The fifteenth regular meeting of the Hamburg Borough Council for 2002 of the Hamburg Borough Council was held this evening at the Hamburg Municipal Center with President Richard W. Boyd presiding. The meeting was opened with Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag and a Prayer.

Members Present – Richard W. Boyd, Roy Heffner, Leon Balthaser, Charles Figard, Dale Schlenker, J. Heckman, D. Edwards

Members Absent – None

Also Present – Kim Y. Berger, Recording Secretary, Lynda Albright, Borough Manager, Mayor Del Rosario

Visitors – Douglas Brill (Pottsville Republican), Thomas Zelinsky, Travis Fritz, LaRoy Fritz

A motion was made by Leon Balthaser and seconded by Roy Heffner to approve the amended agenda.

NAYES – None

NONE

A motion was made by Jeannette Heckman and seconded by Charles Figard to approve the minutes of the July 24, 2002.

ROLL CALL: AYES – R. Boyd, R. Heffner, J. Heckman, D. Edwards, C. Figard, L. Balthaser, D. Schlenker

NAYES – None

A motion was made by Roy Heffner and seconded by Charles Figard to approve the following reports: Borough Manager's Report, Public Works Supt. Report, Water/Sewer Supt. Report, Office Manager's Report, Treasurer's Report, Recreation Directors Report, Property Committee Report and Finance Committee Report

NAYES – None

The Borough Manager’s activities for the month of July, 2002 included the following:

Was on vacation the first week of July.

Met with John Leonforte, Bldg/Zoning Inspector to review and discuss various building and zoning issues, in particular, property maintenance violations, along with building violations. Letters were sent to the property owners and advised of their need to make corrections.

On two separate occasions, met with John Leonforte and Barry Weaver of Blue Marsh surveyors to assess a situation regarding the incorrect installation of curbing. The contractor has been informed and will make the necessary corrections.

Handled various complaints regarding weeds, trash, zoning issues.

Reviewed and handled several problems relating to high water and sewer bills, faulty meters, tap-in fees.

Met with Debbie Evans of the Senior Neighborhood Center to respond to questions relating to their use of the building, and areas that needed to be addressed regarding the HVAC system. Overall, management and participants of the facility are extremely happy.

Met with Randy Pyles of Sovereign Bank. Randy handles government banking services and we discussed borough and authority needs and what he may be able to do for us. At the present time, it appears his services would best benefit the Authority trust accounts. He will be forwarding a letter with additional information prior to the next Authority meeting.

I am happy to report Comcast has installed high speed internet service in the borough office.

I attended a meeting with Benecon, our representative for the Berks County Municipal Insurance Group Coop. They are currently obtaining bids for health insurance for the year 2003. We will be meeting in September and will be given the results. I will inform Council as soon as I receive some concrete numbers for budgeting.

Handled several personnel problems.

Met with representatives of EPA to receive an update on their work at the park and the Port Clinton Avenue sites. They will be doing additional testing in various areas in the Borough. It is anticipated they will be working in our area for sometime yet.

Spent time reviewing the first six-months of receipts and expenses. Will also be reviewing this with the Finance committee.

In addition to the two regular council meetings, attended Authority, Finance, and Property committee meetings.

If anyone has any questions regarding my report, please feel free to ask.

Attached with my report are the activities of my staff for the month of July, 2002.

Lynda G. Albright, Borough Manager

PUBLIC WORKS SUPERINTENDENT'S REPORT - JULY 2002

During the month of July, the Borough Crew completed the following:

Worked on the dryer press for the sewer plant.

Work has commenced on hot patching water ditches around the Borough.

Work has commenced on sealing cracks around the Borough.

The crew has stared working on the storm drain project on Geary Drive.

Spraying weeds along the curbs and cutting weeds along the streets/roads has continued.

Various cold patching continues

Street signs continue to be repaired.

PARK/POOL

Cutting grass and maintenance continues at the park and pool.

                            Richard L. Pickel

Public Works Superintendent

Wastewater

Flows at the plant have been very low allowing us to take tanks off line for cleaning and maintainence. Number 2 secondary clarifier remains off line as it is not needed.

The belt filter press has been repaired and is back in service. Number 2 primary clarifier has been emptied, inspected and greased. C cell of the aerobic digester was cleaned and repairs made to the floor valves. The large aeration tank was emptied and inspected as was number 3 secondary clarifier. An expansion joint in the digester recirculation piping was replaced.

The building to house the dechlorination equipment has been delivered and installed. The rest of the equipment is on site and will be installed shortly.

Water

Water for the month has all been from the surface source. I will not tell you that next month. The dam level is dropping quickly.

There was a malfunction of the PLC at the water plant. An input card failed and has been replaced, however we had to run the wells for several days till repairs could be made.

There has been considerable activity at the watershed. We have found evidence of swimmers in the dam and July 4^th there were fireworks set off in the spillway. Water and Wastewater personnel and the Borough Police are trying to make their presence known, however, people are there at all times of the day and night.

The drought emergency remains in effect at this time and I would expect for the foreseeable future. In spite of this, water use is high for this time of year.

Submitted
Keith L. Brobst
Water & Wastewater Superintendent

During the month of July, I attended, two Council meetings, one EMA meeting, one Civil Service Commission meeting and one staff meeting.

This has been an extremely busy month.

In the beginning of the month, quarterly reports for payroll, grease trap letters and etc. were completed.

The Municipal Access Channel continues to be updated as well as the web page. I have had to present to the insurance company as well as the ongoing issues that we have with a few open claims.

Weed notices continue to be mailed as well as property maintenance issues, which have been turned over to John Leonforte, Building Inspector for follow up.some new ideas for the web page; however, time constraints have not afforded me the opportunity to carry them out at this time. I spent some time at the pool during swim lessons and regular pool hours and took some candid pool shots. These have been posted on the web page.

I spent time revamping the trash and recycling specs, notices and other related data. These have been turned over to Lynda for review and update.

The office spent some time researching and copying some tax maps for the Main Street Committee.

Since the park/pool is in full swing, met on a consistent basis with the Recreation Director creating posters and working on Hawaiian Day for the Pool. I have secured a "sno cone" machine for that day and they will have a lot of interesting "Hawaiian food".

I contacted the Reading Eagle, Pottsville Republican and the Hamburg Item to give the pool some press coverage for the Hawaiian Day. It will be Thursday, August 8, 2002 from 12 noon to 5 p.m. I have contacted "Voices" from the Reading Eagle to request our pool be featured in their paper.

There have been a few workmen’s compensation injuries (ambulance and police) that I have

I have met with 3 different uniform companies to seek proposals for our uniform contract. Our current contract will expire in the beginning of 2003 and we are looking to change companies.

After the Civil Service Commission meeting, I spent time revamping our rules and regulations per the boards’ wishes. These have been sent to the solicitor for final review.

I have contacted Nextel on various issues and billing questions. I am happy to report that everything has been corrected.

Time was spent working on various letters and different reports for Council as well as the general public.

I met with a representative from Pitney Bowes (mailing machines). Our contract for our current machine will expire the beginning of 2003. The representative has given me some information on digital mailing as well as bar coding. I will be discussing this information with Lynda in the near future.

 

Respectfully submitted,

                                                                                                                        Kim Y. Berger, Office Manager

FINANCE COMMITTEE
JULY 29, 2002

ATTENDING: Lynda Albright, Diana Edwards, Rick Boyd, Roy Heffner, Jeannette Heckman, Dale Schlenker

1. Lynda presented a list of per capita tax delinquent names for consideration. Lynda is instructed to research the presented names by year of delinquency. Lynda was also instructed to research the future plans to handle all delinquent individuals and report the findings at the next meeting of finance.

2. The future of trash and recycling was discussed in relationship to their costs. Lynda is instructed to research the future, in anticipation of the trash and recycling contracts and the impact on the borough.

3. Lynda distributed a second quarter budget analysis for consideration. Each member is instructed to study the analysis in depth and comment at the next finance committee meeting.

Dale Schlenker, Chairman of Finance

Attending: R. Boyd, L. Albright, J. Heckman, D. Schlenker, C. Figard, J. Leonforte, C. Adams*, D. Engle* (*Reading Co. Historical Society)

1) C. Adams and D. Engle presented the history and status of the Reading Co. Historical Society. They are interested in pursuing a vacant industrial site for the purpose of a museum. They outlined their vision of the museum and the effects to the community. Due to their tax exempt status, they are requesting relief on the Borough taxes. It was explained that we would be willing to grant the tax relief, but that both the school and the county would also need to be addressed. The Borough Manager will be discussing any agreements that are needed with the solicitor in an effort to move this project forward.

2) The plans for the Highway Occupancy Permit on the light at 4^th and Hawk Ridge need to be re-submitted due to an error on the drawings. SDS will be reviewing and re-submitting.

3) Penndot’s reviewing the re-surfacing of the state responsible streets in Hamburg, however nothing will be done until after the Interstate 78 project.

4) Proposal for digging a well at the park for various applications – EPA may want to drill some test holes. Specifics on their requirements will be made in writing.

5) There are some concerns on the finances of the Community Day Committee. Since the Borough holds the financial liability on this event, it is necessary that all received funds be turned into the Borough to maintain the proper accountability of these funds as required. The Borough Manager to address with the committee.

6) Clarified some issues concerning the property maintenance fee and how they will be imposed.

7) The Senior Center is changing their name, subsequently the sign in front of the building will reflect the new name; Blue Mountain Senior Community Center.

8) Continued readings on the water usage at the pool has shown that the repairs have been effective. The pool has used an average of 7100 gals per week, which is a substantial reduction based on last years readings. These readings will continue to monitor the pool.

9) The Borough building sustained $772.00 of water damage to the flooring when part of the cooling system leaked.

10) Contacts are being made to promote the rental of the empty Borough rooms.

11) Evaluation of the KWH readings for the Borough building is continuing in an effort to determine why there has been a fluctuation.

12) Still working on the RR property deed in order to allow its sale.

13) D. Schlenker asked about where telephone poles could be obtained. These are needed to place the horizontal Hamburg banners at the town entrance. No specific place suggested other than phone company or Met-Ed.

RECREATION DIRECTOR’S REPORT FOR JULY 2002

The month of July started and closed with very hot days. The attendance at the pool was high. We had a lot of daily pay customers from areas other than Hamburg. We experienced very few behavior problems in July.

By the 10th of the month we decided to use our Activity Days, which are, Tuesday and Wednesday to have the children make beaded bracelets and grass skirts for our Hawaiian Day Event, which is scheduled for August 8th. This was a big hit with the kids. Parents also participated. The lifeguards and food stand workers all helped in our preparations for our special day.

By the 18th we had a swim dance in the evening with a D.J. playing music. Over a hundred children attended. By far July has been a busy month at the pool.

We had one major accident on the playground property when the playground was closed. A 12 year old boy fell and broke his arm when a young girl fooling around pulled him to the ground off a bench by his legs. An ambulance had to be called to take him to the hospital. I have checked with his mother to learn that he had to have surgery and after several days in the hospital, he is now home recuperating.

Sincerely,

June D Hilbert
Recreation Director

NONE

NONE

A motion was made by Roy Heffner and seconded by Jeannette Heckman to approve payment of invoices totaling $136,908.04.

ROLL CALL: AYES – R. Boyd, R. Heffner, J. Heckman, C. Figard, L. Balthaser, D. Schlenker

NAYES – None

AT & T 19.70

AT & T 127.27

ALTHOUSE, ROD 41.00

AMERICAN RED CROSS 277.20

AMES DEPT. STORE 145.84

AQUA SERVE 79.00

BOC GASES 29.90

BARKO CLEANING 774.00

COUNTY OF BERKS 1,566.35

BERKS MONT NEWSPAPERS 22.35

BLUE MARSH SURVEYORS 580.00

BLUE MT. COMPUTER 428.95

BOCA 148.00

D.S. DALIOUS FIRE EQUIPMENT 16.70

DAYTIMERS 107.82

EJB PAVING & MATERIALS 861.73

EARTHLINK 47.90

EHRLICH 121.00

EVANS FOOD DISTRIBUTORS 132.24

FINKS TRAILER SALES 49.71

HAMBURG SCHOOL DISTRICT 673.44

HAMBURG AUTO PARTS 28.54

HAMBURG AUTOMOTIVE 28.54

HENNS GARAGE 61.04

HERSHEY CREAMERY 448.30

INTERSTATE SUPPLY CO. 392.77

RANDY KLINE 300.00

LEISAWITZ, HELLER, ABRAMOWITCH 825.17

LOUEES 1,512.00

JP MASCARO 4,123.13

PAUL MELNICZEK 190.00

MET-ED 5,947.13

METROCALL 9.95

MILLER MUNICIPAL SUPPLY 108.00

MILLER’S 5 & 10 83.88

MONICK VIDEO 80.00

MOUNTAIN VIEW SUPPLY 209.72

MEIT 123.00

NATIONAL UNIFORM 219.50

OUR TOWN FOUNDATION 20,000.00

PPL UTILITIES 414.40

PENN FUEL PROPANE 50.35

PENN PRIDE 680.73

QUILL 83.11

RADIO MTCE. 43.50

REIDER ASSOCIATES 180.00

RELIABLE 55.78

RANDALL RENTSCHLER 47.95

STAPLES 139.17

TELCO 274.14

TERRY’S TREE EXPERTS 500.00

THYSSENKRUPP ELEVATOR 143.77

UPS 36.44

VERIZON 428.99

WEIS MARKETS 12.23

WESTERN AUTO 71.99

WIN OUTLET 567.45

WINDSOR DISTRIBUTING 1,421.57

WINDSOR PRESS 298.95

NEIL YODER 570.00

ZEE MEDICAL 87.60

TOTAL BILLS PAID DURING THE MONTH 89,887.69

GRAND TOTAL FOR APPROVAL $136,908.04

August 13, 2002 – 6 p.m. – Personnel Committee (CANCELLED)

August 14, 2002 – 3:30 p.m. – Road Committee (CANCELLED)

August 16, 2002 – 11 a.m. – Induction Ceremony for Main Street Committee

August 19, 2002 – 7 – p.m. – Planning Commission

August 20, 2002 – 7 p.m. – Safety Committee

August 21, 2002 – 6:30 p.m. – Water Sewer Committee

August 21, 2002 – 7 p.m. – Authority Meeting

August 27, 2002 – 6 p.m. – Library meeting (in the Library building)

             August 28, 2002 – 7:30 p.m. – Council Meeting

AUGUST 16 AND AUGUST 17 – COMMUNITY DAYS

There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 7:37 p.m. on motion of Charles Figard and seconded by Diana Edwards

Attest: