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BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
February 16,, 2010

The meeting of the Douglass Township Board of Supervisors was called to order at 7:30 P.M.
Attending were Chairman Tim Turner, Supervisor Fred Ziegler, Supervisor John Stasik, Solicitor Charles Markofski, Bob Campbell, Pete Hiryak, Mike Heydt, Chief Templin, and 21 residents.

Mr. Turner led the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag.

On motion by Mr. Turner, seconded by Mr. Ziegler, the Board approved the minutes of the February 1st, 2010 Board of Supervisor’s meeting with the following statement additions to the January 19th minutes that Mr. Theil requested. Mr. Turner stated that he was offered insurance when he started as was Mr. Lignelli and Mr. Austerberry however none of them needed insurance as it was supplied at their place of employment and also the statement; Mr. Theil asked Mr. Stasik what made him write the letter, Mr. Stasik replied that he was offered the health care. Ziegler-Aye, Turner-Aye, Stasik-Aye. Motion passed.

Mr. Barrett presented the Gilbertsville Ambulance Report.
The following is the total number of calls which have been dispatched to Gilbertsville Area Community Ambulance Service from January 2010. Bally Borough 1, Boyertown Borough 8, Colebrookdale 4, Douglass 60, East Greenville 1, New Hanover 38, Pennsburg 4, Pottstown 6, Red Hill 1, Upper Frederick 3, Upper Hanover 1, Upper Pottsgrove 2, Washington 2, West Pottsgrove 1. Total calls for 132. Mr. Barrett stated that he would like to thank Fire & Rescue and the Police Department for helping them with all calls and Fire & Rescue for keeping the pad clean at GACAS in order to be able to respond to calls during the snowstorms. Mr. Turner asked if there were any questions for Mr. Barrett, no one replied.

A motion to accept the Gilbertsville Ambulance Report was made by Mr. Turner, seconded by Mr. Ziegler. Ziegler-Aye, Turner-Aye, Stasik-Aye. Motion passed.

Chief Templin presented the Police Report
Statistics for January 2010 are 368 incidents reported, 4 vacation notices, 2,132 business checks, 3 reportable accidents, 23 non-reportable accidents, 21 criminal investigations, 5 criminal arrests, 154 traffic citations, 7 non-traffic citations, 6 parking tickets, miles traveled 8,119. Monies received by the Township $4,859.19. Cpl. Robert Evans and Officer Carl Clemko received Commendations for bringing a pursuit that entered our Township to a safe end by deploying the Stinger Spike Strips. The suspect was wanted for attempting to strike an officer with his vehicle in Allentown and other multiple violations. We have joined Lower Pottsgrove Police Department in filing for a joint grant in the amount of $70,500.00 through Congressman Dent’s office for in-car video systems. I will update the Board on the grants progress. Berks-Mont C.B. Club is holding their 43rd Annual Fundraiser on March 28th, 2010 approximately 11:00a.m. at the Gilbertsville Fire House. Proceeds to benefit the “Shop with a Cop” program. Mr. Turner asked if there were any questions for Chief Templin, no one replied.

A motion to accept the Police Department Report was made by Mr. Turner, seconded by Mr. Ziegler. Ziegler-Aye, Turner-Aye, Stasik-Aye. Motion passed.

Ricky Smith presented the Gilbertsville Fire & Rescue Report.
Fire report for January 2010: 1 fire, 1 brush/trash fire, 1 vehicle fire, 3 fire alarms/CO2 alarms, 2 vehicle accidents, 3 hazardous materials, 2 EMS assists, 5 assists to other depts., 1 investigation. Total of 19 calls. The Fire Company was in service for 17 hours and 9 minutes. The new truck is scheduled for pick up on February 26, 2010. Chief Smith stated that we probably got complaints about snowplowing but as part of Emergency Management everything went fine, there were no problems and the roadcrew should be commended on a good job under extreme conditions. Mr. Turner asked if there were any questions for the Fire Chief, no one replied.

A motion to accept the Gilbertsville Fire & Rescue report was made by Mr. Turner, seconded by Mr. Ziegler. Ziegler-Aye, Turner-Aye, Stasik-Aye. Motion passed.

Andrew Duncan presented the Recycling Report.
For the month of January 2010 we hauled one load of corrugated cardboard to Reading, two loads of light iron scrap metal to Pottstown. With the two large snow storms that took place, the recycling center was closed on Saturday, February 6, 2010 and Wednesday, February 10, 2010. In addition to the recycling center being closed due to inclement weather, the trash schedule for Wednesday, February 10th was following the holiday schedule which meant that your trash day would be changed to placing your garbage/recycling out on Friday night for Saturday morning pick up. We listed this event on our website. In addition to the trash schedule change, we also coordinated, with ChesMont Disposal, to have a trash dumpster dropped at the recycling center, for residents that were missed for Thursday trash pick up, to take garbage/recycling to the center on Saturday. Staff will continue to try and make the storm transition as easy as possible to make sure that the residents are able to dispose of their waste in a timely manner.

Paper Shredding – Looked at three options.

1. Purchasing a paper shredder for placement at recycling center – prices range from $599.00 to
$2,112.00. I do not feel that this is an option that we would want to take. A number of reasons
would include, lack of space at recycling facility, manpower, liability in case of injury, and the
inability to certify the documents destroyed to protect the residents from identity theft.
2. Having a tote placed at our facility from a document shredding company. This would be a 90 gallon
LOCKED tote placed at our facility for residents to deposit their documents into. Each time this tote
is full it will cost $65.00 to have removed and to have a new tote placed at our facility. In return, we
will get a certificate of destruction from the shredding company stating that all documents were
destroyed.
3. Scheduling a Community Shred event. We could schedule a one day event and have a shredder truck
come out to our recycling center or other location in the Township and have a community shred day.
The companies I spoke with recommend a 2-3 hour session and limit the shred event to residents
only, no businesses. The cost for this would be $175.00 per hour of service. The shredding trucks
can hold up to 10,000 pounds of paper. I have been in contact with John Koltonuk from Gilbertsville
Ambulance and he was already in the process of trying to put a shredding event together and have it
sponsored by a local bank. I believe that this is a great idea, and we could possibly work together to
have a date scheduled for our residents. As soon as we make a decision as to which direction we
would like to go, I could contact multiple companies for more competitive pricing for any one of
these services.
The Board asked Andy to look into a Community Shred Event type of thing possibly with GACAS and report back to the Board with the details.

2009 Annual Residential Recycling Report
United Corrstack (corrugated cardboard) – 85.35 tons. Supreme Computer Electronics – 48,180lbs. of electronics. Aero Propane Cylinders – 62 cylinders recycled. W.R. Friel – Approximately 4,000 yards of mulch produced from yardwaste and leaves. Abitibi Paper Company – 23.10tons of paper and received $115.50. Trash Bags – 651 cases sold as of 12-28-2009 (162,750 bags). Total Trash Tonnages – 1,647.40 tons. Safe Disposal – 180 Freon Units Recycled. Bulk Waste Stickers Sold – 1,079.
ChestMont Disposal Curbside Recycling Numbers:
Commingled Material – 7.10tons (Cougles Dumpster @ Recycling Center). Single Stream – 676.11 tons. ChesMont Disposal recorded a 0% residue on items that were collected curbside.
Highlights 2009
Douglass Township received a 904 grant in the amount of $41,419.00. Douglass Township utilized a 902 grant in the amount of $105,688.00. Douglass Township was granted the purchase of a 2008 Kubota excavator, and the purchase of a 2009 ODB 30 yard self contained leaf vacuum. The recycling department currently operates with four part-time employees and one recycling coordinator. The part-time employees can work up to eight hours per week. The recycling department maintains five pieces of equipment which include two leaf trucks, one chipper, one leaf vacuum, and one case skidsteer. Mr. Turner asked if anyone had any questions for Andy, no one replied.

A motion was made to accept the Recycling Report by Mr. Turner, seconded by Mr. Ziegler. Ziegler-Aye, Turner-Aye, Stasik-Aye. Motion passed.

Mr. Ron Ebert presented the Gilbertsville Fire Co. #1 report.
Mr. Ebert stated that they have shoveled and plowed the parking lot and sidewalks at the fire company numerous times and that every time they cleared the sidewalks the State trucks came through and plowed them shut again. In two-three days the Banquet Hall will be finished and he invited everyone to come and see the improvements. They added two smoke eaters and they will be adding a third one soon to reduce the smoke. The dining room was full, standing room only this past weekend, so business is picking up. Binder Hall is booked for the remainder of February, and all of March and April. They have been working for seven-eight months on the renovations to the banquet halls. Mr. Ziegler asked Mr. Ebert where he got the plows, Mr. Ebert replied that Terry Sacks supplied four plows and Mark Akins supplied one plow. Mr. Turner asked if anyone had questions for Mr. Ebert, no one replied.

A motion to accept the Gilbertsville Fire Co. #1 report was made by Mr. Turner, seconded by Mr. Stasik. Ziegle-Aye, Turner-Aye, Stasik-Aye. Motion passed.

Mr. Bob Campbell presented the Engineer’s Report.

1. Weis Markets/Centro Properties – See Engineer’s and Solicitor’s Reports. Conditional PennDot permit granted pending easement agreements for widening at intersection of Rt73 and Montgomery Ave. List of Improvements has been finalized.
2. BUI/Jordan Drive Subdivision – See Engineer’s and Solicitor’s Reports. Conditionally approved at the September 15, 2008 meeting. Resolution approved at October 6, 2008 meeting. Resubmission received October 21, 2008. Review letter dated November 3, 2008.
3. Windemere Subdivision – Awaiting execution of Developer’s Agreement.
4. Hollenbach – Warehouse Expansion – Conditionally approved at the May 5, 2008 Supervisors meeting.
Final plans and financial security request have not been received.
5. Hallowell (Danny Jake) – Received latest plan revision dated September 2008 along with the list of
improvements. The list of Improvements has been finalized.
6. Zern Property – Developer prepared a presentation for the Planning Commission on December 10, 2009.
Staff meeting on Wednesday, February 3, 2010 to review potential traffic issues.
7. AAA – Dunkin Donuts – Provided letter dated December 18, 2009 regarding guide rail along the back
of the lot near the drive-thru. Site lighting remains incomplete.
8. Cobblestone Crossing – Phase III- Developer is continuing residential building construction.
9. Hartford Retail – Giant (Douglass Town Center): Provided updated sight distance plan and profile.
Currently under review. Appears to need additional info. Traffic signal issues appear to have been
resolved. Received site distance information. Received notice that light was not changing at night.
10. Smith Road Bridge – Received Permit on July 9, 2009. Latest plans have been delivered to the
developer.
Mr. Turner asked if anyone had any questions for the Engineer, no one replied.

A motion was made to accept the Engineer’s Report by Mr. Turner, seconded by Mr. Ziegler. Ziegler-Aye, Turner-Aye, Ziegler-Aye, Stasik-Aye. Motion passed.

Mr. Markofski presented the Solicitor’s Report.

1. Donnelly Tract/Dienno Tract – Open Space – Mr. Markofski spoke to Mike Stokes, assistant director of the Montgomery County Planning Commission. He was up to date on the status of open space funding in the County. Apparently, over 17 million dollars which was approved for open space in Round 1 is currently unfunded. Round 1 was closed as of April of last year. Round 2 funding, which is what we would be seeking at this time, is deferred for at least 2 years. According to Mr. Stokes, there is no possibility, at all, that there will be any round 2 funding in the next two years. At that point, he indicated that there might be a change. He indicated that no proposals are being accepted for round 2.
2. Summerhill Subdivision – On February 16, 2010, I spoke to Stephen Kalis, Esq. who contacted me
on behalf of the Gambone organization and indicated that his client was preparing a deed to
reconvey the subject open space at Summerhill back to the Homeowners Association. He
indicated that he would address the Township at a meeting in the event any further effort was
undertaken to convey the premises back to the Gambone organization. He agreed to copy the
Township on any correspondence regarding this matter.
3. Windemere – 131 Niantic Road – A final draft of the developer’s agreement has been prepared
and will be discussed in a meeting which we will be scheduling in accordance with everyone’s
availability.
4. Attorney General Review of Douglass Township Ordinance No. 2009-02
(Ordinance pertaining to notification of biosolid application) A letter of representation has been
prepared and sent to the Attorney General’s Office advising that we await their response to
correspondence from our former Solicitor dated December 20, 2009.
Mr. Turner asked if there were any questions for the Solicitor, no one replied.

A motion was made to accept the Solicitor’s Report by Mr. Turner, seconded by Mr. Stasik. Ziegler-Aye, Turner-Aye, Stasik-Aye. Motion passed.

Mike Heydt presented the Highway Report.
For the period of 2/2/10-2/16/10. Salted and plowed roads numerous times. Got Trucks ready for snow storm. Got grader ready for blizzard. Cut up trees damaged in snow storm. Scraped off ice packed on the roadways. Fixed potholes. Fixed bearings in snow plow wheels. Mr. Heydt extended his thanks to Ricky Smith and Dean Brumbach for all their help with plowing during the storms. Mr. Heydt stated that he would like to look into purchasing a snow blower for the back of the tractor, he found a used one, and he would like to transfer money from Highway Construction to Capital Equipment for the purchase. Mr. Ziegler stated that he thinks we need it and he asked Mr. Heydt if he saw it in action, Mr. Heydt replied yes and he would like to purchase it because it would really help with snow removal.

A motion was made by Mr. Turner, seconded by Mr. Stasik to make a budget amendment to transfer $4000 from Highway Construction to Capital Equipment for the purchase of a Snowblower for the back of the Tractor. Ziegler-Aye, Turner-Aye, Stasik-Aye. Motion passed.

Mr. Turner asked if there were any questions for the Roadmaster, no one replied.

A motion was made to accept the Highway Report by Mr. Turner, seconded by Mr. Stasik. Ziegler-Aye, Turner-Aye, Stasik-Aye. Motion passed.

The Zoning Department Report was not available.

Cynthia O’Donnell presented the Treasurer’s Report.
The Treasurer stated that she will make the budget amendment, motioned under Mr. Heydt’s Highway Dept Report to transfer $4000 from Highway Construction to Capital Equipment.
1. Authorization to pay the bills. The unpaid bills totaled $133,583.83, this included invoices for
salt that totaled $15,000.00 other than that, nothing else was out of the ordinary.
Mr. Turner asked if anyone had any questions, no one replied.

A motion to approve the bills was made by Mr. Turner, seconded by Mr. Stasik. Ziegler-Aye, Turner-Aye, Stasik-Aye. Motion passed.

The Treasurer stated that the Auditors finished the audit on February 15, 2010. For the Post Audit Meeting we are required to have one Supervisor present, the Treasurer will notify the Board when this meeting will be. Harleysville National Bank will reopen on March 12, 2010 as First Niagara Bank.

Mr. Link stated don’t we need to make a motion for the budget transfer; the Treasurer replied that the motion was made under Mike’s Highway Report. Mr. Turner asked if there were any questions for the Treasurer, no one replied.

A motion to accept the Treasurer’s Report was made by Mr. Turner, seconded by Mr. Ziegler. Ziegler-Aye, Turner-Aye, Stasik-Aye. Motion passed.

Pete Hiryak reviewed the Manager’s Report.
1. The Manager reviewed the upcoming meetings as follows: Board of Supervisors Meeting Monday, March 1st @ 7:30pm. Planning Agency Meeting Thursday, March 11th @ 7pm - February meeting was cancelled due to the snowstorm. Zoning Hearing Board meeting on Tuesday, February 23rd @ 7pm for the Cell Phone Tower was again rescheduled for Tuesday, March 23rd @ 7pm. Mr. O’Connell informed Mr. Hiryak that the attorney for the cell phone tower has no problem in absorbing the added advertising cost for the rescheduled hearing.
2. Correspondence – Letter from Donnelly Residential/Michael Gambone. The Agreement of Sale has lapsed for the Donnelly Tract, approximately 80 acres on 265 Middle Creek Road. The agreement was that the Township would pay $1,225,000.00 and $245,000.00 of this would be returned to the Township as a charitable contribution. The Manager asked the Board if we wanted to enter into another agreement. The agreement in contingent on the Township obtaining a grant from the Montgomery County Open Space Board. The Agreement would become null and void unless an extension is agreed upon by both parties. Mr. Ziegler asked the Manager to set up a staff meeting to review it.
Mr. Turner asked if there were any questions for the Township Manager. Mr. Pritchard asked when the Department of Transportation will get back to him about the speeds. The Manager stated that with the current weather situation it is a little difficult to set up however he will set the meeting up as soon as possible. There were no other questions for the Manager.

A motion to accept the Manager’s Report was made by Mr. Turner, seconded by Mr. Stasik. Ziegler-Aye, Turner-Aye, Stasik-Aye. Motion passed.

Public Comment
As far as a shredder, a resident asked why can’t people buy a small paper shredder and shred on there own time, with the economy the way it is the Township doesn’t need to get into this expense. Mr. Turner indicated that Mr. Duncan is looking into getting this event sponsored with no cost to the Township. Mr. Sell stated that we wouldn’t have this problem if the previous Board would not have instituted a Burning Ordinance. Mr. Pritchard asked about all the articles in the newspaper about contamination on Municipal Drive, Mr. Ziegler stated that he will address this matter next meeting when the residents that are involved are present.

Old Business or New Business
Mr. Turner stated that from this meeting on, Marcy will be taking minutes shorthand, the recorder will no longer be used. Also during the snowstorm there were two accidents; one with the Ambulance and the other with our snowplow hitting a parked Longacre Electric truck. Mr. Ziegler also wanted to state that with his Police background he found nothing wrong with the statements made by Ms. Hartford and Mr. Reitz on the Planning Agency recording that had been reviewed. Mr. Link asked why we are changing the way we do the minutes, the Manager replied that the digital recorder was only used as an aid to review the motions that were given at the meetings. Minutes were always meant to be a summary of the proceedings not verbatim, we feel that we can accomplish this without the use of the digital recorder. Mr. Markofski stated that in the last year the Right to Know Act has changed to allow recordings to be reviewed. Mr. Hiryak and another resident stated that as far as the public recording these proceedings, we should have the right to choose if each individual wants to be recorded or not. There were no further comments.

A motion was made by Mr. Turner to adjourn the meeting, seconded by Mr. Stasik. Ziegler-Aye, Turner-Aye, Stasik-Aye. Motion passed.

The next Board of Supervisor’s meeting will be held on Monday, March 1st, 2010 at 7:30 pm.

Respectfully submitted by,

Marcy Meitzler

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