City Council

Borough of Beaver, PA Council Meeting April 11, 2023 Minutes • A regular scheduled meeting of Beaver Borough Council was held in the Community Room and was called to order on Tuesday, April 11, 2023 at 7:00 PM by Council President, Alexander Andres. • Council Representatives in attendance: Alexander Andres, Michael Deelo, Roberta Good, Whitney Learn- Conjeski, Margaret McKean, Jim Perini, Alex Sebastian, Sean Snowden, and Amy Stettler. • Borough officials in attendance: Mayor Thomas Hamilton, Chief of Police and Borough Manager Dan Madgar, Borough Solicitor Garen Fedeles, Finance Manager Andy Kennedy, Sergeant Ken McCoy, Debbie Hindman, and Rebecca Phillips. • Absent: None. • Visitors in attendance (signed in): Midge Sefton, Jim Woolley, Jay Jacobs, Lisa Jacobs, and Michael Conjeski. A moment of silence was held for Mr. Dave Shallcross. Approval of Minutes Motion by Mr. Snowden to accept the Council Meeting Minutes of March 14, 2023 and Work Session Minutes of March 28, 2023. Seconded by Ms. Good. Voice vote passed unanimously. Treasurer’s Report – • March 2023 Financial Report included in the Council Packet. Motion by Ms. Stettler to accept the Treasurer’s Report. Seconded by Mr. Snowden. Voice vote passed unanimously. Review invoices and authorization to pay bills Motion by Ms. Good to authorize and pay submitted invoices for the Borough. Seconded by Mr. Sebastian. Voice vote passed unanimously. Public Participation • Mark Kopsack, PUSH Beaver County o Thanked Beaver Borough Council for their continued support of Beaver County Boom o Reviewed the Boom fireworks event and the goal for it to have a positive economic impact on Beaver County o The Beaver County Boom event will be held on June 24, 2023 April 11, 2023 Council Meeting Page 1 Reports – Commissions / Authorities Council of Governments (COG) – Reported by Mr. Andres • Reviewed the March meetings regarding the Beaver County Property Reassessment • COG actively recruiting more communities to participate in Beaver County COG • Reviewed the COG Leadership conference • Discussing ways communities in Beaver County can come together and address issues with larger companies, such as the railroad. o Ms. McKean – Reviewed a bill being sponsored for railroad safety improvement and safety concerns. Suggested that COG create a list of safety concerns and submit it to Representative Deluzio’s office. o Mr. Andres – COG is considering an approach of listing current issues communities are facing with large businesses. o Mr. Madgar – Beaver Borough is being delayed to repair a storm water drain on River Road due to an application process with the railroad company. Grant money from Beaver County has been awarded towards this project and must be completed by the end of next year. o Ms. Stettler – Addressed concerns of trains blocking access areas, such as Bridgewater Crossing and the sewage treatment plant. Civil Service Commission – Reported by Mr. Todd • March 27, 2023 meeting minutes included in the Council Packet • A total of 7 applications have been received • Testing will begin on Tuesday, April 25, 2023 with the physical agility and written portions Zoning Hearing Board (ZHB) – No report Planning Commission – • The December 19, 2022 meeting minutes and March 20, 2023 draft meeting minutes included in the Council Packet. Tree Commission – No report Code Enforcement Officer Report – • March 2023 Code Enforcement Officer’s report included in the Council Packet Historic Architectural Review Board (HARB) – • The February 16, 2023 and March 2, 2023 meeting minutes were included in the Council Packet April 11, 2023 Council Meeting Page 2 • Ms. Good – Asked if additional information could be provided regarding HARB’s mentioned definition of “unreasonable economic hardship” o Mr. Madgar – A copy of their proposed definition will be provided at a Work Session to review once the draft is finalized by HARB and the Borough Solicitor. o Mr. Fedeles – Believes that the drafted ordinance being proposed by HARB is in the final stages to be proposed to Council for consideration and discussion. o Mr. Snowden – Asked that Council members take their time reviewing the drafted ordinance once distributed to ensure it is fair for all residents. Municipal Authority – Reported by Mr. Deelo • Meeting minutes from March 7, 2023 and March 15, 2023 were included in the Council Packet • The Municipal Authority has four major projects and are exploring ways to fund them. Pool Committee – Reported by Mr. Andres • Sub-committees are now meeting Council Committees Finance – No report General Government – No report Highways – No report Public Safety / Code Enforcement – No report Recreation – No report Reports Manager/Secretary Report – Reported by Mr. Madgar • Reviewed meeting with Mark Peluso of Town Center Associates. Town Center Associates has partnered with Beaver County CED for their Business District Initiative which will collect data on downtown businesses in Beaver County. The overall business health of Beaver Borough was reviewed and was above expectations set by the initiative. o Information will be available on the Borough’s website. o Beaver County CED will contribute $!0,000 towards the Borough’s contract with Town Center Associates April 11, 2023 Council Meeting Page 3 • LSA Statewide grant for police radios was awarded to Beaver Borough Police Department in the amount of $115,424.00. This grant has no match requirement and was submitted by Detective Jim DeGori. o A motion to accept the grant and process the order for the communication equipment is expected in the coming weeks. • Tyler Ursida, a part-time police officer will be starting full-time at Beaver Falls police department April 15th. Officer Ursida is the current SRO at College Square Elementary school. • Proposed agreement with Industry Borough for police services to be extended for another 5 years, increasing $5,000 per year. • Proposed agreement with Beaver Area School District for two school resource officers for another 3 years, increasing 4% each year. Mayor Hamilton – • Ms. Phillips reviewed the speaker series at Penn State Beaver to discuss economic development in western Pennsylvania. President’s Report – • Reviewed recent events in town: o Antique Show at Shaw Park. This event will continue the second Saturday of each month through October. o Easter Egg Hunt Police Department – No report Fire Department – No report Emergency Management Coordinator – Reported by Mr. Perini • Attended a meeting at the 911 Center, which will be held quarterly. • The power plant recently sent out a check to Beaver Borough in the amount of $500.00 and should be earmarked for emergency management. o Mr. Madgar – Check has not been received yet but will notify Council once it is. Borough Engineer – • Engineer’s report for March 2023 was included in the Council Packet Solicitor Report – Reported by Mr. Fedeles • Distributed draft of grease trap ordinance for review. This draft is also being reviewed by the Borough Engineer and Municipal Authority Operator. o Ms. McKean – Asked if this had been distributed to the Chamber of Commerce. April 11, 2023 Council Meeting Page 4  o Mr. Fedeles – This has not been distributed to the Chamber of Commerce or any businesses at this point as it is only in draft form. o Mr. Madgar – This ordinance will be enforced by the Health Inspector, who will educate and work with businesses to comply with the ordinance once approved. Motions 2023 Beaver County BOOM Sponsorship Motion by Ms. Learn-Conjeski, I move that Beaver Borough Council approve the Silver Sponsorship at the rate of $1,250 in support of the 2023 Beaver County BOOM annual fireworks display. Seconded by Ms. Good. Voice vote passed unanimously. Advertisement of 2023 Road Paving Project No. 1 Motion by Mr. Deelo, I move that Beaver Borough Council approve to advertise the request of bids for the Beaver Borough 2023 Road Paving Project No. 1 in accordance with the Borough Engineer’s report dated April 7, 2023. Seconded by Ms. Stettler. Voice vote passed unanimously. Authorization to Draft Zoning Ordinance Amendment Motion by Ms. Learn-Conjeski, based on the Planning Commission’s recommendations, I move that Beaver Borough Council authorize the Borough Solicitor to draft amendments to the current Zoning Ordinance for bed and breakfasts, short term rentals, day care/homes, home based businesses, self-storage, truck terminals, warehouses, and accessory parking. Seconded by Mr. Snowden. Voice vote passed unanimously. Agreement with Industry Borough for Police Services Motion by Ms. Good, I move that Beaver Borough Council approve Resolution 2023-01 authorizing Beaver Borough to enter into an intergovernmental cooperation agreement with the Borough of Industry to provide police services for Industry Borough. Seconded by Mr. Snowden. Voice vote passed. Ms. McKean and Mr. Perini opposed. • Mr. Perini asked if Industry Borough was asked to increase their agreement to 4% to match the recently passed CBA o Mr. Madgar – No, the cost to provide police services to Industry Borough did not increase 4% SRO Agreement with Beaver Area School District Motion by Ms. Good, I move that Beaver Borough Council approve a three-year agreement with the Beaver Area School District to provide two School Resource Officers (SRO) beginning July 1, 2023 and expiring June 30, 2026. Seconded by Ms. Learn-Conjeski. Voice vote passed unanimously. April 11, 2023 Council Meeting Page 5 Motion by Ms. Good to add a motion to the agenda to put on record that the majority of Council disagrees with Mr. Perini’s financial comments in his political pamphlet. Seconded by Mr. Sebastian. Voice vote passed. Ms. McKean and Mr. Perini opposed. • Mr. Andres – Addressed concerns presented to him regarding a political flyer distributed by Mr. Perini to residents in the First Ward. Statements of concern included that Beaver Borough would start to run out of money in 10 years and Beaver Borough Council has failed to act on ideas brought to them by Mr. Perini. Mr. Andres believes that the statements made are argumentative and misleading. o Mr. Perini – Explained that the financial statements were based on a report previously distributed to Council and believes he and another councilmember have been reprimanded for speaking to other communities. o Mayor Hamilton – Addressed concerns of misinformation being presented by Mr. Perini and believes that it can be misleading. o Ms. Stettler – Addressed concerns of the ineffectiveness of Mr. Perini as the Finance Chairman. o Mr. Madgar – Addressed concerns of Mr. Perini misrepresenting information. o Ms. Good – Noted that approximately 400 flyers have been distributed. o Mr. Kennedy – Created the financial report that Mr. Perini referred to under the impression that it was a projection to create an understanding of what changes needed to be made. Motion by Mr. Snowden to put on record that the majority of Council disagrees with Mr. Perini’s financial comments in his political pamphlet. Seconded by Ms. Stettler. Voice vote passed. Ms. McKean and Mr. Perini opposed. Mr. Andres rescinded Mr. Perini’s chairmanship and membership of the Finance Committee and appointed Ms. Stettler as chair. Ms. McKean requested to state publicly that she contacted PSAB in regards to Borough Councilmembers having the right to talk with other elected officials without permission of the President of Council. Her contact stated that councilmembers do not need to request permission. Motion by Ms. Stettler to adjourn. Seconded by Ms. Good. Voice vote passed unanimously. Meeting adjourned at 8:25 p.m. Submitted by Rebecca Phillips April 11, 2023 Council Meeting Page 6