Resident notes summer fundraiser was held for Democrats by law firm
A request for proposals for a key post in Towamencin has prompted questions from residents and could lead to a big change in the near future.
Township residents grilled the board recently about a newly posted RFP for the position of township solicitor, and how the board members plan to make their choice.
“This is not a routine administrative shift. The solicitor’s role shapes how the township operates, how decisions are made, and how taxpayer money is spent. A change in this position affects every department, every ongoing matter, and every resident,” said resident Lynn Sweet Reimel.
In November voters elected Democrat candidates Vanessa Gaynor and Courtney Morgan over two Republican challengers, and the duo were sworn in earlier this month alongside fellow Democrats Joyce Snyder and Kofi Osei, giving that party control of the five-member board for the first time since at least the turn of the 21st century. To close out 2025, Snyder asked the outgoing supervisors to authorize staff to seek requests for proposals “from the township professional consultants, including solicitor, engineer, traffic engineer, sewer engineer and municipal planner,” and said she was doing so “as a best practice to better ensure fairness and transparency.”
Since that vote in December, the Request for Proposals page on township’s website has been updated with RFPs for the solicitor and engineer posts, with deadlines of Jan. 30 for interested firms to submit to the township. Those RFPs also drew public comments from several residents during the board’s Jan. 14 meeting, including from Reimel, who told the board what she would like to see in that search.
“The township’s recent RFP for a new municipal solicitor is a major decision, with long-term financial and operational consequences,” Reimel said.
“The solicitor is one of the most expensive professional services the township pays for, and any change in that role directly affects taxpayers,” she said.
The 2026 township budget adopted in December lists a total of $126,000 under the line item for “legal services,” down from $145,000 in 2025, just over $129,000 for 2024 and just under $139,000 for 2023.
“The current solicitor has years of experience with Towamencin’s ordinances, procedures, and ongoing matters. That level of institutional knowledge cannot be replaced quickly or cheaply,” the resident said.
“When a new firm comes in, there is always a transition period. And that transition period requires time, repeated work, and billable hours spent learning the township’s history and current issues. Those costs fall on residents. Continuity is often the more stable and cost-effective option,” Reimel said.
She then said she and other residents should expect any process to change the solicitor to be held openly and based on clear and objective standards.
She referenced an event held in August 2025, a fundraiser for Democrats Gaynor and Morgan held at the Fort Washington offices of law firm Clarke Gallagher Barbiero Amuso and Glassman, the firm hired by the government study commission that rewrote the township charter in 2023 and that a Democrat-led board installed in neighboring Upper Gwynedd when that board went blue in 2020.
“Recently, residents have raised concerns about the appearance of political influence in this process. A law firm that is now applying for the solicitor position previously hosted a public fundraiser for two of the newly elected supervisors,” said Reimel.
“Political fundraising is legal. But when a firm that participated in campaign activities is now seeking a taxpayer funded contract, transparency becomes even more important to avoid any appearance of favoritism or predetermined outcomes,” she said.
Barry Kenyon congratulated the two new supervisors, along with a warning.
“I would remind you that part of your campaigns were for transparency, accountability and financial responsibility. With the RFP for a new solicitor, I think you need to recuse yourself if the law firm which sponsored your fundraising campaign is one of the contestants for that: either you recuse yourselves, or they back out of their proposal,” Kenyon said.
“It’s about governance, transparency, and public confidence. You need to really look, and uphold what you ran on. Because we’ll be watching — the citizens will be watching. If you allow this other law firm, which was also the law firm for the home rule committee, which cost about twice what is normally paid for, then I think there’ll be some repercussions, with people being very angry about bringing in a law firm that’ll cost about twice as much as we’re paying now.”
Rory Kelley, chairman of the township’s environmental advisory commission, congratulated Gaynor and Morgan on their election, and warned about what he would like to see the new board do and avoid.
“Over the years, I’ve heard a lot about ‘flipping Towamencin blue.’ I hope the idea of flipping the township stays on the campaign trail, and I trust that all of you are ready to collaborate and put people over politics,” Kelley said.
“For those of you involved in the effort to stop the sewer sale, let’s not forget the community spirit that united us. We built a strong community before. We really need all five of you to work together for every resident, regardless of who they voted for,” he said.
Towamencin’s supervisors next meet at 7 p.m. on Jan. 28 at the township administration building, 1090 Troxel Road; for more information visit www.Towamencin.org.
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