New Lansdale police chief could be announced Feb. 21

LANSDALE >> The next permanent police chief for Lansdale could be named as soon as Feb. 21.

Borough Council President Denton Burnell gave an update Feb. 7 on the search that began upon the retirement of previous Chief Robert McDyre last year.

“We have made an offer. I’m not at liberty to disclose (more) at this point in time; we’re still in negotiations on that,” he said.

McDyre led the department from October 2009 until his retirement in March 2017, and council named Detective Sgt. Mike Trail to the position of acting chief effective July 31, 2017, while the search for the next permanent chief has been underway.

“I can say we’re very close to having that completed, and I’m very optimistic that at our business meeting we will be announcing, and hopefully voting to approve, a contract,” Burnell said.

Borough Manager John Ernst also reported that council and the union representing borough police are also close to completing negotiations on a new contract for the officers, to replace an agreement that expired at the end of 2017.

“I believe both sides are really close to coming to an agreement. That contract expired Dec. 31, so we are a month and a half into the next contract period,” he said.

Madison widening work

Work to widen a portion of Madison Street should start soon, according to Ernst, and could be done by the end of the year.

“The contractor for that project was given an official notice to proceed. By contract, the length of that project is 270 days, and that contract date has started,” he said.

Last November ground was formally broken for construction of a complex of apartment buildings atop the borough’s Madison Parking Lot, and at the same time a contract was awarded for a planned widening of the adjacent Madison Street. Parking spaces that previously ran parallel to the roadway will be reconfigured to run perpendicular to the road, and borough officials have said roughly 18 street parking spaces will become nearly 70 by doing so.

Ernst announced that the terms of the construction contract mean the majority of road widening work should be done by late October, and the current Madison Street must remain open while the widening is underway.

“There may be times where overlaps happen, and they may have to close for a day or a couple of hours, but by agreement, the contractor has agreed that the street will remain open as a thoroughfare,” he said.

Staff, police and the borough’s traffic engineer have all been in contact with businesses in that area, according to the manager, and have been made aware of the upcoming work and alternate parking arrangements while it is underway.

“I know that’s made a big difference. They’re nervous, but they like that the borough has been proactive, as much as possible,” councilman Jason Van Dame said.

Big-ticket purchases coming

Several large capital project purchases could be on council’s agenda during their Feb. 21 meeting.

Ernst and Finance Director John Ramey reported that council will be asked on Feb. 21 to approve items including the $550,000 purchase of a new electric substation near Richardson Street. The transformer purchase to be funded by a contribution from developer Equus Capital partners as part of their agreement to develop the Madison Parking Lot.

“They did give the borough the money that’s pretty much paying for that,” Ramey said.

A second capital purchase on the Feb. 21 agenda will be approval of three new vehicles for various borough departments: a $178,000 bucket truck for the electric department, a $32,000 Dodge Ram pickup truck with a plow for the Parks and Recreation department, and a $23,000 Ford Escape for the borough’s wastewater treatment plant staff.

Staff are also preparing a detailed presentation on new fleet management programs and tools that have been developed internally in recent months, to help track vehicle maintenance, usage, repairs, and possible resale values, according to Ernst.

“We can evaluate when it’s time to get rid of a vehicle, versus continue to spend money and put it into a vehicle that we will never get any money out of in the future,” he said.

A third purchase slated for approval will be an additional $30,000 for upgrades to the borough’s fiber optic network, which will connect all borough buildings and most of the utility poles. Completing a full loop of fiber optics could be more attractive for outside communication companies to co-locate their transmitters or other equipment on borough poles.

“Once we complete the loop, we become a much more attractive location for that to happen,” Ernst said.

Lansdale’s borough council next meets at 7 p.m. on Feb. 21 at the borough municipal building, 1 Vine St. For more information or meeting agendas and materials visit www.Lansdale.org or follow @LansdalePA on Twitter.