WEST HANOVER TOWNSHIP BOARD OF SUPERVISORS

7171 ALLENTOWN BOULEVARD, HARRISBURG, PA 17112

MONDAY, MARCH 12, 2001, 7 P.M.

WORKSHOP MEETING

CALL TO ORDER

Chairman Zimmerman called the workshop meeting to order at 7 p.m., followed by the invocation and the Pledge of Allegiance.

ROLL CALL

Gloria J. Zimmerman, Chairman

Earl B. Hoffman, Sr., Assistant Secretary/Treasurer

Robert R. Jones [arrived at 7:15 p.m.]

Stephen L. Millard

OLD BUSINESS

No Old Business was brought before the Board.

NEW BUSINESS

Pilot Oil Corporation – Improvement Agreement Discussion. Chris Navitsky and Lisa Sloan were present from BL Companies and David Reager and Cathy Adkins were present from Pilot Oil Corporation.

Mr. Navitsky said he and the other representatives were present to discuss and hopefully come to an agreement regarding Jonestown Road and the signalization. He said the main issue they hoped to address was the pavement design thickness for Jonestown Road. He went on to say that the plans were revised to show traffic proceeding from the proposed Pilot driveway on Jonestown Road towards the intersection of Linglestown Road. He said there would be a dedicated left-turn lane the entire way from the driveway to the intersection as well as a dedicated through lane and right-turn lane. Mr. Navitsky said he was hoping to meet with Mr. Brulo in the near future to finalize the design.

Mr. Navitsky said that it was Pilot’s hope that the Board of Supervisors would grant conditional approval on the project but that, if it were needed, Pilot would grant an extension to the Township.

Mrs. Zimmerman asked Mr. Rimer whether or not a letter had been sent out regarding the retention pond on Pilot’s property. Mr. Rimer responded saying that he did send a letter to the manager. Ms. Adkins said the letter was received and that the retention pond had been cleaned up. Mr. Millard added that he had been out to the site on March 12 and that it looked okay. He said that the water was fairly high in the retention pond.

Mr. Navitsky said that the figures were submitted for the estimated for the proposed improvements for Jonestown Road and also the traffic signal. He said some of the numbers had to be fine-tuned. He said it was Pilot’s hope that discussion could be held on the overall concept of the improvements and what the proposed credit would be towards Pilot’s overall contribution for the 39 Corridor project.

Mr. Rimer said he gave the Board a short memo regarding (1) the curbing improvements that PennDOT would require along the frontage and that the curbing would be done and credited towards Pilot’s contribution, (2) the signal improvements which the Board would be discussing, and (3) some sort of escrow or cash contribution that could be used when the Township had to provide a share to the overall project. He said that the amount of $121,000 would be used as a base towards the contribution to the project.

Mr. Millard asked if the curbing being done by Pilot was above and beyond the requirements of the Township’s Ordinance. Mr. Rimer said that when a meeting was held with PennDOT, it was agreed that curbing would be necessary along the frontage and that it would be necessary whether or not Pilot’s project was being done or not. He said PennDOT agreed and Pilot agreed to come up with some kind of estimate that would be able to be allocated toward that improvement and, at that time, the funds would be released for that improvement. Mr. Millard asked if the curbing would be above and beyond what the Township’s Ordinance called for. Mr. Brulo said it would not.

Mr. Millard asked why the curbing was being subtracted from Pilot’s contribution. Mr. Rimer responded saying PennDOT felt that the curbing was something that was needed whether Pilot’s project took place or not. He said it was put in as part of their improvement. Mr. Millard said he thought the Township should have escrow money and that he didn’t think it should be subtracted from the corridor contribution because it was required by the Ordinance, like the sidewalks.

Mr. Millard asked if anyone had an idea as to what the temporary signals were going to cost. Mr. Brulo said he did not have an estimate and that he was waiting to receive that information from Mr. Navitsky. He said an earlier estimate included the temporary signalization items. Mr. Millard asked if any part of the temporary items could be used with the final signal. Mr. Brulo responded in the affirmative. Mr. Navitsky added that the signal heads and the signal cabinetry could be used with the final signal. Mr. Brulo said that credit would be given only for the permanent equipment.

Mr. Millard asked about the Jonestown Road improvements. Mr. Navitsky said that he had figures for Jonestown Road and that he thought some of the improvements could receive credit and that Mr. Brulo felt that some could not. Mr. Brulo said the idea was that the improvements to Jonestown Road would be separate and would not be credited toward the Corridor project.

Mr. Reager said that it was his hope that an agreement could be reached in principal to gain conditional approval rather than grant a time extension and then the details could be worked out with the solicitor and the engineer on how to allocate the temporary and permanent signal. Mr. Brulo said he thought that if everyone could agree in concept and they were comfortable with that then the details could always be worked out with the costs based on structural and engineering costs.

Mr. Yost asked if there was enough detail to bring it before the Board for conditional approval and whether or not the background would be available to explain the numbers. Mr. Navitsky said that a couple of things needed to worked out with the pavement design, run the computer program, and then fill in the unit costs on the final agreed thickness. He said he was hoping to submit the final dollar figures later in the week of March 12.

Mr. Yost said he thought Mr. Navitsky needed to have a checklist and that he should try to refine the numbers as best he could, as the Board of Supervisors was reluctant in the past to approve a plan wherein the numbers were not available to plug into the agreement even if it was not executed. Mr. Navitsky said he would make every effort to get the information finalized.

Mrs. Zimmerman asked if there was any public comment.

Joann Wilt, Jonestown Road. Ms. Wilt expressed concern regarding Pilot’s proposed expansion and how the area water supply would be effected since there were also showers being added. Mr. Navitsky responded saying that Pilot was in the process of working out an agreement with Pennsylvania American Water Company to connect to public water. Mrs. Zimmerman asked about the time frame. Mr. Navitsky said that Pennsylvania American Water was proposing to bid out the project in the near future and that, once that happened, the details could be finalized.

Karen Wagner, Jonestown Road. Ms. Wagner said she also talked with Pennsylvania American Water Company and was told that it could take up to one year before water would be available at the Pilot site. She said she believed that the Township should require Pilot to make some contingency guarantee that the neighbors would have water.

Ms. Wagner said that the exit on to Jonestown Road from Pilot was a lose-lose situation and that it appeared there was more consideration being given to truckers than to the residents who had to traverse Jonestown Road on a daily basis. She said in her opinion it would make more sense to have a series of lights on Route 39 and not try to make a temporary fix at the residents’ expense.

Ms. Wagner also inquired as to the status of the barrier and the two adjoining residential properties as well as the proposed lighting. Mr. Navitsky responded saying that a lighting plan had been submitted to the Township that was in accordance with the Ordinance requirements regarding spillage on to the adjoining properties. As far as the barrier was concerned, Mr. Navitsky said that Pilot would provide Class C screening between the two properties as well as provide a Conservation easement. He said that he would look at providing a wider berm.

Further, he said the plan met the requirements for sight distance and stopping distance.

Scott Rishell, 7916 Jonestown Road. Mr. Rishell also expressed concern about the water situation. He said that his property had a hand dug well and that since January 2001, his well went down five times.

Gordon Troxell, 252 Myrtle Drive. Mr. Troxell expressed concern about (1) expanding the facility on an already crowded parcel of land, (2) the amount of litter on the property, and (3) the safety of the area. Mr. Troxell asked whether or not the Township could require Pilot to hire an employee who would be responsible for keeping the property cleaned up.

J.C. Collins, 7915 Jonestown Road. Mr. Collins said he was present to represent Harteis International, a property owned by his father-in-law and across from the Pilot property. He said there was garbage all over and that he hoped when the facility expanded, Pilot would become a better neighbor by keeping the property cleaned up.

Bob Mitchell, 7932 Jonestown Road. Mr. Mitchell asked what benefit the Township would realize from trucks exiting on to Jonestown Road. Mr. Millard said that the current method of egress was unsafe on to Route 39 from the property.

Mrs. Zimmerman asked for a consensus of the Board members. She said that personally she thought they needed to clean up the outstanding issues and then come back to the Board with figures. Mr. Rimer said he was concerned about the time extension, but said the time extension was in the hands of the developer and that the plan would be on the March 19 agenda.

Richard Yingst, US 22/Jonestown Signalization. Richard Yingst and Tom Trite were present for discussion regarding the intersection of Route 22 and Jonestown Road.

Mr. Yingst addressed the Board saying that several proposals were made when the zoning changes were first discussed but that nothing had been put in writing. He said the project would be moving along in the very near future and that it was necessary for him to have an agreement between himself and the Township.

Mr. Yingst said that one of his proposals was for the Township to waive building permit fees, which the Township would not agree to do. He went on to say that in lieu of the permit fees, there had been discussion about obtaining agreements from future developers to reimburse Mr. Yingst a proportionate share of the costs, based on traffic studies, associated with reconfiguring the Jonestown Road and Route 22 intersection. Mr. Yingst said that it was his understanding that the Township would take care of the engineering review fees.

Mr. Yost asked about proposals #4 and #5. Mr. Yingst said that relative to #4 he thought there was some understanding that contributions would be obtained from additional developers. Mr. Yingst said proposal #3 was a definite no from the Board. Mr. Yost said he would look back at his notes.

Mr. Millard asked if a decision had been made regarding a 12-acre plot under the power lines. Mr. Yingst said he was going to turn nine acres over to the Township. Mr. Jones said it was his understanding that the land would be turned over to the Westford Crossing Civic Association. Mr. Yingst responded saying that he had agreed to turn it over and that it didn’t matter to him as far as who took it over. Mr. Millard said he didn’t believe that the Westford Crossing Civic Association had much money.

Mrs. Zimmerman asked Mr. Yingst if he wanted the Township to review its contribution and make sure that everyone be on the same page. Mr. Yingst said that was correct and that he would pay the fees associated with having the Township’s solicitor draw up the agreement.

Mr. Yingst reiterated that he would like to get into some sort of extender’s agreement for future developers.

Mr. Yingst said he was going to take care of the south side of Route 22 and that the longer the discussion had gone on, Mr. Brulo felt that the entire intersection should be realigned. Mr. Jones asked if the engineering had been done. Mr. Yingst said the Highway Occupancy Permit had been submitted. He said he had a deadline of mid-May to get it through.

Mr. Yingst said that someone had buried an acre of wetlands 22 feet deep and that when that was discovered CORE stepped in and that the development process for the property had been set back almost a year. He said he arrived at an agreement with CORE and was waiting for final approval. Mr. Rimer said that Mr. Yingst was going to create new wetlands to recreate what was damaged prior to his purchasing the property. Mr. Yingst said that even though he didn’t own the property when the wetlands were buried, it was his responsibility to clean them up as the new owner.

Mr. Millard asked how the intersection would line up with Blue Ridge Avenue and whether or not a right-of-way had to be obtained from L&M Motel. Mr. Rimer said that initially he thought he would have to write a letter to the owner of L&M Motel, but that Tim Wakefield from PennDOT had done some research and discovered that the driveway on the L&M property was in PennDOT’s right-of-way. PennDOT has insisted that it be closed off for as part of the improvement project. He said PennDOT would notify the owners of L&M Motel.

Mr. Millard said that when someone traveled up the road, they had to make a right on to Blue Ridge Avenue. Mr. Brulo said the south line would line up with where the north lane intersects Route 22. Mr. Jones said that perhaps the Township should consider a project to straighten out the intersection at Jonestown Road and Blue Ridge Avenue. Mr. Rimer agreed that it was a project that should be considered, especially if something happened with the Central Dauphin school. He said it should be a priority project. Mr. Jones said that if the project were bid out to the same contractor, the Township would probably be able to get a much better price. Mr. Yingst said his goal was to have the project completed by the end of September. Mr. Yost said the only way to know would be to have the Township’s engineer review it and have it authorized.

Mr. Jones asked if a motion would be needed for that. Mr. Yost said he was concerned about voting on anything at the workshop because of the way it was advertised. Mrs. Zimmerman asked Mr. Rimer to put it on the agenda for the March 19 meeting. Mr. Rimer said he would do so.

OTHER BUSINESS THAT MAY COME BEFORE THE BOARD

Open Space Development Standards. Mr. Rimer said that the Planning Commission had approved the recommended changes to the Open Space section of the Ordinance and that Mrs. Zimmerman suggested that Board discuss it at the workshop. Mr. Rimer went on to say that Mr. Millard went through the Ordinance and underlined the proposed changes. He also said that the proposal had been on the back burner since 1996.

Mr. Millard said all the references to Open Space were changed to read Conservation Features. Mr. Rimer said the definition of Conservation Features had been added to clarify it and make it easier to understand.

Mrs. Zimmerman said that it was her opinion that a committee should be formed to review the Township Ordinances. She said that all of the ordinances were not adaptable and that there had to be some exceptions because the Township was both rural and urban. Mr. Rimer said the matter had to be advertised for a public hearing. Mr. Jones suggested that the Board take time to review the material before taking any action. The other Board members agreed.

Richard Roberts. Mr. Roberts came before the Board to express some concern with recent personnel changes and the facts that it was taking weeks to have plans reviewed and get a building permit issued. Mr. Roberts showed the Board members a copy of the specifications he had received from National Inspection Agency. He went on to say that the reviewer had requested schematics on HVAC, etc. Mr. Roberts said he had never encountered such a stringent review. He asked if all of the information requested was necessary.

Mrs. Zimmerman said that Mr. Roberts was not the first complaint she had received and stressed to Mr. Rimer the importance of hiring another building inspector as soon as possible. Mr. Jones said he also received complaints and that one developer came into his office very upset and said that the Township’s building inspector had just delayed him three or four months. Mr. Jones agreed that it was time to do something.

Mr. Yingst said he, as well as his staff, were frustrated with the way things were going. He said he was at the point where he would be willing to have his engineer certify the plans. Mr. Rimer responded saying that everybody had different interpretations of the code but that he had asked the inspector to back off on requiring schematic diagrams. Mr. Rimer said he was doing what he could to change the inspector’s ways. Mrs. Zimmerman responded saying that instead of attempting to change the inspector’s ways, Mr. Rimer needed to hire a Township inspector. Mrs. Zimmerman said it was important to get the positions of building inspector and codes and zoning officer filled as soon as possible.

Mr. Jones asked Mr. Roberts about the status of paving the section of Althea Drive he had agreed to do. Mr. Jones said it was his understanding that Mr. Roberts planned to pave it sometime during the summer of 2001. Mr. Roberts responded saying that he currently had that project out for bid to get an idea of the cost and that when he received the estimates he would be happy to pass them on to the Township. Mr. Jones suggested that perhaps it would be a good idea to have the Township’s contractor pave the road when the other section of Althea Drive was reclaimed. Mr. Roberts said there were three more lots and his project would be completed and he added that construction was just about ready to begin on two of the three lots. He added that upon completion of his construction, he did plan to overlay the road. Mr. Jones reiterated that Althea Drive would look nicer if the same materials were put down on both sections of road.

Mrs. Zimmerman reiterated to Mr. Rimer that it was important to get the building inspector and codes and zoning positions filled as soon as possible. She also asked about the status of hiring a full-time secretary/treasurer. Mr. Rimer responded saying that the advertisement for the secretary/treasurer position would be in The Patriot News on March 14 and 15.

ADJOURNMENT

Mr. Jones moved, seconded by Mr. Millard, to adjourn the meeting. The motion was unanimously approved. The workshop was adjourned at 8:35 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

Gail A. Martin,

Township Secretary