Charlestown Township Board of Supervisors Business Meeting Minutes of March 5, 2012

The first business meeting for March was held March 5, 2012 at the Great Valley Middle School, Room 154, 255 N. Phoenixville Pike, Malvern, PA.

Present:

Supervisors:	Michael J. Rodgers, Vice Chairman, Kevin R. Kuhn, Hugh D. Willig
Consultants:	Surender Kohli, P.E., Dan Wright, P.E., Mark P. Thompson, Esq.
Staff:	Linda Csete, Manager, Jim Thompson, Roadmaster
Public:	Tashir and Maria Kassam, Eric Davison and Bob Jones

Call to Order:

7:30 p.m.

Announcements

Mrs. Csete made the following announcements and circulated handouts on each event.

1. Charlestown will be holding its 7th annual Earth Day clean up on Saturday, April 21st. Many of the usual volunteers have already signed up and this is greatly appreciated. Parks & Rec member Jim Quay already performed a clean -up of Coldstream Road and collected 7 bags of trash.
2. The Chester County Solid Waste Authority is sponsoring a free shredding event on Saturday, March 24th from 7:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. at the Lanchester Landfill.
3. Also on March 24 there is a program called Keep Farming First at the Chester County Intermediate Unit with a keynote address by PA Secretary of Agriculture George Greig.
4. The County Solid Waste Authority is sponsoring a free electronics drop off on Friday, April 27th at the East Brandywine Township Building for almost any appliance except those with Freon. A list of acceptable items is on the handout.

Parks & Recreation Board Chairman Bob Jones said the Parks & Rec Board met with the Charlestown Historical Society and they have tentatively planned for a Charlestown Day event on May 5th with tethered balloon rides at the Park and a bus tour that will stop at the quarry and Charlestown Village.

Mr. Kuhn said the Parks & Rec Board held a great work session on February 29th to seek input from residents on updating the Open Space and Recreation Plan. He said a lot of good information was exchanged, and the next meeting will be held on March 29th.

Citizens’ Forum

 – No matters were brought forward at this time.

Approvals

Minutes of February 6, 2012 Business Meeting

Mr. Willig moved to approve the minutes of the February 6, 2012 business meeting, and Mr. Kuhn seconded. Mr. Rodgers called for discussion and there being none, called the vote. All were in favor.

Treasurer’s Report February 1 - 29, 2012

Mr. Kuhn moved to approve the February 2012 Treasurer’s Report and Mr. Willig seconded. Mr. Rodgers called for discussion and there being none, called the vote. All were in favor.

Accounts Payable Report March 5, 2012 Operating Fund

Mr. Kuhn moved to approve the March 5, 2012 Operating Fund Accounts Payable Report and Mr. Willig seconded. Mr. Rodgers called for discussion, and there being none, called the vote, and all were in favor.

Accounts Payable Report February 6, 2012 Open Space Fund

Mr. Kuhn moved to approve the March 5, 2012 Open Space Fund Accounts Payable Report and Mr. Willig seconded. Mr. Rodgers called for discussion, and there being none, called the vote, and all were in favor.

Accounts Payable Report February 6, 2012 State Fund

Mr. Willig moved to approve the March 5, 2012 State Fund Accounts Payable Report and Mr. Kuhn seconded. Mr. Rodgers called for discussion, and there being none, called the vote, and all were in favor.

Reports

Mr. Willig moved to accept the February reports as submitted, and Mr. Kuhn seconded.

Mr. Willig said the billboard issue has come up in Phoenixville Borough and East Pikeland Township, so the Phoenixville Regional Planning Commission will probably review it although it hasn’t been submitted to them yet. The group felt it may be a good issue to address regionally.

Mr. Rodgers said the Valley Forge Sewer Authority is having trouble with capacity flows through East Whiteland Township that affects the Spring Oak development. He said that he, Mr. Kohli and Steve Yuhas will meet to discuss this. Mr. Thompson said he met with Mr. Kohli last week to better understand the effect on Spring Oak. He said East Whiteland will have to upgrade two undersized pipes on Sidley Hill Road. Mr. Rodgers noted that the VFSA will cover the cost. Mr. Kuhn asked if there was an estimate yet, and Mr. Rodgers said no.

Mr. Rodgers called for further discussion, and there being none, called the vote. All were in favor.

Old Business

 – None

New Business

Open Bids for Mowing, Tree, Road Labor & Equipment Bids

• Mowing

The following bids were received by the Township office for Mowing Labor and Equipment for the period of April 1, 2012 – March 31, 2015.

Company	Estimated Annual Cost		Cost per Mowing
	Finish Mower Total	Weed Cutter Total	Charles- town Park	Cemetery	Jenkins Tract	Longwood School	Woolen Mill	Brightside Farm
J & K Mowing	10,000.00	2,250.00	650.00	Not bid	60.00	25.00	65.00	60.00
Puhl’s Landscaping	8,200.00	2,887.50	748.00	Not bid	85.00	55.00	85.00	175.00
Steve Strutynski	14,000.00	2,512.50	800.00	40.00	Not bid	40.00	60.00	200.00
C.M. Jones	6,900.00	2,250.00	600.00	Not bid	39.00	30.00	39.00	390.00
Eric Davison	7,200.00	1,950.00	460.00	40.00	35.00	25.00	40.00	40.00

Mr. Jones said there was a change to the bid spreadsheet and the Cemetery property was added and the Jenkins Tract removed. Mr. Kuhn noted there would be no penalty for omitting the cemetery from the bid prices due to the late change.

• Tree Work

The following bids were received by the Township office for Tree Work Labor and Equipment for the period of April 1, 2012 – March 31, 2015.

Company	Amount
C.M. Jones	$47,737.50
Lord’s Tree Service Inc.	59,200.00
Patriot Grounds & Site Services	39,425.00
Davey Tree Company	38,325.00
ProMark Inc.	59,242.50

• Road Labor & Equipment

The following bids were received by the Township office for Road Labor and Equipment for the period of April 1, 2012 – March 31, 2013.

Company	Amount
Ronald Smith Inc.	$497,094.00
Melchiorre Construction	459,285.00

The bids were turned over to Mr. Kohli/Mr. Wright for review and recommendations so the contracts can be awarded at the April meeting. Mr. Rodgers asked them to check whether Ronald Smith Inc. is within the required 10 mile radius of Charlestown.

Dam at Charlestown Park – Request for Approval of Bid Documents

Parks & Rec Board Chairman Bob Jones said he and Jeremy Madaras, P.E. of Wilkinson Associates met with Mr. Kohli and Mr. Wright to go over the bid documents to be prepared for the Dam project at Charlestown Park. The engineers determined that a Chester County Conservation District permit will be required. Completed bid documents will be ready for review at the April meeting.

2012 Road Construction Projects

Roadmaster Jim Thompson said he and Mr. Wright inspected various township roads last week, measured them and developed a list of roads to be considered for improvements this year. These included Tinkerhill Road, the Oak Lane, Dobs Lane and Ridgewood Road cul-de-sacs, a section of Blackberry Lane, and Sidley Hill Road.

Mr. Kuhn referred to a spreadsheet he had in his file that he believes the former Roadmaster, Fred Alston prepared, and circulated it for informational purposes.

Mr. Rodgers noted that Howell Road and Bodine Road are bad in the rain and should be considered. Mr. Thompson said Howell Road’s inlet boxes collect debris and need to be cleaned occasionally. Mr. Kuhn said he’s fine with Mr. Thompson’s recommendations.

Mrs. Csete reminded the Board that during the Fall budget work session, they included $5,000 in the 2012 budget to pave the first five feet of the Revolutionary War parking lot and add stone to the remaining area.

Mr. Wright circulated a sheet comparing the amount of bituminous overlay used for the 2011 projects with that estimated for the 2012 projects, the former being 24,325 square yards and latter 25,475 square yards. Mrs. Csete said the budgeted amount for this year is the same as for 2011, $400,000.00. Mr. Kuhn said they could also redirect some of the savings from the snow budget, although Mrs. Csete said the budget should be reviewed first because the carryover figure was lower than anticipated and the savings from the lack of snow this year have basically filled that gap.

Mr. Willig said the Pickering Road shoulders are not on the list. Mr. Kuhn suggested handling the shoulders as was done for Rees Road. Gravel was added that allows vegetation to grow in and stabilize. Mr. Thompson said 2A modified stone would be used for this, and he recommended the product from Devault Crushed Stone. He said the material would be rolled.

Mr. Kuhn suggested starting with Mr. Thompson’s list of roads, and adding the Park parking lot if funds are available. Mr. Jones said there should be islands for the parking lot, and one estimate he obtained was for $195,000. Mr. Kuhn asked if islands could be added later. Mr. Thompson said in that case trenching would be needed.

Mr. Wright said he can prepare a preliminary cost estimate to consider at the April meeting, and if the total is under $400,000, the Board can approve the finalizing of the bid documents. Mr. Rodgers said he felt the Roadmaster should prepare the estimates and documents since the Township paid $18,000 for engineering last year. Mr. Kuhn disagreed, saying that amount is reasonable on projects totaling $400,000. Mr. Wright said he’s still learning and in the future this amount would be less.

Mr. Rodgers said the roads aren’t being built new, and documents have been prepared in the past without the engineer. Mr. Kuhn said one of the previous roadmasters prepared the documents for Union Hill and Bodine Roads, and water issues were created in both cases. He said he’s in favor of utilizing the engineer. Mr. Wright said they learned a lot from preparing last year’s documents and the cost would be less this year. The bids and specs would be similar to those prepared in 2011 and the same methodologies would be used. Mr. Willig said since the project goes out to bid, the engineer has to be paid to prepare the documents. He said they received good competitive bids last year and should follow the same process for 2012.

Mr. Kuhn said there were two problems with last year’s work, namely the crosspipes for Pickering Road and the shoulder remediation for that road, both of which should have been included in the specs. He said if Mr. Thompson works with him, the Township will get a tight bid package. Mr. Jones said using the engineer also helps limit the Township’s liability.

Mr. Kuhn again suggested they get costs for the road work on Mr. Thompson’s list, and hold off on the Park parking lot for now. Mr. Thompson noted there will be pipe and inlet work at the Park needed as well. Mr. Kuhn asked if Mr. Thompson can get a price for just an overlay for the lot, with a plan to do it properly in 4-5 years. Mr. Thompson said the water can be connected at the swale, and some inlet boxes can be enlarged.

Mr. Kuhn asked about Pine Drive, and Mr. Thompson said it was o.k. for now.

Mr. Willig moved to direct Mr. Wright, working with Mr. Thompson, to prepare rough cost estimates for the roads on Mr. Thompson’s recommended list, and Mr. Kuhn seconded. Mr. Rodgers called for discussion, and there being none, called the vote. All were in favor.

Conditional Use Decision – Kassam

Mr. Thompson summarized the draft conditional use decision for Tashir and Maria Kassam. He said that while the Kassams occupy the portion of the building previously used as a Bed & Breakfast, it would limit that use but not eliminate it for the future.

He asked the Kassams if they had any questions. He said they would have 30 days to appeal the decision to the Court of Common Pleas or return to the Board of Supervisors for clarification.

Mr. Kuhn moved to approve the decision as written, granting approval to the Kassams to maintain an apartment at the Bell and Clapper building, and Mr. Willig seconded. Mr. Rodgers called for discussion, and there being none, called the vote. All were in favor.

Authorize Baldwin Appraisal

Mr. Kuhn referred to a proposal from J. Brian O’Donnell to appraise the 14.8 acre Baldwin property on Bodine Road for possible open space acquisition by the Township. Mr. Willig moved to accept the proposal and Mr. Rodgers seconded. Mr. Rodgers called for discussion, and there being none, called the vote. All were in favor.

Resolution Authorizing Expenditure of Open Space Tax Funds – Gill Easement

Mark Thompson said that although the Gill Easement purchase had been approved by the Board, a formal resolution had not been passed. He read the resolution into the record.

Mr. Kuhn moved to adopt Resolution #769-2012 authorizing the purchase of the Gill Easement for $550,000 using open space tax funds, and Mr. Willig seconded. Mr. Rodgers called for discussion, and there being none, called the vote. All were in favor.

Annual MS-4 Report

Mr. Wright provided an overview of the MS4 (Municipal Separate Storm System) Engineer’s Report for the 9th year, ending March 9, 2012. The Township received an NPDES (National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System) Permit in 2003. The PA DEP outlined six protocols which were to be followed to meet its compliance within five years. There have been three one-year extensions and two 9-month extensions to the compliance deadline, which is now March 15, 2013. These extensions allow the Permittee to complete any unfinished required activities from Year 1 through Year 5 and continue Year 5 activities through Year 8.

He summarized the DEP protocols as follows:

MS1 – Public education and outreach on stormwater impacts and MS2 – Public involvement/participation: Linda Csete continues to improve the education and public participation elements of the program. She is working with the Chester-Ridley Crum (CRC) Watershed Association which assists the Township with these requirements. Some suggested comments offered by the DEP will be incorporated in the next year’s report.

MS3 – Illicit discharge detection and elimination (IDD&E): IDD & E is being implemented by the Township Engineer. The DEP suggested making the MS4 map available to Township staff and emergency responders to use as needed.

The new permit also requires an MS4 TMDL (Total Maximum Daily Load Plan for MS4’s that discharge to an Impaired Waterway with an approved TMDL Plan in place. Three of the four township watersheds that the Township drains to have TNDL Plans, but it was determined that no MS4 TMDL Plan will be needed.

A total of 37 outfalls were screened during the year.

MS4- Construction site stormwater runoff control: Construction plans are reviewed by the Township Engineer’s office for compliance. They also coordinate the Erosion & Sedimentation Design Plans with the Chester County Conservation District.

MS5- Post construction stormwater management in new development and re-development: This protocol is implemented during and after construction. As-built plans are required for all completed projects which are reviewed for compliance. There is an inventory data list for all completed projects to follow up on Operations and Maintenance (O & M) responsibilities. This list will be updated as needed.

The Stormwater Management Ordinance was updated last year to comply with the Valley Creek Act 167 plan. It now requires additional responsibilities of the lot owners during and post construction, which will be enforced by the Township.

MS6 – Pollution prevention/good housekeeping for municipal operations: This protocol is addressed by the Roadmaster, generally referred to as “good housekeeping” practices.

Mr. Wright said Randy Patry has received some MS4 training. The DEP now wants to see storm conveyance swales in the mapping. Mr. Kohli said there should be very few. Mr. Kuhn asked if these maps can be overlayed with the maps Thomas Comitta Associates has on their GIS system, and Mr. Wright said yes.

Mr. Wright said the Township has to apply for the permit renewal 180 days prior to the deadline of the current permit, which is 9/14/12, and they will be working on it.

Conditional Use Decision - Goncalves

Mr. Thompson summarized the draft conditional use decision for Dr. Antonio Goncalves and Dr. Ellen Davis. He said Mr. Kohli will inspect the proposed parking space area when it’s ready. Mr. Kuhn moved to approve the decision as written, granting approval to the doctors to operate a minor home occupation, and Mr. Willig seconded. Mr. Rodgers called for discussion, and there being none, called the vote. All were in favor.

Resolutions to Certify Rosewood, Wyndham and Hedgerow Lanes as being Township Maintained, to add to Liquid Fuels

Mrs. Csete explained that although these three roads are township roads, they had not been added to the Liquid Fuels fund. PennDOT provides for a process in which a road may be added if the Board certifies it has been maintained by the Township for twenty one years, which is the case with these three roads.

She said Mr. Wright suggested to her earlier that the deeds for the roads be researched at the County so the resolutions can be completed properly and considered for adoption. She asked that Mr. Thompson’s office look into obtaining this information.

Charlestown Brae (Whitehorse @ Charlestown) Basin Repairs

Mr. Wright said he and Mr. Kohli met with the residents from Charlestown Brae, currently known as Whitehorse @ Charlestown to review their detention basin maintenance responsibilities. He referred to his memo of 2/2/2012 providing a summary of each of the meetings and circulated a copy of letters sent to the six property owners on 2/21/2012, which includes an annual maintenance list.

Mr. Wright said two of the basins have possible structural issues that must be investigated and addressed. The Township maintains an escrow fund to cover structural repairs. He suggested the Township utilize a portion of these funds to investigate the problems.

Mr. Kuhn asked if the Roadmaster can handle this, and Mr. Wright said yes.

Mr. Thompson recommended that temporary construction agreements be obtained before the Township does any work on these properties. He’ll provide language for a simple letter agreement.

It was briefly discussed whether the property owners should arrange and pay for the work with the Township to reimburse them, but general consensus was the Township would have more control if it arranged for the work.

Appointment of Town Architect

Mrs. Csete said that the TND ordinance calls for inspections and approvals of TND development by the town architect, but none had been formally appointed by the Board.

Mr. Kuhn moved to appoint Dale H. Frens, AIA as Charlestown Town Architect, and Mr. Willig seconded. Mr. Rodgers called for further discussion, and there being none, called the vote. All were in favor.

Renewal of Inspection Services Agreement with Benesch and Associates

Mrs. Csete said the current contract with Benesch & Associates, administered through Kohli & Associates, expired on December 31st. Mr. Kohli circulated a proposed agreement for the Board’s consideration to be reviewed prior to the April meeting.

Reschedule April 2nd Board of Supervisors

Mrs. Csete said she was contacted by the School District that the Board can’t meet on April 2nd since all the schools are closed that week for Easter Vacation. The Board decided to move the meeting to April 16th, with April 9th as a back-up date if the 16th isn’t available. Mrs. Csete will confirm the date and let everyone know of the change.

Approve Payroll for April 2nd

Mrs. Csete asked if the Board would approve the April payroll in advance so it could be distributed on April 2nd rather than wait for the later April meeting.

Mr. Kuhn moved to approve the April 2, 2012 Operating Fund Accounts Payable Report for March Payroll, and Mr. Willig seconded. Mr. Rodgers called for discussion, and there being none, called the vote, and all were in favor.

Other Business

Exeter LLC

Mr. Thompson said land development applicant Exeter LLC requested an extension on their final plan decision to April 15th. Now that the April meeting is likely to be held on the 16th, a revised extension letter must be requested.

Mr. Rodgers moved to accept the extension request from Exeter LLC to April 15, 2012 subject to Mrs. Csete obtaining an additional extension to April 16, 2012. Mr. Kuhn seconded. Mr. Rodgers called for discussion, and there being none, called the vote, and all were in favor.

Adjournment

Mr. Rodgers announced the Board would hold an executive session following the meeting. He adjourned the meeting at 9:10 p.m. The next business meeting is tentatively scheduled for Monday, April 16, 2012, 7:30 p.m. at the Great Valley Middle School, Room 154, 255 North Phoenixville Pike, Malvern, PA.