WEST HANOVER TOWNSHIP BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
7171 ALLENTOWN
BOULEVARD, HARRISBURG, PA 17112
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 3,
2003
CALL TO ORDER – 7:00 p.m.
Chairman
Jones called the meeting to order at 7 PM.
Mrs. Zimmerman offered a prayer followed by the Pledge of Allegiance. .
ROLL CALL
PUBLIC COMMENT
Jim Zeiters, 204 Glen View
Ave. Mr.
Zeiters reported the County was donating $3,000 towards the operation of the
Senior Van.
John Carricato, 699 Knight
Rd. Mr.
Carricato addressed correspondence item #6, the letter from Mr.
McNaughton. He disputed the term
“unprovoked” used in the letter. Mrs.
Carricato was responding to comments made about her. Both Mr. and Mrs. Carricato and several of their neighbors were
active several years ago when Mr. McNaughton was requesting a zoning
change. The group wanted a level
playing field and urged the Supervisors to follow the Comp Plan. This was a grass roots effort, by petition,
to restrict spot zoning changes. Mr.
Carricato stated that Mr. McNaughton did call his wife on or about April 7; he
was there. Mrs. Carricato is not
against Mr. McNaughton or his use of the land.
He made agreements regarding the land across the street from the
Carricato’s and should be held accountable to those agreements.
Beth Carricato, 699 Knight
Rd. Mrs.
Carricato checked the records of the workshop meeting and found no mention of
the McNaughton issue. She stands behind
every comment she made and also stated she was not going to be intimidated.
SUPERVISORS COMMENTS
Mr. Ziltz. Mr. Ziltz asked Mrs. Carricato to elaborate
on her comments about the minutes. Mrs.
Carricato stated she found no mention of the McNaughton issue in the minutes as
Mr. Jones stated.
Mrs. Zimmerman. Mrs. Zimmerman clarified that
the McNaughton issue was discussed after the workshop on October 13, 2003. She also offered thanks for the new stop
sign at McDonald’s. She did ask when
the line painting would happen as she has received resident calls on the
matter. Mr. Rimer reported that the
contract has been awarded but no date has been set.
Mr. Jones. Mr. Jones asked how many members of Public
Works were members of the Fire Company.
He encouraged all members of the Road Crew to become Fire Fighters. There was discussion on requiring Township
employees to be members of the Fire Company.
Mr. Rimer said the policy currently allowed employees to respond to fire
when work permits. Mr. Jones asked
whether the Municipal building should be connected to the public sewer in light
of the recent problems with the system.
He also recommended the water be checked. The sewer problems at Fishing Creek Valley Elementary School have
been in the news again. He questioned
whether the Township or the Water and Sewer Authority should take over the
system serving the school. There was a
great deal of discussion about the issue and other needs in the area. Mr.
Ziltz moved, seconded by Mrs. Zimmerman, to authorize the Water and Sewer
Authority to look into the issue of the sewer system at Fishing Creek Valley
Elementary School to have the Township take over to provide service to the
school and surrounding neighborhoods including Ritzie Village. Motion passed unanimously.
PRESENTATIONS/STAFF – BOARD
REPORTS
Delta
Development – Update Exit 77 Project Funding. Lou Roth presented an update on the
Transportation Equity Act. President
Bush has proposed a new bill, which makes a total of 3 different levels of
funding before the legislature. There
has been debate over funding, which will probably include an increase in the
gas tax. The Township’s progress with
the preliminary design and engineering will be a major determinant for future
federal allocations. On October 17 Mr.
Rimer testified before the State Transportation Commission Hearings on the
project. Mr. Roth had no guess on the
final passage of a TEA bill.
Bink
Architectural Partnership. Mr.
Harrison Bink presented the report on the evaluation of the Municipal Building
Condition, satisfying Phase 1 part A of the Architectural Services
contract. As a synopsis, Mr. Bink
stated there was no substantive distress at the current Municipal Building. The next section of the report is a code
analysis: whether the building would be
serviceable under the existing codes in Pennsylvania or the International
Building Code. The most restrictive
standard of codes would permit at least a 6800 square foot addition to the
existing building. There is also a
section identifying proposed costs for an addition, if the Board decided to
move in that direction. There is a
significant weakness in the HVAC system in the building. The current systems are at the end of their
useful life. The plumbing systems,
however, are completely serviceable.
The lighting systems could also benefit from an upgrade. He reported the site could support a fairly
large addition. The question of an
addition and the size is dependent on the program needs, which will be addressed
during the Phase 1 part B section of the contract. Mr. Bink emphasized the next step to determine the program needs
for a facility. This report summarizes
the current Municipal Building that because it exists will save some funds in
an expansion.
Jim
Johnson, Treasurer – WHTFC – Status Report on Fire Tax Report. Mr. Johnson presented the 2002 Fire Tax
report. He reported that he became the
Treasurer in July after the resignation of the previous Treasurer for health
reasons. The financial books have been
in disarray the past year and a new member, Rob Shaw who is also a CPA, has
been assisting in straightening them out.
He has presented a summary of income and expenses and an itemized list
of checks written throughout the year.
He also made it clear to the Supervisors that there had been a
commingling of funds throughout the year.
The balance of the Fire Tax fund account at the end of 2002 was
$57,860.26. Funds had been saved in
this account in order to purchase a new vehicle. At the current time, however, the balance of the Fire Tax fund
account is zero. The new vehicle has
been purchased and other bills were paid from this account. No Fire Tax funds have been released by the
Township in 2003. The report is
misleading in that it does not show any revenue other than the Fire Tax fund
but it does show all the Company expenses.
The report does satisfy the need to show the use of the Fire Tax
Funds. Mr. Jones asked about the report
of the Fire Company discontinuing bingo.
Mr. Johnson stated it was not publicly announced yet but the plan is to
stop the bingo on Dec. 31, 2003, due to lack of adequate help running the
games. He did think the Company would
be open to cooperate with the Park and Rec Board for Township Bingo games. Mrs.
Zimmerman moved, seconded by Mr. Millard, to accept the 2002 Fire Tax Report
and authorize use of the Fire Tax funds through the requisition process for
2003. Motion passed unanimously.
PUBLIC HEARING/MEETING: None.
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
Workshop meeting – October
13, 2003. There was one correction to the term
“general consensus” to read general discussion. There was also a clarification that the discussions about Mr.
McNaughton were held after adjournment of the meeting. Mr. Ziltz moved, seconded by Mrs.
Zimmerman, to approve the minutes of the workshop meeting of October 13, 2003,
as amended. Motion passed unanimously.
Workshop
meeting – October 20, 2003. Mr.
Ziltz moved, seconded by Mrs. Zimmerman, to approve the minutes of the workshop
meeting of October 20, 2003, as presented.
Motion passed unanimously.
Regular
meeting – October 20, 2003. Mr.
Ziltz moved, seconded by Mrs. Zimmerman, to approve the minutes of the regular
meeting of October 20, 2003, as presented.
Motion passed unanimously.
TREASURER’S REPORT
Mr. Millard
read the Treasurer’s report:
Mr.
Millard identified the following prepaid expenditures:
Vouchers prepaid to meet due
dates $125.00
Total prepaid expenditures $28,223.26
Mr. Ziltz moved, seconded by Mrs. Zimmerman, to
approve the prepaid expenditures as presented.
Motion passed unanimously.
Vouchers
to be approved $74,250.18
Mr. Ziltz moved, seconded by Mrs. Zimmerman, to
approve the vouchers as presented.
Motion passed unanimously.
PLANNING COMMISSION REPORTS AND PLANS
#03.017 F/SB/LD Hemlock
View, McNaughton Company. Both Glen Grell, Attorney,
and Tim Mellott, Engineer, were present to represent Mr. McNaughton. The project consists of 52 condominiums
served by a private road on 11 acres off Jonestown Rd. The plan has been considered twice at the
Planning Commission however there are several issues that they want guidance on
from the Supervisors. Mr. Grell stated
the ultimate goal of tonight’s discussion was to have the matter referred back
to the Planning Commission with some additional guidance. The first issue is the access drive to the
project, which is proposed as an approximately 1200 foot long road ending in a
cul-de-sac. The ordinance limits the
length to 1000 feet unless an emergency access is available. The main question was the development of the
Township property to the rear and whether the development access road could act
as an emergency access to the rear property.
The second issue is sidewalks within the development. Mr. Grell is proposing sidewalks on one side
of the access road. The third issue,
not addressed by the Planning Commission, was any offsite improvements along
Jonestown Road. There is a steep hill
on the development side of Jonestown Road, which would make sidewalks or
shoulder work difficult. The other side
of Jonestown would be more appropriate for improvements and is designated as a
portion of the Ped Path. Mr. Rimer
clarified that it sounded like the access road would be a private street built
to public standards. Mr. Grell stated
that sidewalks on one side of the street allow for more open space in the
development. There was concern from the
Board that the sidewalk was right up against the street with no grass area
between the street and the sidewalk.
The Township ordinances prevent dedication of the road to the Township
because of space consideration. There
was discussion on the curbing and the developer choice of slant curbs. Mr. Leonard addressed several of the issues
raised. The slope of the road, if it
ran through to the Township property, would be greater at the 1200-foot length
and would also have to cross a creek.
This development is in the Village district, which does require
sidewalks. This issue should be
determined by the Planning Commission, which has the expertise in this
area. Mr. Leonard also stated the issue
of sidewalks on Jonestown Road is not an offsite issue as the project abuts
Jonestown Rd. Mr. Leonard reiterated
the fact that the Planning Commission should be deciding many of these factors,
which he feels, are frivolous at best.
Mr. Rimer reported that the plan needed to be acted upon by the December
15, 2003, meeting. Mr. Grell offered an
extension of time if the Board was sending the plan back to the Planning
Commission. Mr. Zeiters, Planning
Commission Chairman, stated that there was also a concern, not about the length
of the road, but the number of units on a single access road. Mr. Ziltz stated that he felt the issue
should be sent back to the Planning Commission with the stipulation that the
Township ordinances need to be complied with or valid justification given why a
waiver should be granted in a specific instance. Mrs. Zimmerman moved, seconded by Mr. Hoffman, to accept
the 90-day extension and send the plan back to the Planning Commission for
further work. Motion passed four to one
with Mr. Millard opposed.
OLD BUSINESS
Project/Program Status Report. Mr. Millard asked about the Waste Hauler Permits. Mr. Rimer reported that we are still in the process of getting responses back. Mr. Jones asked about the fixed assets inventory accounting system. Mr. Rimer is scheduling a meeting with Diana Reed to discuss implementation of GASB 34.
NEW BUSINESS
Consent
Items. Mr. Ziltz moved, seconded by Mr.
Millard, to approve the following consent items:
1.
Improvement Guarantee Reduction #1 for Blue Mountain Logistics Park
(Dermody) Phase I in the amount of $605,796.55 leaving a balance of
$106,203.45.
2.
Improvement Guarantee Reduction #1 for Blue Mountain Logistics Park
(Dermody) Phase II in the amount of $168,074.90 leaving a balance of
$21,925.10.
3.
Improvement Guarantee Reduction #4 for Clover Lee in the amount of
$7,595.00 leaving a balance of $49,858.65.
4.
Reschedule the public hearing for Highmark from January 20, 2004, to
Dec. 15, 2003.
Motion passed unanimously.
Resolution 2003-50 – Compensation Schedule for 2004. Mr. Rimer reported the Consumer Price Index, CPI, for this year
is 2.32%. The proposed resolution shows
the various ranges and steps with the increased CPI. The typical increase for each employee with a satisfactory review
is an increase of one step, which includes the CPI increase. Mr. Ziltz asked to see the Township wide
average increase. Mrs. Zimmerman asked
to see the column for the various steps from 2003. The Board tabled the Resolution till the next meeting.
Resolution 2003-51 – Computer Equipment Disposal -
Electronics Recycling Program. This was
initiated based on the memo from the Dauphin County Office of Municipal Solid
Waste Management and Recycling announcing an electronics recycling collection
day. Mr. Ziltz moved, seconded by
Mrs. Zimmerman, to adopt Resolution 2003-51 for computer equipment disposal at
the Dauphin County Office of Municipal Solid Waste Management and Recycling
sponsored electronics recycling collection.
Motion passed unanimously.
Authorize Advertisement for Appointment of CPA firm
as Township Auditor for the 2003 Audit. Mr.
Ziltz moved, seconded by Mr. Millard, to authorize the advertisement for the
appointment of a CPA firm as the Township Auditor for the 2003 audit. Motion passed unanimously.
Accept Agreement Amendment to Traffic Signal
Maintenance Agreement with PERCS Traffic Signals, Inc. Mr. Ziltz moved, seconded by Mrs. Zimmerman, to accept the
amendment to the Traffic Signal Maintenance agreement with PERCS Traffic
Signals, Inc. Motion passed unanimously.
Wells-Bolton-Slate Ridge Sewer Project. A clarification was made that the Wells-Bolton-Slate Ridge area
is within the 20-year plan so the Act 537 plan does not have to be updated or
redone. Mr. Ziltz moved, seconded
by Mrs. Zimmerman, to engage the Township SEO to investigate the
Wells-Bolton-Slate Ridge area to evaluate the need to extend the sewer lines to
serve this area. Motion passed
unanimously.
Township Building – On-lot Septic System Repairs. Mr. Rimer reported that emergency repairs had to be made to the
Municipal building septic system.
Repairs were made and the system was rejuvenated with enzymes.
CORRESPONDENCE
Mr. Yost discussed the letter from Kerwin and Kerwin about the quit
claim deed for the unopened and improved section of Short Street. Mr. Yost requested the Board reserve the
right to any drainage easement, potential sewer line, ped path, and any other
utilities needed in the future. Mr.
Ziltz moved, seconded by Mr. Millard, to direct Solicitor Yost to make
additions and/or corrections to the quit claim deed presented by Kerwin &
Kerwin for a section of Short Street.
Motion passed unanimously.
Mr. Millard discussed the letter from PA American Water about the
possible purchase of the Sewer plant. Mr.
Ziltz moved, seconded by Mr. Millard, to thank them for the request but decline
the offer. Motion passed unanimously.
Mr. Rimer explained the letter from PennDot revoking the Highway
Occupancy Permit at the intersection of Jonestown Rd. and Route 39. The Township is ultimately obligated to make
the intersection safe and PennDot will be drawing funds from the bond posted by
Pilot to make the necessary corrections.
Mr. Ziltz asked about the letter regarding MS4 requirements. All the MS4 projects for the Township will
be presented in the budget.
Mr. Rimer pointed out some issues with the Central Dauphin School
District regarding the improvements to the curve on Piketown Rd. and also the
relocation of the road. The budgeting
and planning is being completed for improvements to the curve, which the
Supervisors have agreed to perform. The
Township is not building the new road at the entrance to the school. There is a meeting on Wednesday to
straighten out the responsibilities of each party regarding all the road
issues.
Mr. Millard discussed the letter from Mr. McNaughton regarding
statements made during the public comment section of the last meeting. He does not feel that the tapes should be
given to the public. Mr. Yost stated
that there must be a policy by the Board on the use of the tapes. Mr. Millard moved, seconded by
Mr. Ziltz, to establish a policy that the audio tape recordings of meetings are
for assistance in preparing the minutes only and not a matter of public
record. Motion passed unanimously.
OTHER BUSINESS THAT MAY COME
BEFORE THE BOARD
Mr. Rimer reported that Mr. Patel is in the process
of subdividing the land purchased at the Water and Sewer Authority. He would like to remove some trees in order
to complete the survey. There was some
discussion about the need to remove trees at this time of year for a survey and
also that when the sale closes it will be his land anyway. Mr. Millard moved, seconded by Mr.
Ziltz, to authorize permission to remove the minimal amount of trees necessary
to complete the survey. Motion passed
unanimously.
The Funeral Home Association is meeting this week
and would like to tour the Municipal building.
The general consensus was the Board is still undecided on the matter but
they are welcome to tour the building.
PUBLIC COMMENT
John Carricato,
699 Knight Rd. Mr. Carricato feels that
Mr. McNaughton is attempting to circumvent the government in the Township. He stated the only thing anyone has ever
asked of Mr. McNaughton was for him to conform to the Township’s zoning and
comprehensive plan. Mr. Carricato said
that Mr. McNaughton has no respect for the Township rules or boards.
Beth Carricato,
699 Knight Rd. Ms. Carricato stated she
said what she wanted to during the public comment and is not concerned about
it.
SUPERVISORS COMMENTS
Mrs. Zimmerman. Mrs. Zimmerman requested a letter be sent to
Gables requesting the addition of lights in the parking lot.
Mr. Millard. Mr. Millard asked about the Fire Company
plans to open another account in order to transfer funds electronically. There was discussion about not
micro-managing the Company by paying all their bills but providing oversight so
the appropriate bills are paid with Fire Tax funds. Mr. Rimer reported that the materials for the Fire Services study
are completed except for bridge weight limits.
The Fire Company is still compiling their materials.
Mr. Ziltz. Mr. Ziltz requested an Executive Session
from 8 to 9 PM at the workshop meeting on Nov. 10, 2003, to discuss personnel
issues. Mr. Ziltz reported that he has
observed problems in the Gables parking lot and asked whether the Township can
do anything with street lighting in the right of way. When the improvements are made to Exit 77 some changes will be
made in street lighting.
ADJOURNMENT: 10:15 PM