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“If you want to see a difference in government - get involved in local government. Municipal and school board seats often go uncontested or are left vacant, yet the decisions they make have the most immediate impact on our daily lives.

I noticed they are charging a fee, which I’m not particularly fond of, and while I don’t have time to run another Resident to Candidate event, I’ll try to get information up on the site so individuals can get all the relevant information.”
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The above was copied from the NOC site.

I’ll wait for the meeting minutes before commenting further to see if both of our remarks are accurately and completely reflected.

As noted in earlier comments, the Draft 2009 Budget is now available for review on the LNT Citizens web site, go to the Other Documents page; as proposed there would be no tax increase.  Also available on the same page is the Auditors report of LNT’s 2007 finances.

Stay Tuned.

There were three items on the agenda under Managers Report.

1. Project Time Extension Reports
2. Draft 2009 Budget
3. Authorization to advertise use of CPA to perform Audit.

#1 - These extensions are requested by developers & applicants when they are not ready to proceed to the next step of their projects.  In the past each and every extension was voted on and passed by the Board, a waste of public meeting time.  In a prior Board meeting authorization was granted to the Township Manager to handle these as an administrative task and provide status reports (conceptually a good measure) to the Board.  However,  the implementation is lacking.  In the past a citizen could monitor the Township Board Minutes and keep track of any given project and it’s status as time extensions were part of the Plan of Record, - NO longer.   How does this impact you, why should you care? Here’s a scenario:

Say you were following the IDI Warehouse project (the one bordering Palmer Twp. which is currently in litigation) and the developer was scheduled to present at a future Board Meeting which you planned on attending and schedule your time accordingly.   At an interim meeting the Developer files for an extension which was routinely (and justifiably) granted, and it became part of that meetings minutes.  You read the minutes and see that IDI will not be at the next meeting, they have been granted an extension to XX/XX/2008.  You modify your calendar to accommodate the change.  Now these extensions are granted administratively (a good thing) but they are not incorporated in the minutes (a bad thing.)  Unless or until someone requests a copy of the Extension Report and publishes it, there is no indication whether/if  the project you are interested in has filed for an extension and what their new timeline is. 

#2 - Now here’s some good news.  Mr. Tenges reported the draft budget does NOT include a tax increase for 2009, the tax rate for LNT will remain 4.15 mils.  The overall budget purportedly has a net increase of $42,500.  Reflected in the budget is an increase of approximately $50K for the Colonial Regional Police contract (mostly wages & benefits) and a tentative budget increase of 4% for the Nazareth Area Library as well as an increase of ~$30K for the Fire Department.  Mr. Tenges claimed reductions in other areas of the budget  allow the Township to maintain basically a flat budget.  A copy of the budget has been requested and will be posted when obtained.  The draft budget will be advertised and it is anticipated the Board will vote on it at the first meeting in December (12/03/08 @ 7:30pm).  Tim noted that the 2009 budget also makes provision for an additional person in the Road Department when he’s ready to fill it.  (Don’t know, and didn’t ask if this is the Roadmaster position at + $60k per year.  Will look for it in the budget.)

#3 - Procedural issue.  Hmm, now that I am looking at the 11/05/08 agenda, I’m not sure if LNT is advertising FOR a CPA  to do the audit (a bid) or advertising that they are going to use one.  If the latter, how will they be selected?

#3 - Here’s the bit: PA Code for 2nd Class Townships require the Twp advertise if they are using  a CPA in lieu of the Elected Board of Auditors.  LNT has been using a CPA for years and makes the appointment at the annual reorganization meeting which is open to the public.

 Okay, now I’m getting on my soapbox.  Let me preface this note with the comment I believe spending $12,178.00 for a wide format printer/copier/scanner is a good idea.  But here’s the irony in Tim’s request and logic.

(more…)

As a side benefit for citizens, it will increase your costs and increase the time it takes to get the work you contract for performed. There is no benefit to either the citizens or the contractors; its just an additional, costly bureaucratic layer interjected in our lives. The language of the proposed ordinance should be available at the next meeting, I will post a copy a couple days after the meeting.

Timm might be on a mission, he didn’t get his way, he might try to persuade Mr. Ricky Johnson to align with him and ask for another vote.  We’ll have to wait and see.

Basically the Corvette Club has been holding “Cruise Nights” for the past eleven years at Northampton Crossings without incident; with all proceeds going to Camelot for Children (a great charity.) The local retail stores see increased sales during the events and support it’s continuation according to Mr. Gordon.

Now the township staff tell them they can’t anymore. That is unless they will buy a permit, move to the Burger King parking lot, and cut the show in half. Early on Tenges comments were that they (staff) were looking for guidance from the Board on how to handle these type requests, near the end of the presentation (when it looked like the Supervisors had some sympathy for the Club) Tenges said it’s not for the Board to decide, it’s a zoning issue.

The Supervisors thanked he Corvette Club for coming and noted Camelot for Kids is a good charity (but they took no action nor made any recommendations) after Tenges’ comments.

It’s sad, that’s what it is. Rather then deal with the offenders and/or the undesirables the Twp. Staff just say no to all and try to blame that on the “rules.”

Cruise nights are great family entertainment and an American tradition - but let’s not have any of that in Lower Nazareth - hey maybe the Club would like to put up a warehouse?

Other then telling the Board he wants to move the money what information did he provide to permit any kind of intelligent decision?

As required (by law) the Board granted the conditional use, but not without imposing some very reasonable conditions which limit the hours of operation to 6:00am - 10:00pm; require additional barriers to sound, lights and noise; and require IDI to conduct a traffic and environmental impact study before a site plan will be approved.

Kudos also to the residents of Palmer and Lower Nazareth Townships who showed up in force at over eight meetings and hearings to voice their concerns.

The group will meet at 7 p.m. on the fourth Friday of each month at the Lower Nazareth Municipal Building, 306 Butztown Road. You can read the Organization proposal as well as download an application form here.

The Chairman, Mr. Dilsaver noted Lower Nazareth has some of the finest roads in the Lehigh Valley (where does he drive?) and questioned their ‘no’ votes. Neither Supervisor would change their vote, nor should they.

As I understand it, the Township Mgr. reports to and serves at the pleasure of the Board of Supervisors, they also set his salary. At the Reorganization meeting for 2007, it was Supervisor Patrick Murphy (also the Roadmaster at that time) who made a motion to increase Tim Tenges salary to $80,000 ($85,000 for 2008). So who sets the Roadmasters salary? It has nothing to do with whether Pennsylvania allows 2nd Class Township Supervisors to also be on the payroll; it’s just wrong.

As a side benefit, not appointing someone to this position and having it fall under the responsibility of the Township Manager, is a good first step in bringing the township’s spending in line with it’s income.

For more on the budget gap see: LNT Votes a 1 Mill Tax Increase.