At the Feb. 26 East Allen Township Board of Supervisors workshop meeting, supervisors entertained a discussion about establishing a rental inspection program for the township.

Township Manager Brent Green explained the current township inspection is for the outside of the building only, not the inside. He noted the current inspection is only to learn if the property is in compliance with township zoning regulations.

East Allen Township Volunteer Fire Department Deputy Fire Chief Raymond Henry talked about the issues facing the fire department when responding to a fire call at a rental building or properties that have a rental unit. He said the fire department would be better served if they were aware of the layout of an apartment building.

Some municipalities have their fire departments complete rental inspections, with a focus on fire safety.

Green noted it is complicated to develop a rental program and they need to consider numerous issues and considerations such as identifying all rental properties in the township, tracking when a tenant moves out, staffing issues to address the time needed to arrange and complete inspections, who would complete the inspections and considerations regarding rentals that are rented by the week, month or year.

The discussion concluded with supervisor Chair Roger Unangst asking Green to contact other municipalities with an active rental inspection program to learn how they developed and coordinate it.

Green agreed to follow up to provide rental inspection information at the next supervisors meeting.

In other business, supervisors held a discussion about the grant award to make improvements to Township Line Road, which is on the boundary with Lower Nazareth Township. Lower Nazareth and East Allen townships are planning a joint grant request to repair Township Line Road.

Supervisors approved earmarking $200,000 to match $200,000 from Lower Nazareth Township. Both municipalities are confident they will be awarded a grant to cover expenses to the road repair.

A resident expressed frustration that the road is a straight, long road that, even now in a state of disrepair, many cars speed down. He noted that when the street is resurfaced, the speeding will get worse. He also said there will be more people driving on the road when it is repaired, making it more dangerous.

The gentleman noted he inquired why Colonial Regional Police do not provide coverage for Township Line Road. He said it is because it is a boundary road between East Allen and Lower Nazareth townships. He requested the supervisors consider speed-calming activities such as digital speed signs to show a driver how fast they were driving and speed humps to slow down traffic.

The resident asked if the supervisors could establish an agreement to have Colonial Regional Police, who patrol Lower Nazareth Township, and/or the Pennsylvania State Police, who patrol East Allen Township, have a presence on the road. The supervisors said they are open to considering any safety measures to manage traffic speed.

The final discussion point of the meeting was a presentation by Green to the supervisors about the costs of truck replacements. Green noted the planning for replacement trucks needs to be ongoing because of increased costs and unclear delivery times. He said a tandem truck planned replacement cost is about $316,000.

A tandem truck features one front steering axle and two rear drive axles positioned closely together to distribute heavy loads evenly, improve stability and increase payload capacity. They are reportedly ideal for applications such as hauling heavy materials, offer superior stability and have increased maneuverability.