BOROUGH OF SLATINGTON COUNCIL MEETING MINUTES 9/9/19 The Regular Meeting Minutes of Council was held on Monday, September 9, 2019 at 7:00 pm., in Council Chambers, 125 S. Walnut Street, Slatington, PA 18080. Presiding: Daniel Stevens: President of Council Recording Secretary: Jason Ruff, Vice President of Council 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 David Schnaars Mayor Niedermeyer Ed Ziegler Jason Ruff Ed Healy Jeffrey Hausman Bryon Reed -7:10 PM Larry Turoscy Kris Porter Ronald Kratz Chief Rachman Kevin Steckel Joseph Wechsler 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 MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETINGS - Councilor Wechsler made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Kratz, to approve the following minutes with the following corrections: Council Meeting President Stevens corrected August 124h, 2019, page 2 - Highway A.1. - remove the word "have", page 3 B.3. add the word Councilor; page 4 D.4. change the word to "withdrew"; August 19th, 2019, page 1 section A.1.b - should say "The Moose Lodge also was taken care of with curb and sidewalk."; section A.1.c. should say President Stevens informed" Larry; insert the word after Ed Healy "should" review; A.1.e. remove the word "in" after black top; B.1.a. should say "all the drops and receivers are in."C.1.a remove second "a", August 26th, 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. Ed Ziegler - Signed in and was recognized to speak. Ed informed the council the grass at Fourth and South Street is 4 feet high. Ed stated a house on Washington has had work done on the outside and was wondering if they had obtained permits. A container at So. 7th Street has been sitting there for at least a year. He asked the council what the maximum chlorine level for parts per million is of the water. Ed asked why the borough crew picks up the trash at the Hot Diggity Dog hot dog stand. Jeff Hausman - 46 So. Walnut Street. Signed in and was recognized to speak. Jeff was also concerned about the property at Fourth Street with the high grass. He also asked ifthe council has considered hiring more people for the public works crew. 1 PUBLIC ANNOUNCEMENTS, COMMUNICATIONS AND SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS None 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 Wechsler made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Reed, 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 talked about the LVPC book for the Walnut Street bridge replacement which lists the cost of $6,000,000.00, short range 2019 to 2022. Walnut and Main Street intersection alignment improvements $889,000.00, long range 2031 to 2045. Councilor Reed stated that these dates are not accurate. Chief Rachman This past weekend there were a lot of officers out due to the turnpike closure. Chief Rachman completed an invoice for K. D. Eckman, the contractor that replaced the bridge, for the police services. Chief Rachman wished to thank the Vigilant for a check of approximately $2,900.00. This will be used to purchase body cams. A policy has been drafted to cover all the legalities for the use oft body cams. Chief Rachman has noted 7 potential locations for stop signs, which he will submit to the Highway Committee for discussion. STANDING COMMITTEES A. Highway Councilor Bryon Reed 1. Councilor Reed made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Wechsler, to approve payment to Bracalente Construction for change order in the amount of $31,698.75. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Roll Call, voting as follows: ROLL CALL AYES NAYS ABSTAIN Daniel Stevens Jason Ruff Ronald Kratz Joseph Wechsler Bryon Reed Thomas Bartholomew 2. Discussion on the 4th Street CDBG. This is in relationship to A.1. 3. Councilor Reed stated the stop sign at the westside of Slate Alley at Center Street, along with the locations from Chief Rachman will be discussed at the next Highway Committee meeting. Councilor Reed stated that the problem is not the number of workers, the problem is how their time is being managed. 2 President Stevens informed the council he had received information'nstructions concerning the FHWA Form 536. B. Public Safety Councilor David Schnaars 1. Councilor Ruff made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Wechsler, to approve purchase of] Kenwood VHF digital & FM Analog portable with multi-pin connector from ECCO Communications for $763.00. Chief Rachman informed the council the radio must be replaced because it can not be fixed. He also stated that the replacement of all the radios, which are not reliable, will be placed on the 2020 budget. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Roll Call, voting as follows: ROLL CALL AYES NAYS ABSTAIN Daniel Stevens Jason Ruff Ronald Kratz Joseph Wechsler Bryon Reed Thomas Bartholomew 2. Letter from Lehigh Township Police Department thanking Fire Police Captain Dave Vaillette for their participation in National Night Out 2019. Informational only C. Human/Community Services Councilor Jason Ruff 1. Letter from Slatington Veterans Memorial committee dated August 19, 2019, thanking the borough for their support for the Memorial Park. Informational only D. Finance Councilor Thomas Bartholomew 1. Councilor Wechsler made a motion, duly Seconded by Councilor Reed, to approve President Stevens to repurchase sewer CD of $200,000.00. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Roll Call, voting as follows: ROLL CALL AYES NAYS ABSTAIN Daniel Stevens Jason Ruff Ronald Kratz Joseph Wechsler Bryon Reed Thomas Bartholomew 2. Councilor Bartholomew made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Ruff, to approve advertising Ordinance 696, An Ordinance of the Borough of Slatington, Lehigh County Pennsylvania, adding Chapter 62 to the Borough Codified Ordinances to implement certain powers enabled by the Pennsylvania Neighborhood Blight Reclamation and Revitalization Act, known as Act 2010-90. The council discussed the discrepancies of this ordinance. President Stevens declared the motion failed following a Roll Call, voting as follows: 3 ROLL CALL AYES NAYS ABSTAIN Jason Ruff Daniel Stevens Thomas Bartholomew Ronald Kratz Joseph Wechsler Bryon Reed 3. Councilor Bartholomew made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Wechsler, to authorize President Stevens to approve Exemption request from Statewide Tax Recovery Inc. for Delinquent Per Capita Tax for: Tammy Schmitt non-resident - $11.00. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Voice Vote, All in Favor E. Sewer/Solid Waste Councilor Joseph Wechsler 1. Councilor Wechsler gave an update on the digester program. They are painting some doors and waiting for finalization for some of the alarms. He is hoping to have this project completed by the end of this month. 2. Councilor Wechsler made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Reed, to approve $13,000 quote to rebuild pump from PSI. councilor Wechsler informed the council a new pump would cost approximately $55,000.00. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Roll Call, voting as follows: ROLL CALL AYES NAYS ABSTAIN Daniel Stevens Jason Ruff Ronald Kratz Joseph Wechsler Bryon Reed Thomas Bartholomew 3. Councilor Wechsler made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Kratz, to approve 2 lever style check valves for $4,850 from PSI. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Roll Call, voting as follows: ROLL CALL AYES NAYS ABSTAIN Daniel Stevens Jason Ruff Ronald Kratz Joseph Wechsler Bryon Reed Thomas Bartholomew 4. Councilor Wechsler made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Reed, to approve payment Chapter 302 Operator Certification Annual Service for $150.00 and accompanying AOR expensing Slatington Borough Authority (time sensitive). President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Roll Call, voting as follows: ROLL CALL AYES NAYS ABSTAIN Daniel Stevens Jason Ruff 4 Ronald Kratz Joseph Wechsler Bryon Reed Thomas Bartholomew F. Water/Special Sewer Committee Councilor Ronald Kratz 1. Water Test Statement - Water was tested and found safe for human consumption Councilor Kratz wanted to make sure we had been approved for phase 1 for the surge protectors. President Stevens informed him that he was told the parts are on order. Councilor Reed informed the council he had met with the contractors for the work on Shadow Oaks. Larry Turoscy stated work should start on the 23rd. UNFINISHED BUSINESS: Councilor Ruff asked Larry Turoscy about the possibility of paving Victory Park with the Keystone Communities Grant Program and if he had checked it out. Larry will provide a report in order to apply for a grant. INFORMATIONAL ITEMS: None NEW BUSINESS: None 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 8:05 PM. At 9:18 PM, President Stevens reconvened the meeting. Matters of personnel, real estate, union negotiations, and legal were discussed in executive session. Councilor Reed made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Kratz, to authorize the Council President to execute a settlement agreement in the form approved by the solicitor to pay Salvatore Taibi the difference between his WC benefit salary benefit rate and his normal full-time salary rate, for the 14 work days during the period of March 12, 2019, through March 31, 2019, in exchange for mutual releases and acknowledgement that he was not employed by the Borough after March 11, 2019. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Roll Call, voting as follows: ROLL CALL AYES NAYS ABSTAIN Daniel Stevens Jason Ruff Ronald Kratz Joseph Wechsler Bryon Reed Thomas Bartholomew Councilor Reed made a motion, duly seconded by Councilor Weschler, to authorize the Council President to execute a settlement agreement with SEIU Local 668 in the form approved by the solicitor concerning a grievance pending in front of the American Arbitration Association. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Voice Vote, All in Favor 5 ADJOURNMENT Being no further business, Councilor Wechsler made the motion, duly seconded by Councilor Kratz, to adjourn the meeting. President Stevens declared the motion passed following a Voice Vote, All in Favor. President Stevens declared the meeting adjourned at 9:21 PM. Colleen Bresnak Assistant Borough Secretary 6