Working/Special Meeting Minutes
July 26, 2005
Called to order at 7:21 pm. All Commissioners present except Terry, who is on a
business trip.
A freelance reporter from Community Publications came to introduce himself. The
newspaper will be starting a Brandywine Hundred edition and is looking for evergreen
stories. Kathy will act as contact.
Agenda:
1) Board of adjustments
2) Trash Collection policy
3) NCC reassessment policy
4) Lawsuit Kostyshyn vs. Bellefonte Town Commission
The following correspondence was reviewed. To be carried forward to general Town
Meeting:
- Newsletter from FAA to each Commissioner regarding proposed expansion of
Philadelphia International.
- Kathy received a letter from KTD, the Commission’s insurance broker, confirming
an appointment on August 3 to review coverage and including a check refunding
overpayment for disability insurance.
- Dave received a letter from Rep. Diana McWilliams forwarding a letter from the NCC
Conservation District detailing expenses related to correcting the drainage problems at
603 Melrose.
- Dave received a request for assistance from a resident on Talley Rd. regarding an
altercation with another resident. Dave advised him to report the matter to the NCC
Police to get it documented in case of a future occurrence.
Complaint Log Review
5-24 Complaint at 603 Maple – add trash from out of area and abandoned car on
location to complaint. Kathy will handle notification of tenant.
5-13 Property sold at Sheriff’s Sale. Scott will send Building Code and Zoning
Ordinances to new owner.
Issue 1 – Board of Adjustment – Terry researched the composition of the Board of
Adjustments and there are three options open to Bellefonte, depending on whether the
town is considered “self-rule� or not. Dave thinks that the BoA should have the
solicitor, an appointee, and the Commission president. Russell thinks that it should be a
five member BoA made up of residents under the guidance of an appointee of the
Commission president. Kathy made some calls to the legislative aides and was referred
to the Attorney general’s office for a decision regarding self-rule. Kathy will
compose a letter to the AG requesting an opinion on Bellefonte’s status as a “self-
rule� municipal government.
In the meantime, the BoA formed in May 2004 still stands, since they are appointed for
three years. Mike McGrath is no longer permitted to be a member of the BoA since he is
no longer president, to be replaced by Dave, or by a designee appointed by Dave. The
current BoA is Dave, Kathy, and Joe. This composition is dictated by Bellefonte’s
Zoning Ordinance. Composition and membership will be addressed after we have an
opinion from the AG about self-rule.
Scott suggested that we have the town solicitor determine whether we are self-rule. Dave
said that there was no need to pay the attorney to do what we could do. A lengthy
discussion ensued about use of the solicitor. Scott argued that we could avoid costly
court challenges like the one currently under way (Kostyshyn vs. Bellefonte) if we
consistently used the solicitor to review ordinances and processes. Scott cited the current
pending Ordinance 205-02, naming NCC Police as law enforcement and “adopting
all� State and County laws and ordinances as enforced by NCC Police. Scott feels
that this ordinance is highly irregular and would not hold up in court. Further, it
surrenders the right of review for future legislation to NCC for ordinances passed by
NCC Council.
Scott insisted that the proposed ordinance should list all ordinances passed by NCC that
are being adopted and that they should all be reviewed. Scott said that he will vote
against the ordinance as written.
Issue 2 – Trash Collection Policy – the Commission members suggested that the
following categories be addressed in the Town’s policy regarding trash collection:
How the number of collection points was formulated, statement regarding the provision
by IDS of the trash receptacles and how residents can obtain more, a statement about
outside trash being reported as a theft of service issue to NCC police, and collection for
businesses in Brandywine Blvd., providing that they can use a receptacle and do not
require a dumpster.
Issue 3 – NCC Assessment – Scott requested an opinion from the Commission
regarding reassessment of properties in Bellefonte by NCC. So that it is done fairly,
Scott requested that some plan be approved for the methodical review of properties in
town. Dave said that he didn’t think that a methodical plan was needed. Under our
agreement with NCC to do assessment, a reassessment could be requested by any
Commissioner if there was suspicion that the County’s records did not reflect an
accurate description of the property. There was general agreement with Dave’s
opinion, but no vote was taken. Curt said that a method did need to be developed to
make sure that the County DOLU gets a copy of new certificates of occupancy from the
Building Inspector. Scott will work with Joe F. to develop process. Scott will also work
with NCC DOLU to develop a method for reporting issues that need follow-up by NCC.
Mailing
Scott said that he would be making a motion at the next meeting to include landlords in
the mailing of the town newsletter. He said that we are passing many new ordinances that
will affect property maintenance and that out-of-area landlords need to be included in
mailing. Since postage was allocated as and approved as part of the budget, Dave said
that such a motion was unnecessary. Scott and Kathy will work together to revise the
mailing list.
Scott reported about the ongoing issue of street lights being out. Conectiv has said that it
would be better if residents reported these outages directly, not through a Commissioner.
The customer service number will be printed in the next newsletter.
Kostyshyn vs. Bellefonte Town Commission
Those Commissioners in attendance reviewed a brief filed by M. Kostyshyn regarding the
granting of a variance by the BoA on May 2004. This information will be provided to
Terry when he returns from his trip.
The meeting was adjourned at 10:10.
