Three bids have been submitted for the Honey Brook Borough streetscapes and a grant has been received from the Chester County Department of Community Development.
The streetscapes project will extend from Route 10 to Maple Street along Horseshoe Pike. Work will include sidewalks and curbing, pedestrian lights to stop traffic at intervals and pedestrian crosswalks.
Borough Engineer Chris Falencki opened the bids. Council will review the bids and Falencki will evaluate them for qualifications. Work will begin soon after the bid is awarded. The contractor will have seven days to locate signs about the impending project for public notice. At present, there are no plans for streetscapes in other areas, said Borough Clerk Jonathan Swope.
Amendments were approved to the ordinance involving solid waste concerning buildings with multi-family units and non-residential units. The owners of buildings with four or more units and those with nonresidential units must provide an adequately sized dumpster for municipal waste and another for recyclable materials in compliance with borough requirements. They must also have a permitted collector for the materials. Fines for noncompliance have been established.
Council is considering amending the fee schedule for all building permits, zoning permits, plan reviews, inspections and administrative fees and inspections of sidewalks for property resales and rental inspections. Borough Clerk Jonathan Swope has met with officials from East Brandywine and West Nantmeal townships to review sample fee schedules.
After looking over other municipalities’ fee schedules and drafting its own, council should go over all of the permits and the costs of inspections with Yerkes Associates, Council Member Ted Ford said. Council must make it relevant to Honey Brook Borough.
At the Oct. 7 council meeting, it was decided Swope will coordinate a joint meeting with Honey Brook Borough and Honey Brook Township Planning Commission to review the Honey Brook Community Church plan.
Swope said he has met with Randy DiLibero to discuss plans to improve the inside and outside of the former Shusterman property at 4771 Horseshoe Pike. Members of council discussed priorities of what items should be addressed first.
Settlement is planned for Oct. 25, 2013. It is unknown at this time whether the future of the location will be residential or commercial, but council is anxious for improvements there. A timetable for repairs was established.
Stormwater control west of the fire house in the area of Maple Street has been a concern of Kevin Gore. Falencki stressed the project had been completed. There is no escrow remaining to make improvements.
Gore said the stormwater was to drain into a catch basin. Conditions at this time are different and the water is not flowing there as planned. Gore asked who is responsible.
Councilmembers asked Gore about the extent the stormwater actually affects him. It doesn’t get into his cellar.
Falencki said council is not obligated to do anything at this time unless they elect to do it. Council President Libby Nixdorf said the swale had been put in correctly at the time of the development but at some time after that it was regraded.
At this time there will not be a joint meeting with Honey Brook Township and the Brandywine Conservancy about cooperative planning, said Swope. Each municipality is currently doing planning on its own schedule, but the two will meet to work on complimentary plans.
The Brandywine Conservancy is helping with planning. In 1993 and in 2002 there were times when there were discussions with the township about cooperation. But there have been times when the borough and the township have done things differently.
‘We will try to work together, but we are not on the same schedule,’ Swope said. ‘We will try to have some joint meetings and try to move ahead.’
A Toys for Tots toy drive began on Nov. 4. Donations can be dropped off at collection boxes at any of the banks, the post office, Stoltzfus I.G.A. Market, Borough Hall or the Presbyterian Church. Toys should be unwrapped and geared toward the age groups of 0 to 16.
Council is looking at making some rules and regulations for large group gatherings within the borough. Security, traffic control and communication with borough officials about planning are concerns. It would not pertain to family gatherings, said Nixdorf.
There were some issues with Harmony Day. There is a concern about the costs of public services provided. The borough could levy a fee for extra costs such as fire police or an ambulance. Council is working on scheduling a meeting with the police and fire department about costs and the time of the event.
