Council Report June 2021

Vice President David Robb called the meeting to order at 7:00 PM, the Pledge of Allegience was recited, and prior minutes were approved.

During Public Forum, a Rosslyn Farms resident discussed the possibility of a hiking trail between Rosslyn Farms and Thornburg. The resident shared that the potential trail has over 20 interested volunteers, from both communities, willing to help with its construction. The resident requested that the Council draft a letter in support of the trail that could be used in connection with grant applications to fund the trail’s construction. Questions were raised by Council about the various properties involved, property ownership, easements, liability concerns, potential for unwanted traffic and parking issues, and overall maintenance responsibility of the trail. Council declined to draft a letter in support and recommended that the hiking trail concept be revisited by a Borough committee to more fully evaluate the feasibility of constructing such a trail and to assess the negative effects it might have on the Rosslyn Farms community.

The resident also mentioned the possibility of a second hiking trail that would be located in the passive park area to the west side of King’s Highway. Starting from the intersection near the Community Center, and terminating at the north end of the split rail fence along King’s Highway, this potential trail would allow residents to walk through the woods instead of along King’s Highway, and it would help to more fully connect the community to the Borough’s soccer fields. The resident asked for Council’s permission to enter the passive park area and mark a potential route. Council declined to grant permission and suggested waiting until Steve Tassaro returned from his trip and Council could confer with Borough staff about the potential route and any grading or homeowner consents that might be required for the trail.

Mayor Jim Stover discussed a power  outage in the Borough that was caused by a tractor trailer knocking down a telephone pole. Discussion followed regarding whether the Borough had appropriate and adequate signage for the trucks, what kinds of signs might be more effective, and whether such other signs could be installed. The Borough Solicitor stated that the relevant signage ordinance would need to be reviewed and followed for this to occur. Council aims to review the signage options and revisit the issue soon.

Non-resident pool membership has increased greatly this year and there was concern that the Borough might need to start limiting the number of non-resident passes like some surrounding communities. The grant for the Edgecliff Trail was officially awarded, and the Borough is applying $43,000 in funds from the American Rescue Plan to help cover various costs within the Borough. There was discussion of lighting projects that are to be completed throughout the Borough, and LaQuatra Bonci, a landscape architecture firm has been engaged to help with the Borough’s master plan involving a park remodel and trail and sidewalk construction — all with the aim to better connect our community. LaQuatra Bonci is currently working to have surveying completed of the relevant areas and discussion ensued about potentially gathering feedback on the master plan.