Pocopson Township
Chester County, Pennsylvania
 

    Sellers called the meeting to order at 7:35 p.m. and opened with the pledge of allegiance.  Supervisors Brutscher and Hubbard were in attendance.

Announcements:  There were no announcements.

Open Space Committee Report:  Hubbard reported that the Hipkin’s property and the county trail grant project were discussed at their meeting.

KARPC:  Brutscher will report on the KARPC meeting at the February Board meeting.

Resolution #2 of 2005:  Brutscher moved, Sellers seconded to adopt Resolution #02 of 2005 (NIMS) which provides a consistent nationwide approach for Federal, State, local, and tribal government to work together more effectively and efficiently to prevent, prepare for, respond to and recover from domestic incidents, regardless of cause, size or complexity.  Motion carried.

Route 926 Bridge Improvement Project:  Brutscher reported on the letter from Steve Barrar’s office dated January 26, 2005 referencing the Pocopson bridge project.  Barrar’s office will be contacted to determine when the next meeting will be held on the Rte 926 bridge improvement project.

Haines Mill Road / One Way:  The secretary will check to see to if Suzanne Williamson’s attorney’s letter of January 21, 2005 referencing making Haines Mill Road one-way was part of the original plan approval of Osborne Place.  The Board believed that it was part of the approval process for that subdivision and a letter should be sent advising Williamson’s attorney of the terms of the plan approval.

Brandywine Picnic Park:  The Board discussed and unanimously agreed to notifiy Mr. Ross Capps that August 27^th 2005 is approved as the fireworks display date for Brandywine Picnic Park, and Mr. Capps will be responsible for notify the neighboring properties and provide the township with a certificate of insurance as an additional insured as per the township ordinance.  The secretary will send a letter to Mr. Capps.

Escrow Release #05:  Brutscher moved, Sellers seconded to approve escrow release #05 in connection with improvements at Winterwood Subdivsion in the amount of  $12, 280.00.  There are no inspection fees associated with this release.  Motion carried.

Municipal Tax:  The Board discussed and agreed to advertise the Emergency & Municipal Services Tax ordinance for adoption on Monday, February 14, 2005 with an exemption of $2,000.  This ordinance allows the township to collect $52 per person for anyone who works in the boundaries of Pocopson Township exempting persons who make less than $2,000 per year.  Motion carried.   

Thompson Property / Bragg Hill Road:  The Board discussed the January 28, 2005 letter from Ross Unruh, township solicitor referencing the Mark Thompson property and determined that further discussion was needed with the township's solicitor. 

Planning Commission Member:  Sellers moved, Brutscher seconded to re-appoint Steve Conary and Meg Johnson as planning commission members with their terms to expire on December 31, 2009.  Motion carried.

Sellers moved, Brutscher seconded, to appoint Bill Waddington as Chair and Steve Conary as Vice Chair to the PC Committee with their terms to expire on December 31, 2005.  Motion carried.

West Chester Library:  Sellers moved, Brutscher seconded to appoint West Chester Library as the designated library for Pocopson Township and agreed to donate the 2004 budgeted amount of $11,000 to West Chester Library.  Motion carried.  The secretary will notify the library and disburse the money.

Trails Development Grant Project:  Sellers moved, Hubbard seconded to approve the trail development grant contract with Chester County dated December 2, 2004.  Motion carried with all in agreement.  Brutscher noted that the county contract states the township cannot use in-house employees and equipment for this project. 

Minutes of Reorganizational Meeting – January 3, 2005:  Sellers moved, Brutscher seconded to approve the minutes of January 3, 2005 as submitted.  Motion carried. 

Vacating of the Road:  Sellers said a simple plan will be necessary to vacate Bragg Hill Road and Larkin Baily Road.  It was noted that the trail easement will be shown at a later date on the plan.  Sellers noted that he would like to see this advertised by the next Board meeting in February so this project can quickly move forward.

Toll Brothers/ Sheeder Property:  Chris Shubert, attorney;  Tom Kessler, Toll Brothers; and Victor Kelly, Commonwealth Engineers were present along with several other Toll Brothers representatives.  Shubert reported that the 30-day advertisement period of the sewage facilities planning modules has been satisfied, and the township has received no public comment.  Tom Kelso of Castle Valley Consultants said Castle Valley is planning on meeting with DEP to present the ACT 537 design for the township sometime around mid February.  Kelso said he anticipated a permit for the Toll Brothers project sometime around September 2005.  The Board agreed to a meeting with Mr. Kelso on February 10^th at 2:30 a.m. to review the final draft of the township’s Act 537 plan before submission to DEP. 

Ross Unruh, Township Solicitor, entered the meeting at 9:40 a.m. to participate in the Toll Brothers discussion.

Resolution #03 of 2005:  Sellers moved, Brutscher seconded to accept resolution #03 of 2005 that approves the 537 sewage facility plan for the Toll Brothers/Sheeder Property and states that the plan conforms to the applicable governing ordinances and plans of the Township and to a comprehensive program of pollution control and water quality management.  Motion carried. 

John Fenn’s Letter dated January 21, 2005 was reviewed with the Board.
Stormwater:  Schubert discussed the issue of infiltration of stormwater and storm drains and stated that increased costs is an issue for Toll Brothers. A discussion on this subject followed.  Sellers said that infiltration of storm water has been part of township ordinance since the 1980’s and two-year recharge is essential to compliance with township ordinance.  Schubert said the roof drains will not be installed in areas where infiltration cannot be achieved, but stormwater could be compensated elsewhere on the site.  Additional percolation testing may be necessary to determine where infiltration areas would best be suited.  Future discussions with the Board will be necessary to satisfactorily resolve this issue.

Kelly said the E&S plans will be submitted with the next plan submission and will comply with DEP regulations.  Kelly said the conservation plans have been submitted to the Chester County Conservation District, and comments had not yet been received. 

Sellers said the township is not willing to compromise on road specification standards for the main thorofares.  Sellers noted that construction of this community will have to be done in phases to minimize earth disturbance.  Toll Brothers representatives agreed.  

It was noted that wording should be included in the HOA documents that street trees will not be removed and if they are, the HOA will be responsible for replacing them.  

It was noted that speed limits in the subdivision will be kept to 15 mph and 25 mph.

Sellers said that Pocopson Township will need a final plan before the township solicitor can proceed with securing an easement for additional land required for the intersection improvement of Route 52 and Denton Hollow Road.

Snowplowing the subdivsion was discussed, and this issue will be revisited with Bill Harwood, Roadmaster.

Street trees were discussed and it was agreed the applicant should comply with the ordinance.  Unruh suggested Toll Brothers identify lots where there may be a site distance issue as it relates to street tree location. Shubert said that the trails will be connected with the township’s existing township trail system at two locations in the community.  Sellers requested the trail from Pocopson Road to Route 52 on the northern portion of the site have a trail easement dedicated to the township.  The applicant agreed to this request.  Sidewalks were discussed, and the Board requested sidewalks on both sides where there is dense development (carriage houses) except where there is a trail.  Sidewalks will be installed around village green areas.  Sellers said the HOA documents should include flood and house lighting restrictions.  Brutscher asked Toll Brothers to remove flood lighting option from their home options list.  After a discussion, Sellers said central mailboxes are required for the carriage and village house designs.  Toll Brothers will develop a plan for central mailboxes to present to the Board at a later date.  Trash hauling and recycling was discussed, and Sellers suggested franchising the trash hauling and recycling to one company.  This could be incorporated into the HOA documents.   Belgium block versus granite curbing will be revisited with Bill Harwood at a later date to determine which application best suits the township.  School buses will only travel on main thorofares through the community.  Kessler said he would review the site plan to see if any of the small lots were in question as related to installation of a swimming pool.  Toll Brothers representatives thanked the Board for their time.

Treasurer’s Warrants:  The warrants were approved and signed as submitted.

Adjournment:  The meeting was adjourned at 11:37 a.m.

______________________                                                    ________________________
Karen J. Eckard, Secretary                                                       H. William Sellers, Chairman