Bally Orders Breach Notice to $310,840 Building Contractor

Bally Borough Council voted Oct. 6 to have its solicitor send the contractor building the borough's office and police expansion a notice of breach of contract, and it held back a $40,500 payment the same contractor had requested. The minutes, posted Nov. 10, say the job was 38 days past its delivery date.

Council meets the first Tuesday of each month at 7 p.m. in Borough Hall, 425 Chestnut St., according to the borough's council page; the Oct. 6 minutes record the meeting being called to order at 7:30 p.m., after an executive session (a closed meeting) "regarding compensation and raises for the non-uniformed Borough staff," with no votes taken. Seven members sit on council: Glenn Mutter (president), Michael Moll (vice president), Michael Bauman, Paul Gehringer, Matthew Gehman, Joel Pilgert and Joshua Sloan, with David Schott as mayor, per the officials page. Tammy Wood is the interim manager and secretary. The borough office is at 610-845-2351 (contact page). Moll was absent Oct. 6; one resident attended. Our meeting-schedule guide lists the other Berks governments.

The expansion: 38 days late

Council awarded the office expansion in three pieces on Jan. 6: the general contract to FW Houder, Inc. at $303,570, mechanical to KC Mechanical at $29,000 and electrical to Xtreme Mechanical at $51,961, per the January minutes. On Feb. 3, council raised Houder's price to $310,840 "due to doubled alternate bid option removal" and issued the notice to proceed (February minutes). Work was to begin the week after the April 7 meeting.

On May 5, Mutter called it "unacceptable" that the engineer, Systems Design Engineering, was not keeping the manager informed (May minutes). In July, the siding arrived in the wrong color and was installed horizontally when the specs called for vertical (July minutes). On Aug. 4, Mutter said the contractor "simply has not been here for a good month"; council approved payment No. 2 to Houder, $72,900, with Mutter voting no (August minutes). Payment No. 1, $45,150, had passed in June. On Sept. 1, the contractor told the borough it had school contracts to finish before school started and "does agree that things could have been done better," per the September minutes. The police had moved in, but the office relocated to the council room for September so flooring, lights, doors and ceilings could be replaced. Mutter "made clear to the contractor that the office needs to be back down and running by the October council meeting," and Curley said he would read the contract to see what steps he would recommend.

On Oct. 6, solicitor R. Tim Curley asked to send Houder a notice of "breach of contract," citing the 38 days past delivery, "fall off in staffing on the job and failure to properly order materials; leading to failure of delivery." Sloan moved, Bauman seconded, and Mutter abstained; all others voted yes. Separately, council tabled Houder's payment application No. 3, $40,500, until November. By Berks Beat's count of the minutes, the borough has approved $118,050 of the $310,840 contract so far. The mayor's report in the minutes said the police extension was 95% complete and in use; the attendance list does not name the mayor. The police chief was asked to write a punch list of unfinished work. The tabled payment was back on the Nov. 3 agenda; those minutes are not yet posted.

The manager search

The January through April minutes list Wendy Mutter as borough manager. The minutes never record a resignation or termination, but they carry a trail of entries. On May 5, Glenn Mutter said a parking ordinance would get further discussion "when Wendy Mutter returns." On June 2, council voted to appoint Tammy Wood interim manager, with Glenn Mutter abstaining (June minutes). The July 7 minutes carry an item headed "Employee matters regarding Wendy Mutter," note that Glenn Mutter "stepped out of the room at this time," and record a unanimous vote for the borough to pay nine months of "mini cobra coverage of health insurance" that the minutes twice describe as "for Glenn Mutter," with no explanation of why the council president's name appears under an item headed with the former manager's; Solicitor Curley is recorded saying "this sets a precedence going forward and we must do the same for future employees." The hiring committee was told the same night to draft a manager job description. On Aug. 4, when council approved that description, Glenn Mutter asked how the office should handle irate residents, which the minutes call "a problem with the previous Manager." The president also abstained from the Oct. 6 breach-notice vote; the minutes give no reason for any of his abstentions.

On Oct. 6, council appointed Sloan as an alternate on the personnel committee because, the minutes say, Moll "is interested in applying for the manager position and would be a conflict of interest." Sloan abstained; the rest voted yes. The Nov. 3 agenda listed a closed session "to review applications for the position of Manager."

Personnel, auditor and the 2027 budget

The solicitor reported that notice had been given to Matthew Hoffman "to terminate his employment with Bally Borough, along with his option for Cobra coverage." Council had voted to terminate him Sept. 1 after an executive session; those minutes state that "it has been determined that Matt Hoffman still has his workers compensation claim active and there is no litigation against the Borough." Neither set of minutes states his position.

Council hired Mallie Accountants and Advisors as borough auditor for $17,000 after the prior auditor wrote in June that staffing would no longer let her serve the borough. In August council cleared the interim manager to send requests for proposals to Mallie, RKL and Empyrean; the October minutes record only Mallie's figure.

Treasurer Wendy Drabick-Moyer presented the 2027 draft budget. The minutes give no figures. Council hired her Aug. 4 as an outside consultant treasurer at $4,000 a month, through Moyer, Drabick and Associates, LLC, after finding it "cannot go forth without a treasurer." The Nov. 3 agenda carried a vote to send the draft to advertising, "Resolution 2026-2 Employee Raise 2027," which covers the same ground as the Oct. 6 executive session, a 2027 council meeting schedule resolution, a Fronheiser easement and the county tax-rate sheet. The advertising vote is the same step several other Berks towns took this month. Our property-tax guide explains how a mill rate turns into a bill.

Well 6 and the rest

Curley said he would meet the engineers, Superintendent Nathan Heffner and Jim Longacre at the Longacre property "to begin the process for possible land purchase" for Well 6. The test well produced 150 gallons a minute in March, per the March minutes. The Nov. 3 agenda listed the "Status of Longacre agreement."

Also approved, all unanimously: a $3,600 concrete mixer; permission for Met-Ed to replace all borough street lights with LED bulbs; and a $1,800 Safety Net Sanctuary contract for 2027. Police handled 14 calls in September (258 for the year) and are seeking two part-time officers. After complaints about chickens and noise, the chief was asked to list ordinances that are hard to enforce; "ordinance changes per the Chief of Police" was on the Nov. 3 agenda. The meeting adjourned at 9:09 p.m. Under the first-Tuesday schedule on the council page, council's next regular meeting falls on Dec. 1.