Borough Council

STROUDSBURG BOROUGH COUNCIL SPECIAL MEETING MINUTES DECEMBER 30, 2019 (2 meetings) A special meeting of the Stroudsburg Borough Council convened at 4:30 P.M. in the Council Chambers of the Stroudsburg Borough Council with the following members present: Council President James Smith; Vice-President of Council Boyd Weiss; Council President Pro-Tem Joanne Kochanski; Council Member Anthony Lanfrank; Council Member Mark Connors; Council Member Matt Abell; and Council Member Erica McCabe. Borough Solicitor Joseph McDonald and Interim Borough Manager Mary Pat Quinn were also present. Mayor Tarah Probst was absent. Ms. Quinn stated that appropriate notice of the hearing was provided by publishing same in the legal section of The Pocono Record in the issue of December 20, 2019, by providing notice of the hearing and the proposed tax ordinance to the Monroe County Law Library on December 18, 2019, and by making the proposed 2020 Budget available to the public on December 18, 2019. A motion was made by Mr. Smith, seconded by Mr. Abell to open the public hearing regarding “An Ordinance of the Borough of Stroudsburg, in the County of Monroe, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Fixing the Real Estate Tax Rate for the Year 2020”. The motion was carried with all present voting affirmatively (7-yes, 0-absent, 0-abstain) Mr. Smith referred Council to the 2019-2020 Budget Comparison and noted the areas of the budget that increased, such as contributions toward the operation and maintenance of the Wastewater Treatment Plant; regional police costs; Minimum Municipal Obligation for employee pension costs; employee medical insurance; street paving; and computer/technology equipment. The Borough Council is required per the Borough Code to establish the base millage as it relates to the new assessed valuation. The 2019 millage rate is 46.75 mils; the base millage rate for 2020 would be 6.05 mils. The Borough Code also provides that the Council may not raise taxes beyond 10% of the 6.05 mils. The Budget Committee suggested that Council use the total certified assess valuation of 432,563,990 which results in a millage rate of 6.658 for 2020. There were no questions or comments from the public. A motion was made by Mr. Lanfrank, seconded by Mr. Weiss to close the public hearing. The motion was carried with all present voting affirmatively (7-yes, 0-absent, 0-abstain) A motion was made by Mrs. Kochanski, seconded by Mr. Weiss to adopt the 2020 Budget. The motion was carried with all present voting affirmatively (7-yes, 0-absent, 0-abstain) A motion was made by Mr. Lanfrank, seconded by Mr. Weiss to adopt the initial millage rate of 6.05 mils. The motion was carried with all present voting affirmatively (7-yes, 0-absent, 0-abstain) A motion was made by Mr. Weiss, seconded by Mr. Lanfrank to adopt the 2020 millage rate of 6.658 mils. The motion was carried with all present voting affirmatively (7-yes, 0-absent, 0-abstain)  AN ORDINANCE OF THE BOROUGH OF STROUDSBURG, IN THE COUNTY OF MONROE, COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA, FIXING THE REAL ESTATE TAX RATE FOR THE YEAR 2020 WHEREAS, pursuant to 53 Pa. C.S.A. §8823 entitled, “Limits on taxing authority’s ability to raise new revenue through reassessment” states that “a taxing district levying its real estate taxes on the revised assessment roll for the first time shall reduce each tax rate levied by the taxing district, if necessary, so that the total amount of taxes levied for that year against the real properties contained in the duplicate for that rate does not exceed the total amount it levied on the properties in the preceding year. Each tax rate shall be fixed at a figure that will accomplish this purpose”, the Borough Council of the Borough of Stroudsburg in the County of Monroe and Commonwealth of Pennsylvania has determined that the Initial Millage Rate is 6.05 mils; and WHEREAS, 53 Pa. C.S.A. §8823 provides that the Final Tax Rate shall be “not more than 10% greater than the total amount it levied on the properties the preceding year” NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED by the Stroudsburg Borough Council that the following tax shall be and the same is hereby levied on all real property within the Borough of Stroudsburg subject to taxation for the fiscal year 2020, at a sum of 6.658 mils as follows: Tax Rate for the General Fund 4.188 mils Tax Rate for the Fire Apparatus Fund .069 mils Tax Rate for the Street Lighting Fund .281 mils Tax Rate for the Debt Service Fund 1.198 mils Parks/Recreation Fund .405 mils Street Fund .517 mils Any Ordinance, or part of an Ordinance, conflicting with this Ordinance be and the same is hereby repealed insofar as the same affects this Ordinance. The meeting was adjourned at 5:10 P.M. on a motion made by Mrs. Kochanski, seconded by Mr. Weiss. The motion was carried with all present voting affirmatively (7-yes, 0-absent, 0-abstain) Solicitor McDonald left at this time. A second special meeting of the Stroudsburg Borough Council convened at 5:30 P.M. in the Council Chambers of the Stroudsburg Borough Municipal Building with the following members present: Council President James Smith; Vice-President of Council Boyd Weiss; Council President Pro-Tem Joanne Kochanski; Council Member Anthony Lanfrank; Council Member Mark Connors; Council Member Matt Abell; and Council Member Erica McCabe. Mayor Tarah Probst, Interim Borough Manager Mary Pat Quinn, and Scott Fiore of Tristarr Consulting were also present. A motion was made by Mr. Lanfrank, seconded by Mr. Connors at 5:45 P.M. to go in to Executive Session for the purpose of discussing personnel matters, specifically to interview Autumn Canfield, Christopher Fletcher, and Kyle Coleman for the position of Borough Manager. The motion was carried with all present voting affirmatively (7-yes, 0-absent, 0-abstain) It was noted that Jim Evanisko, Council Member-Elect was also included in the Executive Session. He and Mayor Probst left the meeting after the first interview. The executive session was concluded at 8:00 P.M. on a motion made by Mr. Connors, seconded by Mr. Abell. The motion was carried with all present voting affirmatively (7-yes, 0-absent, 0-abstain) A motion was made by Mrs. Kochanski, seconded by Mr. Abell to authorize a total of $1,000.00 as a reimbursement for the expenses of two applicants for airfare and one night of hotel accommodations. The motion was carried. (5-yes, 2-no [Mr. Smith, Mr. Weiss], 0-abstain) Mr. Connors will coordinate second interview dates and times for two applicants. It is anticipated that each applicant will meet with the staff on a Friday and the Council on a Saturday morning. The meeting was adjourned at 8:15 P.M. on a motion made by Mr. Connors, seconded by Mr. Abell. . The motion was carried with all present voting affirmatively (7-yes, 0-absent, 0-abstain)