December Borough Council Roundup

OK - a little late, but better late than never. Here's a summary of this past Monday's Borough Council meeting:

PLANNING AND ZONING:
1. Rental Agreement Form for Landlords. The Planning Commission has prepared, and the Borough Solicitor has reviewed and approved, a new form to be sent to all landlords to complete to identify their tenants. Council approved. The form will be sent to the landlords at the beginning of the year.

2. Crosswalk at the corner of 7th and Main. The planning commission presented a request to have a crosswalk installed at the corner of 7th and Main Streets. A motion was made by me to have a crosswalk installed. I felt it was the right thing to do - it's a school bus stop and a lot of residents use that intersection to go between North Tatamy and the main portion of town. Council and the Police Chief discussed the issue at length, and the motion ultimately failed, 4 to 2. Chapter 35, Subchapter C, Sections 3542 and 3543 of the Pennsylvania Motor Vehicle Code outlines the rules concerning pedestrian crossing and rights of way (if you're so inclined, you can read it here). Bottom line, pedestrians in a crosswalk have the right of way. The fear is that if a crosswalk is installed, pedestrians would step into the crosswalk and automatically expect vehicles to stop. We don't want to see anyone get hurt. Without a crosswalk, vehicles have the right of way and the burden is placed solely on the pedestrian to determine whether or not it's safe to cross.

Engineers Report
1. Municipal Map Update. Its time to update the official municipal map. Council has forwarded to the Planning Commission for their recommendation as to what they want to see on the map (e.g. public buildings, parks, etc).

2. "Jake Brake" Retarder Study. Bob Mack has stated that there should not be any issues with PennDOT and we have given him the authority to draft and submit to PennDOT for approval a draft ordinance to implement a ban on the use of Jake Brakes in Tatamy on 8th and Main Streets. PennDOT has to grant approval before we can advertise and pass an ordinance. Stay tuned . . .

3. Chrin Commerce Centre Plan Recording. The final plan for the Chrin Commerce Centre has been signed and recorded with the County.

4. Tatamy Hunt Street Dedication. 5 of 9 lights have been activated. Word is that MetEd has to replace a defective piece of equipment to energize the remaining four lights. The ordinance for street dedication will be presented at the 12/15 special meeting.

Solicitors Report
1. A revised Peddler's Ordinance was reviewed and approved by Council.

That's about it folks. Please note that there is a special meeting that is scheduled to be held on 12/15 at 7:30PM to discuss and pass the 2009 operating budget.

See you around town!