordinance, the broad authority and responsibility associated with today’s local government manager was in Staunton, Virginia, in 1908. Sumter, South Carolina, was the first city to adopt a charter incorporating the basic principles of council-manager government in 1912. Westmount, Quebec, introduced the plan to Canada in 1913. The first large city to adopt the plan was Dayton, Ohio, in 1914. The first counties to adopt it in the 1930s were Arlington County, Virginia, and Durham County and Robeson County, North Carolina.

Since its establishment, it has become the most popular form of government in the United States in communities of 25,000 or more population. It is popular for local governments in such countries as Canada, Australia, Netherlands, New Zealand, United Kingdom, and West Germany. For more than 80 years, board-manager government has shown durability and flexibility in responding to the changing needs of citizens and their communities.

The manager is hired to serve the board and the community and to bring to the local government the benefits of training and experience in administering local government projects and programs on behalf of the governing body. The manager prepares a recommended budget for the board’s consideration; recruits, hires, and supervises the government’s staff; serves as the council’s chief adviser; and carries out the board’s policies. Board members and citizens count on the manager to provide complete and objective information, pros and cons of alternatives, and long-term consequences. Managers formed a professional association, ICMA, in 1914 to help share expertise and experiences in local government management to best serve their communities.

Earnings of managers depend on their educational background and experience, the size and complexity of the local government employing them and the economic conditions of the region where communities are located. The board sets the manager’s salary. Detailed information is compiled annually by ICMA and is available on request.

Data compiled by ICMA indicate that 77 percent of those appointed to manager positions in recent years have come directly from other governmental positions, and 63 percent of the managers surveyed have a master’s degree.