22 February 2023 BOS Meeting Summary
New Deputy Fire Chief Hired, Environmental Advisory Council Update on Plastics Ban and Solar Power, Resident Comments on Arcadia/Mayfield Project, Planning Commission Report, EMS Report, More…
This is my personal summary of the February 22, 2023, meeting of Newtown Township Board of Supervisors (BOS). This is not a complete nor an official summary.
Access the 2023 BOS Chronicle for detailed summaries of all 2023 BOS meetings plus the BOS voting record (UNOFFICIAL) for 2023.
Agenda Items
- New Assistant Fire Chief Sworn In
- Environmental Advisory Council (EAC) Update
- Resident Cites Arcadia/Mayfield Contract Violations
- Planning Commission Reports
- Ardana Restaurant Conditional Use Approval Recommended
- Comprehensive Plan Cover Letter: Municipality Addendum Recommended
- Update to CompPlan Principle #5
- NESD Report
- Full Summary
- Official Video
- Video Transcript
New Assistant Fire Chief Sworn In
Newtown native Nicholas Weaver was sworn in as the new assistant chief of the Newtown Fire and Emergency Services.
After graduating from Council Rock High School in 2007, he earned a Bachelor’s degree in fire science and public safety from Holy Family College in 2012 and a Master’s degree in public safety administration from St. Joseph’s University in 2013. Weaver was hired by Lower Southampton Township as a fire inspector. He later joined the Bensalem Fire Department as a career firefighter.
Environmental Advisory Council (EAC) Update
EAC Co-chair Elaine McCarron reported on EAC plans for celebrating Earth Day and how local businesses feel about a ban of single-use plastics, which the EAC hopes the township will enact after its research is done and recommendations made. Ms. McCarron also mentioned that the EAC plans to recommend that the township use solar energy to supply the electricity needs of its municipal complex.
It should be noted that at the same meeting, just minutes after Ms. McCarron's remarks, the supervisors approved OK a 5-year $7,210,982.45 electricity supply contract with Freepoint Energy Solutions LLC at $0.05916/kWh.
Resident Cites Arcadia/Mayfield Contract Violations
J. Mcguigan, who resides on High Street in the Newtown Crossing development, informed the #NewtownPA Board of Supervisors that the Mayfield (formerly Arcadia) development project is violating several terms of the 10 February 2022 pre-construction agreement. Mr. Mcquigan also contended that the buildings were over 35 feet high in violation of township code.
A 3-story house (see photo on left) less than 100 feet from Mr. Mcguigan's property is one of the buildings that he said was over 35 feet high in violation of township code regarding building heights; i.e., the vertical distance measured from the average level of the finished grade along all the exterior walls of a building to the mean height between the eaves and the ridge, in the case of a pitched roof. Does this structure violate the JMZO code regarding house height?
Mr. McGuigan was asked to submit his list of questions/concerns to the Township Manager. Find the list here. The response was less than adequate according to Mr. McGuigan who said “there were still other questions that are best addressed to you [Micah Lewis, Township Manager].” Please see the the followup letter for those remaining questions.
Ardana Restaurant Conditional Use
Conditional Use, Ardana, 2948 S. Eagle Road: The applicant is seeking conditional use approval for uses E-5 and E-6, eating place and eating place/take out in the same location as the former Solstice Restaurant. The plan is very similar to Solstice. The ratio of restaurants to retail at the shopping center remains the same. The Commission recommended that the Board approve this application subject to compliance with the review letter of CKS engineering dated February 13, 2023. We also recommended that the owners encourage their employees to park in the sections of the shopping center that are less busy at night. The consensus of the BOS was not to oppose the application.
Newtown Emergency Services Dept (NESD) Report
16 Feb 2023 Weekly Report: LINK:
HIGHLIGHTS:
- Fire Calls – 11 Township (6) Borough (1) Mutual Aid (4)
- EMS Calls – 19 Township (15) Borough (4) Mutual Aid (0)
At the request of Fire Chief Glenn Forsyth, supervisors authorized the Chief to resubmit its SAFER (Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response) grant application for consideration. I asked the Chief whether he felt that would be enough to demonstrate to FEMA the township's commitment to maintaining the additional career firefighters once the grant runs its course. See his answer: “#NewtownPA Township Will Reapply For Federal SAFER Grant To Fund New Firefighters. Will 4th Time Be The Charm?”
Full Summary
View the PDF version of the full summary of this meeting embedded below or download the PDF file.
Official Video
Transcript
Download the unedited time-stamped transcript of this meeting prepared by Youtube from the video: download PDF file.
Connect With Us