Adams Township Supervisor Russel Ford, right, pitches the proposed merger between Mars Borough and Adams Township during a public meeting on June 2 at Twelve Oaks Mansion. William Pitts/Butler Eagle

ADAMS TWP — The township board of supervisors cleared one last, unexpected hurdle on the road to letting its residents decide on a proposed municipal merger with the borough of Mars in November.

The board approved a series of three amendments to its previously approved joint merger agreement with Mars, which contains the terms that would govern the merger if voters of both municipalities approve it at the polls on Election Day.

According to Adams Township manager Mike Tylka, the addendum to the merger agreement was required after receiving feedback from the Butler County Bureau of Elections when both the township and borough submitted the original version of the agreement earlier this month.

“The county elections office wanted us to make three minor clarifications,” Tylka said during Monday’s meeting.

The first change is to clarify that in the 2027 election cycle, both Adams Township and Mars Borough residents will be able to vote for the one open township supervisor position, as well as a township auditor and township constable. By the time those positions are sworn in, the merger will have become effective and the township would become known as “Mars Township,” as the ballot question calls for the merger to become consummated by the start of 2028.

The second and third changes are to clarify that for Mars, the positions of mayor, borough council member, tax collector and constable would be eliminated in the event of a merger.

The rest of the already approved merger agreement remains unchanged.

Mars Borough Council approved the same addendum during its most recent meeting held July 20.

Adams Township had already approved the original merger agreement on June 22, and Mars followed on July 6.

The now-revised merger agreement will be sent to the Butler County Bureau of Elections as soon as possible to allow the merger question to be placed on the ballot for November’s general election.

Tylka is confident the question of the Adams Township/Mars merger will proceed to the ballot without any need for further amendments to the merger agreement.

“I clarified with the elections office that this is it,” Tylka said. “Yes, it will be on the ballot.”

Voters in both Adams Township and Mars will have to approve the ballot question in November for the merger to become official.