Renovo council talks dangerous structures
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RENOVO -- Ordinances dominated the Renovo Council meeting this week as municipality leaders continued to look for ways to make sure they're getting as much as possible out of the local guidelines.
One issue that appears to have no real solution involves uninhabitable buildings. Specifically, where owners -- and in one case even an occupant -- do not answer legal correspondence.
Theresa Casper urged council to make progress on a neighboring house of hers, 221 Champlain Ave.
The house is falling apart, and Casper said it is beyond the state of dangerous.
Ordinance enforcement officer Dave Walker explained the owners, a company in Florida, have simply not replied to mail and fines.
Walker said without local Florida police serving a warrant, nothing more can be done, particularly at an expedited pace.
221 Champlain Ave. was purchased under a company name with an address from Florida that outbid the borough as they tried acquiring the building to tear it down at a repository sale. Casper did not hold back her anger that the borough agreed to the repository sale of the house to an unknown group in Florida.
Several council members, particularly Rhonda Balchun, tried to assure Casper that there was nothing malicious in approving the bid. It was something that is basically a standard operating procedure once the sale has been accepted by the county, she said.
Mayor Gene Bruno explained there is yet another issue and a matter of safety that they are having little luck with to this point.
Bruno said there is a house on 8th Street that has seen the roof basically collapse at this point, and deemed uninhabitable, yet an occupant continues to ignore correspondence.
The borough police and ordinance officer have even tried to lay eyes on the occupant so that they can issue a hand warrant.
Still, Bruno said even if that would be successful, a $50 fine would be issued with no real way of keeping the occupant out in any quick manner.
The borough will be making a change to one ordinance involving food trucks.
The current ordinance states that anyone with a food truck on private property would have to pay a $500 annual fee.
Council member Pattie Rauch looked for support to completely abolish the ordinance but received pushback, including from Bruno.
Bruno explained two key points that he felt should lead to keeping the ordinance on the books as written.
First, he noted the time it takes borough secretaries to accept and file the proper certifications and licenses from the vendor (which all vendors would be required to submit to the borough to keep on file) before operating.
Secondly, he felt the fee, which would be as low as $42 a month on a truck staying in the borough for a year, is a fair amount considering there would be competition to local restaurants observing proper running costs.
Balchun bridged the gap between Rauch and Bruno with an offer of food trucks paying $20 for a three-day period or the option of paying $100 for the year.
The borough passed Balchun' s suggestion as all sides noted that the ordinance could be re-visited at any time.
In other news council:
-- Council adopted Ordinance to make Ponda Street a one-way from the intersection of Delaware Avenue to state Route 120.
-- Agreed with DCNR to allow them to assist Renovo Borough Police with patrolling ATV traffic in Renovo and Chapman Township. Bruno reported he gladly accepted, urging them to watch for the vehicles behind the old rail shops.
-- Council and Chapman Township officials will meet with Clinton County Emergency Services to help them set up EMS services to in part, choose how calls go out between Stations #29 and #23.