Churchville council approves short-term rental, gaming grant application and Verizon franchise; schedules budget open house

The Churchville Borough Council on Nov. 10 approved multiple routine and policy items, including a conditional use for a short-term rental, a grant application to the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development, and a franchise agreement with Verizon Pennsylvania LLC. The council also accepted the mayor’s and treasurer’s reports and directed a public notice for the 2026 general fund budget and a Nov. 12 open house.

On land use, council approved a conditional use application filed by Lamont Coleman to operate a short-term rental at 3737 Royal Court East, conditioned on compliance with section 304-37.2 of the borough zoning code. A council member told colleagues the applicants "did a very thorough job" and noted inspections; the motion carried.

On grants, council approved Resolution 4673 authorizing a grant application to the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) for the "PA Gaming Statewide Local Share Grant Program" to fund a police and code enforcement vehicle.

Council also approved Resolution 4674 to execute a franchise agreement between the borough and Verizon Pennsylvania LLC. A council member asked whether the contract language was standard and about rate impacts; the attorney’s response (as reported in the transcript) was that the language is standard and that participation in a larger bargaining group helped hold rates steady.

Council accepted the mayor’s report (which summarized police activity, a recent high‑speed crash tied to alleged impairment, ticketing figures, and an $8,200 charity collection) and the treasurer’s report directing the finance officer to pay listed borough bills. The transcript records the treasurer reading several large invoices; the audio transcript renders some vendor names and amounts unclearly, and the official bill list attached to the treasurer’s report should be consulted for precise figures.

On budgeting, council directed the borough manager to advertise availability of the 2026 general fund budget in the Valley Mirror and announced a public open house for residents on Nov. 12 at 6 p.m. in council chambers to review the budget.

The meeting featured the usual staff reports from the borough engineer (paving work completed and a pavement management plan kickoff) and fire and police department updates. The transcript does not record formal roll-call tallies for each vote; motions were seconded and recorded as carried in the meeting audio.