Minutes

Ebensburg Borough Council Meeting Minutes

Date: March 22, 2021 Time: 6:30 p. m. – 7:35 p. m. Location: Virtual via Zoom

Attendance

• Present: Doug Tusing (President), Dave Kuhar (Vice President), Theresa Jacoby, Scot May, Mike Owatt, Cecilia Houser, Will Westrick (Junior Councilor).
• Absent: Jeff Ball.
• Others Present: Randy Datsko (Mayor), Kelly Cook (Incoming Borough Manager), Blair Pawlowski (Solicitor), Danea Koss, Dirk Johnson, Jeff Evans, and Kristen Baudoux (The Mountaineer Herald).

Key Updates & Reports

• Mayor’s Report: Mayor Datsko reported that police department staffing is returning to normal as officers have recovered from the virus.
• Council President’s Report: Mr. Tusing noted that while COVID-19 cases are improving, there was a recent uptick. Meetings will continue via Zoom through April and likely longer, until indoor gathering capacity increases to 50%.
• Water/Wastewater Committee: Mr. Kuhar confirmed that Inframark provided written reports for both wastewater and water treatment plant operations, which were included in the council packets.
• Computer Security: Ms. Cook reported that the borough’s email server was breached around February 28, 2021, as part of a national hacking effort targeting Microsoft software. Staff confirmed no sensitive data was compromised because such data is not stored in emails.

Committee Actions & Decisions

Recreation Committee: Fish Stocking

• Plan: The committee discussed replenishing fish populations in the Lower Reservoir and Jenks Dam following draining and refilling.
• Costs: The estimated costs for restocking are:
  • Year 1: $1,595. 00
  • Year 2: $4,030. 00
  • Year 3: $2,530. 00
• Decisions:
  • Approved the purchase of fish for 2021 from Zetts Fish Farm for $1,595. 00.
  • Designated Jenks Dam as "catch and release only" for children age 13 and under.

Street Committee: Projects

• 2021 Sidewalk Project: Ameron Construction was issued a notice to proceed on April 1, 2021.
• 2021 Tree Cutting Project: Tree Expert Tree Service was issued a notice to proceed on February 23, 2021, with completion expected by March 19, 2021.

Administration Committee: Sidewalk Oversight

• Issue: The 2021 sidewalk project is complicated by Peoples Gas replacing lines on West Crawford, West Sample, North Julian, and North Marian.
• Solution: To ensure smooth oversight, the Borough Manager hired Dan Penatzer on a limited, part-time basis effective March 7, 2021.
• Decision: The council approved a pay rate of $22.75 per hour for Mr. Penatzer with no additional benefits.
  • Vote: Passed 4-2 (Tusing, Jacoby, Houser, Kuhar voted Yes; May and Owatt voted No).

Diversity Committee:

• Programming is currently delayed due to the pandemic, but preparations are underway for a quick rollout once restrictions ease.

Department Reports

• Public Works: The yard waste dumpster site will open later in the week. Crews are also cleaning up around Lake Rowena and identifying infiltration issues.
• Community Development:
  • "Virtual Art in Bloom" has received around 50 entries.
  • The Ebensburg Historic Keystone Marker is being repaired and will be placed at the Cambria County Historical Society.
  • Spring Clean-up is scheduled for April 29 & 30.
  • Junior Councilor Will Westrick will be featured in the June edition of PA Borough News Magazine.
• Recreation:
  • The YPCC Golf Outing is scheduled for June 11th at the Ebensburg Country Club.
  • Approval was granted to begin lifeguarding classes and swim club at the CCHS Swimming Pool.
  • The spring basketball league is set to start up.

Adjournment

The council entered an executive session at 7:05 p. m. to discuss a personnel issue. The meeting was adjourned at 7:35 p. m.