Council Minutes – April 8th, 2024

Meeting Overview

The Duncansville Borough Council met on Monday, April 8, 2024, at 7:00 P. M. in the Borough Building. President Annette Lewis presided over the meeting.

Attendance:

• Present: Annette Lewis (President), Jeffrey Lynn (Vice President), Cindy Blontz (Pro Tem), Dave Shaw, and Nicole Estep.
• Absent: Eric Fritz (Mayor).

Minutes Approval

The Council approved the minutes from previous meetings:

• Council Minutes: Approved for March 11 & 27, 2024.
• Municipal Authority Minutes: Approved for March 7, 2024.

Public Comments & Visitors

• Rodney Noel: A resident from 13th Street near the bridge asked about flags placed on his property for surveying. He requested permission to remove them for grass mowing. The Council granted verbal permission pending a definite answer, which was confirmed as "fine. "

Departmental Reports & Business

Secretary

• 1209 5th Avenue Property: The property, destroyed by fire in February 2023, has completed cleanup work. The Council discussed releasing the escrow account refund to the owners once all property taxes and bills are paid in full.

Mayor

• Police Report: The Council accepted the Police report for March 2024.

Chief Estep

• Community Center Grant: A resolution was presented to apply for a DCED COVID-19 ARPA Grant of $1,999,400. 00 for Phase 2 of the Community Center project. The motion to have President Lewis sign the resolution was carried unanimously.

Solicitor

• Community Center Loan: The loan packet for Phase 1 is nearly complete. Final advertisement will be published on Wednesday, and a filing fee must be paid to DCED. The Council authorized payment for advertising and filing fees.
• Werstil Fence Violation: A violation letter was sent to a Duncansville address, but the recipient receives mail in Hollidaysburg. A second notice will be sent to the correct address, and filing fees through the MDJ are required. The Council approved these filing fees.
• Borough Manager Contract: Changes to the Borough Manager's employment contract were approved for execution.

Committees

• Buildings & Grounds: Approximately 300 feet of crushed gravel on the park walking path was washed away by rain and will be replaced.
• Parks & Recreation: Updates were provided on tree planting, walkway funding around the baseball field, and grant applications. The pickleball court surface work is scheduled for the week of the meeting.
• Streets & Equipment: Advertising for street paving projects is underway. Bid openings are scheduled for April 24, 2024, at 3:30 pm.
• Water & Sewer: The March 2024 report was approved. An update on the Rave Notification System indicated that letters are being sent to residents via the Municipal Authority.

New Business

• Mail Services: Following resident requests for house delivery instead of cluster boxes, the Council authorized Rod to write a letter to the postmaster requesting this change.
• Office Hours: The Duncansville Borough Office hours were changed to 8:00 am to 4:00 pm.
• Employee Lunch Policy: A motion was passed for all Borough employees to work 8 hours per day and receive paid lunch, unless they choose to leave during that period.
• Engineering RFP: A committee consisting of Rod Estep, Nicole Estep, and Dave Shaw was assigned to review and interview for the Request for Proposal (RFP) for engineering services.

Adjournment

The Council went into executive session at 8:03 pm for personnel reasons and returned at 8:42 pm. After approving the monthly bills for April 2024, President Lewis adjourned the meeting at 8:44 PM.

Next Meeting: Monday, May 13, 2024.