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MINUTES FROM THE SEPTEMBER 10, 2001 MEETING OF BOROUGH COUNCIL The seventeenth regular meeting of the Hamburg Borough Council for 2001 of the Hamburg Borough Council was held this evening at the Hamburg Municipal Center with President Richard Boyd presiding. The meeting was opened with Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag and a Prayer. Members Present - Richard W. Boyd, Leon Balthaser, Scott Kreider, Charles Figard, Jeanette Heckman, Roy Heffner, Diana Edwards Members Absent – None Also Present – Lynda G. Albright, Borough Manager, Kim Y. Berger, Recording Secretary, Mayor Del Rosario, Solicitor John Speicher Visitors - Nikki Murry (Item), Katy Boyd, Chief Zelinsky, Diane Robinson, Reading Eagle A motion was made by Diana Edwards and seconded by Charles Figard to approve the amended agenda. ROLL CALL: AYES – R. Boyd, R. Heffner,
J. Heckman, D. Edwards, C. Figard, L. Balthaser, S. Kreider COURTESY TO AUDIENCE None A motion was made by Jeanette Heckman and seconded by Roy Heffner to approve the minutes of the August 22, 2001 meeting as submitted. (Question: Councilman Kreider questioned the ordinance for the reduction in speed for State Street. It was stated that it will be reduced to 25 mph.) ROLL CALL: AYES – R. Boyd, R. Heffner,
J. Heckman, D. Edwards, C. Figard, L.
Balthaser, S. Kreider A motion was made by Roy Heffner and seconded by Jeanette Heckman to approve the following reports: Borough Manager's Report, Public Works Supt. Report, Water/Sewer Supt. Report, Office Manager's Report, Treasurer's Report, and Recreation Director’s Report. (Councilman Balthaser questioned how Community Day was in terms of profit. Manager Albright stated that all the figures were not completed yet.) (Councilman Balthaser also questioned the Mayor and Chief about the chaos that is going on in the Police Department. Mayor Del Rosario questioned what he was asking and Councilman Balthaser stated that he hears all types of things from the public. Councilman Balthaser also stated that he would rather hear it from the Mayor than from the residents of the community. President Boyd stated that he should be present at the Safety Committee meetings and he would find out. Mayor Del Rosario stated that he would not bring every issue to each Councilman. As far as the secretary resigning that will be discussed at the Personnel Committee meeting on Tuesday evening.) (Councilman Balthaser questioned if the floor on the first floor of the Municipal Center was complete and if we were billed for it. Manager Albright stated that it is still an unresolved issue.) ROLL CALL: AYES – R. Boyd, R. Heffner,
J. Heckman, D. Edwards, C. Figard, L.
Balthaser, S. Kreider BOROUGH MANAGERS REPORT The Borough Manager’s activities for the month of August, 2001 included the following: Was on vacation up through August 7th. Spent first day back from vacation meeting with all supervisors catching up on the previous week and other important issues. Met with a representative from Copy World, who discussed the possibility of the Borough purchasing a new copy machine. Rick Pickel and I met with residents of Grandview Terrace regarding the status of paving for their street. They also discussed the Authority providing a fire hydrant; questioned whether or not the alley to the east of their homes was an open alley and discussed concerns on one of the neighbors parking illegally. Met with Tim Kramer from PennDot regarding the Deed and Agreement of Sale for the Port Clinton Avenue property; also discussed the status of Confer Avenue. I advised him of Council’s future intention regarding the section of Confer Avenue between North 4th and Northmont Avenue to be made one way east once construction on I-78 begins. On August 15, by invitation from Rep. Argall, attended a meeting at 3 C’s Restaurant to discuss the possibility of utilizing the Hamburg Center as another Veterans’ Hospital. Spent time on August 16 and 17 being interviewed and observed by the Hamburg Item. Met with Supervisors in order that they could present to me their benefit requests for 2002. Met several times during the month with John Leonforte in order that he advise me of ongoing building projects as well as discuss potential problems and concerns. Handled problems regarding Windsor properties being sold without occupancy permits, no meter installations and no final readings. Also, met with Atty. Geschwindt regarding the need for a meter installation for a property he serves as executor to. Worked with Keith Brobst, W/S Supt. on a residential blocked sewer line. Property owner advised that blockage was their responsibility. As it turned out, only part of the problem was the residents; the other part was the Authority’s. Worked on submitting information regarding the State Street Bridge project. It now appears the engineers are commencing gathering information, however, we have no timetable for when work will start. Attended the Open House for the Hamburg Community Health Center. This facility is a real asset to the Borough of Hamburg. Met with Doug Kramer of Synergetics and Steve Leymeister of Temp-A-Sure regarding outstanding air conditioning problems we continue to experience, primarily in my office, the hallway, Sandy Christman’s office and the police department. Steve will return and re-insulate those areas creating problems as well as the problem in the police department. Also discussed with Doug the need to put closure to this project. We are still waiting to have the remaining blinds hung. Doug and I will be talking to John Speicher and requesting correspondence to the contractor forcing him to complete the job. I have been informed that our Recreation Director will not be returning next year. I have asked her for a letter of resignation in order that I can start advertising this position. Kim Berger and I attended a seminar on the GASB 34 requirements, which will mandate the future of Municipal Accounting. We will have approximately two years prior to starting this new procedure. There is much to do and much to learn. This will be a very time consuming venture. Rick Pickel and I met with Ruthann and Michael Luckenbill at her parents’ home on South 5th St. regarding the painting of a blue line for handicapped parking. After seeing the problems it would cause, it was decided to hold off painting a line in front of their house. The crew did, however, paint the line in front of Kenneth Spease’s house as he had requested. Met with Chief Zelinsky several times to discuss personnel issues in his department. Handled various complaints during the month. In addition to the two regular council meetings, attended Authority meeting, Personnel, Safety, Finance, Library Board, Civil Service 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 August, 2001. Lynda G. Albright PUBLIC WORKS SUPT. REPORT - AUGUST During the month of August, the Borough Crew completed the following: AUTHORITY PROJECTS Various meter checks and meter changes were performed. Weeds were cut along the road and dam at the reservoir. The crew cut and repaired old water ditches and then sealed them. The crew had to freeze a water line at 25 N. 2nd Street due to the curb box being cemented over. Apparently there was a problem with the plumbing and the water needed to be turned off. GENERAL WORK Mowing grass around the borough, spraying and cutting weeds continues. The crew performed various equipment and truck repairs and maintenance. Painting of curbs continues. This should be completed in the next few weeks. Hot patching was performed on the shoulders of Pine Street. Weeds in the streams were cut. PARK/POOL The park and pool areas continue to be maintained by cutting and trimming the grass. The crew installed some top soil around the park for EPA. The crew prepared for Community Day and after the event put everything back in order. Richard L. Pickel Water & Wastewater Superintendent’s Report August 2001 Wastewater The new operator started August 1 and is doing a fine job. She will work her first weekend shift Labor Day weekend. This month was heavy on maintenance, both repair and preventative. We had a polymer mixer motor repaired, and the comminutor motor replaced. Seals were replaced on a pump at the Ridge lawn Pumping Station, and we sent #3 raw sewage pump out to have the seal replaced. Both # 3& 4 aeration tanks were emptied, inspected, and cleaned. There has been an ongoing problem at 539 N 5th St. with the lateral becoming blocked. When the homeowner dug up the lateral in his yard we discovered the lateral had sunk in the street creating the problem. Since it was already dug up we hired the plumber and excavator to do the work to replace the pipe. The operations have suffered with some problems in recent weeks. The primary digester has been foaming heavily and is "stuck". The activated sludge system is settling poorly and we are losing some solids. This resulted in a permit exception for fecal Coliform on August 29. There is some good news, the sludge mixing system and belt filter press are working much better. I expect this will continue to improve as we gain more experience with it. I attended a seminar on the West Nile Virus and how it relates to wastewater treatment plants. Very informative, good lunch. Water A few problems have cropped up in the last month that may be related to the reprogramming after the lightening strike. Tony is trying to determine what is going on, however we went onto well water as of August 29 so the program is not in use. We had some a dirty water problem on the 15th. We determined the we were seeing manganese in the water. We spent the day spot flushing and in retrospect should have sat on our hands as that made the problem worse. The staff will be working with SDE on the manganese problem. Lines have been painted on the side of the spillway to aid in implementation of the emergency action plan in case of an imminent dam failure. Arrangements have been made to make some repairs to the valve tower at the impounding dam. I expect the work to begin shortly. We have received a Notice of Violation from the PaDEP for failing to sample for Atrazine at Well #5. We are required to sample in the 2nd and 3rd quarters every 3 years. My impression was that if the well was not in use no sample was required. That is not the case, and since it was used in the first quarter a sample was required. Sampling was done in the 3rd quarter. Keith L. Brobst
OFFICE MANAGER’S REPORT AUGUST 2001 A lot of time has been spent working with the Accounting Clerk to train her on the various aspects of her job. I have been working with the software company to fix a few minor problems and a few issues that I have with the software. Prepared the minutes and memo for the Civil Service Commission members as well as revamp the rules and regulations that were approved by the commission members. Prepared Act 205 reports for Lynda’s review and signature. I have spoken with the President of the Jaycees to receive more information for the web page. I am trying to update this page as time permits. New pictures will be added and I would like to see a digital camera purchased for the Borough so that we can take and add our own pictures to the web or for our information. Throughout the month worked on Community Day information, revenues and expenses and printed reports for same. Many letters were mailed this month, including: Weed notices, junk car letters, trees in alley, support for the Library, DCED, PA DOT, Solicitor, County EMA, Civil Air Patrol, bad checks and others. I know it is only August, however, I did start working on information for 2002, such as updating forms that give dates for payroll, staff meting recycling and etc. Met with Chief Zelinsky on various occasions to discuss some issues. Lynda and I attended a seminar on GASB-34, which must be implemented in the next 3 years. It deals with the way that the accounting procedures are to be done and the need for inventory lists and depreciation of equipment and supplies. This new change is going to greatly impact all local governments. I have a call into our auditors and Lynda and I will be attending some more seminars on this issue. During the month, I attended 2 Council meetings, 2 staff meetings, 1 EMA meeting, 1 Rec Board Meeting and 1 Civil Service Commission meeting. The minutes have been prepared for all meetings. If you have any questions in reference to my report, please feel free to ask. Respectfully submitted, Kim Y. Berger
RECREATION DIRECTOR’S REPORT FOR AUGUST, 2001 In the month of August, we were very busy with large crowds due to the extensive heat waves. We put in many hours in the morning and throughout the days. We ended our swimming lessons and the last week of Kidspeace in the third week. The pool was being used extensively day by day. Our lap swimmers swam up to the very last day we were open and were very pleased with having the pool open early so they could swim privately and do their exercises. The playground ended its season in the middle of August with high numbers in participation. During the hot weeks the leaders would accompany the students to the pool and hold events for them. They planned some new activities for the kids this summer as well, such as Junior Olympics and some new tournaments. Community Days was a success on August 18th. We had many people turn out early in the morning for breakfast and yard sales. The entertainment went very well and we had no major problems. I invited members from the participating businesses to a follow up meeting in September to offer some advice to better upcoming events. Tonya Gerner, Recreation Director OLD BUSINESS On the recommendation of the Borough Manager, a motion was made by Jeanette Heckman and seconded by Charles Figard to hire the following crossing guards retroactive to August 30, 2001: Ron Hulet, Armistine Muntz, Roland Smith, Sr., Jeffrey Dehner, Steven Seiders, Zelpha Pahl, Paul Moyer and Kenneth Schadler at a cost of $11.00 per day . ROLL CALL: AYES – R. Boyd, R. Heffner,
J. Heckman, D. Edwards, C. Figard, L.
Balthaser, S. Kreider On the recommendation of the Property Committee, a motion was made by Roy Heffner and seconded by Charles Figard authorizing the Borough Manager to prepare and advertise an ordinance to reflect the entire right-of-way width of 57.3 feet and street width of 33 ft on Confer Avenue between North 4th and Northmont Avenue. ROLL CALL: AYES – R. Boyd, R. Heffner,
J. Heckman, D. Edwards, C. Figard, S.
Kreider NEW BUSINESS On the recommendation of the Borough Manager, a motion was made by Scott Kreider and seconded by Roy Heffner accepting Tim Romig’s resignation as a member of the Recreation Board with regret. (Councilman Balthaser questioned Mr. Romig’s reasons. Manager Albright stated that he has too many other commitments and he cannot continue to serve.) ROLL CALL: AYES – R. Boyd, R. Heffner,
J. Heckman, D. Edwards, C. Figard, S.
Kreider On the recommendation of the Auditor and the Finance Committee, a motion was made by Scott Kreider and seconded by Charles Figard to have a bad debt removed for trash services and penalty fees for a property off of Port Clinton Avenue in the amount of $355.37. ROLL CALL: AYES – R. Boyd, R. Heffner,
J. Heckman, D. Edwards, C. Figard, L.
Balthaser, S. Kreider A motion was made by Roy Heffner and seconded by Diana Edwards to approve payment of invoices totaling $113,991.53. ROLL CALL: AYES – R. Boyd, R. Heffner,
J. Heckman, D. Edwards, C. Figard, L.
Balthaser, S. Kreider LIST OF BILLS AT & T 106.80 ADIRONDACK DIRECT 387.78 ROD ALTHOUSE 23.50 AMES DEPT. STORE 16.18 BAILEY’S PORTABLE TOILET RENTALS 85.00 BARKO CLEANERS 630 COUNTY OF BERKS 1,670.36 BERKS PRODUCTS 260.84 BERKSMONT NEWSPAPERS 756.03 BLUE MT. COMPUTER SERVICE 1,250.61 FRANKLIN CLARK 12.50 COMMONWEALTH OF PA 53.75 CONNECTEK 30.00 DANKA CORPORATION 47.94 DAVID DENGLER 100.00 E-MAC DAIRY BRUSH 37.20 EJB PAVING 1,243.69 EDENBURG WELDING 54.30 EVANS FOOD DISTRIBUTORS 129.96 FIRST UNION 935.56 GPU 658.80 GOULD PUBLICATIONS 16.95 GOVT. FINANCE OFFICERS 245.00 HAMBURG AREA SCHOOL DISTRICT 837.04 Hamburg, Pa September 10, 2001 7:30 p.m. HAMBURG AUTO 17.19 HENN’S GARAGE 861.24 HERSHEY CREAMERY 340.63 DULUX PAINT CENTERS 125.88 INNOVATIVE SYSTEMS 404.68 INSIGHT 981.50 KUZANS 11.52 LOUEES 1,482.00 LOWE’S 96.74 PAUL MELNICZEK 108.00 METROCALL 9.95 MONARCH 110.00 DAVE MORGANTI 9.98 MOUNTAIN VIEW SUPPLY 61.48 MEIT 105.50 NATL. UNIFORMS 235.25 NEXTEL COMMUNICATIONS 677.05 PAUL MOYER 10.39 PENN PRIDE 594.94 WILLIAM PICKEL 50.00 POWERCO 49.68 QUILL 423.26 REIDER ASSC. 80.00 SOMES UNIFORMS 30.00 SYSTEMS DESIGN ENGINEERING 2,595.24 THYSSENKRUPP ELEVATOR 139.05 US MUNICIPAL SUPPLY 324.29 VERIZON 427.23 WENGERT’S 137.80 WESTERN AUTO 418.42 WIN OUTLET 207.45 WINDSOR DISTRIBUTING 736.74 TOTAL 21,452.87 BILLS PAID DURING THE MONTH 92,538.66 GRAND TOTAL $113,991.53
FIRST UNION 935.56 HAMBURG YOUTH BASEBALL 250.00 BOROUGH OF HAMBURG 81,580.95 HAMBURG REDS 25.00 NEIL YODER 550.00 BERKSHIRE MALL 75.00 RINGGOLD BAND 1,200.00 APPALACHIAN PET FARM 250.00 HARRY PRUTZMAN 100.00 SEA FOAM GREEN 400.00 WINDSOR DISTRIBUTING 456.34 THOMAS ZELINSKY 25.00 SAM’S CLUB 135.00 BERKS CO. TREASURER 232.50 SECOND SONG MUSIC 100.00 PPL UTILITIES 415.35 WESTERN BERKS EMS 250.00 PA DEPT. OF PUBLIC WELFARE 80.00 HMA 5,278.33 PETTY CASH 12.63 POSTMASTER OF HAMBURG 187.00 SOLICITOR’S REPORT An Executive Session was held from 7:47 p.m. to 9:35 p.m. to discuss police arbitration issues and the potential litigation regarding the police pension plan. A motion was made by Roy Heffner and seconded by Jeanette Heckman to appoint Joseph Rudolph, Esq. at an approximate cost of $220 per hour, as the arbitrator for the police contract arbitration. ROLL CALL: AYES – R. Boyd, R. Heffner,
J. Heckman, D. Edwards, C. Figard, L.
Balthaser, S. Kreider A motion was made by Charles Figard and seconded by Scott Kreider to direct Solicitor Speicher to respond to the mandamus action regarding the police pension plan. ROLL CALL: AYES – R. Boyd, R. Heffner,
J. Heckman, D. Edwards, C. Figard, L.
Balthaser, S. Kreider UPCOMING MEETINGS/INFORMATION
There being no further business, the meeting adjourned at 9:30 p.m. on motion of Jeanette Heckman and seconded by Charles Figard. Attest:
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