BOROUGH OF SLATINGTON COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES 10/14/19 The Regular Meeting Minutes of Council was held on Monday, October 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 Mayor Niedermeyer Ed Ziegler Jason Ruff Ed Healy Kris Porter Bryon Reed Dave Lear Jason Nicholas Ronald Kratz Chief Rachman Kevin Steckel Joseph Wechsler Frank Solt David Schnaars Kristie Wilk Thomas Bartholomew President Stevens requested that, as a courtesy, everyone turn off 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 MIINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETINGS - Councilor Schnaars made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Ruff, to approve the following minutes: Council Meeting - September gth, 2019, Committee Meetings September 16th, 2019 and September 23rd, 2 2019. President Stevens declared the motion passed with 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. Ifyou exit the podium, you have yielded the floor, and any time you have remaining. Kristie Wilk - 3433 Smith Hill Road, Washington Township. Representative from NOVA. Signed in and was recognized to speak. She was going to go over NOVA finances and budgeting for 2020. Councilor Ruff suggested this be tabled to the next Human/Community Services Committee meeting. Kristie did mention they did have some staffing issues due to employees leaving for higher pay rates. They have looked at their budget to see how they can offer a more competitive rate. They conducted a statistical analysis of their on-call volume. It was determined that it would be more beneficial to run the 3rd truck 8 hours a day Monday through Friday, as opposed to 7 days a week at 10 hours a day. By doing this they have increased the pay rate from $ 20.50/hr. for paramedical to $22.00 to start. For EMT's they went from $13.50/hr. to $15.00/hr. Frank Solt - Walnut Street - Signed in and was recognized to speak. Frank informed the council of the sign coming into Slatington from Walnutport. The sign states "Welcome to Slatington Township"; should be Welcome to Slatington Borough". President Stevens informed him the sign was put up by PennDOT. PennDOT was informed of the error and they will change it. 1 Ed Ziegler Signed in and was recognized to speak. Ed informed the council that there are many street lights out throughout the borough. He said especially one light on the bridge going to Walnutport has not been on for over 1 year. There are 3 trees on E. Washington Street that should be taken down, or have property owner top them off. He said there is a lot of grease being dumped in the sewer system. PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENIS, COMMUNICATIONS AND SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS Reminder the Electronic Recycling is Saturday, November 16th, 2019 from 9:00 am to 12 noon. 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/TRANSEER Councilor Schnaars made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Wechsler, 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 Mayor Niedermeyer reminded the council the Homecoming Parade was held on September 20th, 2019. Chief Rachman Chief Rachman addressed the issue of disruptive conduct reports. He said that they are being more vigilant in completing the reports. On Wednesday, October 23rd, 2 2019, the police will participate in Operations Safe Stop, which is sponsored by PennDOT. This program is for officers to ride the school bus to ensure people stop for the buses. The police have gotten their body cams, instructions and policies. The police have also received their new AEDs. STANDING COMMITTEES A. Highway Councilor Bryon Reed 1. The council discussed the letter from Senator Browne concerning the Multimodal Transportation Fund grant program. Councilor Reed suggested to submit for a grant again, possibly for Shadow Oaks. Councilor Schnaars made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Reed, to give the Highway Committee the authority to select and submit one or more projects for the Multimodal. President Stevens declared the motion passed with following a Voice Vote, All in Favor. 2. Councilor Reed made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Wechsler, to approve audit report of liquid fuels tax fund for period 1/1/2017 to 12/31/18 transfer in the amount of $7,558.00 (2017). President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Roll Call, voting as follows: ROLL CALL AYES NAYS ABSTAIN Daniel Stevens Jason Ruff Bryon Reed Ronald Kratz Joseph Wechsler Dave Schnaars Thomas Bartholomew 2 B. Public Safety Councilor David Schnaars 1. Councilor Schnaars made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Wechsler, to approve quote from Keystone Technology, LLC, to purchase 4 custom built desktop computers at $680.00 each, total $2,720.00. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Roll Call, voting as follows: ROLL CALL AYES NAYS ABSTAIN Daniel Stevens Jason Ruff Bryon Reed Ronald Kratz Joseph Wechsler Dave Schnaars Thomas Bartholomew 2. Councilor Schnaars made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Wechsler, to execute MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) with Lehigh County Chiefs of Police Association for participates in the 2020 consortium testing. President Stevens declared the motion passed with following a Voice Vote, All in Favor. 3. Councilor Schnaars made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Wechsler, to approve revised invoice from King, Spry, Herman, Freund & Fall, LLC for $2,093.20. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Roll Call, voting as follows: ROLL CALL AYES NAYS ABSTAIN Daniel Stevens Jason Ruff Bryon Reed Ronald Kratz Joseph Wechsler Dave Schnaars Thomas Bartholomew 4. Councilor Schnaars made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Wechsler, to approve quote from Nicholson Security for Seagate Skyhawk 4TB Surveillance hard drive for $494.97 (increase storage capacity). President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Roll Call, voting as follows: ROLL CALL AYES NAYS ABSTAIN Daniel Stevens Jason Ruff Bryon Reed Ronald Kratz Joseph Wechsler Dave Schnaars Thomas Bartholomew 5. Councilor Schnaars made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Wechsler, to approve Police Pension Plan payment for $31,256.46. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Roll Call, voting as follows: 3 ROLL CALL AYES NAYS ABSTAIN Daniel Stevens Jason Ruff Bryon Reed Ronald Kratz Joseph Wechsler Dave Schnaars Thomas Bartholomew Councilor Schnaars informed the council the fire alarm at borough hall will be discussed at the next committee meeting. C. Human/Community Services Councilor Jason Ruff 1. The council read the information from the Greater Northern Lehigh Chamber Holiday Tree Lighting Ceremony on Friday, December 6th at Slatington Memorial Park from 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm. Informational only Councilor Ruff is seeking volunteers for the recycling event from the council. Councilor Schnaars will attend and a borough employee (paid). Councilor Ruff met with Dave Lear from Lehigh Engineering, Lindsey Taylor and from NLRA, and Mark Grammes at Victory Park to discuss an improvement plan for the park. Lindsey provided them details that she is creating. Councilor Ruff also has a plan. The plans will be discussed at the next committee meeting. Councilor Ruff stated that the 150th Committee had never officially come to the borough council requesting if they could name the amphitheater after Angelo Scarselleti. Councilor Ruff made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Schnaars, to officially name it the Angelo Scarselleti Amphitheater. 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 Weschler, to approve Resolution R-07-2019, a resolution of the Governing Board ofthe Borough of Slatington, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, authorizing, empowering and directing the proper officers of the Governing Board to appoint a liaison between it and Berkheimer, the duly appointed collector of local taxes for the district, for the express purpose of sharing confidential tax information with the district for official purposes. President Stevens declared the motion passed with following a Voice Vote, All in Favor. 2. Councilor Bartholomew made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Kratz, to approve quote from IDWraps to decal the code enforcement Taurus for $165.00. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Roll Call, voting as follows: ROLL CALL AYES NAYS ABSTAIN Daniel Stevens Jason Ruff Bryon Reed Ronald Kratz Joseph Wechsler Dave Schnaars Thomas Bartholomew 4 3. Councilor Wechsler made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Schnaars, to run an advertisement for the Tax Collector position with a deadline of December 1st, 2019, for no more than $500.00. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Roll Call, voting as follows: ROLL CALL AYES NAYS ABSTAIN Daniel Stevens Jason Ruff Bryon Reed Ronald Kratz Joseph Wechsler Dave Schnaars Thomas Bartholomew 4. Councilor Bartholomew, made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Wechsler, to approve quote from Services United for option #2 for $7,200.00. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Roll Call, voting as follows: ROLL CALL AYES NAYS ABSTAIN Daniel Stevens Jason Ruff Bryon Reed Ronald Kratz Joseph Wechsler Dave Schnaars Thomas Bartholomew E. Sewer/Solid Waste Councilor Joseph Wechsler 1. Councilor Wechsler gave an update on digester program. He informed the council that it is up and running properly. A certificate of completion has been issued on September 17th. The valves for the recirculating system were delivered at a lower cost. Councilor Wechsler gave kudos to Duane Szczesny for his good work. F. Water/Special Sewer Committee Councilor Ronald Kratz 1. Water Test Statement - Water was tested and found safe for human consumption 2. The councilor reviewed the letter from Senator P. Browne concerning PA Small Water and Sewer Grant and H2O PA grant programs. This will be place on the next Water/Special Sewer Committee agenda. 3. Councilor Kratz made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Wechsler, to authorize the Water/Special Sewer Committee to approve any future change orders regarding Shadow Oaks. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Roll Call, voting as follows: ROLL CALL AYES NAYS ABSTAIN Daniel Stevens Jason Ruff Bryon Reed Ronald Kratz Joseph Wechsler Dave Schnaars 5 Thomas Bartholomew 4. Councilor Kratz made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Reed, to approve first installment payment to Skiora Brothers Inc. for $96,661.05, subject to the approval of the engineer. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Roll Call, voting as follows: ROLL CALL AYES NAYS ABSTAIN Daniel Stevens Jason Ruff Bryon Reed Ronald Kratz Joseph Wechsler Dave Schnaars Thomas Bartholomew Councilor Ruff informed the council that a resident on Shadows Oaks Lane had his mailbox damaged by Sikora Brothers Inc. The resident was told to call the borough; then told by the borough that Sikora was responsible. The resident was told that Sikora has fixed the mailbox and it will be completely replaced when the project is completed. UNFINISHED BUSINESS: None INFORMATIONAL ITEMS: None NEW BUSINESS: Councilor Ruff asked if the borough should complete a grease trap ordinance. Solicitor Healy informed him the borough already has one. It was agreed to review the grease trap ordinance at a committee meeting. Councilor Ruff asked if the audit report was open to the public. Solicitor stated it is public, but there is a disclaimer which limits the number of people who can claim reliance upon the report to their detriment. 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.) None EXECUTIVE SESSION President Stevens recessed to executive session at 8:24 PM. At 9:40 PM, President Stevens reconvened the meeting. Matters of personnel, real estate, union negotiations, and legal were discussed in executive session. 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 9:41 PM. Colleen Bresnak Assistant Borough Secretary 6