SHARON — Sharon Sanitary Authority President Robert Beach on Wednesday announced his immediate resignation from the board in an e-mail to authority and city officials.

Beach said he decided to step down for several reasons.

It’s been disheartening in recent months to see people coming to the authority with personal hardships struggling to set up payment plans for their back sewer bills “despite very little income” while landlords who are “stalwart members of the community don’t pay a dime,” Beach said.

Authority Solicitor William J. Madden advised the board not to release a list of the large delinquent accounts – officials have said about 20 landlords owe several hundred thousand dollars from the past two decades – because it could be seen as a violation of fair debt-collection laws.

The Herald has appealed the authority’s written denial to review those records through the Pennsylvania Office of Open Records and should have a ruling by the end of July. Beach said he wasn’t comfortable with hiding the names of the scofflaw landlords and mentioned alleged “sweet deals” made with some of them by the previous administration.

“I’ve got no qualms with the present administration, but prior administrations really hurt the citizens of Sharon,” Beach said.

Beach also said that the time involved in heading the authority was too much of a commitment with his work as chief executive officer of The Arc of Mercer County which provides services and advocacy for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Beach said he’s headed the agency for 30 years and isn’t used to running an entity where everyone knows everyone. Those relationships can make decisions unpopular and take away the ability to properly manage the plant and authority, Beach said, declining to name anyone individually or any specific incidents.

“I’m not a politician,” Beach said. “I always like being open.”

Authority and city council Vice President Frank Connelly Wednesday afternoon said he was “surprised and saddened” to hear Beach was quitting.

Connelly said he thought Beach had done a “marvelous job” heading the fairly new authority and said it was great working with Beach.

The authority was formed in summer 2007 to take sewer matters out of the hands of city employees and council. It was done at the county’s request when commissioners agreed to back bonds for the new $45 million wastewater treatment plant that must be built to meet Environmental Protection Agency requirements, Connelly said.

At a meeting last summer, Beach said that when they were appointed to the authority members were told they’d be needed “five minutes a month” and it quickly turned into hours upon hours of work.

While there is definitely a lot more work involved than they’d initially thought, Connelly said Beach got things “well under way” and his leadership will be missed.

Connelly said Beach helped move the authority in a positive direction.

“I thank him for his diligence,” Connelly said. “I’ll miss his humor and his wisdom.”

Connelly will assume the president’s duties until a new leader is elected.

To fill Beach’s seat, the authority will recommend a candidate to council, who will vote on the appointment. Mercer County Commissioners must sign off on the authority members as a condition of backing the bond for the sewer plant.

When council earlier this year appointed Fred Hoffman to fill County Commissioner Brian Beader’s former seat on the authority, county commissioners rejected the appointment.

Council in the past has had problems filling empty seats on a number of boards.

Council President Mike Donato said he realizes the sewer authority isn’t necessarily the most fun of the city’s committees on which to serve.

People “probably won’t be lining up” to fill the position, he said.

“We’ll just have to wait and see,” Donato said. “We’ll try to fill it with the best person and hopefully as soon as we can.”

Like Connelly, Donato said he didn’t know about Beach’s resignation until The Herald called and he wasn’t aware if other officials knew either. Donato said he had not talked to Beach.

Beach’s term was to be up in July 2010.

The next authority meeting is set for July 9 and council meets the following Thursday.