Council of the Municipality of Murrysville

THE MUNICIPALITY OF MURRYSVILLE Regular Voting Meeting – Wednesday, March 18, 2020 Council of the Municipality of Murrysville held a Regular Voting Meeting on Wednesday, March 18, 2020, at 7:00 p.m. in the Municipal Building. Present at the meeting were Council members Toni Brockway, Dayne Dice, Loren Kase, Jamie Lee Korns, Mac McKenna, Tony Spadaro, and Carl Stepanovich. Also present were Mayor Synan, Chief Administrator, James Morrison, and Solicitor, George Kotjarapoglus, REGULAR VOTING MEETING AGENDA ROLL CALL/VOTING ORDER: Toni Brockway, Loren Kase, Carl Stepanovich, Dayne Dice, Tony Spadaro, Jamie Lee Korns, Mac McKenna, and Mayor Synan. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE: Mr. Dice led the audience in the Pledge of Allegiance. UNISTED AMENDMENTS: Mr. Morrison stated that we are going to combine 11.A and 11.B with 14.A and 14.B to have discussion and action considered under one agenda item. 13.D needs to be added which will be Consideration of Ordinance No. 1022-20 ratifying the Mayor’s Declaration of Emergency. Old Business and New Business items will be postponed to a future date. Dr. Lee Korns moved to approve the agenda as amended. Mr. Kase seconded. All present voted aye. Motion approved. CONSENT CALENDAR ITEMS A. Accounts Payable B. Cash Investments and Transfers C. March 4, 2020 Council Meeting Minutes Mr. Dice noted that he will abstain from any KU Engineering-related billings in the Accounts Payable section, because he has done work for them in the past. Mr. Stepanovich moved to approve the consent calendar items. Mr. Kase seconded. Upon a roll call vote: Ms. Brockway – yes, Mr. Kase – yes, Mr. Stepanovich – yes, Mr. Dice – yes, Mr. Spadaro – yes, Dr. Lee Korns – yes, and Mr. McKenna– yes. Motion approved. MAYOR’S COMMENTS: Mayor Synan stated that he did declare a State of Emergency Declaration in conjunction with the State and County with the impending Coronavirus. The Glass Recycling “Pop-Up” event is Saturday, March 28th, but he will probably ask the staff to postpone this to another date. AARP Tax Prep at the Murrysville Community Center has been cancelled because the Community Center is closed until further notice. The 2020 Census is here and it only takes about 8 minutes to fill out the form. It is important for the community to be counted correctly. Fill out the form as soon as it arrives, either online, phone, or mail. vmp -1- THE MUNICIPALITY OF MURRYSVILLE Regular Voting Meeting – Wednesday, March 18, 2020 Census Day is observed nationwide. When you respond, you will tell the Census Bureau where you live as of April 1, 2020. The Mayor stated that doing this ahead of time will keep the Census people from knocking at your door. CHIEF ADMINISTRATOR’S COMMENTS: Mr. Morrison stated that there are a number of items under the Declaration Ordinance which will be talked about later in regards to municipal facilities being open and access to the municipal building. Be kind to your fellow man and check in on your neighbor. COMMUNITY INPUT: David Connors, 2208 Woodmont Drive, Manordale Farms: Mr. Connors stated that his son is going to build a house on Treesdale Court. They have all the permits needed, but when they tried to get the utilities to come up through, they ran into a roadblock. Treesdale Court ends at a dead-end. Mr. Connors presented a copy of the plan showing where the municipality’s right-of-way ends and where the waterline ends. The water company wants them to extend the waterline 40 feet to the end of the road. It is his understanding that once they tap into the waterline, the rest of the way up is their responsibility to the house. Mr. Connors doesn’t feel that they should have to pay to tear up the municipal road to get that line put in. The Connors were told that 200 feet would be approximately the maximum and he should to go talk to Council. Also, the gas company wants them to replace the line which would be around $60,000. There is a 3 inch line there now and they want to bump it to a 6 inch line. The gas company also said to talk to the Municipality. Mr. Connors stated that he did contact the Pennsylvania Utility Commission and filed a complaint to try to get some answers, but he has not gotten any answers. Someone that has more authority needs to ask some questions and get some answers to find out what’s going on and was hoping that Council could help with that. Tomorrow they plan on starting to get the house up. Mr. Morrison stated that staff could ask the gas company why the change in sizing of the line. The Municipal policy is not to extend waterlines – that’s the property owner’s responsibility. There are a lot of areas in the Municipality that don’t have water service. Mr. Morrison noted that Mr. Connors should be cautious on starting the house without utilities, because without water service you can’t get an Occupancy Permit. Mr. Dice stated that all we can do is ask the utilities on his behalf and try to get him some straight answers. LIAISON COMMENTS AND COMMITTEE REPORTS: Mr. Stepanovich: The Planning Commission did not meet. Mr. Spadaro: Medic One did not meet. Dr. Lee Korns: In terms of pension, Frank Burnette and Morrison Fiduciary are being as cognizant of the economy as possible. An email was sent by Mr. Burnette with several notes; one suggesting that the fund consider a 5% rebalancing from fixed income to equities. Mr. Morrison noted that there was a $1.25 million hit in January. Mr. Kase: Nothing to report from the EAC. vmp -2- THE MUNICIPALITY OF MURRYSVILLE Regular Voting Meeting – Wednesday, March 18, 2020 Mr. McKenna: Parks and Recreation have cancelled the March for Parks, the Easter Egg Hunt, and almost everything else going on. Ms. Brockway: The Library is closed, but you can follow them on social media. The staff made videos of Carol reading stories which will go on UTube. In times of stress with the kids at home, you can still be a part of the Murrysville Library. Mr. Dice: FTMSA meets on March 24. WORKSHOP ITEMS ADMINISTRATION: None ENGINEERING: None COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT: Discussion combined with Action Items. PUBLIC WORKS AND PARKS: None COUNCIL ACTION ITEMS ADMINISTRATION: 13.A. Consider Approval of Resolution #716-20, a Resolution Reducing the Number of Members of the Zoning Hearing Board from Five to Three and One Alternate and confirming the Three Board Members. Mr. McKenna made a motion to approve Resolution #716-20, a resolution reducing the number of members of the Zoning Hearing Board from five to three and one alternate and confirming the three board members. Mr. Kase seconded. Upon a roll call vote: Upon a roll call vote: Ms. Brockway – yes, Mr. Kase – yes, Mr. Stepanovich – yes, Mr. Dice – yes, Mr. Spadaro – yes, Dr. Lee Korns – yes, and Mr. McKenna– yes. Motion approved. 13.B. Consider awarding the property, casualty, and automobile insurance coverages to MRM in the amount of $88,298 and the public officials and police professional liability insurance coverages to Greenwich and RSUI in the amount of $49,631 for the period April 1, 2020 to March 31, 2021 Mr. Spadaro made a motion to approve awarding the property, casualty, and automobile insurance coverages to MRM in the amount of $88,298 and the public officials and police professional liability insurance coverages to Greenwich and RSUI in the amount of $49,631 for the period April 1, 2020 to March 31, 2021. Mr. Stepanovich seconded. Mr. Morrison stated that this is within the budgeted amount, which is a slight increase over last year. vmp -3- THE MUNICIPALITY OF MURRYSVILLE Regular Voting Meeting – Wednesday, March 18, 2020 Upon a roll call vote: Ms. Brockway – yes, Mr. Kase – yes, Mr. Stepanovich – yes, Mr. Dice – yes, Mr. Spadaro – yes, Dr. Lee Korns – yes, and Mr. McKenna– yes. Motion approved. 13.C. Consider authorization to advertise for a Public Hearing concerning Ordinance #1018-20, an ordinance vacating an unopened portion of Carson Avenue from its northerly terminus and ending at the northern line of Ring Alley as depicted on Exhibit D of the proposed ordinance Dr. Lee Korns made a motion to consider authorization to advertise for a Public Hearing concerning Ordinance #1018-20, an ordinance vacating an unopened portion of Carson Avenue from its northerly terminus and ending at the northern line of Ring Alley as depicted on Exhibit D of the proposed ordinance. Mr. Spadaro seconded. Mr. Morrison stated that Council had authorized advertising of this vacation and as part of the advertisement the Ordinance requires that a Public Hearing be held and the property owners be contacted. This is authorization to hold that Public Hearing in order for enactment of the Ordinance. This was delayed a couple of months because the attorney representing the property owners for the vacation was on vacation. Upon a roll call vote: Ms. Brockway – yes, Mr. Kase – yes, Mr. Stepanovich – yes, Mr. Dice – yes, Mr. Spadaro – yes, Dr. Lee Korns – yes, and Mr. McKenna– yes. Motion approved. 13.D. Consider approval of Ordinance No. 1022-20 Mayor’s Declaration of State of Emergency Mr. Spadaro made a motion for approval of Ordinance No. 1022-20 an ordinance ratifying the Mayor’s Declaration of Emergency as a result of the Coronavirus. Mr. McKenna seconded. Mayor Synan stated that the staff, Emergency Management, and himself have put a lot of effort into this Declaration to try to cover as much as they possibly could for now. That doesn’t mean that something couldn’t change tomorrow or the next day. This is going to be somewhat of a moving target. If anything changes drastically, he will get in touch with Council in some way, shape or form. All of the medical people say the virus is coming and probably 50% of us are going to get the virus. We have to be prepared and do our best to protect our community. Mr. Dice stated that we are doing this to be proactive. Mr. Morrison stated that he asked Mr. Kotjarapoglus for his opinion on teleconferencing. If Council is desires of meeting remotely using an application called Zoom, it is his understanding that we can only reserve a 40 minute slot. Mr. Hiler stated that is for the free version. It would cost $14.95/per month for unlimited time. The app would allow up to 100 participants per meeting, it can be run off of our CGI machine, and can be broadcast on Channel 19 web stream and recorded just like normal. People at home will be able to watch with no change in that respect. The app is very versatile and very compatible. vmp -4- THE MUNICIPALITY OF MURRYSVILLE Regular Voting Meeting – Wednesday, March 18, 2020 Everyone should have a way to connect to Zoom if they need to. The public will also be able to participate. Mr. Morrison stated that we will publicize the web access address and anyone who wishes to address Council can go to that web site. This will help with the provisions of the Sunshine Act. Dr. Lee Korns stated that there are a lot of nice pro features on the pay version. She uses that program every day at home and will help in any way. Mr. Morrison stated that staff will control it from the board room on the big screen. Mr. Hiler stated that the program can be used for any meeting; Council, Planning, etc. Mr. Morrison stated that he will try to schedule a dry run before the next meeting. Mr. Morrison noted that in the Ordinance, access to all public facilities have been eliminated, except for the parks. However, the rest rooms will not be open, but there will be port-a-johns there. Mr. Kotjarapoglus stated that if Council meetings are going to be held by video, that the Ordinance temporarily suspend the Administrative Code 3-2; the provision that require meetings be assembled here, that Council can meet separately at home and still form the quorum. Upon a roll call vote: Ms. Brockway – yes, Mr. Kase – yes, Mr. Stepanovich – yes, Mr. Dice – yes, Mr. Spadaro – yes, Dr. Lee Korns – yes, and Mr. McKenna– yes. Motion approved. Mr. Kase made a motion to suspend Section 3-2 of the Municipal Code for 61 days. Dr. Lee Korns seconded. Upon a roll call vote: Ms. Brockway – yes, Mr. Kase – yes, Mr. Stepanovich – yes, Mr. Dice – yes, Mr. Spadaro – yes, Dr. Lee Korns – yes, and Mr. McKenna– yes. Motion approved. COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT: 14.A. Discuss and Consider approval of S-10-19, the Walker Subdivision, a Minor Subdivision, three lots, 4900 Lasher Lane, 30.33 acres, Tax Parcel Number 49-07-00-0-020 Dr. Lee Korns made a motion to consider approval of S-10-19, the Walker Subdivision, a Minor Subdivision, three lots, 4900 Lasher Lane, 30.33 acres, Tax Parcel Number 49-07-00-0-020. Ms. Brockway seconded. Mr. Morrison stated that this is a minor subdivision of 30.33 acres into 3 lots. The property is zoned R-R on Lasher Lane and is Tax Parcel Number 49-07-00-0-20. This went through Planning Commission review and was recommended for approval. Mr. Stepanovich asked what the size of the lots was. Mr. Walker stated that one lot is 6 acres, the other is 11 acres, and the remaining original parcel is 14 acres. Upon a roll call vote: Ms. Brockway – yes, Mr. Kase – yes, Mr. Stepanovich – yes, Mr. Dice – yes, Mr. Spadaro – yes, Dr. Lee Korns – yes, and Mr. McKenna– yes. Motion approved. vmp -5- THE MUNICIPALITY OF MURRYSVILLE Regular Voting Meeting – Wednesday, March 18, 2020 14.B. Discuss and Consider approval of the “Hoy Parking Lot” Application, a Land Development, located at 5575 and 5573 Old William Penn Highway, Tax Parcels 49-15-00-0-120 and 49-15-00-0-210 owned by William A. Hoy, Zoned B - Business District Mr. McKenna made a motion to consider approval of the “Hoy Parking Lot” Application, a Land Development, located at 5575 and 5573 Old William Penn Highway, Tax Parcels 49-15-00-0-120 and 49-15- 00-0-210 owned by William A. Hoy, Zoned B - Business District. Mr. Spadaro seconded. Mr. Morrison stated that this is the structure located across from Lou’s Garage, the old railroad station building. It was acquired by Mr. Hoy, who owns the adjacent property. Mr. Hoy proposes to remodel the structure and possibly rent it to a business to help support the trail. The Planning Commission has reviewed the application and recommended approval subject to conditions E and H in the briefing provided to Council. Mr. McKenna amended his motion to include the conditions outlined in the briefing. Ms. Brockway seconded. All present voted aye. Motion approved. Upon a roll call vote: Ms. Brockway – yes, Mr. Kase – yes, Mr. Stepanovich – yes, Mr. Dice – yes, Mr. Spadaro – yes, Dr. Lee Korns – yes, and Mr. McKenna– yes. Motion approved. ENGINEERING: None PUBLIC WORKS AND PARKS: 16.A. Consider awarding contract for Rt. 22 Islands, Jug Handles, Streetscape, Municipal Building and Community Center Landscaping to Lamanna Landscape and Fertilizing Company Dr. Lee Korns made a motion to consider awarding contract for Rt. 22 islands, jug handles, streetscape, Municipal Building and Community Center landscaping to Lamanna Landscape and Fertilizing Company. Mr. Stepanovich seconded. Mr. Morrison stated that this is for various landscaping services along the highways. The bid, which was $35,505.00, was discussed at the last meeting. Upon a roll call vote: Ms. Brockway – yes, Mr. Kase – yes, Mr. Stepanovich – yes, Mr. Dice – yes, Mr. Spadaro – yes, Dr. Lee Korns – yes, and Mr. McKenna– yes. Motion approved. 16.B. Consider authorization to advertise to bid for the 2020 Road Materials Bids Mr. Spadaro made a motion to authorize advertisement for bids for various road materials, guide rail and line painting. Ms. Brockway seconded. Mr. Morrison stated that this is an annual event to get bids for different materials from paving to guide rails to stone to inlets. The document outlining all of the items was in the Support Documents file. vmp -6- THE MUNICIPALITY OF MURRYSVILLE Regular Voting Meeting – Wednesday, March 18, 2020 Upon a roll call vote: Ms. Brockway – yes, Mr. Kase – yes, Mr. Stepanovich – yes, Mr. Dice – yes, Mr. Spadaro – yes, Dr. Lee Korns – yes, and Mr. McKenna– yes. Motion approved. OLD BUSINESS: 17.A. Traffic Calming – Weistertown Road – Postponed to a future date 17.B. Status of Boards and Commissions – Currently suspended Mr. Kase asked if all of the Boards and Commissions meeting are suspended. Mr. Morrison answered yes. Each one of the Directors will consult with the chairperson of those Boards and Commissions. If there is action that is required, it would be up to them to make the decision if they decide to move forward. The Planning Commission will be meeting. Dr. Lee Korns stated that she would be glad to help the Commission with Zoom also, if they feel the need for some extra help. NEW BUSINESS: None EXECUTIVE SESSION: None ACTION ITEMS: None ADJOURNMENT: Mr. Spadaro made a motion to adjourn the meeting. Mr. Stepanovich seconded. All those in favor voted aye. Motion approved. The meeting was adjourned at 7:43 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. vmp -7-