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Charlestown Township
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The first business meeting for May was held May 5, 2014 at the Great Valley Middle School, Room 154, 255 N. Phoenixville Pike, Malvern, PA.
Present:
| Supervisors: | Frank A. Piliero, Chairman, Michael J. Rodgers, Vice Chairman, Kevin R. Kuhn, Charlie A. Philips and Hugh D. Willig |
| Consultants: | Daniel Wright, P.E., Thomas J. Comitta, and Mark P. Thompson, Esq. |
| Staff: | Linda Csete, Manager, Jim Thompson, Roadmaster, Tim Hubbard, Fire Marshal and Lisa Gardner, Recording Secretary. |
| Public: | See attached sign-in sheet |
Call to Order:
7:32 p.m.Announcements
Mr. Kuhn announced there was an Executive Session before tonight’s meeting to discuss legal matters.
Mr. Philips announced that the Board met in an Executive Session on April 29 at 9 a.m. at the Township Office to discuss legal and personnel matters.
Mrs. Csete announced that Earth Day, on April 26th was a great success with five scout troops involved at the Brightside Farm, Charlestown Park, Pickering Preserve and Horseshoe Trail. Many residents, including members of the Board of Supervisors, Parks and Recreation, the Planning Commission, and others continued to play a big role. Charlestown Meadows had 21 people participate in their 6th annual cleanup. There were over 125 people involved in the clean-up and beautification efforts and our thanks go out to everyone.
Mrs. Csete announced that tonight there are flyers available with details on the Turnpike Commission’s Open House this Thursday, May 8th starting at 6:30 p.m. in the Middle School Cafeteria. They will present their preliminary plans for expanding the Turnpike to six lanes between Devault and Downingtown. There will be an opportunity to ask questions.
Mrs. Csete stated a community shredding event was held May 3rd at the CAT Pickering Campus in Phoenixville, from 8 a.m. to noon. Thank you to Ravi Inaganti, Mahika Inaganti and Jain Divya who volunteered to cover the event for Charlestown.
Lastly, Mrs. Csete announced that the Township’s Devault Rail-Trail Feasibility Study Committee is holding its first public meeting May 12th, 2014 at 7:30 p.m. in the Middle School Cafeteria. They will provide project details on identifying a multi-use pathway between Devault and Phoenixville, possibly using the rail line.
Citizens’ Forum
Barbara DeWilde thanked the Supervisors and Mrs. Csete for coordinating the work accomplished on Earth Day. As a member of the Charlestown Historical Society, she was returning tonight to present an outline for the Memorial Day Service at the Revolutionary War Cemetery. Supervisors agreed to allow a Betsy Ross flag to hang below a new American flag, and are to tell Mrs. Csete if they plan on attending or speaking. She was also grateful that the Roadmaster surprised the Society with cleaning up the cemetery after all the recent storms.
Approvals
April 7, 2014 Business Meeting Minutes
Mr. Rodgers moved to approve the minutes of the April 7, 2014 Business Meeting and Mr. Philips seconded. Mr. Piliero called for further discussion and there being none, called the vote. All were in favor.
Treasurer’s Report April 1 - 30, 2014
Mr. Philips moved to approve the April 2014 Treasurer’s Report and Mr. Rodgers seconded. Mr. Piliero called for discussion and there being none, called the vote. All were in favor.
Accounts Payable Reports for Operating Fund for May 5, 2014
Mr. Kuhn moved to approve the General Fund Accounts Payable Report for May 5, 2014 and Mr. Philips seconded. Mr. Piliero called for discussion and there being none, called the vote. All were in favor.
Accounts Payable Report for Open Space Fund for May 5, 2014
Mr. Philips moved to approve the Open Space Fund Accounts Payable Report for May 5 2014 with the exception of check #2288 to CRJ Construction and Mr. Rodgers seconded. Mr. Piliero called for discussion and the Board determined that the payment to CRJ Construction for the Brightside window replacement project will be further discussed with Mr. Frens before payment is issued. With no further discussion, Mr. Piliero called the vote and all were in favor.
Reports
Mr. Philips moved to accept the April 2014 reports #1-14 as submitted and Mr. Rodgers seconded. Mr. Piliero called for discussion, and there being none, called the vote. All were in favor. Mr. Kuhn suggested a discussion about how to best follow up on Mr. Theurkauf’s open space monitoring reports at the next meeting.
Gary Sheridan, of the East Whiteland Fire Department, wanted to thank the community of Charlestown for its contributions toward the construction of the new fire house. The loan is being signed this week, and construction will begin shortly. A new pumper truck is being put into service this month and, as always, contributions from the community are welcomed.
Charlestown Day Update
Karen Schlichter, Chairperson for the 2014 Charlestown Community Run & Community Day provided an update on Community Day, scheduled for October 4, 2014. The organizers have partnered with the CAT Pickering School. Students will be making banners, T-shirts, taking care of the food, parking, and ride supervision. The Philadelphia Union Mobile Tour and 6 different sponsors are on board so far. Run organizers will be closing a small section of Charlestown Road for an hour and a half and have already started the process with PennDOT. Next they are meeting with the Valley Forge Christian College. From now until October 4th, a liaison from the college and the school will be at their meetings, and they will all be on site. The largest problem so far is parking.
Mrs. Schlichter handed out a brochure designed by Rich D’Ginto and Bruno Forcine. Mr. Forcine received a $250 check and a round of applause for his logo and graphic design work.
Jennifer Nelson updated the Board on the Run itself and needed approval on waiver language. It was given to the Township Solicitor to review. Mr. Kuhn requested an overview of activities for the Township to evaluate with the insurance provider which the organizers agreed to prepare.
Hearings
Marshall Conditional Use Application
Mr. Thompson opened the Hearing to consider the Conditional Use Application for Paul and Julie Marshall of 2226 Charlestown Road. The proceedings were recorded by Mark Hegarty, Court Reporter. Mr. Thompson said that the Applicant notified surrounding residents within 10 days of the March Hearing, satisfying the precondition to the commencement of any discussion at tonight’s Hearing. This document was re-labeled as A24. He began with an update for the audience.
Mr. Thompson offered “Party Status” to tonight’s audience members that surround the property of the Marshalls. Mr. Kaplin, attorney for Mr. Marshall had no objections. Property owners asking for party status were the Mr. and Mrs. Cameron Cloeter, Larry Bull, Richard Findlay, Regina Fried, Merrill Johnston, and Sharon Rouse. Mr. Gary Bender Esq. was retained by the Township while Mr. Thompson represented the Board of Supervisors.
Mr. Kaplin distributed sets of the exhibits to the Supervisors and Mr. Thompson, and discussed several overhead views of the property before and after proposed changes. Mr. Philips asked Mr. Marshall why he was not including the new deck on the historical barn, in the 2,000 square footage figure. Mr. Marshall said it was simply an egress.
The following were exhibits provided by Mr. Kaplin and provided to Paul Marshall, Ellen Behrle, and Neal Camens (Engineer for Mr. Marshall, from Chester Valley Engineering, Inc.) as they were called upon to testify.
A1 Curriculum Vitae for Paul Marshall
A2 Deed to parcel #35-4-11.1
A3 Subdivision Plan for Charlestown Woods
A4 Conservation Easement Document
A5 Series of Photographs of the barn and surrounding blacktop
A6 Aerial Photograph to portray access to Half Hill Farm
A7 Culinary Institute of America/Farm to Table Agricultural Use narrative
A8 Proposed Interior Barn diagram
A9 Publication from Pennypack Farm & Education classes description
A10 Publication from American Culinary Federation
A11 Signage suggestion for Half Hill Farm
A12 National Farm To School publication regarding Buy Local Buy Fresh
A13 American School Board Journal article
A14 Marshall’s Half Hill Farm Educational Partnership
A15 Outdoor classroom at Springton Manor Farm description
A16 Rushton Farm at Willistown description
A17 Neal Camens curriculum vitae
A18 Chester Valley Engineer plan to support the proposal
A19 Zoning Ordinance excerpts for FR District
A20 Parker Waste Water Consulting, Inc. Report
A21 Conditional Use Standards for Historic Structures
A22 Brandywine Science water Testing Report
A23 Standards for Approval excerpts from Zoning Ordinance
A24 Proof of Hearing notifications
Mr. Thompson continued the Hearing to June 2, 2014 at 7:30 p.m. at the Great Valley Middle School, Room 154, 255 N. Phoenixville Pike, Malvern, PA.
Devault Village at Spring Oak Conditional Use Application
Per the applicant’s request, Mr. Kuhn moved to continue the Hearing to June 2, 2014 at 7:30 p.m. at the Great Valley Middle School, Room 154, 255 N. Phoenixville Pike, Malvern, PA. Mr. Rodgers seconded, and Mr. Piliero called for discussion. There being none, he called the vote and all were in favor.
Old Business
Discussion on J.D. Bravo Report on Charlestown Park Improvements and Next Steps
Mr. Kuhn stated that J.D. Bravo will be receiving an email from Bob Jones and this subject will be continued with J.D. Bravo’s response at the next Board of Supervisor’s Meeting in June.
New Business
Design Review Committee Substitutions
Mr. Allen told the Supervisors that due to construction starting at Spring Oak and Pickering Crossing, minor requests and decisions were being made by the builders and Planning Commission Members regarding material substitutions. At the last Planning Commission meeting, Members discussed the philosophy of maintaining the integrity and specifications for TND 1 and 5 while trying to be flexible on soft concepts and design material decisions.
Mr. Westhafer had reminded them that streetscapes were critical, so the PC will remain rigid in decisions about lighting, curbing, and luminaries, etc. Mr. Allen said the luminaires and lighting problems begin with the difficulty of getting a production model and detailed information from the manufacturer. It is even more difficult to get a model on site and see it as it would look installed. But to ensure quality and uniformity of lighting, luminaires need to be from the same manufacturer throughout the TND District. Mrs. Leland, in attendance, said lighting was tricky because it could look like the Township favored or wanted only one manufacturer. Criteria and standards need to stay equal, and this is difficult with l.e.d. bulbs.
Mr. Allen mentioned the difficulty in deciding a substitution for curbing by JP Orleans. The builder wanted to use granite pavers even though concrete was approved. Mr. Kuhn suggested the Township stance would be to consider, but not “allow”, Belgian Block pavers. The builder also wanted to use stamped and painted asphalt for the crosswalks instead of pavers, and the DRC said no. Mr. Allen said he and Mr. Frens are keeping a list of Design Guideline “holes”.
Appointment – Assistant Zoning Officer
Mr. Piliero moved to appoint Tim Hubbard as Assistant Zoning Officer and Mr. Philips seconded. Mr. Piliero called for discussion, there being none, called the vote. All were in favor.
Award Contract for 2014-2015 Road Labor & Equipment
Mr. Piliero referred to Mr. Wright’s letter of April 9, 2014 reviewing the single bid for the Annual Road Labor and Equipment Contract that includes a comparison to the previous year’s rates. The rates were higher than the 2013/2014 contract, however, there had been no increase the previous year, and he recommends acceptance.
Mr. Kuhn moved to award the Road Labor and Equipment Contract for the period of April 1, 2014 – March 31, 2015 to Melchiorre Construction Company. Mr. Philips seconded. Mr. Piliero called for discussion, and there being none, called the vote. All were in favor.
Review proposed Road Improvement Schedule for 2014 and Authorize Bid Advertisement
Mr. Wright told Supervisors that he had checked on the questions Mr. Rodgers had from the last meeting, and although it was not possible to break the job into smaller parts, it may be beneficial to buy materials with a Township discount. So he prepared the bid package with two options to see if it was possible to save money in materials. One option has the contractor providing the material and the other option was to provide labor and equipment only, with the Township buying the material separately. The package he handed out leaves room to adjust the project, to meet the estimated completion cost, by using Yellow Springs Road as an adjustable factor.
Mr. Rodgers moved to authorize Mr. Wright to post and advertise the 2014 Road Improvement Project Invitation to Bid, and Mr. Philips seconded. Mr. Piliero called for discussion, and there being none, called the vote. All were in favor.
Pickering Crossing Escrow Release #7 and Spring Oak Escrow Release #1
Mr. Philips moved to approve Escrow Release #7 for Southdown Homes’ Pickering Crossing project in the amount of $200,028.02 and Spring Oak Escrow Release #1 in the amount of $97,200.67 and Mr. Rodgers seconded. Mr. Piliero called for discussion and there being none, called the vote. All were in favor.
Township Property Repairs
Mr. Thompson, the Roadmaster, said he had gotten an estimate for $2,200 to repair the Volpi House roof by using metal from an outbuilding. Also, on the Dickson property, a pipe has collapsed and is undermining a berm. It may require repair, but needs to be reevaluated after the water stops flowing from the recent storm.
Adjournment
Mr. Piliero adjourned the meeting at 11:20 p.m. The next meeting is scheduled for Monday, June 2, 2014, 7:30 p.m. at the Great Valley Middle School, Room 154, 255 North Phoenixville Pike, Malvern, PA.
Lisa K. Gardner
Recording Secretary
