At a workshop meeting on April 27, some Nazareth Borough Council members announced their support to continue zoning duties with Keller Zoning & Inspection Services through 2018, despite Keller not submitting a bid to continue as the borough’s zoning enforcement officials.
The move comes as council prepares to transition into a relationship with a new zoning enforcement company, likely CodeMaster Inspection Services, who were the lowest bidders after the borough sent out a Request For Proposals.
The decision is a result of the short amount of time the borough has to provide a space for CodeMaster to work from.
Councilman Lance Colondo elaborated on the situation, noting that it is standard practice to provide a space for a contracted company from outside the borough, at no cost to the organization.
“Obviously when we’re bringing in an entity from the outside, that does not have a presence in Nazareth, we have to provide a spot for their zoning person to be,” Colondo said. “We dictate how many hours a week we want them in, how many days, but we have to provide that space. We are not allowed to charge them rent.”
Colondo also noted the time constraints the borough will face if they were to begin employing CodeMaster starting in January 2018.
“Are we going to have the space for filing cabinets, and a zoning person by the end of the year? If this is not the case, the solicitor’s office did reach out to Tina at Keller Zoning, who informed them that they would be willing to continue on beyond December 31, 2017, basically through 2018 if we wanted.”
Possible locations that were discussed for CodeMaster to work out of included 134 S. Main Street, and the basement of the Borough Council Chambers.
Council President Daniel Chiavaroli pointed out that any location must be compliant with the Americans with Disability Act and be outfitted to suit individuals with those needs.
Councilman Frank Maurek said he would support a motion at council’s May 1 business meeting to continue with Keller Zoning until enough information is available to properly accommodate CodeMasters.
“Sometimes I think we make decisions too fast,” Maurek said. “My recommendation is to let Keller Engineering do it for 2018 and then you have a lot of time in that year to study what you’re going to do with the files.”
The motion was scheduled to be brought forward for a vote at council’s May 1 business meeting.
