Lansdale council approves subdivision, infrastructure contracts and debt ordinances; Liberty Bell Trail phase 3 contract awarded

The Lansdale Borough Council on May 20 approved a package of land‑use, procurement and financing actions, including preliminary and final land development approval for a three‑lot townhouse subdivision, multiple infrastructure contracts and ordinances authorizing borrowing for sewer work.

Land development: Council approved resolution 26‑16 granting preliminary and final land development approval to Carpen LLC for a three‑lot subdivision and townhouse development at 134 West 6th Street. The motion incorporated two additional waivers read by the borough solicitor that the Planning Commission recommended: permitting a driveway slope of 7% (rather than the 4% standard) to meet existing site constraints, and allowing two street trees along the frontage instead of three because of overhead utilities; the third tree will be installed at the rear of the property, the applicant's attorney said.

Contracts and payments: Council approved several contract awards and payments including:

- Awarding the Liberty Bell Trail Phase 3 contract to Dully Construction, the lowest responsible bidder, for $959,166.50 (per Remington and Associates recommendation).

- Authorizing a 2026 liquid fuels microsurfacing program contract (base bid plus alternative 1) to Moreno Corporation for $495,684 and awarding a paving/ADA contract for West 3rd Street and Edgemont Avenue to Schifler Contractors for $536,914 per engineer recommendation.

- Approving final payments: $97,200 to Bridal Stanton Inc. for two substations and $108,000 to Asplum Engineering Services LLC for replacement of protective relays.

Operations and ordinances: Council authorized purchases for the electric department (wire cart refurbishment up to $30,000; pole car refurbishment up to $5,000), activated an exam process to establish eligibility lists for police hires, and directed the solicitor to prepare an ordinance to amend the noise ordinance. Council also voted to split a motion on handicap parking: it directed staff to prepare and advertise for a handicap space at 879 Wedgwood Drive and sent the request for 413 Delaware Avenue back to committee for further review.

Financing: Council adopted ordinances to increase borough indebtedness by issuing notes up to $3,000,000 and up to $1,000,000 to fund capital improvements and repairs to the sanitary sewer and storm sewer systems, respectively; council voted in favor of those ordinances.

Appointments and other business: Council appointed Mike Yetter as a council appointee to the Lansdale Library Board. In the Mayor's report, borough staff announced paid EV charging will begin June 15 with an estimated charge cost of about $15 (approximate) and an idling fee of roughly $0.10 per minute after the first 20 minutes.

Votes at a glance (selected motions):

- Treasurer's report for April 2026 — APPROVED (unanimous) - Check warrant, 05/20/2026 — APPROVED (unanimous) - Resolution 26‑16 (134 West 6th St., Carpen LLC, land development & waivers) — APPROVED - Liberty Bell Trail Phase 3 contract to Dully Construction — APPROVED ($959,166.50) - Liquid fuels microsurfacing contract to Moreno Corporation — APPROVED ($495,684) - Paving/ADA contract to Schifler Contractors — APPROVED ($536,914) - Ordinances to issue notes up to $3,000,000 and up to $1,000,000 for sewer capital work — APPROVED - Appointment: Mike Yetter to Lansdale Library Board — APPROVED

What to watch next: Council directed the solicitor to prepare and advertise ordinances for several items and to split advertising for handicap parking requests so one will return to committee; the solicitor also committed to circulating documents on the immigration‑policy discussion for future council consideration.