Sinking Spring Borough Council has overridden
Mayor Frances Butkus' veto of a new agriculture ordinance.
Councilman Steven Suruskie said the ordinance was mainly created to address keeping domestic and wild animals in the borough but also includes regulations for farming.
Butkus said he vetoed the ordinance because it states that permits are required to till soil and grow crops.
Council members said the language did not apply to backyard gardens but Butkus said the ordinance did not specifically state the exception.
Suruskie said that 18 months and thousands of dollars had been spent on the ordinance and he denied that it could be misconstrued to force backyard gardeners to obtain permits.
The vote to override the mayor's veto Thursday was 5-2. Councilman George Butkus and Gary Ciruli voted no.
George Butkus said he, too, thought, the ordinance could be read to require permits for vegetable gardens.
"It's nobody's business if people grow gardens in their yards, as long as they are not infringing on their neighbors," he said.
In other business:
Engineer Robert Ludgate urged council to contact state officials about PennDOT's failure to award a grant for the borough's Penn Avenue revitalization project.
Ludgate said that $40,000 had already been raised through private donations for the project, which has been in the works for four years, and that $10 million is needed for construction. He also said the project warranted state funding since Penn Street, which is Route 422, is a vital and heavily congested transportation corridor.
Council voted 7-0 to approve hiring five college students to run the summer playground program: two leaders at $9.50 an hour; two staffers from last year at $8.50; and one new hire at $7.55. Council also approved closing the playground when the heat index is at 100 degrees and during thunderstorms.
Council voted 7-0 to allow the library to spend up to $6,000 to purchase a book drop box.
- By Karyn H. Feick
Councilman Steven Suruskie said the ordinance was mainly created to address keeping domestic and wild animals in the borough but also includes regulations for farming.
Butkus said he vetoed the ordinance because it states that permits are required to till soil and grow crops.
Council members said the language did not apply to backyard gardens but Butkus said the ordinance did not specifically state the exception.
Suruskie said that 18 months and thousands of dollars had been spent on the ordinance and he denied that it could be misconstrued to force backyard gardeners to obtain permits.
The vote to override the mayor's veto Thursday was 5-2. Councilman George Butkus and Gary Ciruli voted no.
George Butkus said he, too, thought, the ordinance could be read to require permits for vegetable gardens.
"It's nobody's business if people grow gardens in their yards, as long as they are not infringing on their neighbors," he said.
In other business:
Engineer Robert Ludgate urged council to contact state officials about PennDOT's failure to award a grant for the borough's Penn Avenue revitalization project.
Ludgate said that $40,000 had already been raised through private donations for the project, which has been in the works for four years, and that $10 million is needed for construction. He also said the project warranted state funding since Penn Street, which is Route 422, is a vital and heavily congested transportation corridor.
Council voted 7-0 to approve hiring five college students to run the summer playground program: two leaders at $9.50 an hour; two staffers from last year at $8.50; and one new hire at $7.55. Council also approved closing the playground when the heat index is at 100 degrees and during thunderstorms.
Council voted 7-0 to allow the library to spend up to $6,000 to purchase a book drop box.
- By Karyn H. Feick
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