Perkasie 2015 Preliminary budget

To the credit of the finance committee (Ryder chair, Krantz, Aigeldinger, Pizzolo, Stottlar) they began the budget process early this year and have already held 2 public meetings with department heads on July 28 (minutes) & Sept 3rd.

Observations:

• Dept heads were tasked with presenting 3% decreases in their budgets yet still came forth with wishlist items that were given consideration including $550,000 expense on electric "smart meters" and $75,000 replacement of pool slide, and $258,000 street sweeper  These 3 items have since been removed from preliminary budget as part of the claimed "almost $1 million reduction in spending" which is a duplicitous claim. 
• Preliminary 2015 budget is $5,435,934 which is an increase of 3.7% from last year.
• 10% increase in health insurance costs
• 13% increase in pension contributions
• indicated 34% increase in water & sewer rates from PRA

The finance director made it clear that spending had to be lowered because of an anticipated reduction in electric revenue from loss of a major consumer in the borough.  The borough is claiming some offset from new housing developments which may explain the council's vote to approve a zoning change for a new housing development in the face of 50 residents packing a meetings and saying emphatically NO.

At this time there is a surplus estimated for the general fund balance in excess of what is required of $810,041.  A comment by Aigeldinger was that that could be put to work elsewhere in the budget with perhaps a 3-4% decrease in electric rates.   Council members would be wise to realize that this is money that has been paid by electric users, and in the face of a 66% increase in 2008 that money should be returned to ratepayers in a rate decrease.  Every 1% rate reduction across the board is estimated to cost $100,000 so this amount could mean up to an 8% reduction in electric rates.  Borough electric customers should make their voices heard about what they think should be done with that excess!

Budget memo discussed at Sept 3 meeting below:

Note in the below figure that a $20,000 expense for the "economic development consultant" remains, even though no progress report has been given with an explanation of achievement towards goals.

Also of note is that the administration wants to add new employees to give the parks & recreation Director a raise to assist the borough manager.  The borough has functioned effectively without an assistant manager since January 1.

Much work remains and the council is reminded to sharpen their pencils and remember that the Borough operates for the residents of Perkasie.

Perkasie needs a Smart Council, not Smart Meters

A proposal for adding an electric "smart meter" system came up at budget time as a "wishlist" item from the electric department- despite a call to cut budgets by 1-3%.  The number associated with this expense has been cited at $550,000 which seems dubious after the presentation by Elster and GE given at a special electric utility committee meeting held Monday, August 25th. with little notice to the public.  In fact it didn't appear as a notice on the borough website or social media outlets until earlier that day. Link to audio recording of meeting. 

"Smart meters" are cutting edge technology that manufacturers claim will make your electric service more reliable, allow users to track their usage in "real time", reduce costs, and make electric transmission more efficient while making utility workers jobs safer.  They would replace the traditional electric meter usually mounted on the side of your home and act as 2-way radio frequency (RF) mesh network devices that communicate with the utility server as frequently as every minute.  The term "mesh network" refers to the ability for a smart meter located at your home to pass along not only your information but to act as a relay point for other homes as well.  Meaning that RF traffic could potentially occur all the time!

In reality what they do is intrude on the privacy of your home, with the capability to track what appliances you are using, when you are home, and the ability to interact with other RF capable devices in your home allowing a utility to control your usage. A 2012 Congressional Report Service report on smart meters raises serious security and 4th Amendment privacy issues.  Some models of these meters have caused fires. At the meeting a resident reported that a friend had opted in to a program in MD and found that his air conditioning was cut back on one of the hottest days of the summer of 2013.

These meters also cost more for residents (estimated at an additional $30 per meter) and have a lifespan of only 7-10 years as compared with traditional meters at 40-50 years.  Assuming it doesn't catch on fire first, because neither of the meters from the 2 companies that presented to the committee are UL-listed for safety.
So why Perkasie?  With one of the most reliable electric utilities in the county if not the state, what other possible reason could there be for spending more money that residents don't have on this type of program? During the 1 hour+ long presentation Perkasie electric superintendent Harold Stone testified that the line loss (electricity lost due to resistance and equipment not operating at peak efficiency) for Perkasie should be around 4% but is about 5%, inferring that a smart meter system could help them find issues and improve this- but a minute later he explained that the threshold of 10% loss is when you really start looking for problems. He also made the dubious claim that due to currently malfunctioning meters the Borough was losing $100,000 of revenue per year.

Do Perkasie residents really want to be able to track their usage in real-time and give the borough the ability to monitor their usage and more easily shut off their service?  What about the privacy and security concerns? Could smart meters be used as a tool for political retribution? Perhaps what residents really want is their electric rates to return to normal after the 2008 bungled contract that was negotiated under the watch of then Utility Chair Jim Purcell- interestingly the same individual who still holds that position.

Did Perkasie officials consult with neighboring Lansdale about their experience with these smart meters?  In the words of Lansdale councilman:

"Obviously, it's a big expenditure for putting in meters. Did we identify it as an absolute need? Is there a projected life of the meters?" Angelichio said. "In 2006, we spent a boatload of money on new meters. Seven years later, we're spending a lot more on some meters. I want to make sure it's a cost-effective solution."   

The article goes on to claim that employees of the electric company can help residents identify ways to cut their bills.  Is an expensive system really needed for that, or with just a simple device available at most home improvement stores can a homeowner identify appliances that consume more electricity and cut back on their usage?

Will you eventually be forced to have a smart meter installed?  There is pending legislation to allow consumers to "opt-out", make sure to contact your state representatives and let them know how you feel about this before you are forced to adapt this new expensive technology.

Learn more about the potential issues with smart meters here:

http://www.stopsmartmetersnow.com/

http://www.stopsmartmetersinpa.com/

Walnut Street Bridge at "Critical Zero" rating

According to an article published in the Intelligencer on 8/5/14:

Perkasie council revealed Monday night it was urgently seeking the county to repair the Walnut Street Bridge, after Councilman Matt Aigeldinger brought the issue up by saying he had seen the damage to the bridge.

“It’s got a pretty substantial crack that’s opened up on the pedestrian side of the bridge,” Aigeldinger said. “Also, there’s a crack that goes across the road, and three other ones.”

Borough engineer Doug Rossino said the bridge received a 0 out of 100 rating by inspectors in July, triggering a “critical zero” rating and prompting state agencies to send a letter to Bucks County requiring a response within a week about what action it would take.

The county response is required this week, Rossino said. Borough manager Andrea Coaxum added she had sent a letter to the county and spoke to the county’s Director of Operations Gerald Anderson.

“We sent a letter ... about the condition of the bridge and how important it is that we keep the bridge open for emergency services,” Coaxum said.

Council said the bridge is not scheduled to be replaced until 2018, and added that a worst case scenario would shut down the bridge for safety concerns. The Main Street Bridge is also scheduled for replacement in 2018, council members said, adding that a simultaneous closure would have a detrimental effect.

“It would cripple the entire area, not just for emergency services, but businesses and residents in the area,” Coaxum said.

Council Vice President Jim Purcell said he did not believe the repairs would be overly extensive, but that the borough could not fix it without opening itself up to liability.

“It can be fixed fairly easily,” Purcell said. “But we’re not going to touch it because that’s not our responsibility.”

Council members said they had also reached out to local representatives, and urged residents to do the same.

“Residents should please, send an e-mail to their state representative and contact the county commissioners,” said Councilman Justin Stottlar.

Question: if, according to VP Purcell it can be fixed fairly easy- then why hasn't the county started repairs?  Why has the borough waited until it reached a zero rating out of 100 to publicly address this?  Why has the Perkasie Pride majority faction on council failed to address this?  Were they so content being cuddled up with ousted manager Dan Olpere that they failed to see it?  Whose responsibility was it to see that it didn't get this far?

Residents are encouraged to not only call the county and state representatives- but also call President Ryder, VP Purcell, and Perkasie Pride ringleader Matt Aigeldinger and ask them why they failed to address this until now?

Perkasie Resident circulating petition calling for resignation of top borough leaders

A 42 year Perkasie resident is circulating a petition calling for resignations of top Borough officials for "failure of leadership.  He is not affiliated with Perkasie First but we are sharing this to encourage residents to learn about the issues in Perkasie and get involved.

You can view the petition and electronically sign it at the following link:  http://bit.ly/17TH48v

September 3 2013 Perkasie Council Meeting

Well it appears the local newspaper the News Herald forgot to report all the important information from the borough council meeting of Sept 3 2013. There were a lot of new faces and some from the previous meeting who were back expecting accountability from this council for the Menlo pool fiasco, in fact public comment lasted a full hour and even caused the VP Purcell to shift the meeting agenda to deal with the questions and call the Interim Police Chief forward to address concerns.

 A Sellersville resident came forward to display her disgust that the borough was lying and trying to play down the situation especially the shots fire on the night of the pool party. She was the resident whose house the shots were fired outside of. She also notes that shots were apparently fired over by south school which was a separate location.

Comments were also echoed by new attendees that someone was trying to down play the event and that was accompanied by more calls of council leadership to resign and do the right thing for the community so we can get some true leadership on council. There were also more calls for the borough manager to be held accountable and fired.

Once again all these calls fell on deaf ears as they always do further proving to the residents the council is up there for the wrong reasons. They are not there for the town and the townspeople. They are there for power and status nothing more. In fact Councilman Steve Pizzollo interrupted one resident as she spoke and continued heckling audience members. Another violation of council policy on public comment.

The new pool rental procedures were discussed and they sound like they will prevent episodes like the pool party from happening again by why do we always have to wait for something to happen and the public to be affected before council does anything? The new rules and regulations are fine and well but it was the current rules being broken by management that allowed for the pool party to happen and our town to be trashed and taken advantage of.

How do we know these new rules won’t be broken for profit? When will someone be held accountable?

Shots were fired in our community! People’s personal space and properties were violated! Our youth were left to deal with this issue while our $115,000 a yr “manager” was at home in the next county over enjoying his peace and quiet without the violation of his property. The only thing this council is showing is their arrogance by not listening to the community.

Email your council members.  Demand they do the right thing! 

Otherwise the community is going to continue to spiral downward.

Also discussed was spending $20,000 for a study on our electric rates regarding the tiered billing that the borough currently uses.  Hiring expensive consultants is another hallmark of Manager Dan Olpere to avoid being held personally accountable for decisions.   

Perkasie Borough Meeting 8/19/13 Aftermath of Near-Riot at Pool

Video and audio of meeting to come!  Subscribe to blog for updates!

Click here for original post with party photos

8/21/13 UPDATE AT BOTTOM OF THIS POST
Thanks to the Residents who are posting flyers around town with this blog, these flyers are not affiliated with Perkasie First but the fact they are showing up proves that residents are awakening to the problem with management of this town!

Will concerned residents continue the pressure on Council to take action at the next meeting?  Plan to attend the next Borough meeting on Tuesday, September 3rd at 7pm 

and demand action from Council Leadership

What was learned about the events surrounding the 8/11/13 near riot at Menlo Aquatics Center at the Borough Council meeting last night:

• Despite red flags, police were not made aware of the party until they were called for a disturbance.
• Pool staff did not feel safe at the event, and witnessed drug and alcohol use and other disturbing sights.
• Pool staff were forced to clean up the pool the next day, handling drug needles and combing through the grass on their hands and knees.  Comment from one lifeguards parent: "Too bad the pool employees were told to throw away all the evidence including driver's licenses."
• The pool was never tested for fecal coliform levels the next day despite reports that the pool was so murky that you couldn't even see the bottom.  It was simply shocked with extra chlorine and reopened after the teenage pool staff swept the grounds.
• Once again the District Attorney's office is involved with Perkasie Borough, thanks council!

Video from the Party Here!

The manager of the Chartwell Swim Club in Marlton NJ where the club-style party was supposed to be held knew from her interactions with the promoter that something was not right- did her due diligence and found out with a simple internet search about the real intent of the party and was able to cancel it and call police to protect their facility.

"It all seemed sketchy to me, so it really wasn't a difficult thing because the story changed, like three or four times, every time we talked to them," said Michelle Adams of Chartwell Swim Club of Marlton, N.J. Adams said it only took minutes on Google to discover the party was a paid, nightclub-style event. 
Read more from WFMZ.com at: http://www.wfmz.com/news/Perkasie-pool-party-causes-outrage/-/121458/21535958/-/9jsdqa/-/index.html

Perkasie News Herald Coverage

“Two officers ran from the front entrance and saw six to eight pool guests standing on the hood, roof and trunk lid of a marked police car from an assisting jurisdiction. The offenders jumped off the car and scattered, fleeing north on Third Street in different directions,” Hillias said.

From Intelligencer:

Kate Lane, a neighbor of the pool, said the night was very scary. “I was scared, and I thank God for the police that were in front of my house,” she said.

Menlo lifeguard Phil Allebach, who was on duty the night of the party, said he was pushed into the pool several times and saw patrons drinking liquor and smoking marijuana. Many patrons were being rude and acting unsafely around the pool, doing flips and diving into shallow water, he said. Allebach and other lifeguards had to perform multiple rescues.
“As the night went on, the party became total chaos,” he said.

At Monday night’s council meeting, someone had posted large, orange signs inside the meeting room, with the messages “Yet another cover-up by borough officials!” and “Aigeldinger — short on leadership,” referring to council president Matt Aigeldinger. Other residents called for Perkasie leadership to resign, to heavy applause. 

Channel 10 News Coverage:

"Police say the party attendees climbed on police cars and pushed lifeguards into the pool. Two dozen officers from neighboring towns were called in to help."

 Philadelphia Inquirer Coverage:

"The man on the phone said he was desperate. He needed to rent a swimming pool for his younger brother's birthday party. A New Jersey swim club had canceled because of a sewage problem. He was willing to pay extra - even make a donation.The public pool in Perkasie, a small borough in upper Bucks County, declined his offer for more money. But it booked the private party for Aug. 11, expecting about 100 people."

Allentown Morning Call Story

"As the night went on," Menlo lifeguard Phil Allebach said, "the party became total chaos."
Six to eight partyers were stomping on the hood, roof and trunk of an unmarked police car, while neighbors worried that the wildness would spill into their yards.
"I was scared," said Kate Lane, a neighbor of the pool. "I thank God for the police that were in front of my house."

Police and pool staff are to be commended for their actions that night.  They were put in danger by inept leadership in the Borough.  The same leadership that promises "changes to policy" so this will never happen again and empty platitudes from the rest of council, with Councilperson Florence Frie even being critical of people raising concerns.  Councilman Stottlar explained he would like to be part of a proactive council as opposed to a reactive one and offered a heartfelt apology.

Call or email them directly and demand answers as to why the kids who work at the pool, the police, and the residents were put in danger.  DO NOT CALL THE POOL, the staff there are not to blame.

Come to the next meeting on Tuesday September 3rd at 7pm, council promised to take action and the residents must hold them to this promise! Mark you calendars now!

Manager  Dan Olpere  215-257-5065

Mayor | John Hollenbach -- 2013 | (215) 257-7617
Council President, Ward 1 | Matthew Aigeldinger -- (240) 364-4788
Council Vice President, Ward 2 | James E. Purcell -- (215) 257-5065
Council, Ward 1 | Steven F. Pizzollo --  (215) 258-5665 
Council, Ward 1 | Stephen G. Algeo --  (215) 257-8542
Council, Ward 2 | Florence A. Frei -- (215) 257-7054
Council, Ward 2 | Justin Stottlar -- (215) 257-5065
Council, Ward 3 | Barbara J. Krantz -- (215) 453-2183
Council, Ward 3 | Suzanne Kravitz -- (215) 258-0196
Council, Ward 3 | James Ryder -- (215) 896-9069

Video of Manager Dan Olpere being interviewed by news cameras, sorry for the poor sound quality the acoustics are terrible in the room   

Emails received by a councilman from borough residents:

this is .......... from S third St we met last year you helped me with some issues here, I was at the Borough Meeting tonight the first in many years, I don't know how you do it, I couldn't . to sit there and listen to the praise and apologies from most our your fellow council members, I think you were the only one who spoke the truth reactive not proactive. Not one of them had the guts to say someone should be held accountable for what they did. I am sure some low level person will take the fall but they as the borough paid employees those in management should be held accountable, the fellow to your left said everyone makes mistakes in their job and he is correct but make enough of them or make one big enough you get fired or at least disciplined. again no accountability. To put those police and the Kids from the pool in harms way like that those apologies were not enough those responsible should do it in person to their faces. THEY ALLOWED THEIR OWN RULES TO BE BROKEN! Shame on them it came back to bite them, In work today our cleaner who used to clean for the borough and lived here brought up the news that was in his local paper today.
another black eye for Perkasie, I took my house off the market earlier this year and we decided to stay here, not sure if that was a mistake I will regret. One other point tonight about the new business coming to Perkasie I know you heard it and I do understand the importance of new business , but to give them a break on their electric bill that was like a knife in my back!

Thanks for your time,another black eye for Perkasie, I took my house off the market earlier this year and we decided to stay here, not sure if that was a mistake I will regret. One other point tonight about the new business coming to Perkasie I know you heard it and I do understand the importance of new business , but to give them a break on their electric bill that was like a knife in my back! 
Thanks for your time,

Another Email:

I heard from my wife that the pool is closed today and they have a team in there cleaning the place. (A week late don’t you think).


My wife went to the borough hall and demanded a refund for the rest of the season (when asked why for obvious reasons the borough secretary denied the Splah N First Class event and said that it was all “here say.” I think a copy of the police report from last nights meeting needs to be distributed to ALL Perkasie borough employees and they should nock-off their attitudes at this time, and be reminded who they are working for) and reiterated to the snippy woman at the desk that we will not be renewing our membership until Dan Olpere is gone. 


Hopefully this occurs sooner than later. 

Yet Another Email to Council: 

Mr. Pizzollo: This is NOT a "mistake" as you alleged on Monday night. A mistake is made in honesty, deception is made by negligence  lack of accountability, and irresponsible actions. There was lack of accountability in three stages that day solely by Dan Olpere. The first, was not researching WHO was renting the facility. The second was not responding when finding out what the party was really about, and hanging the lifeguards and police, as well as every resident in this town out to fend for themselves, while he cozied up in his Montgomery County home. The facility in New Jersey called the borough three times, no response - irresponsible lack of accountability. The third was not reporting to the borough to 'help' when finding out what was happening. The fourth was putting the public works staff, and lifeguards, as well as young children and pool patrons at risk during and after the cover up cleanup effort. Was the bucks county health department contacted to test the pool water? Were there drug dogs brought in so a toddler doesn't put "sugar" in their mouth? Was the place searched with metal detectors to ensure that all of the used needles had been found? - another failure on Dan's shoulders and a grave lack of accountability.

Dan Olpere failed miserably in his attempts to do his job, he failed the public, the lifeguards, and the police. It is INCONCEIVABLE how this so called Council can sit there, stone faced and defend the actions (or lack thereof) of Dan the day, especially after hearing from the Police and lifeguards at the meeting on Monday night.

The fact that they defend this man, puts each and every one of them who defended him in the same boat of deception. They want this story to go away, they will brush it under the rug, and push it aside. This is an election year. I would urge everyone in Perkasie, who has a shred of concern regarding this situation, weather its for your kids sake, your neighbors, friends, and family, or your own, to attend these meetings, and watch as they harbor this man from criticism and push the blame to a "mistake." Remember this in November, vote each and every one of these deceptive, dishonest members out of public office for the good of the town.
Dan Olpere failed miserably in his attempts to do his job, he failed the public, the lifeguards, and the police. It is INCONCEIVABLE how this so called Council can sit there, stone faced and defend the actions (or lack thereof) of Dan the day, especially after hearing from the Police and lifeguards at the meeting on Monday night.
The fact that they defend this man, puts each and every one of them who defended him in the same boat of deception. They want this story to go away, they will brush it under the rug, and push it aside. This is an election year. I would urge everyone in Perkasie, who has a shred of concern regarding this situation, weather its for your kids sake, your neighbors, friends, and family, or your own, to attend these meetings, and watch as they harbor this man from criticism and push the blame to a "mistake." Remember this in November, vote each and every one of these deceptive, dishonest members out of public office for the good of the town.

10/1/12 Perkasie Committee Meeting

Jim Purcell arrives early for closed "pre-meeting"

Council President Matt Aigeldinger arrives for closed "pre-meeting"

Solicitor Nate Fox arrives for closed "pre-meeting", objects to being filmed in a public place claiming 2 party consent is required.

Public Meeting Part 1 of 4

Public Meeting Part 2 of 4

Public Meeting Part 3 of 4

Public Meeting Part 4 of 4

Camera battery dies at the end sorry!

Sept 17 2012 Council Meeting

There has been talk of secret meetings before each regular Council meeting by certain members of council along with manager Dan Olpere and solicitor Nate Fox.  Confirmed in the following video clips.  Wonder what is discussed in these secret meetings?

Regular Meeting Part 1:

Meeting Part 2:

Meeting Part 3: