Fairmont Avenue in Fullerton continues to remain a non-posted speed zone.

At their Dec. 10 meeting, the Whitehall Township Board of Commissioners voted against establishing a 35 m.p.h. speed limit zone on the road between Fifth Street and Fullerton Avenue.

The November meeting included a lengthy discussion regarding the speed limit. However, this month, the issue went to vote without discussion.

Board members at the November meeting contended the roadway should be posted as a 25 m.p.h. zone. Commissioner Thomas Slonaker cast the sole vote to have the street speed limit set at 35 m.p.h.

At the November meeting, Robert Piligian, a resident of the 400 block of Oakwood Drive, whose property abuts Fairmont Avenue, said he has resided in the neighborhood since 1990.

Upon moving into the community, he noted, the street had 25 m.p.h. speed limit signs. He questioned why the township was considering setting a 35 m.p.h. zone for the road.

Township Surveyor Carl Lagler said the issue of the speed limit came up when Fairmont Avenue was rebuilt with federal stimulus funds.

The commissioners were told the township wanted to reinstall the 25 m.p.h. speed limit signs, only to learn the township does not have an official ordinance on the books establishing the 25 m.p.h. zone for that section of road.

Lagler noted the guidelines for a 25 m.p.h. zone state that access from residential properties must be to the street. He also said a 25 m.p.h. sign will not cause people to drive 25 m.p.h. in a specific area.

Lagler held that 35 m.p.h. is an appropriate speed limit because the state vehicle code considers the area an urban district. Therefore, it does not qualify as a 25 m.p.h. zone by PennDOT standards.

Piligian said PennDOT standards permit posting the 25 m.p.h. signs without a traffic study if the road is in a residential district as defined in the vehicle code.

Piligan also said there has been an increase in foot traffic on the road in the past two or three years, and increasing the speed limit causes a safety hazard.

Solicitor Charles Fonzone said Lagler is correct. Posting the road as a 25 m.p.h. zone cannot be done. If Lager were to be found wrong, the commissioners would first have to pass an ordinance.

Lee Rackus, planning development and zoning bureau chief, said a driver could contest a traffic ticket because the issuing officer must cite the ordinance limiting the speed.

Fonzone also said the area was posted 25 m.p.h. in 1960. Merely placing a sign does not make the speed limit legal, however.

"It can be brought up again. It is not cast in stone," Commissioner President Linda Snyder said when asked what happens next.