City Council

Steelton Borough Council Meeting July 5, 2011 The regular monthly meeting was called to order at 6:29 p.m. by Vice-President Shaver, with the pledge of allegiance, followed by a moment of silence. In Attendance: Absent: Stephen Shaver Jeffery Wright Dennis Heefner Michael Albert MaryJo Szada Maria Marcinko Raymond Spencer Mayor Thomas Acri David A. Wion, Solicitor Douglas E. Brown, Borough Manager Kathy I. Sosnowski, Executive Assistant APPROVAL OF MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETINGS AS PRESENTED: A motion was made by Mr. Heefner, seconded by Mr. Spencer to approve the June 20, 2011 minutes and approved by all present with the following corrections: {On page 3, the 4th paragraph should read $3,600.00; not $36,000.00 and in the 5th Paragraph the word planning should be planting} EXECUTIVE SESSION HELD BETWEEN MEETINGS None. PUBLIC COMMENT: Agenda Items Only None. COMMUNICATION: Steelton Mennonite Church – sent a thank you letter to the Public Works Director for fixing a water problem behind their property; copy will be placed in Mr. Conjar’s personnel file. DCED – Notice & FAQ regarding Act 32 (Tax Collection) – no questions or concerns were initiated. Mr. Brown – sent a letter to the Capital Tax Collection Bureau requesting the turnover of data to Keystone Collections Group. Mr. Brown indicated that both entities have already been in contact regarding the turnover. -1-  Steelton Borough Council Meeting July 5, 2011 Mr. Brown – sent a letter to Rev. Andrews regarding Community Day for Grace Temple Church. They were notified of a modification to their request. Instead of blocking off Fourth St., they will be allowed to block off Mulberry Alley from Fourth St. to Harrisburg St. Penn DOT – sent the annual Municipal Winter Traffic Services Agreement for 2011/2012. A motion was made by Ms. Marcinko, seconded by Mr. Heefner and approved by all present to accept the agreement and the attached “Exhibit A”. Mr. Brown was authorized to sign and return the paperwork to Penn DOT. NEW BUSINESS: Ryan Lee Mohn Mem. Foundation – sent a letter requesting to block off streets, use fire police, walkie talkies and tents for the annual walk that they sponsor on Aug. 13th. It was clarified that they use the fire department walkie talkies, not the Borough’s equipment. A motion was made by Ms. Marcinko, seconded by Mr. Heefner and approved by all present to approve the use of all specified items. Three Church Fellowship – requested the use of the Borough parking lot behind Turkey Hill for the 8/13 “Back-to-School” bash. Mr. Heefner requested that Mr. Brown indicate a specific parking area toward Trewick St. for them to use. A motion was made by Mr. Heefner, seconded by Ms. Marcinko and approved by all present to allow the parking lot use. Tammie Reid – requested the use of the Borough parking lot for behind Turkey Hill for an 8/27 bus trip she is organizing. Mr. Brown will also ask that they park in a specific area toward Trewick St. A motion was made by Ms. Marcinko, seconded by Mr. Heefner and approved by all present to allow the parking lot use. Mr. Brown – requested official authorization for the Chief Spangler to sign the Memo Of Understanding (MOU) with the Steelton-Highspire School District (the MOU was actually signed and returned because it was due on June 30, 2011). It was clarified that this MOU is required by any municipality whose police department makes calls at the schools; Mayor Acri indicated that both Highspire and Swatara Township also sign an agreement. A motion was made by Ms. Marcinko, seconded by Mr. Spencer and approved by all present to approve the official authorization of the MOU. UNFINISHED BUSINESS: Mr. Brown – presented the “Person with Disability/Disabled Veteran Parking Space Application”, guidelines and policy for approval. Mr. Heefner stated his concern about the formula for spaces being based on footage, as some streets have driveways and other areas that shouldn’t be included in “total footage”. Mr. Wion indicated that the -2-  Steelton Borough Council Meeting July 5, 2011 committee changed the “divide by” number to 6 instead of 3 to accommodate this. He stated that staff will still need to use discretion when making determinations about issuing permits. Dr. Szada then indicated concerns about the disabled who do not drive being able to receive permits for their driver. Ms. Marcinko stated that if drivers/parents of the disabled to through Penn DOT, they should be able to acquire a license plate. She reminded everyone that placards are too easily provided and the Borough has very limited parking already. It was also clarified that existing handicapped spaces will not be taken. A motion was made by Mr. Heefner, seconded by Ms. Marcinko and approved by all present to approve the distribution of applications to residents. Mr. Brown – presented the Frontier Communications Data/Telephone Services Agreement. This agreement was through NJPA (like Costars) but the Finance/Lease Agreement was not. Mr. Wion indicated that if we agree to purchase a system (hardware and potential software) without bidding, we would have to go through Costars; NJPA is a municipality bidding contractor. Mr. Wion also stated that the lease by TAMPCO was not bid by NJPA, and we should consider borrowing vs. leasing to save money. Mr. Shaver reminded everyone that this type of system is mandated by the FCC and he recommends that we should move to countywide coverage with portable radios and reprogram the radios we have (the $31,400 price). The mayor asked if the Borough would have its own channel; they would. Mr. Heefner said the radios should not replace cell phones. Mr. Shaver clarified the advantage of radios is that multiple persons can be contacted at once. Mr. Shaver indicated that the entire radio system needs to be updated very soon; the phone system can be updated piecemeal. The radios are on the State Contract and are Motorolas (like we have now); the county negotiated for even better prices than State Contract. Also, Frontier will be available for problem-solving with the equipment, phones and internet but we will still work with our existing information technology team. Mr. Spencer questioned the different prices listed for purchase vs. lease. Mr. Shaver answered that the Borough would buy the phones, but may monthly fees for services. Justin Warren added that the fees are recurring, but the 5-year savings would cover the costs. Mr. Shaver also stated that this is a better quality system than we have, and in future years we will be able to get the equipment replaced as needed. Mr. Warren indicated that the company used to be Commonwealth Telephone and is located on Chambers Hill Road, working with many other local businesses. They are also a Fortune 500 company. Mr. Warren also indicated that Frontier will train Borough staff on the use of the system, such as changes in how to transfer, etc. but all phone numbers will stay the same. He also said that if offices were moved around in the future, the phone numbers wouldn’t change – they would install software updates. -3-  Steelton Borough Council Meeting July 5, 2011 Mr. Wion asked if the Borough could change any terms of the contract, Mr. Warren indicated that we could, and their legal department would make amendments and get back to us rather quickly. Mr. Shaver entertained a motion to instruct the staff to look into financing approximately $60,000. A motion was made by Mr. Heefner, seconded by Mr. Spencer and approved by all present to move forward with this possibility. Mr. Heefner suggested that we check to see if we could tie this project in with the Front St. project to get a better deal. He asked that Mr. Brown contact Jay Wenger about the possibilities of a combined bridge loan; the target date for the Front St. loan is mid-August. Mr. Brown – presented the Mid Penn ACH Agreement for council approval; Mr. Wion has already reviewed and approved the document. A motion was made by Dr. Szada, seconded by Ms. Marcinko and approved by all present to ratify the agreement. Mr. Brown – notified Council of the approval for Mr. Jack Moore to hold yard sales on the Borough lot as long as the fire department doesn’t need the property. Mayor Acri – provided a Veterans’ Park update. The grant from the State was for $20,000. A white picket fence was installed around the park, a PA system is on order from J. P. Lilley and Black Landscaping will be placing new sod down shortly. The PA system will be a portable unit, but the speakers will be mounted permanently. Two complete sets of flags have been received (for spares). Because of the recent bad weather, the landscaping had to be delayed. The Borough was granted an extension until June, 2012 to spend the rest of the money ($6,000). Mr. Heefner suggested that part of that amount be spent on sensors for the electrical outlets at the park. AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION: Veronica Supan, 2604 S. 4th St. – related her concerns about parking in East End, specifically in the alley behind her residence. Apparently, the alley is only 11-12 feet wide, but other residents are parking there, sometimes blocking part of her garage. She questioned whether Steelton follows certain vehicle and zoning codes. Mr. Wion indicated that the vehicle code gives municipalities rights to control certain areas, such as one-way streets, no parking areas, etc. Mr. Heefner suggested placing “No Parking” signs in the alley. Ms. Supan said the situation is not a big issue yet, but is concerned that it could escalate. There are four homes on one side of the alley, and eleven homes on the other side. The seven garages definitely limit the availability of parking, but only two homes have created parking areas. COUNCIL’S CONCERNS: None. -4-  Steelton Borough Council Meeting July 5, 2011 Mr. Brown indicated that an executive session was not necessary for this meeting. ADJOURNMENT: There being no other business before Council, on a motion by Dr. Szada, seconded by Mr. Heefner, the meeting adjourned at 7:46p.m. Respectfully submitted, ______________________________ ______________________________ Douglas E. Brown Kathy I. Sosnowski Borough Manager Executive Assistant -5-