City Council

FORTY FORT BOROUGH COUNCIL MEETING FEBRUARY 6, 2017 The February 2017 meeting of the Forty Fort Borough Council was held on Monday, February 6, 2017 at the Forty Fort Borough Bldg., 1271 Wyoming Ave, Forty Fort with President Jeff McLaughlin presiding. President McLaughlin called the meeting to order at 7:00 PM with the following members of council present: Dominic Butchko, Deborah Troy, Amy Craig, Tom Murray and Ted Ritsick. Also present were solicitor, Atty. Bill Finnegan, Mayor Andy Tuzinski, Manager, Bonnie Arnone, St. Dept. supervisor, Rick Kamus and Quad 3 Group representatives, Rich Kresge and Carl Schimmel. The first item of business was a motion made by Mr. Butchko to accept the resignation of council member Frank Michaels. Second by Mr. Ritsick. All council were in favor of this motion. Motion passed. Next, a motion was made by Mr. Murray to appoint David Sieminski to the vacant council position. Second by Mr. Ritsick. Roll call vote showed the following: YES: Ms. Troy, Ms. Craig, Mr. Murray, Mr. Ritsick & Mr. McLaughlin NO: Mr. Butchko Motion passed 5-1 At this time, Mayor Tuzinski administers the Oath of Office to Mr. Sieminski and he took his seat at the council table. RESIDENTS AND TAXPAYERS COMMENTS AND PETITIONS: Charles Holena, 103 Slocum St., Forty Fort, PA questioned the hours and duties of street dept. supervisor Rick Kamus. Mr. Holena stated that he has been following Mr. Kamus around and that he is driving his own vehicle while doing work for the Borough. He also stated that at times, he leaves town while working for the borough. Manager Bonnie Arnone reported to council that a call was placed to the borough’s insurance agent with the question of liability with Mr. Kamus using his own vehicle for borough business. She was told that the borough has coverage for such situations through their non- owned and hired insurance coverage policy. Mr. Holena was assured that the situation will be investigated. Robert Swaback of Susquehanna Ave., asked the engineers about the re-placement of the “No Parking” signs on the upper end of River St. Mr. Kresge stated that they are still awaiting final word from PENDOT as to whether or not the Highway Occupancy permit needs to be adjusted before the signs can be moved. Brian Thomas of Wyoming Ave., Forty Fort stated that the borough should investigate on whether certain employees are considered non-exempt or exempt employees. CONSENT AGENDA FOR ADMINISTRATIVE ISSUES:  Motion by Mr. Butchko to accept all items under the consent agenda. Second by Ms. Craig. All council was in favor of this motion. Motion passed. This agenda includes the following: 1. Motion to approve the minutes of the regular council meeting of 1/3/17. 2. Motion to approve the minutes of the work session meeting of 1/16/17. 3. Motion to approve the Treasurer’s report of December 2016. 4. Motion to pay all bills as presented. 5. Motion to accept the following minutes and reports: a. Police Department b. Kingston Fire Chief c. Forty Fort Fire Chief d. Civil Service Commission meeting minutes. e. Manager’s time sheets – 1/18/17 & 2/1/17 f. WVSA Meeting minutes g. Code enforcement report h. Shade Tree Commission meeting minutes i. Safety Committee meeting minutes Correspondence: 1. Frank Michaels resignation letter 2. Little League Donation request REPORT OF POLICE CHIEF AND MAYOR: Mayor Tuzinski reported that Chief Hunsinger was absent due to sickness. He asked council for a motion to accept the resignation of Officer Cassandra Kudzinkwski. Motion to accept this resignation was made by Mr. Ritsick and seconded by Ms. Troy. On the question: It was asked why she was resigning to which Mayor Tuzinski stated that she is currently working in several other departments. All council was in favor of this motion. Motion passed. Mayor Tuzinski also reported that the police department is currently awaiting the certifications on Officer Kimberly Byczek to begin working for the borough. Sargent Michaels spoke to the local cub scouts pack recently at their meeting. Chief Hunsinger is investigating the current false alarm ordinance for the borough and has asked our solicitor to look at it as well. Regarding the request of the Kingston Forty Fort Baseball Organization, he will once again this year, donate his March paycheck for this donation with the borough paying the balance. At this point, Mr. Ritsick asked what the balance would be after using Mayor Tuzinski’s check to which he was told the amount would be roughly $34.58. Mr. Ritsick stated that he would donate that balance due for the donation. Both were thanked for their contributions for this donation on behalf of the borough. Mayor Tuzinski praised the street department since the takeover by Mr. Kamus stating that many more projects were being undertaken, the call-out procedure has gone much smoother and there is great cooperation between departments. He stated that the borough owned roads are taken better care of than the state roads. Mr. Ritsick explained that the state does have the need to take care of the interstates and bigger highways before coming into the municipalities to do the state roads.  Mayor Tuzinski also spoke about the recent meeting with borough officials and PENDOT representatives regarding the upcoming work that they will be doing on the Rutter Ave. bridge overpass. He explained that motorists will see little changes during this time. REPORT OF BOROUGH ENGINEER: Rick Kresge of Quad 3 Engineers reported that he is working with Mr. Kamus on the specs that will go out regarding the Multi Modal Grant Project of alley paving and borough bldg. exterior work. All spec’s must go to PENDOT for their approval before advertising. Other projects reported on were the Paving Project, the Sewer Rehab Project, the Welles, Slocum & Wyoming Ave. traffic signal project and the MS4 report for the Borough. GENERAL BUSINESS: 1. Motion by Mr. Butchko to approve the retirement of firefighter Robert Smith effective July 1, 2017. Second by Ms. Craig. It was noted that Mr. Smith had been employed as a firefighter for 43 years. All council was in favor of this motion with regret. Motion passed. 2. Motion by Mr. Butchko to donate a 2017 Season Family Pool Pass to the Families for Forty Fort Park organization for their raffle that will be held at the upcoming Easter Egg Hunt at the park. 3. Motion by Ms. Troy to approve the land development plan for Pure Edge Technologies for 1378 Wyoming Ave. as recommended by the Planning Commission. Second by Ms. Craig. All council was in favor of this motion. Motion passed. 4. Motion by Mr. Butchko to approve Pay Application #3 in the amount of $226,999.78 to American Asphalt for the Paving Project through the USDA Loan. Second by Ms. Craig. All council was in favor of this motion. Motion passed. NEW BUSINESSS AND OPEN DISCUSSION: Mr. McLaughlin stated that he would be appointing a committee of council members who will work on the preparation of a borough personnel policy handbook. Atty. Finnegan explained that this should be the first step in the procedure. Mr. McLaughlin also stated that he will discuss other council committee appointments at the next work session. Storm Water Topics – MS4 municipal separated storm sewer systems was talked about and the steps the borough will be taking to follow the mandates send down from the EPA through DEP onto the municipalities. We are working with our engineers on these matters. At this time, 8:00 PM, council adjourned to Executive Session to discuss personnel issues with the Dept. of Public Works and Fire Department. Council re-convened the regular meeting at 8:43 PM. Motion by Mr. Butchko to increase the hourly rate from $12.00 to $14.00 for Part time DPW employee Dan Zukosky. Second by Mr. Ritsick. On the question: It was noted that Mr. Zukosky, a longtime employee of the borough, is now heading the recycling program for the borough. All council was in favor of this motion. Motion passed. Motion by Mr. Murray to adopt Resolution #4 of 2017, a Conflict Waiver. Second by Mr. Sieminski. On the question: Atty. Finnegan noted that since he acts as the solicitor for the Wyoming Valley Sanitary Authority, this waiver is needed so there is no conflict of interest with him serving as the Borough’s solicitor as well in matters concerning WVSA. All council was in favor of this motion. Motion passed. With there being no further business to attend to, a motion to adjourn was made at 8:45 PM by Mr. Butchko and second by Ms. Craig. All council was in favor of this motion. Meeting adjourned. The next meeting will be a work session on Monday, February 20, 2017 at 7:00 PM. Respectfully submitted, Bonnie Arnone Manager