Uncertified Inspections and Reviews

The state agency which oversees code and inspection functions in Pennsylvania has issued a “formal warning” to the Pottstown Codes office for a number of violations, including allowing inspections to be conducted by personnel not certified to perform those inspections.

In a letter issued Oct. 2, the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry informed the codes office manager, Maria E. Bleile, of the results of its complaint investigation.

The letter outlines eight complaints regarding inspections at both commercial and residential properties, ranging from Pottstown Memorial Hospital, to the Salvation Army to four residential properties.

In 2008, inspector Rick Stuber reviewed plans for the Hyperbaris Suite
Center 

at  Pottstown Memorial Medical Center without certification,
according to t

he Oct. 2 letter from Labor and Industry.

Issues ranged from inspectors conducting “plan reviews” and inspections without the proper certification; to no records of reviews or certain inspections being conducted at all; to missing dates in inspection reports.

In one problem, from Aug. 17, 2011, permits were issued for alterations for 413 Walnut St. “which did not involve structural changes or changes to the means of egress,” according to the letter, which then noted: “During the course of our investigation, we were unable to obtain a local ordinance requiring permits for this type of work.”

The incidences cited by Field Operations Manager Ron F. Englar, dated as far back as 2008.

“As the designated BCO for Pottstown Borough, your responsibilities include the management of building code enforcement activities, issuing of occupancy permits, retention of records, and the supervision of building inspectors or plan examiners,” Englar wrote to Bleile.

“This includes ensuring all individuals working under your supervision hold the proper certifications required to perform inspections or plan review for each discipline. Please consider this letter to be a formal warning that will be placed in your certification file,” Englar wrote.

A copy of the letter was forwarded to Pottstown Borough Council President Stephen Toroney.

Borough Manager Mark Flanders said he had already decided to have the borough’s engineering firm, Remington, Vernick and Beach, review operations in the codes department when he became aware of the letter.

Borouh Manager Mark Flanders

On Oct. 9, borough council voted to spend as much as $33,500 not in the 2012 budget to have the engineering firm conduct a top to bottom review of the codes offices, its operations and practices, and to make recommendations for improvement.

The firm will “bench mark the department and make recommendations for best management practices” that would be issued in a written report, Flanders told council in the Oct. 3 meeting.

That review is ongoing, and came in the wake of a Sept. 23 report in The Mercury revealing that the Montgomery County District Attorney’s office had opened a Grand Jury investigation into the codes office.

No results from that investigation have ever been reported out to the public.

Flanders told The Mercury on Dec. 18 that it is his understanding that many of the inspectors cited in the letter have or are close to obtaining many of the certifications that the letter indicated are lacking among the codes staff.

He also said he anticipates that many of the issues raised in the letter will be addressed in the review and recommendations Remington, Vernick and Beach will deliver.

In the meantime, Flanders said the advantage of having the firm on board is that many of their personnel carry those certifications, so if an inspection is needed prior to the borough code officers finishing their certification work, those at Remington, Vernick and Beach “are just a phone call away.”

Follow Evan Brandt on Twitter @PottstownNews

Toroney: Report Paved the Way to No Tax Hike

Borough Council President Stephen Toroney credited a 2009 consultant report on the borough’s finances for starting Pottstown down the road to what he considers a landmark achievement, that was made official Monday with the adoption of a $38.5 million that does not raise borough taxes for the first time in recent memory.

Councilman Mark Gibson, who, as a paid driver for the Empire Fire Company could be said to benefit financially by voting for the budget, which makes contributions to the fire companies, abstained from the vote.

But the budget, officially balanced at $38,530,729, otherwise received unanimous support from the remainder of council.

Also adopted with Gibson’s abstention, was the tax rate ordinance.

It is broken down as follows:
• General fund — 6.71500 mills;
• Debt fund — .55000 mills;
• Library fund — .19700 mills;
• Street light fund — .33700 mills;
• Parks and Recreation fund — .90600 mills;
• Fire house maintenance fund — 1.50700 mills;

Council President Stephen Toroney

This leaves the 2013 total real estate millage in the borough at 10.212 mills, the same as 2012.

For the average residential property in the borough — which is assessed at around $75,000 — that works out to an annual bill of $765.90.

Toroney thanked Finance Director Janice Lee for her hard work.
“It’s an early Christmas present for the citizens and taxpayers of our town,” he said.

“We’ve been working toward this since 2010,” said Councilman Dan
Weand, who chairs council’s finance and administration committee.

“It took many years to dig ourselves out of the hole we were in,” Toroney said, which prompted Borough Manager Mark Flanders to remark, “we’re not out of it yet.”

Lee declined to take all the credit. “It’s just evidence of everybody working together,” she said. “It was a team effort.”

“I think the start was the EIP report,” Toroney said in reference to a report paid for partly through the state’s Early Intervention Program for municipalities in financial trouble.

The 141-page report was written by an Ohio consulting firm named Management Partners and contained the startling prediction that unless Pottstown radically changed the way its borough and authority government is run, that borough property taxes would jump by 75 percent; water rates by 25 percent and sewer rates by 19 percent in the next five years.

In addition to there being no tax hike in 2013, there will also be no increase in water and sewer rates.

The report highlighted a number of looming problems, not the least of which has been the steady drop in Pottstown’s total assessed property values.

The report contained 122 recommendations designed to save $370,000 a year and was cited as the primary reason for borough lay-offs that occurred subsequently.

Among the other recommendations was a suggestion to merge the public works department and the borough authority.

While that has not happened exactly, Flanders told council that in 2013 he intends to consolidate the maintenance of the water and sewer treatment plants into a single department “and make a stand-alone maintenance department called ‘Utility Maintenance’ that will do work on both plants on a work-order basis.”

He said that department will be overseen by Brent Wagner, the utilities coordinator.

“If we hadn’t had the EIP report, we wouldn’t have had a plan and we wouldn’t be here,” Toroney said.

“The EIP report gave us that blueprint.”

Pottstown's New Shade Tree Procedure Gets its First Test

Photo by Evan Brandt

A West Second Street resident told borough council Wednesday this Bradford pear tree is dangerous and she should be 

allowed to cut it down. The borough initially denied the request twice.

For the first time since it dissolved the Shade Tree Commission, Pottstown Borough Council is faced with an appeal by a resident who was denied a permit to take down a tree she considers dangerous.

Janice Monger of 5 W. Second St. made her case on behalf of her neighbor at 3 W. Second St., who has actual legal responsibility for the pear tree in front of her property. It is located at the northwest corner of the intersection with Johnston Street.

Monger applied for a permit to take the tree down and was denied. She appealed and was again denied by the body set up to hear such appeals -- the borough manager, public works director and councilman who represents the ward in which the tree is located.

(She complained to council that the meeting at which she was supposed to make her case was cancelled, but her appeal was denied anyway.)

The pear tree on the south side of Second Street lost a
branch that hit a vehicle with people inside, Monger said.

Under the new ordinance, her final appeal goes to a full meeting of borough council, which occurred during Wednesday's work session.

Monger told council that a similar tree across the street lost a branch that fell on a pick-up truck occupied by a man and his infant son. Luckily, neither was hurt although there was damage to the truck.

But it has made Monger fearful of what the tree in front of her neighbor's house might do.

"My neighbors and I live in fear," she said. "I have to tell my family not to park in front of our house. I like trees, but humans are more important than trees," Monger told council.

Monger said her neighbor cannot afford the cost of taking the tree down so Monger offered to undertake the job for her.

But when she applied for the permit, it was denied by Public Works Director Doug Yerger.

Yerger told council it is a healthy tree and has caused no damage to the sidewalk and, under the terms of the ordinance, the tree does not meet the conditions which allow for it to be taken down.

But Monger, a 38-year resident of Pottstown, said the species itself is inherently dangerous. "I did some research on the Internet," she said. "And I found these trees have a very short lifespan of 25 years and these trees are at least 30 years old."

Furthermore, she said, "after 15 years they start to crack and the branches get large and heavy. There are two that are cracked on Second Street."

She said Penn State arborists do not recommend the species as a street tree.

The tree in front of Monger's house has grown up into the power lines,

despite trimming by PECO.

Allentown and Emmaus have both removed all their Bradford pears for that reason, Monger said, adding that this particular tree has also grown up into the power lines in front of her house.

But while Allentown and Emmaus may have eliminated their pear trees, New York City, which has the East Coast's largest urban forest, has continued to plant them.

A 2005 survey of that city's trees showed that of the 93,000 street trees planted in the previous 10 years, callery pear's were the fourth most numerous.

But given the choice to do it over again, Yerger said he would probably not plant pear trees in Pottstown.

"There's no question it's a problem tree and we have a lot of them," Yerger said.

Council Vice President Jeff Chomnuk, who represents the ward where the tree in question is located, is opposed to its removal.

"I travel that street every day, and I know that tree pretty well," Chomnuk said.

He suggested that Monger's concerns could be address by trimming the tree, "which would be half the cost and could eliminate the branch you're worried about."

"I'm not trying to minimize your concern, but it's a healthy tree," Chomnuk said.

Council President Stephen Toroney said he wanted an expert opinion before making a decision. "None of us up here are experts and we're not in the business of taking trees down."

He suggested that Monger get the contractor she intended to hire to take the tree down to give an opinion on the tree's stability.

However Mayor Bonnie Heath noted that given the contractor's interest in making more money by advising that the tree come down, that opinion should be considered carefully.

Toroney also indicated said he might be more inclined to allow the removal if a new tree would be planted to replaced it.

However, Yerger said the tree's proximity to a newly installed handicapped sidewalk ramp makes re-planting problematic under the new planting guidelines, which call for a certain distance from such ramps, as well as water and sewer lines.

Councilmen Mark Gibson, Joe Kirkland, Dan Weand and Travis Gery, all seemed convinced by Monger's argument.

Gibson expressed concerns about the borough's liability, although Borough Solicitor Charles D. Garner Jr. advised that "negligence" on the borough's part would have to be proven for that to be a problem.

Kirkland, Weand and Gery all agreed that since Monger had produced information indicating pear trees of that age are prone to cracking and losing branches, that it is enough to allow the tree's removal under the provision of the ordinance that allows the removal of trees the borough finds to be "dangerous."

"I don't believe our ordinance makes it necessary to wait until it falls on somebody to be considered dangerous," Gery said.

Garner conceded that because the ordinance does not specifically define "dangerous," that the only definition that applies "is the one in the dictionary."

"We're looking at a responsible property owner," said Weand. "And we have a similar tree that failed across the street and we have residents who feel endangered by the preservation of that tree."

However Heath warned that setting a precedent of allowing tree removal permits based solely on a tree's species "would have other people being allowed to cut down trees all over town willy nilly."

"Those trees," she said, "were put in to provide shade and to beautify our town. Have you ever seen a street where all the trees have been removed? It's not a pretty sight."

Council has scheduled a vote on the matter for its meeting Tuesday night.

Halloween Parade's Fate May Rest with Council

Is Pottstown's Annual Halloween Parade doomed? A borough
council vote Monday may tell the tale.

Blogger's Note: A correction. The initial version of this post said the council meeting is Monday. That is incorrect. Monday is Columbus Day. The council meeting is Tuesday night.

A vote by borough council Tuesday night may determine whether or not Pottstown's Halloween Parade occurs this year.

The parade is scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 24 from 6 to 8 p.m. and, as in past years, its organizers have asked council to waive the permit fees and costs that taxpayers will then have to shoulder.

Interim Borough Manager Mark Flanders told council Wednesday night that the overall cost to the organizers is more than $5,000.

The 2012 budget only allocated $3,000 for such parade and event waivers and it is already over-budget, council having waived roughly $5,000 in event fees already, Finance Director Janice Lee told council.

Making the decision even more difficult for council was Flanders' observation that "if council chooses not to waive the fees, I'm not sure there will be a Halloween parade."

"It was my understanding that we would have the same arrangement as in 2010 (our first year) and last year (which was rained out)," said P. Richard Frantz, who was speaking on behalf of the Pottstown Rotary Club which is staging the parade, along with the AMBUCS and Parks and Recreation Department as partners. 

"Since we were not planning on this scenario, we have not made an effort to contact additional sponsors. With the parade less that three weeks away, I don’t think we can come up with that kind of money." Frantz wrote in an e-mail to yours truly.

"Rotary and AMBUCS rescued the parade in 2010," said Frantz. "Personally, I don’t want to see it canceled. It has been a tradition for the kids in Pottstown since I was a kid (and that’s a long time ago)."

This is not the first time council has faced this question.

Last year's parade was rained out, so the event became moot. 

In the past, such requests have torn at council priorities; pitting the desire not to spend money not outlined in the budget against the desire to support borough organizations and events that bring people to town.

There is a funding spectre haunting Pottstown's
Annual Halloween Parade

But those events require police coverage, fire police closing streets and directing traffic away from High Street and set up and take-down of barriers, all of which costs money.

Last year, in an attempt to get a handle on it, council adopted a budget that set aside $3,000 for the waiver of such fees.


But various events that have already occurred, with the exception of the July 4th Parade, have already consumed that fund, and then some.

Council President Stephen Toroney said like the July 4th Parade, the Halloween Parade tends to bring people from surrounding townships but puts the cost solely on the backs of borough taxpayers.

"It's a Catch-22," said Councilman Travis Gery. "We are working to attract people into the borough, which is what we're trying to do, to sell ourselves and this is an excellent marketing tool."

Main Street Manager Sheila Dugan said "there is some revenue from the parade" for local merchants who stay open, but yes, I'd like to see more fundraising done because lots of people come, but if it falls on the taxpayers, that burden is an issue."

Is Pottstown's Halloween Parade a treasure to be preserved
or a sinking ship? Council will decide Monday night.

Nonetheless, she added, "it's not something PDIDA would like to see go away."

Lee confirmed that there is money in the borough's reserves, but added "its up to council to decide if this is something you want to dip into reserves to pay for."

Councilman Dan Weand, who heads council's finance committee, said "it is not in the reserves for this purpose."

Councilman Mark Gibson asked if perhaps council could waive part of the fee.

"It's up to council," replied Borough Solicitor Charles D. Garner Jr. "You can waive how ever much of the costs you want."

Toroney said the matter will be listed for a vote at Monday's council meeting, which begins at 7 p.m. and is the meeting at which the public is permitted to speak.

Looking for a Few Good Citizens...

Democracy works when people claim it as their own.

-- BILL MOYERS, The Nation, Jan. 22, 2007

It's doubtful that too many people made a New Year's resolution to get more involved with their borough government, but for those of you who did, opportunities are on the horizon.

At Monday night's Borough Council Meeting, appointments will be made to a number of borough committees boards and authorities which have enormous influence over how things get done in Pottstown.

Appointments will be made to open seats on:

•  The Blighted Property Reviews (four one-year terms);
• The Historic Architecture Review Board (one vacancy which must be filled by a Real Estate professional);
• The Pottstown Borough Authority (one five-year term);
• The Pottstown Downtown Improvement District Authority (three five-year terms);
• The Zoning Hearing Board (one three-year terms and one alternate).
• Next month, an appointment will be made to the Pottstown Planning Commission (one four-year term).

Most of the incumbents in these seats have asked to be re-appointed, with the exception of the HARB vacancy, which must be filled by a Realtor; and in the case of the borough authority, for which Councilman Jeff Chomnuk has asked to be considered.

On PDIDA, two incumbents are seeking re-appointment, Andrew Monastra and Cynthia Brower, but a third, Warren Holohan, is not.

On the planning commission, the term that is expiring is that of Borough Council President Stephen Toroney, who asked to be re-appointed. "I think we can accommodate you," said Councilman Dan Weand, who also sits on the planning commission.

Despite the fact that most of those incumbents and members of council seem destined to be appointed or re-appointed Monday, those interested should know that council is free to appoint anyone who applies, or even someone who does not.

Borough Manager Jason Bobst did not indicate whether any other applications have been made, although he usually notes it when there are.

In the past, the borough has made an outreach effort to bring people into the process, but that has not occurred this year.

But even if you can't get appointed to one of these committees or boards, there may be another way to get involved.

Wednesday night, council indicated it will review a number of ordinances and among them is the possibility of an ordinance authorizing Citizen Advisory Groups.

The borough plans to look into forming Citizen Advisory Groups

Most recently called for in a Dec. 24 post on Code Blue's Blog, The Pulse, such groups are a way of getting citizen input on crucial issues facing the borough, said Bobst.  

He told council that the state of Washington has "a very comprehensive ordinance." 

Bobst added "we're not advocating for this, but we are asking for permission to investigate it."

Toroney replied "I think it's a good idea that we should move forward."

So if you want to get involved, stay tuned.

... Or, perhaps you're a bit more cynical and your view of such things mirrors that of H.L. Mencken: "Democracy is a pathetic belief in the collective wisdom of individual ignorance."