BOROUGH OF SLATINGTON COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES 1/14/19 The Regular Meeting Minutes of Council was held on Monday, January 14, 2019 at 7:00 pm., in Council Chambers, 125 S. Walnut Street, Slatington, PA 18080. Presiding: Daniel Stevens: President of Council Recording Secretary: Bryon Reed, President Pro Tem The meeting was called to order by President Stevens at 7:00 pm following in attendance: ROLL CALL: PRESENT ABSENT OTHERS PRESENT VISITORS Daniel Stevens Chief Rachman Tom Creighton Nicole Zambo Jason Ruff Ed Healy Samantha Sinozzi Derek Solt Bryon Reed Mayor Niedermeyer Jeffrey Hausman Crystal Hausman Joseph Wechsler Dave Lear Ed Ziegler Gwyneth Jones David Schnaars Jim Layland Robert Stettner Thomas Bartholomew Jason Nicholas Mike Kukitz Kristie Wilk Jason Nicholas Before proceeding with the prayer and pledge of allegiance, Councilor Schnaars took a moment to inform the audience that Councilor Russell Hallman had passed away. Councilor Schnaars stated Russ was an integral part of this community and was active in many different committees, ie., the Halloween Parade and the parks. He stated Russ will be sorely missed. A moment of silence was held in memory of Councilor Hallman. President Stevens requested that, as a courtesy, everyone turn offt their cell phones, iPhone, and electronic devises off, or on vibrate. Ifyou must take a call, please exit the council chambers SO as not to disrupt the meeting. President Stevens announced that all public sessions of Borough Council are electronically recorded and such recordings are maintained as part of the meeting record until the minutes are transcribed and approved by the Board, at which time the recordings shall be erased. EXECUTIVE SESSION - None MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETINGS - Councilor Schnaars made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Ruff, to accept the minutes with the following corrections: President Stevens made corrections on the minutes of December 10, on the bottom of page 1 the word should be "job", not "joe", page 2 removed "a"in Mayor's/Police Chief's Remarks; December 17, page 1 should be one-time extension, not one-time grant. Council Minutes, December 10, 2018, Committee Meetings December 17, 2018 & December 26, 2018. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Voice Vote, All in Favor PUBLIC PARTICIPATION (Agenda and Non-Agenda items) You will have three minutes to address Council from the podium. The three minutes applies to your time at the podium. If you exit the podium, you have yielded the floor, and any time you have remaining. Ed Ziegler Signed in and was recognized to speak. He said the light near Harding Funeral Home, has been out for a month, the one down across from the maintenance building by the community center building has been out for 2 months, the first light at the bridge has been burning for months, the leaves on north Main Street near the bank parking lot and on the bridge should be cleaned up. Ed stated the inspection sticker for the code enforcement officer's car has expired on 11/2018. 1 Jason Nicholas- Fire Chief - Signed in and was recognized to speak. Jason provided a year-end response report to the council. He pointed out the total number of calls the fire company had responded to was 292. This number is broken down by types of calls. This number also includes calls in Washington Township, Walnutport and sometimes in Carbon County. There were 50 more calls than the previous year. The calls are increasing yearly. ChiefNicholas said some oft the calls were false alarms. President Stevens asked if there has been an increase in false alarm calls yearly. ChiefNicholas will obtain further information and report back to the council. Jason informed the council the ladder truck is back and in service. There are still some minor issues that can be corrected here, which are still covered under insurance. The fire companyis getting a significant number of new members. Susan & Jim Layland - 221 Union Street. Signed in and was recognized to speak. She is requesting a handicap parking space on the west side of Main Street in front of the library, 600 block. She and another lady attend a lot of events at the library. Jim mentioned it would be better if the sign was posted as van accessible. This will be placed on the next committee meeting. Mike Kukitz NLRA - Signed in and was recognized to speak. Mike informed the council of their final feasibility report will be presented at the school district administration building on January 24, 2019, at 6:00 p.m. He is encouraging the council to attend. Kristie Wilk NOVA EMS. Signed in and was recognized to speak. Kristie informed the council they will be having their Comedy and Diner Night on February 23rd, the tickets are $35.00/person. She provided the number of calls they responded for the end-of-the year which is 3,357; 677 of them were for Slatington, with a 96% response rate. They did respond to 100% of the calls in December in Slatington. They are currently fully staffed and have a waiting list. Tom Creighton - District Magistrate. Signed in and was recognized to speak. The magistrate's office is requesting having LCTI the bathroom. He provided information to the council for the breakdown. He is asking for approval from the borough. This will be placed on the next committee meeting. PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENIS, COMMUNICATIONS AND SPECIAL PRSENTATIONS REPORTS The reports of various committees, officials and officers were provided to Council and are on file in Borough Hall and are available for public inspection. APPROVAL OF ACCOUNTS PAYABLE/TRANSFER Councilor Schnaars made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Ruff, to approve payment of the bills and transfers as presented by the Treasurer. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Voice Vote, All in Favor MAYORS/POLICE CHIEF'S REMARKS Mayor Walter H. Niedermeyer None Police Chief David Rachman Chief Rachman was approached by several members of the Vigilant Fire Company expressing a desire to donate some money towards the borough police department to purchase equipment. Their initial idea was 2 body cams; the department is in need a an in-car camera which must be replaced. Further discussion will be done for the donation. Chief Rachman wanted to thank the Vigilant for offering its assistance. SLATINGTON REVITALIZATION PARTNERSHIP - None STANDING COMMITTEES A. Highway Acting Chairman Councilor Bryon Reed 1. LV Multimodal Working Group meeting on Wednesday, January 23rd, 2019, at Northampton Community College/Fowler Family Southside Center, 511 E. 3rd St., Rm 114, Bethlehem, PA. Informational only Dave Lear informed the council that multimodal includes all types of transportation. Dave Lear had attended a Lehigh Regional Plan that now has a 12-year plan. This includes traffic studies or traffic analysis on signals, and corridors to apply for a grant. Any project must be submitted by January 25th, 2019, and attend the meeting in March to see if it was accepted. Councilor Reed asked if the 100-steps would be included for a multimodal grant. Dave stated it could be done. Multiple projects could be submitted. Councilor Reed made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Schnaars, for the borough to submit projects for the Lehigh Valley Multimodal Working Group and to be reviewed by the Highway Committee and the borough engineer. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Voice Vote, All in Favor President Stevens sent a letter to Mark Grammes requesting more information about the $5.00 registration fee, but have not received any reply. B. Public Safety Councilor David Schnaars 1. Councilor Schnaars made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Reed, to approve retroactive donation to Lehigh County DA's office for $1,500.00 for the Child Domestic Abuse Investigator for 2018. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Roll Call, voting as follows: ROLL CALL AYES NAYS ABSTAIN Daniel Stevens Jason Ruff Joseph Wechsler David Schnaars Thomas Bartholomew Bryon Reed 2. Councilor Schnaars made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Wechsler, to rescind approved motion made at the regular December 10, 2018, council meeting to authorize Chief Rachman to order the Ford Interceptor for $34,800.00, which would involve 3-year payments of $12,517.00 each, which represents a 3.9% interest rate, for delivery no earlier than January 2019 SO everything may be charged to the 2019 budget. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Voice Vote, All in Favor 3. Councilor Schnaars made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Wechsler, to approve Whitmoyer Auto Group quote for 2018 Ford Interceptor Sedan - $36,100; 3-years of payments of 3 $12,432.00. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Roll Call, voting as follows: ROLL CALL AYES NAYS ABSTAIN Daniel Stevens Jason Ruff Joseph Wechsler David Schnaars Thomas Bartholomew Bryon Reed 4 Councilor Schnaars made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Wechsler, to approve purchase of police car camera - $3,455.75 from Digital Ally. Chief Rachman stated the Vigilant will be making a donation toward the camera. He also stated the reason they stayed with Digital Ally was cost and service. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Roll Call, voting as follows: ROLL CALL AYES NAYS ABSTAIN Daniel Stevens Jason Ruff Joseph Wechsler David Schnaars Thomas Bartholomew Bryon Reed 5 The borough had received a thank you letter from NOVA for the contribution of $9,300.00 for 2018. 6 The Borough of Slatington was approved for the application for certification of our Workplace Safety Committee 5% discount WC. Informational only. 7 The borough had received a thank you letter from the Office of the District Attorney for support to the Child Abuse Investigator. Information only C.J Human/Community Services Councilor Jason Ruff 1. Councilor Ruff made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Schnaars, for the Borough of Slatington to act as Grantee for the DCNR-BRC grant. Mike Kukitz explained the NRLA had received a $40,000.00 small community grant to rehab the restroom facility at Victory Park. However, it can't run through the multi-municipal recreation authority, SO all the paperwork and money must go through the borough. Mike was also able to secure another $10,000.00 with no match. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Voice Vote, All in Favor 2. Councilor Ruff made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Wechsler, to approve Resolution R- 01-19, a resolution of the council of the Borough of Slatington, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, DCNR Victory Park-Development Grant. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Voice Vote, All in Favor 3. Councilor Ruff made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Reed, to approve Slatington Veteran's Memorial Committee request for Coin Toss on May 18, 2019, for improvements at the 4 Veteran', S Memorial. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Voice Vote, All in Favor 4. LVPC will be holding a meeting on Tuesday, January 22nd, 2019, from 3:00 - 5:00 p.m. at LVPC office at 961 Marcon Boulevard, Suite 310, Allentown, PA, in preparation for the 2020 census. Informational only 5. Councilor Ruff made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Wechsler, to appoint Annabel Fogal for a three-year term to the Slatington Public Library Board Directors. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Voice Vote, All in Favor D. Finance Councilor Thomas Bartholomew 1. Councilor Bartholomew made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Schnaars, to approve the purchase of 4 office chairs at the amount not to exceed $800.00. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Roll Call, voting as follows: ROLL CALL AYES NAYS ABSTAIN Daniel Stevens Jason Ruff Joseph Wechsler David Schnaars Thomas Bartholomew Bryon Reed 2. Councilor Bartholomew made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Wechsler, to approve quote from Brown & Brown for 2019-2020 insurance. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Roll Call, voting as follows: ROLL CALL AYES NAYS ABSTAIN Daniel Stevens Jason Ruff Joseph Wechsler David Schnaars Thomas Bartholomew Bryon Reed 3. Councilor Bartholomew made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Schnaars, to coordinate with Northeast Revenue, borough solicitor, and the office staff for 2016 delinquent taxes to begin sheriff's sales. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Voice Vote, All in Favor E. Sewer/Solid Waste Councilor Joseph Wechsler 1. Councilor Wechsler made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Schnaars, to authorize January 4, 2019, Meeting Sewer Authority bills: The Times News = $53.80; Ed Healy - $289.00; Tad Miller $125.00, Petty Cash - $83.88; total - $551.68. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Roll Call, voting as follows: ROLL CALL AYES NAYS ABSTAIN Daniel Stevens 5 Jason Ruff Joseph Wechsler David Schnaars Thomas Bartholomew Bryon Reed 2. Councilor Wechsler made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Reed, to approve Assistant Treasurer's Time and Travel Report for the period of September 18, 2018 to January 4, 2019; 8.15 hrs. x $25.00/hr.-S206.25, 111 miles @ $.58/mile = $64.38; total $270.63. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Roll Call, voting as follows: ROLL CALL AYES NAYS ABSTAIN Daniel Stevens Jason Ruff Joseph Wechsler David Schnaars Thomas Bartholomew Bryon Reed 3. Three vacancies on the Slatington Borough Authority. (Informational) 4. Councilor Wechsler informed the council that Hayden Electrical was in at the sewer plant and were looking at the digester project and generated some computerization for the conduit. Work is starting on the project. F. Water/Special Sewer Committee Councilor Bryon Reed 1. Water Test Statement - Water was tested and found safe for human consumption 2. Councilor Reed informed the council there had been a water main break in Maple Springs. 3. Councilor Reed would like to put the work out for Shadow Oaks while it is cold outside because contractors are looking for work at this time of the year. At the committee meeting it was suggested they contact DCED to find out what is required. UNFINISHED BUSINESS: None INFORMATIONAL ITEMS: None NEW BUSINESS: President Stevens asked the council what time the special meeting should start on January 21st. The council agreed to start at 7:45 p.m. Councilor Bartholomew stated the Slatington Borough Authority is requesting from the council to pass a motion to dissolve the authority. COUNCIL PRESIDENT'S REPORT: None Daniel Stevens COURTESY OF THE FLOOR - (Agenda Items Only - You will have two (2) minutes to address Council from the podium on Agenda Items Only.) 6 EXECUTIVE SESSION - President Stevens recessed to executive session at 8:15 pm. At 9:35 pm, President Stevens reconvened the meeting. Matters of personnel, legal and union negotiations were discussed in executive session. 1 Councilor Bartholomew made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Reed, to appoint Dave Schnaars to the Slatington Borough Authority for a 5-year term. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Voice Vote, All in Favor ADJOURNMENT Being no further business, Councilor Schnaars made the motion, duly seconded by Councilor Wechsler, to adjourn the meeting. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Voice Vote, All in Favor. President Stevens declared the meeting adjourned at 9:37. pm. Colleen Bresnak Assistant Borough Secretary 7