Wernersville Seeks $542K Salt Shed Grant; Union Fire Talks

Wernersville Borough wants the state to pay for a new salt shed, and the borough's own record now shows the size of the ask. Council voted Oct. 7 to ratify a grant application for $542,182.73, submitted Sept. 29 under a program the minutes call "LSA4," according to the Oct. 7 minutes the borough posted Nov. 11. The same night, council moved its monthly meetings to the second Wednesday starting in January 2027 and released $120,724.35 of a developer's deposit for the Stone Ridge subdivision.

Across the county, Union Township's supervisors told residents on Sept. 17 that no data center has been proposed in the township, and that two fire chiefs are talking about who will cover its fire calls. Those minutes reached the township's eCode360 document portal on Nov. 2, about six weeks after the meeting.

Wernersville: the salt shed grant

To ratify is to approve something after it has already been done. Council member Linda Dapcic-Angst submitted the application Sept. 29 using a cost estimate from engineer Ken Fulmer, per pages 3 and 5 of the minutes. The minutes record no discussion of why the subject changed from the council room to a salt shed, and no cost for the shed. The ratification vote, on page 5, carried unanimously with five of seven members present; Josh Fidler and Rob Gordon were absent.

The salt shed replaced an application council had approved Sept. 2 "for Council room furniture and other improvements," per the Sept. 2 minutes. The council room did not drop off the list. On Oct. 7 council also passed a resolution, unanimously, authorizing Dapcic-Angst to apply for "the LSA Statewide Grant for Council room furniture and technology," per page 4. At the Oct. 22 budget workshop she put the furniture and audio equipment at about $32,000, and council "will discuss putting this number into the budget so that the project can still be completed even if Grant money is not received," per the workshop minutes.

The minutes do not spell out "LSA4," name the agency that decides it, give a decision date, or say what a salt shed would cost the borough without the grant. Union Township's minutes, below, describe a similar application as a "Statewide Local Share Assessment Grant from the Commonwealth Financing Authority," a state agency.

Wernersville: meeting nights, a stop sign and a new street

Council meetings move to the second Wednesday of the month from January 2027, on a motion by Jim Pierce, seconded by Rick Dobransky, that carried unanimously, per page 5. President David Latino had raised the change in September. Our Nov. 4 preview listed the proposed 2027 dates, starting Jan. 13; the borough's Council Meetings page still shows the first-Wednesday rule and the 2026 dates.

Other votes Oct. 7, all unanimous per the minutes:

• An escrow release of $120,724.35 to the Stone Ridge developer, the amount the engineer recommended, per page 2. An escrow is money a developer posts with the borough so public work gets finished; a release returns part of it as work is accepted. Laura Grande of Grande Construction had asked for more. Fulmer reminded council that 15 percent must stay held for maintenance.
• Authorizing the solicitor to draft and advertise an ordinance for a stop sign at the northwest corner of N. Reber Street at W. Wilson, per page 3.
• Authorizing an ordinance to accept Marcello Circle, in Stone Ridge, as a borough street, per page 4. The borough takes on maintenance once the ordinance is enacted; the engineer said dedication brings about $580 in state Liquid Fuels road money, per page 3. The Nov. 4 agenda carried the enactment vote, conditioned on the close-out or release of the PennDOT highway occupancy permit, but no Nov. 4 minutes are posted.
• Appointing Josh Wilson as an alternate to the Joint Planning Commission, because Gordon "may still be away," for a meeting on proposed zoning map amendments in Lower Heidelberg Township, per page 4.

Council made no recommendation on the 60 Werner Street garage storage application, leaving it to the Zoning Hearing Board, per page 5. Council agreed by consensus to buy a "Tweener" lighting system for the Laurel Street tennis courts, about $20,000 and "covered under the Grant," which the minutes do not name; the roughly $22,000 electrical hookup comes later, per page 2. Cost sharing on the Beckley Street drainage project "has been agreed to but specific amount(s) are still being determined," with work likely in summer 2027, per page 3. Western Berks Fire Department named Jason Stine and Alex Lupco its new borough contacts after Jared Renshaw resigned, per page 1.

Wernersville: the budget workshop said nothing about taxes

The Oct. 22 workshop, with Latino, Gordon and Mayor Carl Reidler absent, produced one firm number for residents: the trash and recycling contract will not go up in 2027. Council put off "other budget items and Taxes" to November. The one-page minutes record no tax rate and no budget total. What council then said about taxes Nov. 4, or at the Nov. 10 workshop where a half-mill EMS tax and a borough tax increase were on the agenda, is not on the record; the borough has posted no minutes from either meeting. Our Nov. 10 roundup noted the missing Nov. 4 minutes.

Union Township: no data center proposed, for now

Two supervisors, chairman Nelson Ott Jr. and Joshua Adams, sat for the Sept. 17 meeting, per page 1. Engineer Pamela Stevens said the Planning Commission "will meet again in November to discuss Vistas and Data Centers," and Ott "wanted to clarify with everyone that currently there are no Data Centers proposed in Union Township," per page 4.

Adams asked whether the commission had talked about putting data centers in the Quarry District. Stevens answered that "any use not covered in the plan under our regional plan would go in the Quarry District," per page 5. A zoning district is an area where the ordinance lists what can be built; by Stevens's account, a use the ordinance never mentions lands by default in Union's quarry zone. She added that the joint comprehensive plan "is not joint zoning; you have your own zoning," per page 5. Resident Shane Kochel argued that a joint comprehensive plan should mean a use allowed in a partner municipality need not be allowed in Union; solicitor Elizabeth Magovern, by phone, said the Municipalities Planning Code addresses that and she would send the language to the township. Union has no entry on our data-center tracker, and these minutes give it none. The township homepage lists the Nov. 4 Planning Commission meeting as cancelled and posts no other November date for it.

Union Township: fire service, money moves and a library

Ott reported "ongoing discussions between the Chief of Monarch and the Chief of Geigertown Fire Department about providing fire services for the Township," to continue "throughout the next couple weeks," per page 3. No one from the fire company attended, per page 4. The minutes do not say what the talks would change. In our Oct. 15 preview we reported that manager Deborah Olivieri had not processed the fire company's bills in July and August over what was submitted, and that the Oct. 15 agenda again listed "Discuss Fire Company."

On money, Olivieri proposed moving $1.5 million of general fund money and $311,000 of capital reserve money from Tompkins Bank and Trust to Charles Schwab to open certificates of deposit, bank deposits locked for a set term at a fixed rate. The general fund held $2,465,819.35 as of Aug. 31, per page 1. Asked the rate by resident Dan Doyle, Ott said the last one was "about 4%," per page 4. The minutes record Ott's motion and Adams' second but no vote result. The Oct. 15 agenda then proposed rescinding both Sept. 17 motions and ratifying a $1.5 million transfer into a U.S. Treasury bill instead, completed Oct. 13 at a 4.45 percent yield. The agenda proposed rescinding the motions "made on September 17," which treats them as adopted, though the Sept. 17 minutes record no vote. No Oct. 15 minutes are posted, so the swap's outcome is not on the record either.

Other actions, each passed unanimously, per pages 2 and 3:

• Resolution 2026-20, applying for a Statewide Local Share Assessment grant for a $19,841 camera system at the public works building and a $159,157 Case backhoe.
• Appointing Colin Wilson to a three-year term on the Boone Area Library board. Ott said the library had decided not to move into the township building after "several meetings"; "it was not a perfect fit for them at this time."
• Accepting Lee Mauger's resignation from the Planning Commission after "many years" of service.

Doyle, for the Union Green community association, said Keystone Custom Homes had deeded the development's open space to the association without notice, per page 5. Ott said the township asked its engineers whether enough money remains to finish the work, was told "there is plenty," and is "sitting on it until everything is done," per page 5; solicitor Elizabeth Magovern added that the township holds the escrow "until all the improvements are done," per page 6. After an executive session, Ott said health insurance rates for some township employees rose 18 percent and the board moved to approve "Alternate Option 1 Highmark Blue Shield PPO Blue," which he said would save about $5,000 a year, per page 7. The minutes record the motion and second but no vote.

What happens next

Wernersville council meets Wednesday, Dec. 2 at 7 p.m. at Borough Hall, 100 N. Reber St., the last date on its 2026 list, per the Council Meetings page. The Nov. 10 workshop agenda asked council to pick a mid-to-late December special meeting to adopt the 2027 budget, per our roundup; no date is posted. From January, meetings fall on the second Wednesday.

Union Township's supervisors meet Thursday, Nov. 19 at 7 p.m. at the Township Building, 1445 East Main Street, Douglassville, per the homepage. The Oct. 15 agenda proposed advertising the 2027 budget for adoption that night. The eCode360 agendas list still ends at July 16, so look for the Nov. 19 agenda on the homepage.