Eldred Township supervisors got an earful last week about plans for the community center.

Donna Deihl, the volunteer manager of the Kunkletown Thrift Store, told the supervisors that she was told by supervisor Blaine Silfies that she probably would be losing the back two modulars that she uses for storage. He said the space is needed by the food pantry. She said she was also told that the food pantry wants to put up a garage for its equipment.

“This was never discussed at a community center meeting, and needless to say I’m very upset,” Deihl said. “Supervisor Silfies should have no say or vote on this project. His niece is the head of the pantry. That’s a major conflict of interest.”

Deihl asked that the supervisors consider appointing someone else to be the liaison.

Deihl said she and Karena Thek, the manager of the West End Food Pantry, get along well. Her problem isn’t with Thek. It’s with Silfies.

Deihl said he was dismissive toward her and offensive.

When she expressed how important the modular space is to the thrift shop, “Supervisor Silfies said they are township property and he can do what he wants with them,” Deihl said and included that he said he could just close the store and called the merchandise junk.

“Well, we sell a lot of ‘junk’ for $1 or $2. Today, we made $2,013.80 selling ‘junk’,” Deihl said. “Last year, the store made $100,000, and we were closed for a month.”

Income from the thrift store goes back to the township.

“All us volunteers could walk away - that’s not a threat, please don’t think it is - but is the township ready to lose $100,000 a year?” she said.

Silfies said he meant that whoever the supervisors are in the future, they could choose to close the store.

“I never threatened to close the store,” he said.

Gary Hoffman, the chairman of the supervisors, said he would like to have a public workshop with the thrift store and food pantry personnel to put ideas on the table so everyone knows about them. He wants everyone involved to know what each facility needs.

Hoffman said the food pantry does want to expand the kitchen, and read a description of the plans from the zoning office response. “The proposed expansion of the commercial kitchen includes the following: installation of double doors at one end of the building, removal of an existing modular storage pod, and the construction of a 24- by 32- by 14-foot accessory garage where the storage pod was situated.”

“That’s it. We have no plans. We have no drawings. We have no approvals. We have no application,” he said.

The township did approve applying for a grant for an emergency generator for the municipal building, and approved providing a letter of support to the West End Food Pantry. The food pantry intends to apply for a Local Shares Account grant.

“Let me reiterate, we are not approving any kind of construction or anything like that,” Hoffman said.

The letter just shows support, because the food pantry will need funding in order to do any kind of construction, he said.