Three companies sent in bids for two drainage projects in Susquehanna Depot on Erie Avenue and Prospect Street.  The bids were opened during council’s meeting on March 8th.  CB Excavating & Logging bid twenty-four thousand, seven hundred ninety dollars for the Erie Avenue project, and eight thousand, four hundred ninety-five dollars for the Prospect Street project.  Stone Excavating bid thirty-seven thousand, three hundred eighty dollars for the Erie Avenue project, and twelve thousand, four hundred dollars for the Prospect Street project.  Bruce Woodmansee & Sons Construction bid sixty-eight thousand, seven hundred dollars for the Erie Street project, and twenty-four thousand, seven hundred for the Prospect Street project.

Council discussed for a few moments the disparate bids wondering if the three companies were quoting on specifications given to them.  President Varsik stated the criterion was to inspect the area before they provided a bid to the borough.  They were given the scope of work, technical specifications, work completion date, clean up and site restoration data.

Councilwoman Barbara Larsen motioned to accept the lowest bid submitted by CB Excavating & Logging provided they meet all the requirements of the bid process, John Hendrickson seconded the motion which approved unanimously.

Glen Eby was present to answer any questions council had regarding Joe Hunt and Associates (JHA) to provide engineering services to the borough.  Council had no questions, and unanimously appointed JHA as their Engineer of Record.

Mayor Nancy Hurley stated the Susquehanna Community Development Association was going to conduct an Easter Egg Hunt on April 8th, at the elementary school for children ages one to eight years old at 11:00 a.m.

Pat Lesser from The Church To The Nations was present to ask permission from council if they would be able to use Prospect Park to conduct an Easter Egg Hunt.  Mrs. Lesser said they plan to hold the event on April 15th at 11:00 a.m., for ages one up to, and including, sixth graders.  Mrs. Lesser said they would like to utilize the entire park so they would have enough space to separate children into age groups.  Council unanimously granted permission for The Church To The Nations to use the park on April 15th.

President Varsik thanked Kevin from DPW for the crew going out during the heavy rains to clean out the clogged drains in town.  Councilwoman Sue Crawford said a great job, as usual.

Mayor Hurley reported the Police recorded fifty-nine incidents for the month of February.

The Susquehanna Community Development Association (SCDA) will be sponsoring a biker event at the United Methodist Church on Sunday, May 21st, starting at 11:00 a.m. with services and a blessing of the bikes followed by a barbeque, all-free of charge.  If anyone would like more information, they can call Pastor Vince at 570-756-2420.

Former Police Chief David Scales passed away this past week, and Mayor Hurley reported the Susquehanna Depot Police Department would represent them at the service.  Mayor Hurley and council expressed their sympathy with his passing and said it is a great loss to the community.  Council said Mr. Scales was a lifelong resident and very involved with the community.  Mr. Scales served twenty-five years as a Police Officer, was also a member of the fire department and served as a Councilman.

President Varsik said the new vests came in, unfortunately incorrect vests were ordered and needed to be returned.  New information was given to council for the vests and fortunately, they are sixty dollars less than the ones originally ordered.  Council unanimously approved sending back the ones received and ordering the correct vests.

Council is reviewing and sending out to the solicitor to review a new Ordinance, which would permit Police Officer John Creamer to use Naloxone for drug overdose victims. President Varsik stated Officer Creamer is qualified to administer the drug.

The Blue Ridge School Board didn’t waste any time filling the seat recently vacated by Christina Whitney’s resignation.  At its meeting on March 3rd, from an addendum to the agenda, members welcomed Shawn Carey to the table.  Mr. Carey recently gave up his seat on the New Milford Borough Council in order to take the much more lucrative position on the school board.

Shawn Carey, the newest member of the Blue Ridge School Board

But that came at the very end of an evening that started with a gathering of the Facilities & Grounds Committee to hear reports from Maintenance Supervisor Ron Cranage and Technology Coordinator Mike Stewart.  Mr. Cranage recounted in detail the saga of the burned-out and broken water line, beginning with a brown-out earlier in the season that caused not one, but two pumps serving the 300-foot-deep well to burn out before the real problem was tracked down.  A generator is now supplying power to a new pump until work can be completed to dig up and replace the power supply from the campus.  The new system will have several devices installed to help protect it from similar problems in the future.  The entire project is expected to cost about $30,000; in fact, the Board later approved a measure to transfer the expected amount from a budgeted contingency fund.  In the meantime, Business Manager Brian Dolan has been conversing with claims adjusters for the district’s insurers to find out how much of the expense might be covered.

Mr. Cranage also reported on some analytical comparisons he has made that show that the burning of wood chips this season has so far saved the district over $50,000 over what fuel oil might have cost for the same heating load.

Mr. Cranage is also recommending that the Board consider replacing the 16 400-watt sodium vapor lights in the parking lots with 100-watt LED units.  Quotes from contractors estimate the cost at under $10,000; he said they should pay for themselves in 3-4 years through lower power demand and decreased maintenance costs.

Mr. Cranage further reported that work is proceeding to prepare the several playing fields for spring sports, including a reconstructed pitcher’s mound in New Milford.  And some of his staff have been receiving training: one session was a seminar on “wood fiber surfacing” for playgrounds.  Some on the committee were vexed that playgrounds now are required to be supplied with “certified” mulch.  “What’s wrong with dirt?” was the remark of one.

Mr. Stewart’s upbeat report described the state of his operation, especially with the hiring of Fred Fenton as his assistant, as mostly hunky-dory.  He first reported that the district’s 3 generators are in place and functioning as required to maintain power to the district’s computers and networks.  He hopes in future to install another, larger generator to ensure power to virtually all district services.

Mr. Stewart said that as the Pano “virtual desktop” devices continue to age and fail, he has been able to cadge together enough spare parts to keep them functioning for a while longer.  A new “filter” on the district’s network has much more stringent default restrictions, which Mr. Stewart is in the process of fine-tuning to district needs; for example, it blocks the use of Facebook from district computers, but everyone is aware that students with data services on their phones will continue to use the popular social site.  He is also looking forward to the new copiers to be acquired under the lease agreement with Top Copy approved at the business meeting this very night.

Once the full board gathered for its business meeting, President Chris Lewis called on High School Principal Peter Supko to introduce the seniors he chose for recognition for the month of February, Mikhala Griemsman and Nate Brant.  Mr. Brant has already been active with a local fire company for a couple of years, and will study fire science at Harrisburg Community College next year.

Outstanding senior, Nate Brant

Outstanding senior Mikhala Griemsman

Elementary School Principal Danelle Decker being absent, Matthew Nebzydoski, Principal of Curriculum and Instruction, introduced Tristan Ehrie as Ms. Decker’s choice for outstanding 5th grader for February.  Although Kyrsten Carroll, the other choice, was not present for her introduction, Mr. Nebzydoski read from her statement declaring that Blue Ridge “people are very nice.”

Outstanding 5th grader Tristan Ehrie

Once the Board got around to its business agenda, it quickly passed 22 of the 24 items in a single motion.  As usual, the transportation bills were voted separately so that the several members of the board with ties to busing operations could abstain.  Member Jessica Wright also asked if the new copiers could control (by codes?) who can use them, and the volume of copying.  Superintendent Matthew Button and Mike Stewart said that the functionality exists but is inactive because so far administrators have not detected any abuse.

Other agenda items approved by the Board:

• The district will renew its annual donation of $2,500 to Blue Ridge Recreation, Inc. to support its summer program. 
  
  
• M & S Driving School was approved to provide both classroom and on-the-road driver training; participating students will have to pay for the training themselves.
  
  
• Local businesses Endless Mountains Studios and its associated Sands Sports Photography will provide photography services for the next school year.  Packages and prices for yearbook, graduation and sports photographs vary widely.  The company will also offer training for yearbook staff and others as part of the deal.
  
  
• Teachers Tom Lewis and Lynette Daniels will take advantage of the incentive announced last month to retire at the end of the current school year.
  
  
• The Board accepted the audit report outlined at the last meeting by Mike Dougherty of Murphy, Dougherty & Co.  Of the available fund balances, the Board made the following allocations:

  Future pension obligations: $1,934,335

  Future debt service: $1,300,000

  Capital improvements: $2,000,000

  Future health insurance obligations: $1,105,000

• The Board approved a trip to Hedgesville, West Virginia for the varsity and JV baseball teams for mid-March, an early spring opportunity for the players to exercise their skills.
  
  
• The Board adopted a resolution opposing a “property tax shift plan” that is under consideration by the state legislature that would eliminate the real estate property tax; so far no one yet knows where some $14 billion in education support would come from without the property tax.  State Senator Lisa Baker and Representative Jonathan Fritz are known to support the legislature’s plan.  The Board’s opposition to the plan, in 5 points, finds the idea unacceptable especially to small rural districts like Blue Ridge.
   
• The Board accepted a long list of changes to its policy manual, some of them for 30-day review.  Many of the changes are to some of the language, as recommended by the Pennsylvania School Boards Association to help conform to recent legislation and regulatory requirements.  The changes include:
  
  
  • A new section on child abuse prevention and reporting is added. 
    
    
  • A section on “Human Sexuality” was deleted. 
    
    
  • Sections on “Concussion Management” and “Cardiac Arrest” in athletics are added. 
    
    
  • The section on “Alternative Education” is deleted in favor of a new section on “Alternative Instruction.” 
    
    
  • Sections on class sizes and homework are added, the former to be further defined by administrators and the Board. 
    
    
  • There are extensive changes to the policy on “English as a Second Language/Bilingual Education.” 
    
    
  • In an addendum, the Board approved an agreement with an organization that will provide residential “alternative” educational services, as needed. 

The student representative to the Board, Dane Beers, reported that the annual “fake crash” event will take place on the Wednesday before the prom to focus awareness on the need for care on that special night.  Mr. Beers also noted that the Mountain View School District is sponsoring a parent forum on March to deal with the opiate epidemic now sweeping the nation. 

Mr. Button added that the state police are considering bringing back the D.A.R.E. drug abuse prevention program.  He also said that he had attended a forum with District Attorney Robert Kline and County Commissioner Alan Hall that explored some opportunities for collaboration between the schools and county services.

Mr. Beers then introduced his own collaborators, Logan Burdick, Daniel Tierney and Jordan Mann, in the design and development of what his presentation called a “Re-Engineered Fabricated ID,” a device that can record the activities of students throughout the schools simply by reading an ID card.  He and his team described the process of creating the device, the problems they encountered and overcame, the benefits the device can offer, as well as some estimates of the costs involved.  Technologically clueless Board members and administrators were impressed with the achievement of the team, which took second place in a regional event as part of the Governor’s STEM Competition.  STEM – short for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics – is a new initiative at Blue Ridge to generate more interest in those disciplines for the modern age.  Mr. Beers and his team study computer science as part of this developing program.

STEM team members (left to right): Dane Beers, Logan Burdick, Daniel Tierney Jordan Mann.

Finally, Mr. Button offered a summary of some of the thinking behind the budget figures buried in the thick binders provided to each of the Board members.  He said that Mr. Dolan’s revenue estimate of about $17.7 million assumes almost no increase in outside support.  The expenses shown in Mr. Button’s summary come to about $19.1 million.  Mr. Button said that the summary listed virtually everything that could be requested, assuming, however, that some of them would be cut, and others spread out over future years.  Some of these items are:

• About $200,000 worth of improvements to campus security as recommended in a state police assessment; this program could be stretched out over a period of 5 years.
  
  
• Two new positions, including an athletic trainer and an athletic director,  not to mention additional teachers in special education as class sizes approach regulated limits.
  
  
• An upgrade to the crucial student system (MMS) that might cost about $40,000.
  
  
• Upgrades to aging computer equipment, and a server to manage digital video from the newer cameras gradually being installed.
  
  
• A replacement for the dump truck at a cost of some $70,000.

The cost of all of these items might total some $1.3 million, added to contractual salary increases and other marginal increases throughout.

Mr. Button also asked the Board to review the use of “contingency funds” in the budget.  These pots of money located in strategic places, can be tapped only on explicit Board approval, and have come and gone in past years.

In addition, he asked the Board to consider what increase to allot to the self-funded insurance program.  The district’s advisors recommend an annual increase of at least 10%.  Mr. Dolan, however, thinks that Blue Ridge can probably get by with a 6% increase for the coming year.

In any case, Mr. Button offered 3 options for balancing the upcoming budget:

• Cut programs.
  
  
• Increase tax rates up to the state-mandated maximum, this year at 3.5% for Blue Ridge.
  
  
• Tap any remaining fund balance. 

So far the Board and the administration at Blue Ridge have not made available any detailed information on their deliberations about the budget to date.  In prior years, each of the department heads were asked to appear before the Board to answer questions about their individual parts of the budget; the budget development process was thus more transparent.  Mr. Lewis said that they’re “doing it differently this year.”  This time each Board member is provided with a large binder into which Mr. Dolan periodically introduces more materials for members to consider.  Mr. Lewis and Mr. Button promise that all will become clear at the next meeting, a workshop, on Monday, March 27, 2017.  Meetings generally start at 7:00pm, but this one will begin at 6:00pm to allow more time for budget discussion.  It’s your money.  Come to the cafeteria in the Elementary School to see how nearly $18 million of it will be spent.

During the Oakland Borough council meeting held on March 9th, a Borough resident who lives on Brush Street spoke about damages to his property during a recent, heavy rainstorm.  Richard Upright asked council if they would be able to do anything about a sluice pipe, which he thinks isn’t large enough to divert water coming off of the mountain.  He stated the water just swirls around the pipe and he suffered a ruined yard, washed out driveway and mud inches thick all over his sidewalk.

Council asked if he thought the pipe was blocked and Mr. Upright stated he feels it just isn’t big enough to contain all the water that needs to go into it.  Jeff Wayman cleans out the pipe and they did have some trouble awhile back with kids putting rocks into it. Mr. Wayman solved that issue by putting up “No Trespassing” signs and Mr. Upright hasn’t seen anyone near the area for a long time.  He said he’s more concerned about his foundation, but the driveway he can repair.  Mr. Upright said he’s been a homeowner in the borough since 2006 and it’s the first time he’s come to a meeting with a concern.  He would appreciate it if they could do something, even if they have to dig up his yard to put in a larger pipe.

Councilman Dave Dibble stated he knows there is a large problem on High Street and that he will look at the sluice pipe to see if they can find a solution to prevent flooding in the area.  Council spoke for a few minutes about issues with water coming down off of the mountain.  Mr. Upright thanked Council for their time.

Code Enforcement Officer Shane Lewis stated he was doing the usual with code enforcement in the Borough.  He said he is still trying to get all the residents to put the new 911 address on the front of their homes.  Mr. Lewis stated the numbers needed to be three inches by two inches of reflective material so emergency management personnel can see it clearly.

Mayor Ron Bevan stated the police car needed new tires and they located all season ones for ninety-eight dollars each.  He stated the car currently has winter tires on and they’re getting worn.  Council agreed the car needed tires and instructed the Mayor to move ahead with the purchase.

Council asked the Mayor if he would be able to provide a police presence on May 5th for Pride & Polish clean up day with the students from the Susquehanna School District.  PennDOT will provide the vests and garbage bags and will pick up the garbage once collected.  The Mayor stated he would arrange police coverage for the event and asked Council to get back to him with the time of day this will be taking place.

Secretary Florence Brush said she received correspondence from the District Attorney’s office about the Mobile Drop Box, stating it is available to communities during events.  Ms. Brush said representatives from the DA’s office or the Sheriff’s Department would bring it to the event and the only requirement is to include the van when advertising the event so people would know where they could bring the prescription drugs for proper disposal.  Councilman Doug Arthur said it would be good to have it on Pride & Polish Day.  Secretary Brush will fill out the paperwork and send in the request for the van.

Mayor Bevan said disposal of prescriptions was once a big problem since people would flush it down the drain and by doing that it was contaminating the water.  He said this is a good system, having them collected and disposed of properly.

Correspondence was received from American Legion Post 86 asking for permission to use Oakland Borough roads on Monday, May 29th at 11:00 a.m. for the start of the Memorial Day Parade.  Council unanimously approved their request.

Mayor Bevan stated Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) contacted him to request Oakland Borough recognize April 21st as MADD Day. He said forty-seven hundred children die each year due to individuals driving under the influence.  Council was not opposed to the idea and asked Mayor Bevan to obtain more information. Mayor Bevan stated he would report at Council’s next meeting.

The next meeting will be held on Thursday, April 13th at 7:00 p.m.

Starrucca's Borough Council normally meets on the first Monday of each month. But Council's March 6th meeting found that distinguished body a body short of a quorum. Consequently, the three councilmen who were present-Kopp, Gurske, and Heeman-called the 7 p.m. meeting a wrap at 7:05. A dozen Starrucca residents who formed the audience were as long-faced as the disappointed councilmen. President Kirk Rhone, and Councilmen Darl Haynes, Charles Levchak, and Donald Haynes, Jr., were absent.

Had a quorum been achievable, Council would have disposed of the agenda's normal business-a motion to pay (some) bills, presentation of the Treasurer's Report, reading of correspondence, and public participation-before progressing to "Old Business."

Since it had not been anticipated that Council would be unable to achieve a quorum, the evening's agenda was distributed to the public. Under "Old Business" the Agenda listed the following items for discussion and disposition:

(1) Petition to fund unfunded debt/Haynes v. Starrucca Borough (Federal Case) - Pending;

(2) Ghost Properties, LLC: DGK Insurance - Pending;

(3) Dirt/Gravel Grant & CDBG Grant - Pending;

(4) Dan & Nancy Kramer Subdivision: (Dept. of Planning & DEP response to subdivision) - Vote to approve subdivision plan with recommendations from the Wayne County Planning Department needed;

(5) "Saber pride and polish day" (Friday, May 5, 2017) - information received;

(6) Penelec LED street lighting - information received; and

(7) Thirteenth call for Volunteer to serve as Emergency Management Coordinator.

Although "New Business" and "Executive Session" were also listed as place-holders on the agenda, no action items were pre-approved for inclusion under those headers.

Starrucca Councilmen will reschedule the borough's March meeting for a date when members of that august body can achieve quorum. Next month's regular meeting is scheduled for Monday, April 2.