Trumbauersville Borough Council passed a resolution on Thursday night that created a code of conduct at borough council meetings.  The intent of the resolution is to enable a municipal meeting to proceed in an orderly fashion.

            Borough council meetings are not town halls.  They are meetings where the business of the municipality is conducted.  

            As such, the new code of conduct requires a certain element of decorum from the public and council.  The code of conduct requires borough council members to act in an ethical manner so that public trust is created.  Council members cannot act as if they are speaking for the municipality when they are voicing their personal opinions. 

            Comment at a council meeting is restricted to residents and taxpayers.  Water ratepayers and trash payers, if not residents of the borough, can speak but only about water and trash issues.  Comment is limited to three minutes per speaker.  Public comment will be taken at the beginning of the meeting on agenda items.  At the conclusion of the items on the agenda, comment can be taken again.  Conversations prior to or after a meeting are considered private. 

            Anything spoken during the meeting, essentially from when the meeting is called to order until it is concluded –"gavel to gavel"– is public.  Shouting, speaking out of turn, cursing, and ad hominem attacks are not permitted no matter who does it. 

            In addition to a code of conduct the borough council announced it will follow Robert's Rules of Order which dictates parliamentary procedures for municipal meetings.

            Upon recommendation of Trumbauersville Borough Engineers, Cowan Associates, the borough council awarded the contract for the water interconnection project between Trumbauersville and Milford Township Municipal Water Authority to Passerini & Sons for $117,455.  Passerini & Sons was the lowest responsible bidder for the project.

            The borough council passed a resolution to permit the borough to request financial assistance from PennVest to finance the reconstruction of the water system for Well #3.  PennVest provides low interest loans to municipalities for public projects.  A small public water system grant will provide 80% of the funds, approximately $260,000, to finance the project.  The borough will be responsible for 20% of the cost.  A low interest loan from PennVest will cover the borough's portion of the cost.

            After a question about the quality of the borough's drinking water, council explained that the water provided to Trumbauersville residents is exactly the same as bottled water.  Arsenic is a naturally occurring substance in the earth.  The Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) limit for arsenic is 10 parts per billion.  Any arsenic in the borough's water is well within DEP limits.  The borough's water has arsenic remediation in both of its wells. 

            According to the borough's engineering firm, Cowan Associates, borough water is blended with water passed through the arsenic removal system and with disinfected well water during the treatment process.  The combined process permits the borough to provide drinking water complying with DEP standards.

            The borough council agreed to advertise an amendment to its outside storage ordinance.  The amendment, if voted, will limit the amount of non-inspected vehicles on a property.  It is expected that the amended ordinance will provide time for a property in violation to remove the vehicle.

            The borough held a discussion concerning nature meadows on private property.

            Although the borough ordinance requires lawns to be trimmed at six inches, the ordinance permits plants that are edible or serve a function to be kept.  There is a movement in the gardening world that thinks land should be restored to its natural state so that it can attract pollinators and butterflies.  What some gardeners used to consider problem weeds, because they were so common and wild, are now considered crucial to the environment. 

            Council agreed to study the matter further.

            Council will advertise an ordinance that will create the position of borough manager.