Wy EST. 1901 Borough of West Homestead Council Meeting Tuesday, January 14, 2025 Minutes Council President Ashley Cain called the meeting to order at 6:15 p.m. Pledge of Allegiance Moment of silence for Lynn Nikolas's brother Michael. Roll Call: Present: Ms. Cain, Ms. Ferson, Mr. Fonos, Mr. Harhai, Mr. Karafa, Mr. McLaughlin Ms. Nikolas. Also in attendance: Mayor Joseph Baran, Engineer Mark Brashear, Solicitors Stanley Lederman and Michael Lederman, Secretary Donna McMichael. Public Comment on Agenda Items President Cain asked anyone in the audience if they had any questions on agenda items. No comments. The Oath of Office was given to Police Officers, Eric Callen, and Dennis Rupert by Mayor Baran. REPORTS Engineer: Mark Brashear - On Forest Avenue: At 1069, eleven cars have been noticed. According to the conditional use, there are too many cars. A letter should be issued. At 1073, they are consistent. No issues. The potholes on 6th & Howard need repaired. Solicitor: Stanley Lederman Tonight, we will be approving two (2) Resolutions and approving one Proposed Ordinance. Mayor Joseph Baran A fine job has been done by all departments. Thank you. Thanks to Council for giving the Police Department the tools needed to protect our residents. Manager : Russell Combs Absent Police Chief Charles Rozzo The police report was given for the month of December. Thanks to Council for the help in updating our equipment for the vehicles. The two new hires have started. The officers will begin 12-hour shifts in February. The new tasers are in. The license plate reader has helped drastically. Last year our officers worked well together, and we are looking forward to the new year. Fire Chief John Dindak Report for the year 2024: 451 calls - 112 fires, 77 hazardous, and the rest are minor calls. Response time: 4 minutes and 28 seconds. We will meet next month on plans for the future. Have a safe 2025. Baldwin EMS: Chief Todd Plunkett (Dan Churma reported) The new ambulance is now in service. We will be adding another new one in late March or early April. We will be receiving a new Renovation" camera thru a grant. Report given for the month of December: 2 critical instances, and one structure fire. We have a fantastic working relationship with the Borough. Great job to Public Works for their help in salting during the fire on West Eighth Avenue. EMC: Dan Churma 2024 finished on a positive note. There will be two races in 2025. We all work together well. In February, Savvy Citizen will be up and running. Steel Rivers Council of Governments: Barb Ferson - Jennifer will coordinate with the grants. Steel Valley Enterprise Zone: Dave Harhai We had the final meeting for 2024. Sarah did a recap. Goals for 2025. Next Monday will be the first meeting in 2025. COMMITTEE REPORTS Capital Improvement: Ray Fonos, Chair We will resume the 3rd Tuesday of the month at 5 pm. Build funding for Capital Improvements. We have limited funding and will focus on the municipal building. Communications: Lynn Nikolas, Chair Working with Donna to improve accounts. Emails will be coming soon. Send out a second Knox Box letter. Community Affairs: John Karafa, Chair The meeting will be held on the 3rd Tuesday at 4 pm. Considering dates for Community Day in 2025. Personnel: Ashley Cain, Chair There will be a motion to hire a person for Public Works. On the next agenda we will advertise for a sewer tech. Properties: Dave Harhai, Chair The first meeting in 2025 will be on February 11th at 4 pm. Public Safety: Bill McLaughlin, Chair There will be a meeting with Penn Dot on a short-term solution for gth Avenue. Hopefully, they will come up with a long-term solution. Ashley: Overall, it was a very informative meeting. We had a fire in our town, the Chief took command. Police and Baldwin EMS were on hand. Public Works were there salting. We have a great team! Recommend Jay Caruso and team to seal our roads. Sewer Management: Barb Ferson Going forward in 2025, sewer tech, manhole repairs on Howard Street and 6th Avenue. Legislation 1. Accepting minutes from the Council meetings, as written, for November 13, 2024, December 3, 2024, December 10, 2024, December 30, 2024, and December 30, 2024. Motion: Mr. Harhai Second: Mr. Karafa All voted in favor of the motion. 2. Approve and ratify all bills paid and to be paid for the month of January 2025. Motion: Mr. Harhai Second: Mr. Karafa All voted in favor of the motion. 3. Approve Resolution 25.001: Establishing a 2025 Fee Schedule for Borough Services. Motion: Mr. Harhai Second: Mr. Karafa Stanley summarized the Resolution. It will take effect immediately. All voted in favor of the motion. 4. Approve Resolution 25.002: Disposal of Records from 2017. Motion: Mr. Harhai Second: Mr. Karafa Stanley summarized the Resolution. This is done every 7 years. All voted in favor of the motion. 5. Approve proposed Ordinance 737, amending Ordinance 560, adding a Definition for Transitional Housing. Stanley read the Ordinance. It will be advertised, and we will finalize at a future meeting. Motion: Mr. Harhai Second: Mr. Karafa All voted in favor of the motion. 6. Advertise proposed Ordinance 739 Motion: Mr. Harhai Second: Mr. Karafa All voted in favor of the motion. 7. Extend an offer of employment to Michael Novogradac, as a full-time laborer, Contingent upon acceptance of offer and normal screening process approvals. Motion: Mr. Harhai Second: Mr. Karafa All voted in favor of the motion. 8. Approve for Reappointments as follows: Maggie Holder to the Steel Valley Historical Architectural Review Board, with term ending December 31, 2027. Barb Ferson to the Steel Valley Enterprise Zone, with term ending December 31, 2026. Joel Feldman, Business Representative to the Steel Valley Enterprise Zone, with term ending December 31, 2026. Joel Feldman to the Main Street TIF Committee, with term ending December 31, 2026. Linda Dindak to the Zoning Hearing Board, with term ending December 31, 2027. Ken Hudak to the Civil Service Commission, with term ending December 31, 2030. Jason McMichael to the UCC/IPMC Board of Appeals, with term ending December 31, 2027. Motion: Mr. Harhai Second: Mr. Karafa All voted in favor of the motion. Public Comment on Non-Agenda Items President Cain asked anyone in the audience if they had any questions on non- agenda items. Brendan Deasy, 534 W 7th Avenue: How much are we spending on our Solicitor and Police Chief? We were told we are waiting for Penn Dot to make a decision. I was told it is Borough's decision. This is a joke! I have sent countless emails to Michael Lederman and there has not been a response. Joe Deasy, 145 E 8th Avenue: Any comments or questions on lease? Stanley said he is waiting for meets and bounds. The lease will be submitted to Council for review. Mark: A flood plan was requested. Let us have the lease worked out first before moving forward. New year new grants. Mr. Deasy asked permission to apply for grants for the Borough. He would donate his time to do the application. Stanley said to contact whoever and see what is required. You can go through Capital Improvements. He suggested waiting until the lease is signed before applying for grants. They are very lengthy, and the first one is due in two months. Talk with Ray. His next meeting is on Tuesday at 5 pm for Capital Improvements. Brendan Deasy stood up to interrupt and Ashley pounded the gavel and told him to sit down-he already spoke. John Dindak, 1700 Overdale: The roads that were repaved are in bad shape. They are cracked. What are the borough's specs? Mark: Five inches. Fire Chief Dindak: Chick-fil-A delivered food to us during the fire. An email was sent to thank them. An Executive Meeting was called at 7:03 pm. Motion: Mr. Harhai Second: Mr. Karafa All voted in favor of the motion. Returned from Executive Session. Adjournment at 7:28 pm.