Bern Township to Take Warehouse Fight to Commonwealth Court

Bern Township's supervisors have decided to appeal a county judge's ruling on the Stinson Warehouse to Commonwealth Court, the state appeals court that handles matters involving state and local governments, according to the minutes of the Oct. 6 meeting, which the township posted Nov. 2. The ruling went the developer's way and would allow a 45-foot building with no conditions, the township manager told the Planning Commission in September, according to that board's minutes. The move keeps the fight over the 260,352-square-foot warehouse proposed at 1067 W. Leesport Road in court, and it came at the last meeting Township Manager Brian Potts attended from the dais before his retirement at the end of the year.

The appeal

The announcement came at the end of the meeting. After an executive session that the agenda listed as a personnel matter and possible action on a grievance, the board reconvened at 8:05 p.m. and board chair Irene Reed "stated the Supervisors have decided to appeal the recent judge's ruling for the Conditional Use for Reading-One Three warehouse and will be taking it to Commonwealth Court," the minutes say. The minutes record no vote on the appeal, do not describe what the judge ruled, and do not give a date or case number.

The ruling came up earlier that night, too. During public comment, a resident asked the board to consider appealing the court's decision on the warehouse, saying her understanding was that the court had ruled in favor of the developer, according to the minutes. Township solicitor Keith Mooney "noted there has not been a written decision issued yet" and said that once the written decision is received, the township has 30 days to appeal. Those are the Oct. 6 minutes' only accounts of the ruling. The township's own Planning Commission heard more a month earlier: its Sept. 8 minutes, posted in mid-October, record that Potts "informed the Board the Judge for the Conditional Use appeal, ruled in favor of the developer (Reading One Three, LLC)," that the township "will have to deliberate whether they want to make an appeal to the Commonwealth Court," and that "What the Judge's ruling means is that the developer can build a 45' tall building with no conditions."

The case goes back to a height request. Reading One Three, LLC, the company tied to Crossroads Beverage Group, asked to build the warehouse 45 feet tall where the township's zoning allows 35 feet. The supervisors denied that conditional-use request 5-0 on April 7, the company appealed to the Berks County Court of Common Pleas, and on Sept. 1 the board voted 3-2 to reject a settlement that would have allowed the 45-foot building with 32 conditions attached. The Sept. 1 minutes said Judge Fudeman was hearing the appeal; the Oct. 6 minutes do not name the judge. Our report on the W. Leesport Road tract covers the site's history, and our Aug. 31 preview lists the 32 conditions.

Berks Beat could not read the ruling. The county retired its old online docket search this fall and moved civil cases to the CourtPro Viewer, which the Prothonotary's page says every user must register to use; our guide to Berks court records explains the change. As of Nov. 3, a search of the state courts' web portal, which lists Commonwealth Court dockets, turned up no appeal involving Bern Township or Reading One Three; the newest Commonwealth Court filings the portal listed were dated Oct. 30. Until a court document is public, the township's own accounts are the only description of what the judge decided.

Four of the five supervisors were present: Reed, Brian Eveland, Jeffrey Thompson and Theresa Stork. Boyd Wagner, one of the two no votes on the September settlement rejection, is not listed in the minutes. Every vote on Oct. 6 was 4-0.

Potts retiring, Seiders in as assistant manager

Reed introduced Jessica Seiders as the new assistant township manager, "upon Mr. Potts's retirement at the end of the year," the minutes say; the Planning Commission's Sept. 8 minutes had already called her "the new Township Manager." Potts said Oct. 6 would be his last supervisors meeting seated on the dais, with Seiders taking that seat for the November and December meetings. Reed congratulated Potts on what she called his excellent state Department of Environmental Protection audit, which Potts later tied to the township's MS4 stormwater program.

The board also voted 4-0 on a resolution for the Berks County Tax Collection Committee, the body Potts described as the committee that "collects our earned income tax and our local services tax and remits it to us." Secretary/Treasurer Diane DeJesus has been the township's primary representative and Potts the alternate for the Schuylkill Valley School District, the minutes say. With Potts retiring, Seiders becomes the primary representative and DeJesus the alternate.

A $60,000 health-cost program for employees

The board voted 4-0 to offer the Samaritan Fund Program to the police and administration departments. Potts described it as a fund "sourced with funds from 3rd party sponsors, foundations and groups that provide donations," meant for people with a chronic illness and costly health bills. Under his description, an employee or family member with a chronic illness applies; if accepted, they stay on the program for one year, and "any significant health charges or claims are moved out of our account and moved into the Samaritan Fund account." The township pays $60,000 to the Samaritan Fund, and Benecon, the township's health insurance carrier, "would credit us the $60,000.00," the minutes say. The employee gets a pre-coded debit card that can be used only for medical expenses and must re-apply each year. The minutes do not say what the program costs the township on net, or how many employees might use it.

In a related personnel item, the board approved 4-0 a side letter with the Teamsters union for a road department employee out on workers' compensation. Potts said the employee, expected to be out six to ten months, wants to trade in the five vacation days he earned on his hiring anniversary and put that value toward his co-pays. After the executive session, the board voted 4-0 to allow a road department member to exchange vacation for sick time, "with the understanding that this is a non-precedent setting event."

Fire insurance money now split 95-5

The board approved 4-0 a third amendment to its fire service agreement with Muhlenberg Township Fire and Rescue. Potts said the agreement had given Muhlenberg Fire 100 percent of the foreign fire insurance money the township receives from the state, and that Muhlenberg Fire "has decided to share 5% with Mt. Pleasant Fire Company." The amendment lets the township send 5 percent to Mt. Pleasant and 95 percent to Muhlenberg. The minutes do not give the dollar amount. Chief Lupco reported 147 calls for service in September, 35 of them in Bern Township.

Also on Oct. 6

• Holiday Village: on engineer Kent Morey's recommendation, the board released $72,882 from the development's escrow, the third release, leaving a balance of $213,592.85.
• Police pension: the board approved advertising an amendment Potts called "a minor change in the police pension ordinance." The minutes do not say what changes.
• Eagle Metals: the board granted two waivers the Planning Commission recommended, one from cartway widening (ordinance section 154-24.A.(12)) because the cartway was widened in the company's last project, and one from street-tree planting (154-32.N) because trees already stand between the parking lot and the street.
• Burn ban: lifted on Potts' recommendation.
• Police: a $220 bid for a police bike was accepted. Chief Brett Forry reported a $500 donation from IAMABLE, a group whose road race for disabled veterans the department has helped with for three years; the supervisors did not object to receiving it, and the Nov. 2 agenda lists its ratification. Forry recognized Sgt. Noll and Officer Mazza for actions on Aug. 29 that he said helped save a resident's life; state Rep. Eric Weaknecht presented a citation to Mazza and state Rep. Brett Miller of Lancaster one to Noll.
• Route 183: answering a resident's question about roundabouts, Weaknecht said there is a long-term possibility, and that "within the next two years the entire road (Route 183) will be resurfaced, rumble strips installed, and a light at the Penn-Bernville Elementary School with left-hand turning lane coming south and right-hand turning lane going north," the minutes say. Forry said traffic coming out of a development onto Route 183 is a City of Reading and PennDOT issue.
• Recycling: Potts confirmed that paper, cardboard and newspaper are to be separated from glass, cans and plastics, and explained the cost difference between single-stream and dual-stream collection.
• Finances as of Oct. 6: general fund $2,128,835.48, state account $229,120.41, PLGIT $81,311.67, certificates of deposit $647,257.41 and expenses $841,314.73. A state CD, kept separate from the other funds, was to mature Oct. 28; Potts said the township would call local institutions for rates, as in the past.

What's next

The board met again Nov. 2, and that meeting's agenda listed approval to advertise the 2027 budget, a "Technology Industrial District" ordinance and map change, approval to advertise a data center ordinance, a time-extension item for "Stinson Drive Properties," which the agenda dates 12/2/26, and "Discussion/Approval of Stinson Drive Closure." No minutes or other record of what happened Nov. 2 is posted yet. Potts told the board Oct. 6 that an email would go out to schedule the 2027 budget meeting. The next regular meeting is set for 7 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 1, per the Nov. 2 agenda.