Street improvement specifications have been sent to contractors for work to be done on Hanover Township roadways, according to a report by township Engineer Fredrick Hay.

"The paving will be on Cedar Hill Drive, around the Allentown Apartments," Hay told Hanover Township Council members at their Aug. 1 meeting.

Hay said bids are expected to be returned within the next few weeks.

The road surface on Cedar Hill Drive was disturbed when improvements were made to the sewage system last year. Those construction areas have settled and the final paving can now be completed.

Hay also asked council for approval to add a white, traffic lane edge-marker around the intersection of Postal Road and Marcon Boulevard.

"We want to do it primarily for the people who walk along the road," he said. "The line would be five feet from the edge and would define a path for the walkers."

Council members agreed unanimously to approve Hays' suggestion.

Also at the meeting, Hay reported on a traffic study done on the intersection of Airport Center Road and the spur between the Target store and the Five Guys restaurant that leads to a parking lot.

"The area warrants a three-way stop sign," he said.

The developer has offered to put in the stop signs.

Since the signs are on private property, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation is not involved.

"The stop signs are a good idea," said Councilman Randall Atkinson. "There are times when traffic is backed up to the parking area with people waiting to get out."

There is also a concern that cars traveling along Airport Center going past the intersection are moving quickly during heavy traffic periods.

The three stop signs are designed to slow traffic, provide a safety buffer and reduce traffic exiting the mall parking area.

In other business, township Solicitor Jackson Eaton explained an ordinance he drafted to increase the size of township projects that do not require competitive bidding.

The old threshold of $10,500 would be increased to $18,500 and would be adjusted annually to account for inflation.

Although the ordinance could be passed by council, voters in the November election must approve the measure before it becomes part of the township code.

"We need the voter approval because the township operates under a Home Rule Charter," he said.

The new rules, as proposed by Eaton, do not give the township defacto power over the process.

"Under the ordinance, the township would need to solicit at least three bids for any project and keep a record of the bids," he said.

Eaton will work with the elections board to prepare a summary of the proposed ordinance that will appear on the November ballot.

He said after the meeting that the informal bids received by the township for projects under $18,500 would be available for review by the public.

"That is my assumption at this point," he said. "Council could change that when they pass the ordinance."