Parkesburg Today: February 21, 2011 Borough Council Meeting Notes

BOROUGH OF PARKESBURG

COUNCIL MEETING AGENDA

February 21, 2011

7:00 P.M.

Call to Order. .............................................................................................. Kathleen Rick

President Mel Keen was absent.

Pledge of Allegiance

Roll Call

Joe Dynesko was also absent

Approval of Agenda

Move the police chief’s report, move eagles scout commendation to next month. No other changes

Review and Approval of Minutes of the January 17, 2011 Regular Council Meeting and the

Minutes of the February 7, 2011 Committee Meeting

The minutes were approved

Treasurer’s Report

Approval of Bills

Bill approved for payment

Public Comments (Agenda Items Only)

Presentation:

• Commendation to Eagle Scout Nick Canzoneri for Minch Park Project

• MS4 Stormwater Managment Information

Jim Thomas. Every year the b is required to turn a report in to the epa regarding storm water treatment in the B. MS4 (Municiple Separate Storm Water Sewers).

Department Reports:

Police Chief’s Report. ....................................................................... Brian Sheller

534 incidents and assignments, 23,876 in receipts.

Chief Sheller talking about his appointment to the 2nd VP of Chester County Police Chief’s Association. His responsibility as Commander of the Chester County emergency response team remains the same.

Fire Chief’s Report. ....................................................................... Richard Klingler

January – Fire company responded to 25 calls with an 11 minutes 20 second average response time. 121 hours time on alarm.

Engineer’s Report. .............................................................................. Mendi Lowe

Zoning Officer’s Report. ............................................................. ARRO Consulting

Building Code Official’s Report. ....................................................... John Coldiron

Code Enforcement Officer’s Report. ................................................ Robert Hosier

Manager’s Report. ........................................................................ James Thomas

LERTA Area will be expiring next year. Solicitor Carnes and the Borough is taking steps to extend the LERTA an additional 5 years.

Chester County SPCA will no longer provide service to the borough. SPCA will instruct callers to call the Borough for animal removal. No plans for what to do if someone needs help. The fee was on a per use/call. No information on the amount.

The solar energy panel serving the District Court has saved the Borough over $1,200 this year.

Public Works Report. ....................................................................... Melinda Keen

Fire Marshal’s Report.......................................................... Raymond Stackhouse

Mayor’s Report........................................................................... John P. Hagan, II

A mild case of amnesia. In 2010 I was sworn in as Mayor as a result of winning election in 2009. Last month when I declared I was running for reelection, I was mistaken. My term runs for another two years until 2013. In 2013 I plan to run for an unprecedented 4^th term.

In a storm we had 4 weeks ago there were two people towed for the snow emergency. Those expenses will be returned due to extenuating circumstances.

Snow emergency response was good. The police, fire company and streets crew and Borough Manager Jim Thomas are to be commended. We could have done better in certain areas as pointed out by Parkesburg Today. We’ll work to do better in the future.

PABA. ............................................................................................... Eric Jamison

Solicitor’s Report..................................................................... John S. Carnes, Jr.

Knoll business. $12,000 bill is late. Email and certified letter sent to developer.

West Bridge Street project is not out of mind. Talked to Jeff Hunt, Amtrak, others. We’ve been caught between different priorities and projects. The Borough is ready to go. Amtrak appears to be in no hurry. Job changes and legal maneuvering have slowed down the project. Jeff Hunt is ready to create a Scope of Work but needs additional funds to match the SOW to Amtrak new bidding and work rules and project specs. Carnes is working to make sure the project stays on the TIFF list. There are a lot of moving parts. Any one of the several parties and state agencies involved in the project can bring the project to a grinding halt. The Borough team of Solicitor Carnes and Borough Manager Jim Thomas and Borough Engineer Jeff Hunt are working hard to nail everything down. The project’s total cost is $5M project approximately. Borough must pay 5% or 250K.

Unfinished Business

• Appointment of Fire Marshal

The Borough received two applications for the position of Fire Marshall. One applicant withdrew his application. Ray Stackhouse is the only applicant. Borough council approved the appointment of Ray Stackhouse as Fire Marshall.

New Business

• Motion to enact Ordinance No. 490 - An Ordinance Replacing and Superceding Ordinance 448 of the Borough of Parkesburg to Require the Removal by the Owner of the Property in the Borough of Parkesburg Abutting on Public Sidewalks of Accumulations of Snow from the Sidewalks on the Property Owned or Occupied by Them and Providing for Amendment by Resolution.

Motion Approved

Railroad didn’t do a good job or snow removal around the station. People walking in the street. Can someone talk to them?

• Motion to adopt Resolution No. 2011-02 –A Resolution of the Council of the Borough of Parkesburg, Chester County, Pennsylvania, Adopting Written Procedures in How Professional Services Are Chosen for its Pension Plans in Order to Comply with Act 44 of 2009 and the Auditors General Recommendation.

This language of the motion was suggested by the company managing the borough’s pension funding. They’re doing a good job.

The motion was approved

Committee Reports:

Parks & Recreation. ......................................................................... Kathleen Rick

No report

Progress & Development. .................................................................. Sharon Wolf

Next meeting – March 8^th at 7:00 PM at Borough Hall

Streets & Property............................................................................ Melinda Keen

Finance. ........................................................................................ Charles Persch

No report

Police & Fire.................................................................................. Charles Persch

A tentative collective bargaining agreement with the police union has been reached. Local police union members have reviewed and approved the agreement which is currently being reviewed by the Borough’s own legal counsel. Council will be able to review the agreement by the first Monday in March.

Library Board Representative. ......................................................... Melinda Keen

Emergency Management Coordinator. ............................................. Richard Irwin

Public Comments

Jack Assetto commented on the snow removal in front of his business, that a number of customers had fallen climbing over the snow bank between the street and his shop along the 400 block of First Avenue.

Mr. Assetto also told Council of a problem with dogs in front of his shop. A customer was recently bitten. Luckily the dog bite only tore the man’s pants, but didn’t inflict and injury. The dog was on a leash being walked by the owner. The owner was unable to restrain the dog. The police were not called at the request of the victim. Mayor Hagan asked that police be called after any incidents to create a record of the incident. Mr Assetto stated the same dog is causing multiple problems. The dog is too big and the owner can’t control it.

Council Comments

Sharon Wolf - Storm water packet. People are not cleaning up after their dogs. If you see it happening it should be reported to the police.

Adjournment

Scheduled Public Meetings:

Committee Time Date Location