Council of the Municipality of Murrysville

Regular Voting Meeting – Wednesday, June 17, 2015 Council of the Municipality of Murrysville held a Regular Voting Meeting on Wednesday, June 17, 2015 at 7:00 p.m. in the Municipal Building. Present at the meeting were Council members Jeffrey Kepler, William Vance, Regis Synan, David Perry, Joan Kearns, and Loren Kase. Councilman Josh Lorenz was not in attendance. Also present were Mayor Robert Brooks, Chief Administrator James R. Morrison, Solicitor George Kotjarapoglus, and Municipal Planner Allen Cohen. MAYOR BROOKS WELCOMES PHYLLIS MORGAN FAITH IN ACTION Mayor Robert Brooks introduced Phyllis Morgan, who recently retired as Program Director of Faith in Action. Mrs. Morgan said Faith in Action has 2 offices, 453 care recipients and 211 volunteers who compiled over 4,000 volunteer hours last year. She thanked Mayor Brooks, as well as former Mayor Joy Somers and Council President Joan Kearns for the help they have provided to residents through volunteering with Faith in Action. Mayor Brooks talked about the services provided to senior citizens by Faith in Action and called on Bobbi from United Way of Westmoreland County who spoke about the free health care clinic now open in Greensburg. Residents were then shown a short video about Faith in Action and Mayor Brooks presented Phyllis with a citation recognizing her dedication to the program. REGULAR VOTING MEETING AGENDA UNISTED AMENDMENTS: None. Mr. Kepler moved to approve the agenda as presented. Mr. Kase seconded. All present voted aye. Motion approved. CONSENT CALENDAR ITEMS: A. ACCOUNTS PAYABLE B. INVESTMENTS AND TRANSFERS C. MAY 20, 2015 MEETING MINUTES TO BE APPROVED Mr. Synan moved to approve the Consent Calendar Items. Mr. Perry seconded. All present voted aye. Motion approved. COMMUNITY INPUT: Chester Smolenski, 3818 Windover Rd., addressed Council regarding fracking in the community and cited a recent study discussing the health hazards to fetuses, infants and young children in heavily-fracked areas of Pennsylvania. The study showed that in the eight most fracked areas in Pennsylvania, there is a rise in infant mortality, a rise in low-weight births, a rise in perinatal mortality, a rise in prematurity and a rise in cancer in car 7/6/15 Regular Voting Meeting – Wednesday, June 17, 2015 children age 0-4. He suggested setbacks of ½ mile or more from schools, churches, dwellings, nursing homes, etc., and asked that Council consider “to what degree of hazard would they be willing to expose their own children or grandchildren” when discussing and passing an ordinance. Barbara Sims, 3837 Hills Church Road, asked if Council had received any information about the enlargement of the compressor station on Mamont Road. She asked if the energy company would have to go through a rigorous examination of its plans and asked if Council would be able to place certain restrictions on the construction, such as noise, air quality and hours of construction. Mr. Morrison said he has been reporting on this at Council meetings for the past 6-8 months as correspondence is received from the company and advised that the company is currently going through its FERC (Federal Energy Regulatory Commission) approval. That Commission regulates air and noise. He said the extent that the Municipality will be able to regulate that expansion is minimal because it’s governed under federal guidelines. Mayor Brooks said it’s not like no one is doing anything – the government is doing the tests and setting the standards that the company has to meet. Mrs. Sims said the station was a very simple thing and was there for years, but now no one knows what it is going to be. Mr. Morrison said public hearings have been held and he would be happy to send her copies of the information that has been made available to Municipal officials. Mrs. Kearns said the company is very aware of the concerns in Murrysville and have been given copies of the ordinances. Mr. Morrison clarified that the reason the project is federally regulated is because it’s an interstate transportation line of natural gas. Mark Emerson, 4600 School Road South, noted that Council will be discussing the grass height ordinance at tonight’s meeting and asked if Council could detail what the issues are and how the revised regulations will address those issues. He also asked if Council could indicate how the Environmental Advisory Council has weighed in on the issue. Mrs. Kearns said Council would be able to address his questions with the exception of the EAC matter; Mr. Morrison said the proposed changes have not been presented to the EAC. WORKSHOP ITEMS COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT: 10A. DISCUSSION OF A REQUEST FOR RE-APPROVAL OF CU-1-06, BURTON MAJOR EXCAVATION, ORIGINALLY APPROVED MARCH 15, 2006, AND NOT COMMENCED WITHIN THE ONE (1) YEAR TIME FRAME. Robert Burton of 135 Barrington Ridge, Delmont, explained to Council that he and his wife own property on Rt. 286; the original permit wasn’t used and the work not done because by the time all the paperwork was completed, there was no fill available. He has people lined up now to do the work and has met with Municipal staff to discuss the plan. Mr. Burton said he will be putting in about 2,000 cubic yards of dirt and that the original letter erroneously indicated 20,000 yards. He said 4/10 of an acre of land won’t hold 20,000 cubic yards of dirt. Allen Cohen, Municipal Planner, said he, Joe Dietrick and Dave Jobe met with Mr. Burton and the plans are still okay in terms of complying with the Municipality’s ordinance, subject to the items and conditions listed in #5 of the agenda briefing; everything is in order to begin once those conditions are met. The one-year qualification will remain in effect. Mr. Morrison said it is important to have a developer’s agreement executed within sixty days and the work must begin within the one-year period. Mr. Burton said the developer’s car 7/6/15 Regular Voting Meeting – Wednesday, June 17, 2015 agreement has already been signed. This item will be placed on the agenda as an action item at the July 1 meeting. COUNCIL ACTION ITEMS ADMINISTRATION: 13A. CONSIDER APPROVAL OF RESOLUTION NO 644-15, DISPOSAL OF RECORDS. Mr. Perry moved to approve the Resolution authorizing the disposal of certain public records, archives and public documents in accordance with the Municipality’s standard procedures; Mr. Kepler seconded. Upon a roll call vote: Mr. Kepler – yes, Mr. Vance – yes, Mr. Synan – yes, Mr. Perry – yes, Mrs. Kearns – yes, Mr. Kase – yes. Motion approved. 13B. CONSIDER AUTHORIZATION TO ADVERTISE ORDINANCE NO. 926-15, AN ORDINANCE REVISING THE MUNICIPALITY’S HEIGHT REGULATIONS PERTAINING TO GRASS AND WEEDS. Mr. Kase moved to approve; Mr. Synan seconded. Mr. Morrison explained that the major issue from an enforcement point of view for the Municipality is that the way the current ordinance is set up is that there is a minimum height of 16” before enforcement action can take place and a right of appeal process that extends out almost 70 days, which essentially gets you through the year. There are a number of habitual offenders of the grass ordinance throughout the community and Council had asked staff to research the ordinance and various ordinances in the area. Recommendations were brought forth to Council, which include 8” in the residential district, not 6” as quoted in the paper, and 6” in the mixed-use and business districts. It also proposes to change the time to cure the violation to 10 days versus 30 days and puts the process through the Magistrate’s office rather than the Magistrate and the UCC board. There is also a provision to try to adjust for habitual offenders so that if there is an offense within a 12-month calendar year, there would be a progressive fine. Mr. Vance said he has never gotten a call on something that Council was going to address, and he has gotten two calls on this issue. The concerns were that the Municipality is getting too “Big Brotherish” and infringing on individual property rights and going a little too far with it. Mr. Kepler said he is in support of the ten days versus thirty days and would be in line with having to address the habitual offenders; however, he is totally against the 6” and 8” requirements. He believes a very large portion of the community will be in violation on a weekly basis at those heights. He said he stopped mowing his yard after the discussion at the last Council meeting and, within four days, would have been in violation of the height requirement and his grass was over 10” within two weeks. He said he thinks it is complete overreach and does not think it is appropriate; it is essentially establishing a grooming ordinance for residents’ lawns and not providing an opportunity to address the habitual violators. He said he wanted to make it very clear that he would not vote yes for anything under 12”. car 7/6/15 Regular Voting Meeting – Wednesday, June 17, 2015 Mayor Brooks said he would like to see an ordinance that states when the grass reaches 16”, the Municipality will mow it and charge for it. He said he receives calls from residents about their neighbors’ grass and there are four people in the community that are habitual offenders. He said he is powerless because of the 30-day period after a citation is issued and wants a way to get the habitual offenders. Mrs. Kearns said that at 16”, the grass is falling over and she can live with 10”. She asked if the 10-day period was 10 business days or 10 calendar days. Mr. Morrison said 10 calendar days; therefore, there are two week- ends in which the grass can be mowed. She said she felt the proposed fines were a little stiff. Mr. Morrison clarified that the Municipality doesn’t cut the grass for free; the work is contracted out and a lien is placed on the property. Mr. Perry said he has an habitual offender next door to his office and the goldenrod is approximately 24”-30” and has had 2 neighbors complaining and asking if Council could do anything. He said he has never had 3 people complain to him about anything and they were happy that Council is changing the ordinance. Mr. Synan said he is in favor of the 10” and 10-day rule. Mr. Kase said he is in agreement with the 10-day rule and feels that 10-12” as a standard is acceptable. He said that making it lower would end up in an administrative nightmare, i.e., if someone is unhappy with the neighbor’s dog barking and looks at the grass that seems to be a bit high, the phone calls start coming in. He said people might use the grass height against neighbors and Municipal staff and Council don’t want to get in the middle of that. Mr. Kase also addressed the issue of “improved lots” and noted that there are about 8 active developments in the Municipality with empty lots. The proposed ordinance indicates that those lots must be cut to 10” and he suggested that the height be raised or have an exemption for those lots as long as there is active development on an empty improved lot. Mr. Morrison asked what Mr. Kase would define as active development; he said that needed further discussion and suggested possibly narrowing the time to a six-month window. Mr. Morrison said it would probably be appropriate to narrow it down to a specific time, since there are developments that have been ongoing for years or are being done in phases and have 20%-40% of the lots developed and may be next door to a lot that has grass in excess of 18”. Mr. Perry suggested using the same restrictions as roads in developments – up to 80% build-out would “get a pass;” once reaching 80%, the property is pulled in with all the others. Mrs. Kearns asked about the height in the business and mixed-used districts and whether that should also be kept to 10 inches. Mr. Kepler reiterated that a 10” height does not indicate that the homeowner has let the property go; that is a very plausible and frequent occurrence. Mayor Brooks said that 10” is the point where the property owner should be notified that he/she has two weeks to get it done. Mr. Kepler said that the height is not the primary issue, but the suggested time for enforcement is to be reduced from 70 days to 10. He believes that gives the ordinance enough teeth. Solicitor Kotjarapoglus said he will leave the height issue to Council; he took Mr. Morrison’s proposed ordinance, states that the owner must respond to the notice within 10 days – either cut the grass, make a plan or appeal to the Magistrate, and took it one step further to address the habitual offender. The habitual offender is one who has either had two notices in one year or a notice in two successive years. Mr. Kotjarapoglus added an car 7/6/15 Regular Voting Meeting – Wednesday, June 17, 2015 additional ten days at which time Council can advise the Chief Administrator to order the grass to be cut. If the property owner appeals and wins at the Magistrate level, Council can’t assess any fines. Mrs. Kearns asked about properties that are on the market and have very high grass. Mr. Morrison said staff attempts to reach the real estate agent; some agents will take care of the grass, some will not. In some instances, the Municipality arranges with a contractor to have the grass cut and the property is liened. Council asked Mr. Morrison to make some revisions and bring the matter back for discussion at the next meeting. He was asked to include the 80% build-out, 8” for the business and mixed-use districts, 10” for the residential district. Following the discussion, Mr. Perry moved to table this ordinance for two weeks; seconded by Mr. Synan. All present voted aye. Motion approved. 13C. CONSIDER AUTHORIZATION TO ADVERTISE ORDINANCE NO. 927-15, REVISED FEES ORDINANCE TO PERMIT ALCOHOL AT SARDIS PARK. Mr. Perry moved to approve. Mr. Vance seconded. Mr. Morrison explained the history of alcohol being permitted in the park under the former owner, how the police are notified of alcohol permits being issued, and the use of alcohol in Townsend Park. Mr. Vance raised the point that the sight line at the entrance of the park is very limited and inquired about a mirror across the road. Mr. Morrison said he would pursue that through the proper channels. There were no other questions from Council. Upon a roll call vote: Mr. Kepler – yes, Mr. Vance – yes, Mr. Synan – no, Mr. Perry – yes, Mrs. Kearns – yes, Mr. Kase – yes. Motion approved. 13D. CONSIDER APPROVAL OF SPONSORSHIP FOR THE ANNUAL HOUSEHOLD HAZARDOUS WASTE EVENT ON SATURDAY, OCTOBER 3, 2015, IN THE AMOUNT OF $2,080.00. Mr. Perry moved to approve to approve the sponsorship request from Westmoreland Cleanways in the amount of $2,080. Mr. Kase seconded. Upon a roll call vote: Mr. Kepler – yes, Mr. Vance – yes, Mr. Synan – yes, Mr. Perry – yes, Mrs. Kearns – yes, Mr. Kase – yes. Motion approved. COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT: 14A. CONSIDER APPROVAL OF TIMBERING REQUESTED BY TIMBER HARVEST: CU-3-15, 3893 WINDOVER ROAD, 7 ACRES. 14B. CONSIDER APPROVAL OF TIMBERING REQUESTED BY TIMBER HARVEST: CU-4-15, 3898 WINDOVER ROAD, 7 ACRES. 14C. CONSIDER APPROVAL OF TIMBERING REQUESTED BY TIMBER HARVEST: CU-5-15, 4991 CROWFOOD ROAD, 30 ACRES. 14D. CONSIDER APPROVAL OF TIMBERING REQUESTED BY TIMBER HARVEST: CU-6-15, 117 HAY LANE, 8 ACRES. car 7/6/15 Regular Voting Meeting – Wednesday, June 17, 2015 Mr. Synan moved to approve all requests listed in 14A, 14B, 14C and 14D, with all conditions for each item. Mr. Perry seconded. Mrs. Kearns asked how the property at the back of Megan Weir-Leven’s land and Bob/Lane Neff lands was being accessed. Dave O’Barto, the forester on the project, indicated the access on the map projected by Mr. Morrison, showing the access coming off Windover Road. He said the property owned by William and Louise Weir will also be accessed from Windover Road, leaving the Crowfoot property as the only parcel being accessed from Crowfoot Road. Mrs. Kearns said she spoke with Mr. Morrison about her concerns over the road conditions and asked if an excess maintenance agreement could be drawn up because of the weight of the trucks. She then asked Mr. O’Barto how the process would take and how many trucks would be used. He said his guess would be 30-45 days and there might be two trucks a day – or there may be a few days when there will be no trucks; two would be the maximum number of trucks. Mr. O’Barto said the trucks weigh 36 tons; Mrs. Kearns said it would be in the Municipality’s best interests to obtain an excess maintenance agreement. She then mentioned the number of trees overhanging the road and asked who would be responsible if the trucks hit the trees, which are on private property, and caused damage to the trees. Other Council members noted that there are delivery trucks, garbage trucks, etc. traveling the roads and that these logging trucks fall within PennDOT requirements, are DOT inspected and are not an excessive height. There were no additional questions and no further discussion. Upon a roll call vote: Mr. Kepler – yes, Mr. Vance – yes, Mr. Synan – yes, Mr. Perry – yes, Mrs. Kearns – yes, Mr. Kase – yes. Motion for all four items approved. 14E. CONSIDER APPROVAL OF RESOLUTION NO. 646-16, THE ROADWAY SUFFICIENCY ANALYSIS, AS PART OF THE UPDATE OF THE MUNICIPALITY OF MURRYSVILLE TRAFFIC IMPACT STUDY. Mr. Synan moved to approve; Mr. Kase seconded. Upon a roll call vote: Mr. Kepler – yes, Mr. Vance – yes, Mr. Synan – yes, Mr. Perry – yes, Mrs. Kearns – yes, Mr. Kase – yes. Motion approved. 14F. CONSIDER APPROVAL OF RESOLUTION NO. 647-15, A REQUEST BY APPLE PENNSYLVANIA FOR THE TRANSFER OF A RESTAURANT LIQUOR LICENSE FROM JIMMY’S WIFE’S PLACE, LLC, 101 EAST MAIN STREET, NEW ALEXANDRIA BOROUGH, TO APPLE PENNSYLVANIA, LLC, LOCATED AT 4920 WILLIAM PENN HIGHWAY, MUNICIPALITY OF MURRYSVILLE, PA. Mr. Synan moved to approve; Mr. Kepler seconded. Upon a roll call vote: Mr. Kepler – yes, Mr. Vance – yes, Mr. Synan – yes, Mr. Perry – yes, Mrs. Kearns – yes, Mr. Kase – yes. Motion approved. 14G. CONSIDER APPROVAL OF S-4-15, TENDER CARE LEARNING CENTER SUBDIVISION, 4490 OLD WILLIAM PENN HIGHWAY, LOT CONSOLIDATION. Mr. Vance moved to approve; Mr. Kepler seconded. Upon a roll call vote: Mr. Kepler – yes, Mr. Vance – yes, Mr. Synan – yes, Mr. Perry – yes, Mrs. Kearns – yes, Mr. Kase – yes. Motion approved. car 7/6/15 Regular Voting Meeting – Wednesday, June 17, 2015 14H. CONSIDER APPROVAL OF CU-2-15, TENDER CARE LEARNING CENTER, A CONDITIONAL USE APPLICATION TO ALLOW PROPERTY LOCATED AT 4490 OLD WILLIAM PENN HIGHWAY, MURRYSVILE, PROPOSED TO BE USED FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF A CHILD CARE FACILITY AND REDUCTION IN THE SIDE AND REAR YARDS OF THE OUTDOOR PLAY AREA TO 40 FEET, WITH ADDITIONAL LANDSCAPE BUFFER BEING PLANTED WITHIN THAT YARD AREA. Mr. Kepler moved to approve and referenced the landscape plan dated 6/16/15. Mr. Kase seconded. Upon a roll call vote: Mr. Kepler – yes, Mr. Vance – yes, Mr. Synan – yes, Mr. Perry – yes, Mrs. Kearns – yes, Mr. Kase – yes. Motion approved. 14I. CONSIDER APPROVAL OF SP-3-15, TENDER CARE LEARNING CENTER, SITE PLAN, 4490 OLD WILLIAM PENN HIGHWAY. Mr. Synan moved to approve, with the attached landscape plan of 6/16/15. Mr. Vance seconded. Upon a roll call vote: Mr. Kepler – yes, Mr. Vance – yes, Mr. Synan – yes, Mr. Perry – yes, Mrs. Kearns – yes, Mr. Kase – yes. Motion approved. Following the vote on all of the Tender Care items listed above, Joanne Palke of 3163 Windgate Drive asked to speak to Council about the location of the school and said she believes the school can find another place because of the elderly people living adjacent to the property. Mrs. Kearns said it is unfortunate that she and other residents who have the same concerns didn’t attend the public hearings held on these applications. She said the owners are well aware of the concerns of residents about noise and the intent is to have relatively small groups of children in the play area with adult supervision. ENGINEERING: 15A. CONSIDER A REDUCTION IN THE SEQUESTERED ACCOUNT BEING HELD FOR THE BARRINGTON HEIGHTS DEVELOPMENT. Mr. Kase moved to reduce the amount of the performance bond being held to insure completion of the required improvements at the Barrington Heights development from $417,702.80 to $312,000, a reduction of $105,702.80. Mr. Kepler seconded. Upon a roll call vote: Mr. Kepler – yes, Mr. Vance – yes, Mr. Synan – yes, Mr. Perry – yes, Mrs. Kearns – yes, Mr. Kase – yes. Motion approved. OLD BUSINESS: None. NEW BUSINESS: None. EXECUTIVE SESSION: None. ACTION ITEMS: None. car 7/6/15 Regular Voting Meeting – Wednesday, June 17, 2015 ADJOURNMENT: Mr. Kase moved to adjourn. Mr. Perry seconded. All present voted aye. The Council Meeting concluded at 8:27 p.m. The Regular Voting Meeting was broadcast on local government Channel 19. A true copy of the Council meeting DVD is available for the public to purchase from the Municipality of Murrysville and is in the Murrysville Public Library for review. car 7/6/15