Borough Council

Sharon Hill Borough Legislative Meeting Minutes Thursday, March 17, 2022 1. Call To Order/Pledge of Allegiance 7:00 PM Vice President KM request moment of silence for Rich Blank who recently passed away. Mr. Blank was a 40-year member of the fire dept and served as its treasurer. 2. Roll Call by Borough Manager IA: SB, WF, KM, TA, Solicitor CR, EB, RH (late), SH, Mayor HK, Borough Manager, Chief Herron, CRA (excused), WM 3. Swearing-In of police officers Michael Brodsinski and Russell Matorelli by Mayor HG and Police Chief Herron 4. Public Comment – President TA provided guidelines for making a comment. Pat Rummaker, 335 greenwood Rd - Thanked Madam President and Mayor HG for their ‘meet and greet’ sessions which helped to assist with safety issues. The police and fire departments were called to check neighboring property. TA thanked Public Works for their assistance with this issue [Resident] – voiced concerns about trash and debris in our community. Requested documents be issued to constituents and business sites from Borough explaining property trash disposal and property maintenance. Asked for cleaning supplies as a cleanup day volunteer and states she contacted Councilor SH and did not receive a reply. President TA advised she visited the businesses to address these issues in person. Councilor SH apologized for missing the email from constituents. Borough Manager IA advised upcoming newsletter to address these concerns and that newsletters go to every resident in the borough. Ed Whittaker, 834 Elmwood – Welcomed new councilmembers to the borough. Inquired about the lack of animal control efforts taken within the borough. Vice president KM and Councilor SB addressed these concerns and will try to have solutions by next meeting. Councilor EB states wildlife preserve is close by. [Resident] 846 Elmwood Ave – Further discussed animal control concerns and states will make effort to attend more meetings. Also voiced concerns about woodburning and clean air act. Borough Manager IA advised the borough has been coordinating with the fire department, BCO and code enforcement officer regarding zoning permits and variances. It has been turned over to our solicitor for further investigation. Councilor WF inquired about the initial start of complaints for this property; advised by council initially 2018. Discussion on responsibility of easements. John Romano – Advised of his submission of the towing contract to the borough this week. 5. Approval of meeting minutes – President TA made motion to approve Moved by SH; Seconded by SB, Motion passes 6 – 0 Councilor WF advised that there are two edits that must be made to the minutes. 6. Committee Reports: Council President Allen – Read meeting quote for women’s history month and drew attention to the exhibit wall within chambers dedicated to the outstanding contributions of women. President TA advised constituents that an executive session occurred prior to meeting at 6:15 a. CPCID – President TA Discussed how the funds [$2400] for the plant boxes would be used; President TA also advised that she was re-elected as treasurer. The next meeting is April 14th and invited constituents to join them the 2nd Thursday of every month. b. Library – Library Director Richard Ashby provided new library hours, highlighted the features of the Delco self-checkout app, the new website, the new Instagram page and upcoming events. Addressed the reduction of budget by $9000 and listed various donations made to the library by community organizations. Report read. Looking to obtain grants for workforce development. c. Finance – Treasurer, Will Morgan read budget report. Treasurer WM, President TA and Borough Manager addressed bills list concerns. Treasurer emphasized importance of addressing the received first quarterly tax payments that the DCJA, sewer fees and AJ238 Pension. Treasurer Motioned to approve bills list. Moved by KM; Seconded by EB d. Public Safety – Vice President KM read fire department reports. Requested motion to hire two full time police officers; President TA was advised by Solicitor CR that the motion violates the Sunshine Act and must be added to next meeting’s agenda. Councilor WF voiced concerns on fire safety within the borough as it pertains to fire extinguishers. Borough Manager IA advised we are working alongside Belfast. Police Dept take their fire extinguishers to be inspected. Fire Department inspects their own. The remaining borough sites will be inspected next week. Borough Manager IA asked Vice President KM the procedure for the inspection of the fire extinguishers by the fire department. e. SHAAC – Councilor SB read report focusing on the upcoming Community Gardens Project, Spring Forward Paint Night, Pilates/yoga and flea market. Partnering with library for a poetry meeting and workshop. f. Public Health/Multiple Municipality – Councilor EB states no update to previous report g. Recreation – Councilor RH read report focusing on the Family Fun Day and Game Truck. Advised of their partnership with police department. Vice President KM inquired if there would be an Easter Egg Hunt. Councilor RH advised he is working alongside the mayor on this project and will provide date and time. Advised of the upcoming h. Parks and Properties – Councilor SH read report focusing on donation letters for supplies for the upcoming Clean Up Day. Advised Vice President KM is assisting in the partnership with the school for volunteers for community hours and Mayor HG is working to get volunteers amongst sports teams. Councilor SH also advised she’s partnering with President TA to plant flowers during the cleanup. Councilor SB would like her organization to partner to plant.  i. Public Works – Councilor WF read the code enforcement report 7. Officials’ Reports a. Mayor Green read police report provide by Chief Herron for February 2022. President TA inquired about the high number of domestic events reported and how we may enlist the help of programs that can reduce the number of incidents. Chief Herron discussed the partnership with SHACC which focuses on solutions offsetting domestic violence. Councilor WF advised that he was a conflict resolution instructor at Susan G. Korman which offers anger management programs. b. Borough Manager provided updates to previous report. Offered congratulations to the Sharon Hill Borough as we were awarded a grant through the program CDBG and awarded $100,000. Submitted application for a grant for ADA upgrades and wheelchair lift for the borough hall as well as flooring, ceiling, HVAC system, bathrooms, and cosmetic renovations. Applied for extension on the allocation of 2017 funds PennDOT grant and was approved. Discussed highlights of the strategic planning committee and will hold a community meeting on March 26th. A financial consultant brought in to assist with liquid fuels accounts and distribution of the 2020 allocations. Implored residents to use the Sharon Hill Borough website to enter safety issues. Police Chief Herron provided report with highlights of additional safety measures at Burnside and Brainerd Blvd along with discussion on speed bump placements. President TA reiterated the importance of coordinating with the borough engineer and police for speed bumps. Councilor RH asked Chief Herron for clarity on abandoned vehicles and encouraged residents to use the website to report abandoned vehicles. Solicitor Courtney Richardson – No new report given. 8. New Business Solicitor CR read each resolution with explanation. i. Resolution #2022-009: Authorization to Apply for Local Share Account Funding - Moved RH, Seconded EB, Motion Passes 6 – 0 ii. Resolution #2022-010: Authorization to Apply for County Liquid Fuels Allocation - Moved SH, Seconded SB; Motion Passes 6 – 0 iii. Resolution #2022-011: Appointment of Open Records Officer Councilwoman SB had inquiries on the selection of the Right to Know officer and suggested we continue with the Solicitor as the officer. Borough Manager IA expounded on her previous 3 years of experience as a Right to Know Officer and that it is fiscally more responsible for the borough to gather documents and forward to solicitor for review and approval; borough is the custodian of the documents. Moved President TA, Seconded V.P. KM Yay – WF / RH / KM / SH / EB Nay – SB Motion passes 5 – 1 9. Old Business ORDINANCE NO 1405: Repealing Section 200-5 entitled “Police complaints” of Chapter 200 - Solicitor CR read Ordinance with explanation. Opens public comments on the Ordinance. President TA reiterated that the ordinance is considered non-constitutional and was addressed by the ACLU. Councilor WF asked for additional advice from police Chief Herron prior to voting on the ordinance. Chief Herron explained that the ordinance has been in effect since 2006 was used one time and often mediated between tenant and landlords. Moved by V.P. KM, Seconded SH Motion Passes 6 – 0 10. Adjournment at 8:49 PM Motion to adjourn WF, Seconded EB