Pocopson Township
Chester County, Pennsylvania
 

Minutes of a Regular Meeting of the Pocopson Township Board of Supervisors
7:30 p.m., January 14, 2008

 Present: Georgia Brutscher, Steve Conary, H. William Sellers

1. Call to order: The meeting was called to order at 7:35 p.m. by Mr. Sellers.

2. Pledge of Allegiance

3. Announcements:

• Brutscher announced that the KARPC will be meeting in the Township Building on January 15, 2008. Bruce Yelton has agreed to serve as the Township’s representative on the Scenic Byways Committee.
• Sellers met with TPD and Solicitor Ross Unruh on Tuesday, January 8 regarding road improvements associated with the Riverside project:

      -     TPD has been cited by the State for having to revisit some issues and for not completing paperwork in a timely manner, but they have assured that everything has now been properly submitted.

      -     There was discussion of a two-year timeframe for the Township to acquire necessary easements. Conary would like to have the Solicitor draft a letter to Toll Brothers regarding this timeframe and acquisition of necessary permits.

      -     When previous improvements were made to 926 and Pocopson Rd, ROW was taken from the veterinarian office on the southeast side of the intersection. PennDot now wants additional ROW but the property now has a new owner.

      -     The Solicitor is obtaining a copy of recorded deed from Rick Hostetler with UCF School District.

      -     Township will need HOA for Hillinghurst (southwest side of intersection) 

·        Zeke Hubbard is working on the Township’s behalf with East Penn Railroad regarding crossing signals and additional easements near the Route 52 / Pocopson Road intersection. Sellers asked if the Railroad still owns part of the property from which ROW will be needed; Hubbard thinks that they do but they seem amenable to our obtaining easement. Hubbard will request a letter from Lenape Forge saying that they’re aware of widening in front of their property. Sellers noted that Toll needs to bid out from Allan Myers this spring.

·        Sellers said that an investor / builder has made a proposal to Toll regarding a daycare center. Toll’s corporate staff is considering that proposal and will follow up with the Township.

·        Zeke met with Rep. Barrar, PennDOT, and property owner Richard Moore on January 11, 2008 regarding replacement of the Route 926 bridge over the Brandywine Creek. Estimated start date of 2009 has been pushed back to late 2010 or early 2011 to accommodate surveying (current) and obtaining of easements. A house in the floodplain is owned by Moore; he asked that it be moved or bought out because the approaches to the new bridge will cause flooding.

4. Public Participation: Resident Terry Gumpper of 1802 Lenni Road requested statistics on calls to the State Police for service in 2007 by Township residents / businesses, broken down by type of call, etc. The Township Office will request stats for the last few years from the Kennett Barracks.

Mr. Gumpper asked if the Township’s contributions to the ambulance companies cover the full cost of providing that service to residents. Sellers replied that while the township’s contribution helps cover overhead and operating costs, residents requesting ambulance service will be billed directly by the companies.

Brutscher asked if the fire companies have received their full contribution for 2007, and asked how we plan to pay them in 2008. Conary said that they have been paid in full for 2007 and will be paid quarterly in 2008. Sellers noted that the Township should receive an annual report / audited statement first.

 5. Chester County Minor Subdivision Plan

            Lease and Sub-Lease Agreements for 701 S. Wawaset Rd.
Conary’s understanding is that the occupant will leave Barnard House before the Township takes ownership of the property. The proposed lease and sub-lease allow the tenant to stay after we take ownership, but would give the County the eviction role (if needed), since our lease is with them and not with the tenant. Sellers noted that having a tenant in the house means that the County is paying for heat over the winter, rather than the Township.

Conary and Brutscher raised several questions, including:

• Does the lease give us enough leverage to remove the tenant with 90 day notice?
• Who enforces that rent is due on the first of the month? Township? County?
• Who is responsible for maintaining the property? Who pays utilities?
• If we lease it, is there property tax to pay? Sellers thinks that the County is exempt from property tax on their rental houses. After the Township assumes ownership, we will have to request that the County removed the park land – and the house, if possible -- from the tax rolls.
• When will property be transferred to the Township? As soon as the lease and sub-lease are signed, the house is ours – but the Township wants the entire 85 acre parcel to be transferred -- not just the house without the rest of the land.

Next Steps: Sellers will ask Skip Brion to hold off on the lease and sub-lease until the dam permit is ready. Letter to be sent from Township to Brion confirming this. Will need Solicitor’s office to review language of leases before transfer is completed.

6. Assignment of Supervisor Liaisons to Township Committees

The Supervisors agreed to the following assignments:
            Open Space Advisory: Bill Sellers
            Historic: Georgia Brutscher
            Parks, Recreation & Trails: Georgia Brutscher
            Planning Commission: Steve Conary
Formal updates from the four committees will be included on the agenda for the February 25, 2008 Supervisors Meeting.

7. Chester County Conservation District  -- A letter was sent from Georgia Brutscher to Dan Grieg of the CCCD apologizing for not stating at the November 26, 2007 Supervisors Meeting that the fee for E&S plan reviews is waived for municipalities. Shawn Weigel of the Kennett Paper will be advised of this correction.

8. Treasurer’s Warrants – Approved as submitted

9. Review and Approval of Minutes of Special Meeting of January 7, 2008

                        SC moved, WHS seconded; approved unanimously

10. Correspondence

• East Bradford Township Official Map Update was reviewed without comment
• Highway Occupancy Permit application to PennDOT, prepared by Bob Flinchbaugh of Regester, was signed by Sellers and will be returned to Regester for processing
• Letters are being prepared to applicants who interviewed in December for the Administrative Secretary/Treasurer position. A similar version will be sent to those who were not selected for interviews.
• A letter from the Open Space Advisory Committee to all Township residents was reviewed and approved. Mailing will wait until after the second portion of the Cousins easement is finalized, since the letter references that successful transaction.

11. New Business

The Historic Committee requests approval to join the Chester County Preservation Network ($85 fee), with the primary purpose of getting help with a historic façade easement document for the Cousins house.

Motion: Brutscher moved, Conary seconded, to approve this request; approved unanimously.

12. Public Works

• Bill Harwood reported that Mr. Cockerham has not started to repair the School House windows, so his key has been returned; Sarah Mims will be advised of such via e-mail.
• Harwood noted that the $10,000 in the 2008 Budget for a new mower should come out of the $126,000 grant for road improvements, not out of Major Equipment.
• Harwood provided an anticipated replacement schedule for major equipment. He noted that there is an opportunity to use a recycling grant to pay 90% of the cost of buying another big dump truck this year, so that the cost to the Township would be approximately $7500 (10% of the estimated $70,000 cost). Brutscher noted that the Township would first have to pass a recycling ordinance before applying for the grant. She will ask at KARPC for samples of other Township’s ordinances; Harwood will get a copy of East Bradford’s ordinance.

13. Other

Conary noted that the 2008 Budget contains a line item for a Project Manager. Projects requiring attention in the next six months include the Route 52 Roundabout and bridge; the Route 926 bridge; intersections of Pocopson Road and Route 52, and Pocopson Road and Route 926; the Denton Hollow Road relocation; County trail and bikeway project (June deadline); State trail project (October deadline); operator for wastewater system at Riverside, including connections to Lenape Forge and Simon Pearce. Longer term projects include developing a sewer connection ordinance and work on a wastewater system for Corinne Village.

 Motion: Brutscher moved, Conary seconded to place an advertisement for a project manager in the Daily Local News asking for proposals from consultants with project management experience Approved unanimously.

Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at 9:10 p.m.

___________________________                            _____________________________

Peggy Lennon, Acting Secretary                                         H. William Sellers, Chairman