Council of the Municipality of Murrysville

Regular Voting Meeting – Wednesday, March 2, 2016 Council of the Municipality of Murrysville held a Regular Voting Meeting on Wednesday, March 2, 2016 at 7:00 p.m. in the Municipal Building. Present at the meeting were Council members Joan Kearns, Jamie Lee, David Perry, Jeffery Kepler, Loren Kase, Josh Lorenz, and Tony Spadaro. Also present were Chief Administrator James Morrison, Solicitor George Kotjarapoglus, Municipal Engineer Joe Dietrick, and Municipal Planner Allen Cohen. THE MUNICIPALITY OF MURRYSVILLE WELCOMES JOHN HINES – MARCH FOR PARKS MURRYSVILLE RECREATION DEPARTMENT John Hines, a member of the Citizens Advisory Council for Westmoreland Parks and Recreation, thanked Council for allowing him to speak and gave information about the upcoming March for Parks to be held March 19 at Twin Lakes Park in Greensburg, Cedar Creek Park in Belle Vernon and Duff Park/SportsZone in Murrysville. The March is a fundraiser for parks and trail projects in Westmoreland County and the money raised in Murrysville will be used to work on the Turtle Creek extension of the Westmoreland Heritage Trail in preparation for construction of 5.6 miles of the Trail in 2017. He encouraged residents to participate by volunteering and/or walking. He also noted that dogs are welcomed at the Murrysville walk this year. Carly Green, Murrysville’s Director of Recreation, spoke about the upcoming March 18 egg hunt at Murrysville Community Park for both dogs and kids. There will be treats and refreshments for everyone, the Easter Chick will be there for photos, and many other exciting things happening. Volunteers are needed to set up, serve food and clean up. Carly was joined by Amy Wengrzyn, Special Events Coordinator, and the Easter Bunny, who passed out treats to Council and residents. REGULAR VOTING MEETING AGENDA UNISTED AMENDMENTS: 1. Under Council Action Items – Community Development – ADD Item No. 14D – Reconsideration of revisions and partial bond release for SP-6-14, Murrysville Racquet Club; 2. Under Council Action Items – Executive Session – ADD Item No. 19A – Legal Issue. Mr. Kepler moved to approve the agenda as amended. Mr. Kase seconded. All present voted aye. Motion approved. CONSENT CALENDAR ITEMS: A. ACCOUNTS PAYABLE B. FEBRUARY 3, 2016 MEETING MINUTES TO BE APPROVED Ms. Lee moved to approve the Consent Calendar items. Mr. Kepler seconded. All present voted aye. Motion approved. car 3/4/2016 Regular Voting Meeting – Wednesday, March 2, 2016 COMMUNITY INPUT: Dee Wingard of 2550 Kohosek Court again voiced concerns about the number of vehicles that will be traveling Kohosek Court if the rezoning of property between Kohosek and Haymaker is approved and the proposed 120- unit development is built. Eleanor Sharp of 3339 Shady Drive thanked Council for presenting the recent Marcellus Shale educational session and thanked them in advance for the upcoming planned sessions. Russell Mills, representing APB Holdings, presented some additional information to Council regarding the traffic study prepared by Charles E. Wooster & Associates. He discussed the number of peak hour trips that would be generated from the proposed development. He commented on Mr. Bucciero’s commitment to the community and the work he has already done on the site (i.e., reclamation of the site by filling the former junk yard property with fill to road level and rehabilitating the former strip mine area) and that he has a commitment to responsible development in the community. WORKSHOP ITEMS COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT: 10A. DISCUSSION OF S-2-16, MURRYCREST SUBDIVISION, HAY LANE, 3 LOTS. Chris Kerns of Echo Land Solutions, who is also the applicant, briefed Council on the plan, which has access from both Hay Lane and Treesdale Court. He proposes to subdivide the property into 3 lots, with one accessible from Hay Lane and the other 2 accessible from Treesdale Court. Municipal staff and the engineer have all approved the plan. Mrs. Kearns asked if the lots will be serviced by public water and sewer. Mr. Kerns advised that the two lots accessed from Treesdale have public water and sewage, while the lot accessed from Hay Lane will have a well and public sewage. Mr. Cohen advised Council that fee-in-lieu is recommended for Murrysville Community Park payable at the time a building permit is issued. Mrs. Kearns had a concern that, for over 40 years, an apartment complex has existed on Sardis Road which is referred to as Murrycrest and she didn’t want a potential for confusion to exist. She said Mr. Dietrick feels the requested subdivision is small enough that the name will disappear quickly. Mr. Kerns said he chose the name because the West Penn Power substation at the end of Hay Lane is known as the Murrycrest Substation. Mr. Dietrick said there are a lot of small subdivisions in the community and, in his opinion, he doesn’t believe many people remember any of the names. Mr. Perry said as long as the lots have the correct 911 address, he has no concerns. This will be moved to the next meeting as an action item. 10B. DISCUSSION OF THE FEBRUARY 24, 2016 OIL AND GAS DRILLING EDUCATION SESSION AND PLANNING OF FUTURE PROGRAMS. Municipal Planner Allen Cohen said that, from a staff perspective, everyone was pleased with the attendance, presentation, and the depth of the questions and answers. Mr. Cohen said he came out of the meeting with a car 3/4/2016 Regular Voting Meeting – Wednesday, March 2, 2016 lot of “take-aways” that could be incorporated into the ordinance because of the information provided at the session regarding what DEP does and doesn’t do, and what would be most appropriate to address or not address in the Municipality’s ordinance. He said it was very valuable from many different perspectives. Staff is in the process of planning a second session that will focus on the industry’s perspectives on oil and gas drilling and will touch on topics such as their own practices, best management practices being utilized and how they operate a site and deal with impacts of the development. That session is being targeted, tentatively, for March 30 pending Council’s approval. A third session is also being planned for mid-April that will focus on the environmental and health impacts and perspectives from environmentalists and health professionals on Marcellus shale drilling. Mr. Lorenz said there were a number of people who had a desire to submit questions and have them answered by DEP and asked if anyone had submitted any questions to the Municipality. He asked if none have been submitted, can residents still do so and will they be forwarded to the DEP for a response. Mr. Cohen said he has not received any but suggested that if there are questions residents should e-mail them to the Municipality. Mrs. Kearns said that both speakers indicated they would be willing to come again or to answer any questions that might arise. Mr. Cohen said that if anyone e-mails questions, he will forward them directly to the presenters for their answer. Mr. Kepler said he didn’t think there was enough time for questions/answers and said there should be no more than 50% of the time used for the presentation, with the rest for questions. He suggested that, if time runs out, index cards should be made available so that people can write down questions and have them answered; also, the answers should be posted on the website so that everyone in attendance could get the answers. Ms. Lee said she is glad that members of other communities joined the presentation but wondered if there would be a way to prioritize Murrysville residents’ questions first before input or questions from members of other communities. Mr. Morrison said it’s a matter of who gets here first and that the next time around, rather than going down the list, names could be pulled out of a hat or some other random selection so that comments can be heard from a mix of the people in attendance. Mr. Morrison said staff has some work to do now that they know what DEP’s position is, not only in the rulemaking, but the representatives gave insight into how the Municipality can/will manage, which will help refine some of the things in the pending ordinance that now exist. Mr. Kepler said he spoke with one of the representatives after the meeting and asked when the rules would go into effect and was told they are “pending” and there are several roadblocks in the way. Mr. Kepler said that should be made commonly known. Mr. Perry said the rules have gone through the Science Advisory Board but they haven’t gotten through committee and haven’t gone through the politicians. He said what comes out will probably be vastly different than what feeds in. Mr. Morrison wanted to remind everyone that the first ordinance put together was prior to Act 13 and the Supreme Court decision and the pending ordinance is essentially an update based on those two things. Mr. Lorenz commented on Mr. Kepler’s comments about the time for questions and said that it was his understanding that the time for questions was to be limited to clarification or to gain a better understanding of the information presented by DEP at the session. It appeared to him that many of the questions were prepared and, obviously, if prepared in advance weren’t in response to information presented but were requests for car 3/4/2016 Regular Voting Meeting – Wednesday, March 2, 2016 additional information or insight. He said that, in the context of what staff is trying to do and with the time constraints, he’s not sure if that’s the best use of the time allotted. He thinks Mr. Kepler’s suggestion is good that those with questions that aren’t directly on point to what is being presented or that may be related could be put in writing and submitted to the presenters so the public can get answers to those questions but not consuming time at the session that might be spent better otherwise. There was additional discussion on how to conduct the question/answer session. Mr. Morrison said he was very pleased with the way the session went and congratulated those in attendance. He then said he had been in touch with Huntley & Huntley to put them on notice that staff would like them to attend the upcoming session to discuss their commitment and plan in Murrysville. After discussion among Council members as to what dates they would be available, it was decided to hold the session on March 30. COUNCIL - ACTION ITEMS COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT: 14A. CONSIDER APPROVAL OF ORDINANCE NO. 943-16 TO REZONE PROPERTIES ON THE OFFICIAL ZONING MAP OF THE MUNICIPALITY OF MURRYSVILLE FROM APPLICATION Z-2-15, DIADON, LLC, FROM MIXED USE (MU) TO BUSINESS (B). Mr. Lorenz moved to approve the ordinance. Mr. Spadaro seconded. Mrs. Kearns had a concern that the other properties to the west to School Road will be left “hanging out there” and she would rather see the parcel as part of a comprehensive change as opposed to piecemeal changing. Upon a roll call vote: Mrs. Kearns – no, Ms. Lee – yes, Mr. Perry – no, Mr. Kepler – no, Mr. Kase – yes, Mr. Lorenz – yes, Mr. Spadaro – yes. Motion approved. 14B. CONSIDER APPROVAL OF REVISION TO S-9-15, KARP PLAN OF LOTS, 3927 HILTY ROAD, TAX PARCEL 49- 12-00-0-024. Mr. Perry moved to approve the revision with 2 conditions: plan recordation subject to approval of the planning module for on-lot sewage for lot 1-R and payment of $1,250 as fee-in-lieu at the time that a building permit is issued for a dwelling on lot 1-R. The applicant agreed to the conditions. Mr. Kase seconded. Upon a roll call vote: Mrs. Kearns – yes, Ms. Lee – yes, Mr. Perry – yes, Mr. Kepler – yes, Mr. Kase – yes, Mr. Lorenz – yes, Mr. Spadaro – yes. Motion approved. car 3/4/2016 Regular Voting Meeting – Wednesday, March 2, 2016 14C. CONSIDER AUTHORIZATION TO ADVERTISE ORDINANCE NO. 945-16, Z-1-16, APB HOLDINGS, LLC, A REZONING FOR PROPERTY BETWEEN KOHOSEK ROAD AND HAYMAKER ROAD, TAX PARCEL 49-15-00-0-248, R-R AND B TO R-3 FOR THAT PARCEL. Mr. Lorenz moved to authorize advertisement of the ordinance. Mr. Spadaro seconded. Mrs. Kearns said that, even though this motion is only to advertise, she has concerns about the traffic generation. She said the applicant neglected to include the ADT estimated trips for 120 units (not just peak times) as 760 vehicle trips per day. She believes the noted 70 trips per day is totally unrealistic. She said today’s society is very mobile and Murrysville is a drive and park community. She said she is opposed to this request and will fight it; the jump from RR to R-3 is huge. There were no comments from other Council members. Upon a roll call vote: Mrs. Kearns – no, Ms. Lee – no, Mr. Perry – abstain pending discussions with the Solicitor because the applicant is a personal friend, Mr. Kepler – no, Mr. Kase – yes, Mr. Lorenz – yes, Mr. Spadaro – yes. The vote is tied 3-3. Solicitor Kotjarapoglus raised a point that, under the Municipality’s Planning Code, Council is required to follow the process for rezoning. Whether Council approves the application is a separate matter, but the applicant is entitled to have his request heard as a rezoning ordinance from which he can appeal. At this point, Council can have a reconsideration of the motion and wait until it moves forward for the next motion, but it just can’t die. Mr. Kepler asked if it can’t die, what’s the purpose of voting? The Solicitor said Council has to vote so the applicant is entitled to a decision on the request; voting not to advertise is not a decision on his application. Mr. Kepler said he understands that, but asked why Council is given the option to say no at this time. The Solicitor said Council can vote no, but the applicant can get a judge to order the advertisement. Mr. Lorenz said his friendly suggestion is for those who did not vote yes, to reconsider their vote. Mr. Lorenz then made a motion to reconsider the vote on the motion that he made to advertise. Mr. Morrison said that Council has to understand that this is an action directing staff to take an action. Mr. Kase seconded the motion to reconsider. All those present voted aye. On the original motion to advertise, upon a roll call vote: Mrs. Kearns – yes, Ms. Lee – yes, Mr. Perry – abstain, Mr. Kepler – yes, Mr. Kase – yes, Mr. Lorenz – yes, Mr. Spadaro – yes. Motion approved. 14D. RECONSIDERATION OF REVISIONS AND PARTIAL BOND RELEASE FOR SP-6-14, MURRYSVILLE RACQUET CLUB. Mr. Perry moved to reconsider prior approval of the double amended motion to approve the revisions as presented in SP-6-14, Murrysville Racquet Club site, the site revisions being known as the landscaping, handicap zone and striping, and the drop-off zone, and to release all the bond money with the exception of $5,000 to address outstanding issues. Ms. Lee seconded. Prior to a vote, Mr. Perry asked if Council can make a motion to table so that they can have a discussion with the developer on… Mrs. Kearns said not on this step but that can be done when Council gets into a discussion on car 3/4/2016 Regular Voting Meeting – Wednesday, March 2, 2016 the original motion. Upon a roll call vote: Mrs. Kearns – yes, Ms. Lee – yes, Mr. Perry – yes, Mr. Kepler – yes, Mr. Kase – no, Mr. Lorenz – yes, Mr. Spadaro – yes. Motion to reconsider approved. The original motion approved at the February 17 meeting was to approve revisions to SP-6-2014, Murrysville Racquet Club site, and release of bond. The original motion is on the floor and does not have to be seconded. Discussion followed. Municipal Engineer Joe Dietrick visited the site with Council members and presented a drawing of the site showing the original plan as approved and the as-built plan as presented. The handicapped space will remain as moved near the door and the island beside it will be somewhat curved and extended to wrap around in order to protect the handicapped space. There are 9 parking spaces nearest the building because the original landscape islands were not put in. Those will need to be put back in with asphalt curbs as well to protect them from traffic. The drop-off area will be moved across from the front door and all aisle widths, which are currently 16’ wide, will be made 20’ wide. Mr. Dietrick explained that if Council approves something, Mr. Hafeez will have to revise his official drawing for resubmission so that becomes the official record. Mrs. Kearns said a sign will need to be placed at the drop-off zone and that can be discussed with Mr. Hafeez. Mr. Kase asked if Mr. Hafeez has had an opportunity to see the drawing and was advised that he is out of the country. Mr. Kase reminded Council that Mr. Hafeez was told that Council would get together, get their ideas to staff in a more formal manner and then have a discussion with Mr. Hafeez before making a decision. He said he agrees with all of the changes, but Council has to stand by their agreement with Mr. Hafeez. Mr. Kepler said he believes the agreement was that Council retained a certain amount of money and would meet with Mr. Hafeez to come to an agreement as to what needed to be fixed and then address it. What happened was that Mr. Dietrick visited the site and realized that it was going to be more expensive than he originally thought. Mr. Lorenz said it’s not that the changes will be more expensive but, rather, that the work that needs to be done is more extensive than Council was led to believe. Mrs. Kearns said that most of the work to be done was on the original plan so, if it had been done right the first time, Council wouldn’t be where they are now. Mr. Kase said that Council approved the partial release of the bond. Mrs. Kearns said that no funds have been released yet and in order to hold back sufficient funds to ensure that the work is done, Council had to take the action to reconsider the prior motion. Mr. Perry said this issue has come up because of the deficiencies in following the approved site plan. Mr. Kepler moved to table until a meeting is set up with Mr. Hafeez. Ms. Lee seconded. Mr. Morrison was not able to participate in the prior discussions and told Council that there is a very long history with this project and in dealing with Mr. Hafeez. It only came to the point where Mr. Morrison directed staff, after numerous occasions of trying to bring Mr. Hafeez to a point where he needed to be to at least have the project be acceptable, that it was the recommendation that it come back to Council because he did not believe that Murrysville was getting a product that staff expected to get. In addition, some of the statements that were made were not completely accurate. Mr. Morrison said he hopes that Mr. Hafeez will get to a point where the car 3/4/2016 Regular Voting Meeting – Wednesday, March 2, 2016 updates to the plan are good and he is happy it came back to Council. Mrs. Kearns said that Council did not totally believe in what Mr. Hafeez said on some issues. Ms. Lee said there are photos to back up to the fact that Council received misleading information. There was no further discussion Upon a roll call vote: Mrs. Kearns – yes, Ms. Lee – yes, Mr. Perry – yes, Mr. Kepler – yes, Mr. Kase – yes, Mr. Lorenz – yes, Mr. Spadaro – yes. Motion to table approved. ENGINEERING: 15A. CONSIDER REDUCTION OF THE BOND BEING HELD FOR THE REQUIRED IMPROVEMENTS FOR THE BLUE SPRUCE DEVELOPMENT. Mr. Perry moved to consider reducing the bond amount for the performance bond being held to ensure the completion of the required improvements at the Blue Spruce Shoppes development: site improvements reduced to $0.00 and storm water management reduced to $0.00. Mr. Kase seconded. Mr. Dietrick advised that he met with a representative from the Conservation District and was advised that a notice of termination would be issued for the NPDS permit (that’s a good thing; it means the permit is done). There are only a few items that fall under landscaping and that staff would be back in the spring to see about finishing that and releasing the rest of the money. Upon a roll call vote: Mrs. Kearns – yes, Ms. Lee – yes, Mr. Perry – abstain as his company does work for the developer, Mr. Kepler – yes, Mr. Kase – yes, Mr. Lorenz – yes, Mr. Spadaro – yes. Motion approved. 15B. CONSIDER REDUCTION OF THE BOND BEING HELD FOR THE REQUIRED IMPROVEMENTS FOR THE AUTOZONE DEVELOPMENT. Mr. Kase moved to consider reducing the bond amount for the performance bond being held to ensure the completion of the required improvements at the AutoZone development from $484,011 to $10,000. Mr. Kepler seconded. Mr. Dietrick said that there a few landscaping issues to be reviewed in the spring and there is a sidewalk to be installed on the west side of the entrance which hasn’t been put in yet. There were no further questions. Upon a roll call vote: Mrs. Kearns – yes, Ms. Lee – yes, Mr. Perry – yes, Mr. Kepler – yes, Mr. Kase – yes, Mr. Lorenz – yes, Mr. Spadaro – yes. Motion approved. 15C. CONSIDER AUTHORIZATION TO ADVERTISE RFP FOR BRIDGE INSPECTION. Mr. Kepler moved to authorize the advertisement. Ms. Lee seconded. Mr. Dietrick explained that in the past local bridge inspections had been handled through the Municipal liaison with PennDOT and the Municipality. PennDOT is on the Engineering & Construction Management system (ECMS) and everything that PennDOT does car 3/4/2016 Regular Voting Meeting – Wednesday, March 2, 2016 must go through that site. If a contractor is bidding on a job, he must go on the site, download the plans and submit the bid through the site. PennDOT is now making Municipalities go through that same process for local bridge inspection contracts. All proposals must go through that system and then Murrysville must approve them through the same system. He said the bridges are due to be inspected in August and if Murrysville doesn’t get stuff in place in time, PennDOT will do the inspections, which will most certainly cost more than if a private firm is hired to do the inspections. There no questions or comments. Upon a roll call vote: Mrs. Kearns – yes, Ms. Lee – yes, Mr. Perry – yes, Mr. Kepler – yes, Mr. Kase – yes, Mr. Lorenz – yes, Mr. Spadaro – yes. Motion approved. OLD BUSINESS: Mr. Morrison advised Council that he has received many positive phone calls regarding the Route 22 traffic signals. NEW BUSINESS: None. EXECUTIVE SESSION: Council adjourned to Executive Session at 8:18 p.m. to discuss a Legal Issue and reconvened at 8:26 p.m. There was no action coming out of the session. ACTION ITEMS: None. ADJOURNMENT: Ms. Lee moved to adjourn. Kase seconded. All present voted aye. Motion approved. 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 3/4/2016