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Residents press council on school safety, water quality and opioid‑settlement use
Summary
Residents urged clearer data on school safety plans and asked how opioid‑settlement funds and lead service‑line testing will be used; borough staff said the hydraulic study is nearly complete and clarified replacement responsibilities for service lines.
At the meeting’s public‑comment period, residents raised several recurring concerns: school safety and special law enforcement officers, water discoloration and lead‑service‑line testing, and use of opioid‑settlement funds for Narcan and outreach.
During the public hearing on Ordinance 2025‑13 (special law enforcement officers), a resident asked whether the borough had conducted a study showing a need for specially assigned officers in schools and what the ongoing financial burden would be. Council members and staff said the SLEO concept was developed with the board of education and the police department but that a definitive borough‑level study was not presented at the meeting. Council discussion acknowledged both the desire for student safety and concerns about long‑term costs and implementation.
"The safety of our children is everyone's duty here," Mr. Richie said during debate, framing the public‑safety rationale while the council agreed staff would provide more detailed cost and implementation estimates.
On water issues, Joanne Mitchell thanked the council for newly installed pedestrian lights on Prospect Street but reported several crossings where the lights did not consistently stop traffic and suggested adding larger strobes. In response to household complaints about discolored water, borough staff (Mr. Neil) said the first phase of the hydraulic study — flow testing and GIS modeling — is complete. "That should be finalized probably this week or next and then we'll move into phase two, which would be a public presentation," Mr. Neil said. Staff cautioned that a single root cause has not been established and that recent infrastructure changes and remediation work altered flow patterns and pressures.
Residents asked about lead service‑line testing and timelines for replacement. Borough staff explained the inspection process: the borough checks the service line at the curb box and will replace the municipal portion (main to curb) if found to be lead; the homeowner is responsible for the line from the curb to the house. Staff said no specific homeowner‑assistance grants were identified at the meeting.
A public commenter noted about $63,000 in unallocated opioid‑settlement funds as of the end of the 2024 fiscal year and urged expanded Narcan distribution and education. Staff said some funds have been used to support police outreach and that part of the allocation is planned to outfit SLEOs and support educational programming in partnership with the health commission.
Other public comments included a report of a stolen pride flag and a request to post a deterrent sign, and a reminder that the next council meeting will be held as a webinar with the link posted on the town website.
The council recorded the public input and asked staff to return with cost estimates and timing for SLEO implementation, and to publish the hydraulic study findings in a forthcoming public presentation.
