Council appoints high school student Tony Gomez as ‘Junior Council Person’
By Rick Marts, Correspondent, The Times
Kennett Square Borough Council President Leon Spencer (center) administers the Junior Council Person pledge to new council member Tony Gomez, a junior at Kennett High School, with his aunt, Perla Bustos, holding the Bible.
On Monday night, Acting Borough Manager Joe Scalise presented the Borough Council with his proposed 2015 budget.
Scalise noted that he proposed a balanced budget, with revenues matching expenses. However, within that budget he proposed increasing some fees to pay for wage increases and repaving the Borough’s streets as needed over the next decade.
Scalise’s presentation contained the following highlights:
• A 2.75 percent increase in wages for uniformed employees and a 2.5 percent increase for non-uniformed employees;
• A one-mill increase in the property tax to a new level of 6.35 mills per $1,000 of assessed property value (or $635 on a property assessed at $100,000, with assessments and market value often differing greatly);
• A 3-percent increase in water, sewer, and solid waste fees to provide for continued growth in fund reserves; and
• An annual increase in fees of $60 and $10 for long-term garage and street parking, respectively.
During the public comment period of Monday night’s meeting, Borough resident John Thomas questioned actions highlighted in the proposed 2015 budget. For example, he asked the council, Why do you raise taxes and fees every year? Why do we have nine police cars? Why do we buy new trucks just because they have high mileage? Why do we have to raise water rates again? Do we still pay all employees’ medical co-pays?
Thomas stated, “All we need is honest and open government.”
As always, council abided by its policy of not addressing public comments during its public meeting or entering into a question-and-answer session with residents making public comments.
Council President Leon Spencer noted that a public meeting will be held on Tuesday, November 25, at 7:00 p.m., in the Red Clay Room so that the public can comment further on the proposed budget. He said, however, that “no vote will be taken at that meeting.” Spencer also said, “Residents can review the budget document in the Borough Hall at 120 Marshall Street, but it cannot be removed from the building.”
In other business on Monday night,
• The Council welcomed its first “Junior Council Person,” Meliton “Tony” Gomez. Tony was sworn in at Monday’s meeting with Council President Spencer administering the oath of office. Gomez is a junior at Kennett High School and seemed to be very excited about his 1-year appointment. He will attend all Council meetings with the exception of executive sessions. Spencer said, “Tony, you have made history for the Borough of Kennett Square.”
• Fire Chief Steve Melton reported that the Kennett Fire Department is on a pace to respond to 400 calls this year, which will be a record. Whether this was due to more diligent reporting or more hazardous conditions in the area has not been determined.
• In the public safety update, Mayor Fetick reported several items the Safety Committee is considering, including (1) a crosswalk at Liberty Place and State Street because of the difficult sight lines on the West-bound downhill slope and (2) adjusting the time restrictions for parking on snow emergency routes so that salting can occur before the snow begins and not be hindered by parked cars. Fetick said these items might ultimately require new ordinances.
• Historic Kennett Square Executive Director Mary Hutchens proposed that Borough shoppers be given 3 hours of free parking on “Small Business Saturday,” November 29, when shoppers are encouraged to shop at small businesses rather than large chains. In addition, Hutchens proposed that during the week before Christmas and extending through January 1, 2015, parking in the Borough be free as a way of encouraging shopping. Because the loss in parking revenue was believed to be minimal, the Council approved these requests.
