During the Moore Township Board of Supervisors meeting on Tuesday, July 2, supervisors unanimously approved a waiver for the Mary Ellen Wetzel lot line adjustment in regard to locating and quantifying woodlands, manmade and natural features on one of the lots, conditioned upon the applicant meeting the conditions set forth in the Keystone Consulting Engineers review letter dated June 19.
Supervisors also granted conditional approval of the Mary Ellen Wetzel lot line adjustment for road frontage that makes one lot slightly bigger, which will improve the safety of the ingress/egress for the property owner.
During reports, Police Chief Gary West stated that for the month of June, the police department had a total of 336 incidents, with one written/verbal warning issued, 32 traffic citations issued, two arrests made for DUI, one arrest for fleeing and eluding a police officer, one arrest for criminal mischief in relation to the graffiti at the Recreational Center, one non-traffic citation issued for a burn violation, five reportable accidents and four non-reportable accidents.
Fire Recorder Jason L. Harhart reported that for the month of June, the Klecknersville Rangers Vol. Fire Co. responded to 105 ambulance calls and 40 fire calls, which included one fire, eight motor vehicle accidents, three automatic fire alarms, eight ambulance assists, five wires down, three trees down, three smoke/odor investigations, one gas leak, one carbon monoxide alarm and seven mutual aid calls, including four fire calls with Lehigh Township, one fire call with East Allen Township, one fire alarm call with Bath and one fire alarm call with Bushkill Township.
In other news, Joshua Holub presented his proposed Eagle Scout project to repair the Edelman Schoolhouse floor, which will also require approval from the Minsi Trails Council since the schoolhouse is on the National Register of Historic Places, so the renovation must follow specific guidelines.
Holub provided the board with a finished sketch of the repairs and a $7,040 estimation of the project cost.
Holub shared that he plans to hold a mum sale in August to help raise funds for the project and hold other fundraisers if needed, but also hoped that council would appropriate some of the $26,000 in funds that were previously budgeted for the project.
The board unanimously approved the project and a budget of up to $10,000.
Next, the board unanimously approved a Carpency conservation easement appraisal for a 13.63-acre parcel of land valued at $109,000, which amounts to approximately $8,000 per acre, a fireworks permit for Community Days on Saturday, August 17 and a $13,500 feasibility study to see if a new municipal building would be in the township’s best interest.
Supervisors also unanimously approved several resolutions and ordinances that included zoning fees, rental fees, duplicate record destruction and creating a property registry.
In regard to the zoning fees, which have not been updated since 2017, the board felt it was appropriate to increase the fees since costs have gone up. Since the township is moving toward electronic permitting, the fees will also help cover the cost of the permitting software.
Township Manager Stephen Nowroski divulged that most zoning fees increased by $50; however, the three subdivision sketch plan filing fees went from $100 to $125, $150 to $185 and $200 to $250, minor subdivisions increased by $50, all three fees for major subdivisions increased by $50 each, instead of having a single deposit of $1,000 for review and inspection deposits, there will now be three levels with minor subdivisions being $1,000 and major subdivisions and land developments being $5,000 each, site plan review increased by $50, continuation and additional hearing fees increased by $200, most permit fees increased by $10 to $100 with the largest increase being the demolition fee, which increased from a $10 fee to $150 for the first 1,000 square feet, plus $50 for each additional 1,000 square feet and square footage increased by $0.01 per square foot.
Additionally, the rental fees for the pavilion, courts and Schiavone Park will no longer include a separate security deposit, and will now include the security deposit in the rental fee, so instead of a $125 full day and weekend pavilion rental fee and a separate $25 security deposit, the fee will just be $150, and instead of a $50 weekend evening pavilion rental fee and a separate $25 security deposit, the fee will just be $75 total.
On Saturday, July 13, the Community Days Committee will be hosting a night music concert featuring South Penn Dixie from 6 to 10 p.m. at the Recreational Center, located at 635 English Rd. There will be beer, adult beverages, soda, water and food available for purchase. Residents are encouraged to bring chairs, blankets, pop-up tents and even pets, but are requested to not bring coolers or outside food and beverages.
The next Moore Township Board of Supervisors meeting will be held on Tuesday, August 6 at 6 p.m. in the municipal building, located at 2491 Community Dr.
