Salisbury Township Manager Randy Soriano has resigned.

The Salisbury Township Board of Commissioners accepted Soriano’s resignation by a unanimous 5-0 vote with no discussion at the March 23 township meeting.

Soriano was township manager for eight years and seven months.

The reason stated at the meeting for Soriano’s resignation is that he requested early retirement, which by their vote commissioners granted.

The motion to bring the resignation to a vote was made by Commissioner James Seagreaves and seconded by Commissioner Joanne Ackerman.

Soriano has been absent from his township manager duties since the Dec. 22, 2016 commissioners’ meeting with his last public appearance as a township official at the Dec. 8, 2016 township meeting.

Salisbury Township Assistant Manager-Director of Finance Cathy Bonaskiewich has been acting township manager since the Dec. 22, 2016 meeting.

Township commissioners have the option to advertise the township manager position and request applications be submitted for the post.

According to a township source, the board of commissioners is not required to advertise the township manager position. The board can choose from a person already working in the administration and promote from within.

Soriano, 59, a heart transplant recipient, was also on leave from June 2015 until June 2016 when he resumed his duties as township manager and continued until December 2016.

During Soriano’s previous absence, Bonaskiewich also served as acting manager.

Soriano accumulated years of duty as borough manager in Fountain Hill and as township manager in Salisbury, which together totaled 29 years. With time accumulated in both municipalities, Soriano would have been eligible for retirement at age 60.

As Soriano prepared the 2017 township budget, there was discussion of adding the duties of human resources director to that of assistant manager and hiring a finance manager. No further discussion took place at public meetings in 2017 concerning the administrative reorganization proposal.

Discussion of township administration management structure changes could occur at an upcoming township workshop.

Reached by telephone at his home March 26, Township Board of Commissioners President James A. Brown told a reporter for The Press, “I personally would like to call Randy and thank him for the outstanding job he did while he was at Salisbury.”

Soriano started his duties as Salisbury township manager in September 2008. He was Fountain Hill borough manager for 22 years, eight months, from February 1986 until September 2008.

He was a legislative aide-clerk for Lehigh County for one year, eight months, from June 1984 to January 1986.

Soriano received a master’s degree in public administration from Lehigh University in 1983 and a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from Villanova University in 1980. He graduated from William Allen High School.

The Salisbury Township manager is responsible for the administration and supervision of township departments, including police, public works, finance, utilities, planning and zoning, code enforcement, recreation, data processing and human resources.

The manager implements policies as mandated by the township board of commissioners.

Township commissioners next meet 7 p.m. April 6.