Trafford Borough

Monthly Business Meeting Minutes- August 6, 2019

The Trafford Borough Council held its monthly business meeting on Tuesday, August 6, 2019, at 7:05 p.m., in the Council Chambers.

Council President, Kris Cardiff, called the meeting to order and led the Pledge of Allegiance and Moment of Silence.

Roll Call of Attendance by Assistant Borough Manager, Nina Solivan:

(Present)              Kris Cardiff, Council President                        Ed Llewellyn, Mayor

Casey Shoub, Council Vice-President             Craig Alexander, Solicitor        

                              Zackery Cole, Councilmember                        Don Glenn, Engineer         

                              Steve Perovich, Councilmember                     Louis Corrales, Public Works Foreman

Joshua Sanders, Councilmember                    Ashley Stack, Borough Manager                                                 

                              Leslie Peters, Councilmember                         Adam Hlad, Code Enforcement Officer                        

                                                                           Brian Lindbloom, Fire Chief               

 

(Absent)               Councilmember Cheryl Petersen and Emergency Management Coordinator John Eliyas

Notice of Executive Sessions held July 30, 2019, for matters of real estate and on August 6, 2019, for matters of personnel and real estate.

Minutes: A motion “to accept the minutes of the July 2, 2019, regular meeting” was made by Councilman Sanders and seconded by Councilman Cole. The motion carried unanimously 6-0.

Payment of Bills: A motion “to approve the expense voucher list dated August 6, 2019” was made by Councilman Perovich and seconded by Councilman Sanders.

Councilwoman Peters question line item number 900.00. Assistant Borough Manager Solivan stated it is a line item for discrepancy’s that the auditor will need to review.  The motion carried unanimously 6-0.

Public Comment:

Dolores Sutton 601 Brinton Avenue: Ms. Sutton came before the council to address two properties with property maintenance issues. Ms. Sutton also inquired about the possibility of moving a fire hydrant and or some direction on how to.

Borough response: Code Enforcement Officer Hlad informed Ms. Sutton that he will look into the properties with maintenance issues. Public Works Foreman Corrales stated the hydrants are property of the water company. Hydrants have been moved in the past, you will need to contact the water company.

Kirra Mediate 212 Timber Drive: Ms. Mediate came before the council to receive some direction on stormwater runoff that is causing damage to her property.

Borough response: Borough Manager Stack stated she will need to look further into the matter.

Matt Mastroianni 101 Bradford Square Drive: Mr. Mastroianni explained additional information regarding the Trafford Business Association’s banner project. Mr. Mastroianni owns Mastro Signs and is planning to donate brackets and banners for ten to twelve poles. The banners will be 2ft x 4ft and double-sided. The total project cost for the banners, brackets, and installation is about $4,000.00 which will all be donated.  Mr. Mastroianni stated he is open to suggestion on banner ideas.

Don Glenn, Engineer:

Don reported a second letter was sent to Northfolk Southern to remove the debris near the Brush Creek underpass and shockingly Northfolk Southern responded and stated they would clear the debris.

Don reported he sent a letter to Nick Bianchi at Wilkinsburg Penn Joint Water Authority regarding $6,000.00 that is due to the borough by the water company for the Seventh and Brinton Avenue slide.

Don stated on the agenda there is an item listed to revise the Pollution Reduction Plan (PRP). If the motion gets approved and DEP accepts the revised plan, the borough will be able to satisfy the program for approximately $10,000.00 to $25,000.00. The original PRP included plans to reduce pollution in the Turtle Creek watershed in the amount of $200,000.00 and the Brush Creek watershed in the amount of $150,000.00.

Don reported the borough will need to re-advertise the street paving program due to sanitary deficiencies that will need to be replaced before paving can take place on Inwood Road.

Don stated he will expedite bids for re-advertisement to include Fairmont Avenue in place of Inwood Road. 

 Councilman Cardiff questioned what the advertising requirements are. Don stated it will need to be advertised twice, three days after expiration and ten days after expiration.

Borough Manager: Borough Manager Stack stated the Public Works Foreman, Code Enforcement Officer, borough engineer, and herself will be meeting with Penn Township and the Westmoreland Conservation District this week regarding the water runoff from the former Drakulic property in Penn Township.  This water runoff has caused extensive flooding at Belleau Wood and along State Route 130 numerous times over the past year. We are hoping to find a resolution to help resolve some of the issues.

 

The metal cage for the culvert on Murrysville Road has been installed.  Manager Stack thanked Public Works and Chris Jurich for their work on this project.  They saved the borough thousands of dollars by taking care of this in-house.

 

Opst and Associates began working on our 2018 Audit last week and plan to have it wrapped up very soon. They mentioned the 2018 books have been the best they’ve been in years. I attribute that to Nina Solivan’s hard work.

 

Manager Stack recommended to Council that the 2019 paving project be modified due to repairs needed on the sanitary line on Inwood.  The paving of Inwood will need to be postponed until the repairs are complete, and Fairmont will be added to the paving list.  I had planned to apply for a Community Development Block Grant to cover the paving costs of Fairmont, however, with this change, I will now plan to apply for funding for Inwood.

 

Lastly, Sewage bills have gone out and are due August 21, 2019. If you have not received one, please call the office.

 

Code Enforcement: Code Enforcement Officer Adam Hlad reported there were seventeen new occupancy inspections, thirteen follow-up occupancy inspections needed, four follow-up occupancy inspection were completed, eight occupancy permits were issued. Four zoning permits were issued. Two building permits in process. One street opening/ grading permit in process and one permit issued.

Grass/Weeds include:

835 8th. Grass getting high again, waiting on Summary Trial notice from the magistrate. Filing again on the 9th if not in compliance.

804 8th. The magistrate issued fines; violation abated.

Adrian Ave. Working with a friend of the family to obtain release form for volunteer clean-up.

7th St. Violation notice mailed.

Cavitt Ave. Abated

Cavitt Ave. Violation notice mailed.

Gilmore. Spoke with the homeowner, in process.

7th St. Overgrowth, in process.

217 Woodlawn. Filed citation with the magistrate.

Abandoned Vehicles:

               Pine St. Spoke with the property owner, removed.

               Lot at Cavitt and 4th. 2 separate vehicles tagged and removed.

 

Garbage/Trash/Debris in progress include:

804 8th St. Magistrate issued fines; violation abated.

Pine St. Large pile of debris. Spoke with property the owner, needs more time.

Property Maintenance in progress include:

Brinton. Spoke with the property owner, will have it fixed. Follow-up next week.

Duquesne. Working with the property owner and tenant to inspect the interior.

Stewart St. Stormwater management project in process.

               Duquesne. The property owner is getting a contractor to finish repairing the sidewalk.

Disorderly House violations:

Sargent Socci, Chief Disso and I met with 2 separate homeowners. One of those meetings resulted in the start of the eviction process.

Zoning:

               2 Zoning Hearing Board meetings conducted.

 

Code Enforcement Officer Hlad announced his office hours are Monday, Tuesday, and Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. He will be available for late inspections as needed on Monday’s and Tuesday’s.

 

Solicitor: Solicitor Alexander stated he prepared a waiver of liability for volunteers. The waiver stated the individual is acting as a volunteer, this is not a borough related project and waives all liability if injured.

Solicitor Alexander stated he met with the property owner of 315 Fifth Street (Cromer Building) and was able to get an affidavit signed and sent to the county. He too drafted the satisfaction on the lien which was sent to the county today. Which will be filed tomorrow morning. Solicitor Alexander stated he does believe all of the hurdles have been met and hopefully we can the county to approve and get the grant to bring the building down.

Councilwoman Peters questioned if there was any update on 501 Cavitt Avenue. Solicitor Alexander stated the owner has received his demolition permit and has been upholding the items listed in the court order.

EMS: No report.  

Trafford VFD: Fire Chief Lindbloom reported a total of twenty-six calls for the month of July. Overall response time dispatch to arrival four minutes and twenty-two seconds. Dispatch to the first unit in route one minute and thirty-seven seconds. Chief Lindbloom stated he would be happy to assist in the search for a new EMC.

EMC:  Manager Stack stated Mr. Eliyas submitted a letter of resignation and will fulfill his duties until August 31, 2019.

Rec Board: Rose Frolinni reported the playground program has ended. The weather was horrible, but the attendance stayed the same. At the Terrace playground on the fifth of July there was firework debris in the grassy area and burn marks. The supervisors did clean the area up.

TECDC: Carol Richardson requested a certificate of insurance from the contractor/volunteer group that will be performing the work to the wall at Fifth Street and Duquesne Avenue near the electronic sign. Ms. Richardson stated the TECDC would also like a letter signed by those performing the work stating if anything happens to the sign, they are responsible for the repairs. The TECDC has a bingo scheduled October 5, 2019. Manager Stack stated Mr. George was to submit a proposal regarding the wall as of today I have not received anything. The borough is listed as additionally insured however I will follow up with Mr. George.

WHT: Councilman Cole stated phase IV of the WHT has been completed from Duff Park to Lincoln Avenue in Export. Now you can ride from Trafford to Export. There will be a grand opening ceremony on August 17, 2019, at 10:30 a.m. at Duff Park. Councilman Cardiff questioned how the trail has been holding up with all of the bad weather. Councilman Cole stated there was a washout just past the shades, it is now fixed.  

Mayor’s Report: Mayor Llewellyn reported for the month of July there were one hundred thirty-five documented calls, with fifteen citations issued and eight criminal cases filed. Mayor Llewellyn reported school is to begin shortly and we will again have a resource officer present. Mayor Llewellyn asked all to please drive slowly through all crosswalks.

General Government: No report.  

Finance: No report.

Community Development: Councilwoman Peters stated the Allegheny County Health Department along with the USDA Department of Wildlife will be raccoon baiting August 5th through August 28th. Both departments recommend keeping your pets on a leash to avoid accidental ingestion. As a reminder taking your vehicle down to the pavilions at BY Park is a courtesy it is not a parking lot. The signs indicate drop off only, this is ruining our grass and causing safety issues. Please park in the parking lot.

Public Safety: No report.

Public Works: Councilman Shoub will be working with Don Glenn to take over the retention pond in Coventry Court as per the developer’s agreement. There is significant MS4 credit the borough can receive by taking the retention pond over.

Sanitation: No report.

Presidents Report- Councilman Cardiff stated school is coming up so please be careful. Councilman Cardiff thanked public works and the fire department during the flooding.

 

PRP Modification

A motion “to approve Glenn Engineering to modify, advertise, and resubmit the borough’s Pollution Reduction Plan to the Department of Environmental Protection” was made by Councilman Shoub and seconded by Councilwoman Peters. The motion carried unanimously 6-0.

Reject bids for 2019 Paving Project

A motion “to reject the bids for the 2019 paving project” was made by Councilman Cole and seconded by Councilman Perovich.

Councilman Cardiff stated we are not eliminating the project in its entirety we are rejecting to revise and rebid the streets due to sewage repairs that need to be completed first on Inwood Road.

The motion carried unanimously 6-0.

Re-advertise and rebid 2019 Paving Project

A motion “to authorize the Borough Engineer to re-advertise and rebid the 2019 street paving project to include Fairmont Avenue” was made by Councilman Sanders and seconded by Councilwoman Peters.

The motion carried unanimously 6-0.

Planning Commission Appointment

A motion “to appoint Leslie Peters to the Borough of Trafford Planning Commission with a term expiring December 31, 2021” was made by Councilman Sanders and seconded by Councilman Perovich.

Councilman Cardiff questioned if only one member of council can sit on the board.

Solicitor Alexander stated that is incorrect you are thinking of the Civil Service Commission. Solicitor Alexander stated he has researched and written a letter to council forming his opinion on the matter when a previous member of the Planning Commission was appointed to council.

Manager Stack plans to advertise the additional open seats for the Planning Commission. If council approves Councilwoman Peters to the board that would leave the commission with two open seats. The commission calls for a total of five members. We are also looking for alternates for our Zoning Hearing Board. Georgia Boring was nice enough to offer an article in her paper describing the duties and responsibilities of each board that we have vacancies on. The current members of the Planning Commission have terms expiring December 2019, December 2020, and if council approves Councilwoman Peters appointment her term would end December 2021.

The motion carried 5-0-1, Councilwoman Peters abstained from the vote.

Resignation of EMC

A motion “to accept the resignation of Emergency Management Coordinator John Eliyas, effective August 31, 2019” was made by Councilman Cole and seconded by Councilman Shoub. The motion carried 6-0.

Advertisement for EMC

A motion “to approve an advertisement of the Trafford Borough Emergency Management Coordinator position” was made by Councilman Cole and seconded by Councilwoman Peters.

Councilman Cole questioned if this is a paid position. Manager Stack replied and stated it is not.

The motion carried unanimously 6-0.

TBA Adopt a Space

A motion “to approve the Trafford Business Association to Adopt a Space at the corner of Fourth Street and Cavitt Avenue” was made by Councilman Cole and seconded by Councilman Sanders.

Councilman Cardiff questioned if a plan was submitted by the TBA.  Manager Stack stated she placed the information on Dropbox. It spells out exactly what they’re responsible for. As Craig mentioned before any individual participating will need to fill out a waiver. The union will need to sign off and so will council. This agreement is specific to this area only. If anyone would like to do something similar in a different area you will need to bring a plan to council for approval.

The motion carried unanimously 6-0.

Mastro Signs & Printing Banner Donation

A motion “to approve Mastro Signs and Printing to donate banners and bracket then install them along Cavitt Avenue with council to approve the banners and coordinate with public works” was made by Councilman Cole and seconded by Councilman Shoub.

Councilwoman Peters questioned how Mr. Mastroianni will decide on what to place on the banners.

Mr. Mastroianni stated he is open to suggestion.

Councilman Cardiff questioned what Mr. Mastroianni’s time frame is on the project.

Mr. Mastroianni stated a few months.

Councilman Cardiff stated to Mr. Mastroianni if council approves this tonight would you accept a stipulation that when a decision is made on the design of the banners you come back before council for the okay. Mr. Mastroianni stated that is fine.

Manager Stack questioned if the banners will be left up year-round. Mr. Mastroianni stated he received verbal permission from Duquesne Light the banners can only stay up for 90 days. Mr. Mastroianni stated he spoke to a different individual at Duquesne Light and was told to include in the application a memo stating the banners would be up year-round. A resident questioned if the banners will interfere with the Christmas lights. Mr. Mastroianni stated the banners will be placed well below the Christmas lights and facing the sidewalk. Councilman Shoub asked Mr. Mastroianni to coordinate with public works.

Manager Stack stated in the future if a banner or bracket becomes damaged the borough will be responsible for the replacement. Assistant manager Solivan questioned what the replacement costs would be. Mr. Mastroianni stated the banner is $175.00 with the bracket $295.00.

Councilwoman questioned if the banners would be changing seasonally. Mr. Mastroianni stated one set of banners.

Manager Stack inquired if Mr. Mastroianni could send a digital file of the proposed banners rather than coming before council again to display and save time. Councilman Cardiff agreed.

The motion carried unanimously 6-0.

Nina Solivan’s pay increase

A motion “to approve increasing Nina Solivan’s hourly pay rate to $22.02” was made by Councilman Shoub and seconded by Councilwoman Peters.

The motion was split 3-3. Councilwoman Peters, Councilman Sanders, and Councilman Shoub voted yes. Councilman Cardiff, Councilman Cole, and Councilman Perovich voted no. Councilwoman Petersen was absent.

Solicitor Alexander stated a councilmember is absent so the vote will need to be broken by the mayor. The mayor has two options. One of which is to vote tonight or to schedule a special meeting within ten days.

Councilman Cardiff stated the only reason he voted no is due to needing more time to discuss the matter. It was just brought upon council this evening. It has nothing to due with her worth. I think she is amazing.

Councilman Cole and Councilman Perovich both agreed with Councilman Cardiff.

Mayor Llewellyn stated he will take the ten days.

Manager Stack requested Solicitor Alexander to explain the process.

Solicitor Alexander stated the mayor, if in attendance at the meeting, may, at the mayor's option, cast the deciding vote or shall direct that the matter be tabled until a special meeting of council. The special meeting of council shall be held within not less than five days or more than ten days at which time the matter shall be reconsidered by council. If a tie or split vote still exists, it shall be the duty of the mayor at that time to cast the deciding vote.

 

Mayor Llewellyn stated he will be going on vacation within that time frame.

Manager Stack questioned what happens if the Mayor chooses not to vote. Solicitor Alexander stated the vote will stay a tie and fails to pass.

 

Mayor Llewellyn voted yes.

 

Motion carries 3-3 Mayor Llewellyn broke the tie and voted yes.

 

New Business

Councilman Perovich questioned the status of Viaduct Way and Port Authority. Manager Stack stated she met with Melissa Gerty and walked the site. She responded and requested the borough re-paint the lines.

Adjournment

Councilman Cardiff announced the next regular meeting for Tuesday, September 3, 2019, at 7:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers.

A motion “to adjourn” was made by Councilman Sanders and seconded by Councilman Cole. The motion carried unanimously 6-0.