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Pocopson Township
Parks, Recreation & Trails Committee
Minutes from Meeting of September 11, 2007
Attendees:
Tom Bierl Chris Conaway
Bill Haaf Zeke Hubbard
Alan Johnson Joe Stumpo
Ricki Stumpo
1. Open Meeting: Zeke Hubbard opened the
meeting at 7:30 PM.
2. Review of Minutes from Meeting of
August 14, 2007
Motion to accept minutes of August 14, 2007; seconded; approved by all in
attendance.
3. Announcements: Good weather is forecast for
Saturday’s Founders Day event.
4. New Business:
1) Tennis courts – usage for private lessons
·
2 years ago, Mr. Boubacar Toure was given permission to give
tennis lessons on one court during specified hours;
·
The Board of Supervisors has decided not to allow him to
continue using the courts, for several reasons:
- complaints have been made about his using two
courts at a time;
- Mr. Toure has no current insurance on file;
- his most recent request was for 27 hours/week.
·
Future requests to use the tennis courts will be addressed
on a case by case basis.
·
Will have to monitor periodically to ensure that Mr. Toure
is not still using the courts.
There was discussion of how usage of the soccer field
is arranged.
·
Soccer clinics pay $10/head to the Township for use of the
field.
·
They advertise to the community, using our mailing list, and
residents get first preference.
·
Camps are of limited duration during the summer, which does
not impinge on general field usage in the fall and spring.
·
On the other hand, tennis is not advertised to the
community; Mr. Toure was not paying for use of facilities; and, he
violated the terms of his agreement. Therefore, the Committee members
fully supported the decision to cease his use of the courts.
2) Stream team
·
A subcommittee of the PR&T Committee, this group is now up
to 10 members.
·
6 members went to the Stroud Preserve on 9/8/07 for
macroinvertebrate training;
·
Stream sampling (Pocopson Creek) has been scheduled for 9/22
at the McNemar property on Marlboro Road, and on 10/20 at the Mims
property on Denton Hollow Road. Nitrates, phosphates, dissolved oxygen,
etc., will be tested.
·
Bill Haaf would like to request approval from the Board of
Supervisors for $1,000 to purchase a stream testing instrument, with an
ongoing cost of approx. $50/yr for reagents.
- Birmingham Township would rent theirs to us, but we can’t use
it when they plan to; it has to be picked up, etc. Will borrow
Birmingham’s this fall but need longer term solution.
- Bill Haaf will draft a formal request to BOS for approval to
purchase instrument; will need line item in FY 2008 budget for reagents
(annual expense)
- Stream Team can do stream planting near Pocopson Home; the
County will dig holes for us; this would be a good practice site before
working on residents’ home
- If possible MS4 violations are discovered, Team will notify
Township
3) Garth and Lisa Borel, East Goshen residents, are
interested in property near the intersection of Corinne and Wawaset Roads
and asked about future plans for that area. The open land on Unionville –
Lenape Rd. is deed restricted as recreational park land and is currently
for recreational use under dawn to dusk regulations. One or more ball
fields could eventually be installed where it’s flat, as could another tot
lot. There is a trail on the lower end of the property.
5. Old Business
Founders Day: Last meeting has been held and
things are in order
·
Rep. Gerlach plans to attend, which makes three officials to
be introduced
·
Zeke will go through a punch list with Bill Harwood on
Wednesday, 9/12
·
Committee members should meet at 10:30 on Friday, 9/14, to
set up at park
Tot lot: Grand opening will be held on
Saturday, 9/15
·
finely ground playground-grade wood chips have been
installed;
·
certification of tot lot has been performed;
·
Concern by Board Chair about going over budget with tot lot
and pavilion; $27,000 was original estimate for tot lot; ended up at
approx. $37,500 for equipment, site prep, etc.
Pavilion: $15,000 was earmarked at end of 2006
Other: Three horseshoe pits will be ready; may
consider moving the horseshoe pits to volleyball area, which seems to be
underutilized; could always reestablish volleyball if demand for
horseshoes is limited; will discuss at next meeting
Park ordinance
handed out to familiarize members with its contents. Section 3B says that
the Board of Supervisors establishes fees for park permits. This Committee
should recommend to the BOS what fees to establish for what types of uses.
Energy use in office and garage: Bill Haaf has
reviewed energy use and CO2 footprint by garage and office
·
will provide data via e-mail; basically, the energy
footprint is the equivalent of driving 14 cars that each get 20/mpg for
12,000 miles/yr
·
recommended hiring energy consultant to review Township’s
usage (estimated cost $500)
·
Suggestion that financial cost is outweighed by the public
good of the Township taking the lead on reducing our carbon footprint.
·
Possibly, the Township could actually save money by using
renewable energy sources; more efficient vehicles; more efficient heating;
may be a good start for new building.
·
Would like to share ideas with community; make names of
firms available to homeowners to have audit done at a discount; would need
to present this idea to BOS
Next step: Bill Haaf and Sandy Retzlaff will present
proposal to the BOS (sometime after the Stream Team request) on
behalf of this Committee; if approved, can simply select a consultant
(bidding not required).
UHS student
Bree Hashman attended the Stroud training in
September and is now a member of the Stream Team; she plans to attend
stream testing on 9/22. She has been contacted via e-mail to see if she’d
like to do volunteer work on the trails inventory.
6. Township Meetings Review:
Board of Supervisors:
·
Founders Day: already discussed
·
Extension granted to June 2008 for $144,000 funding for
trail grant on new 80 acres
·
White Farm: major road improvements may be needed if 5 new
homes are built on this parcel, plus potentially two more on the Benzel’s
subdivided lots. If Bragg Hill Road doesn’t remain private, it would
likely need to be rebuilt – but the cost could exceed the value of the new
homes being built.
Brief discussion of hunting regulations,
responsibilities of Township, PA Fish & Game Commission, and State Police.
Township can’t stop hunting; a game warden could, requiring that safe
hunting practices are observed. State Police can inform hunters of rules,
but can only stop them if they are caught in the act of endangering
others.
7. Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at
9:05 PM.
__________________________________________
Ezekiel C. Hubbard, Chair, Parks, Recreation & Trails
Committee
______________________________
Peggy Lennon, Recording Secretary |
