The Lower Milford Township board of supervisors met 6:30 p.m. April 16 at the municipal building, 7607 Chestnut Hill Church Road.

First on the agenda for the evening, the board approved both the March 19 regular meeting and April 2 workshop meeting minutes.

Newly-appointed Lower Milford Township Manager, Elizabeth Lembach provided an update regarding the resolution which adopted a formal complaint policy back in February. With a full month of use, March saw the submittal of five written complaints – three of which have already been resolved, leaving one still pending and the remaining complaint resulting in no violation.

Next on the agenda was the acceptance of the township treasurer’s report as of April 6, as well as authorization to pay the April bills.

When it came to addressing the March staff reports, former Chair Ellen Koplin sat in the audience and engaged with the board in a discussion questioning why the staff reports were no longer available to the community members in attendance.

Lembach and supervisors Chair Tim Cougle emphasized those documents are protected by the right-to-know law and this realization was confirmed by PA State Association of Township Supervisors. There was some back and forth, but ultimately Vice Chair Susan LaBrie and Supervisor Jason Flexer favor transparency and support actions to make those documents available to the public.

A reading of the March EMS reports revealed the Macungie Ambulance Corps, Inc. responded to five calls in Lower Milford Township and the Upper Perkiomen Valley Ambulance addressed one call.

The fire company report indicated there were 44 calls from January to March.

A spring craft show fundraiser was scheduled at the fire hall. The event included vendors, a raffle, bake sale and more. All proceeds from the event benefited the Lower Milford Township Fire Company.

Additionally, the Sportsman Bingo Fundraiser will be held at the fire company May 3. Doors open 11:30 a.m. with games set to begin 1 p.m. at the fire company, 1601 Limeport Pike.

Under old business, an email was received from Lehigh County asking if Lower Milford Township would like to participate in a bell ringing noon July 4 in honor of America250. There was discussion on buildings within the township that have such a bell and the board will be putting out communication to the local churches in order to gain interest in participation.

The last item under old business garnered quite a discussion.

On the table were two proposals for brand-new wheel loaders which would replace the declining equipment currently in the township’s possession. The Case wheel loader came in with a price tag lower than that of the John Deere; however, several examples were provided by Lower Milford Township Public Works Foreman, Dan Wisser, indicating the John Deere’s quality and inevitable serviceability to be superior.

Community members questioned whether it is worth it to purchase a new loader when the equipment itself doesn’t get heavily used as evidenced by the total hours used.

Cougle clarified the hope would be to do more with the equipment in the future, even by purchasing attachments for the loader in the years to come. Despite all the discussion, a decision was not made because Wisser was tasked with getting an answer on the trade-in value/proposal presented in the quote should the current loader fail in the time it takes for the new equipment to arrive.

The vendor indicated a four-to-five month lead time and there are concerns the current loader may struggle to last that long without necessary repairs.

In new business, the hiring of a full-time zoning officer and planning administrator/administrative assistant was approved. Additionally, approvals were given to hire both a public works equipment operator and laborer. All three of these individuals started in their positions April 20, putting the township office back to full staff.

The cellphone stipend policy was discussed and the board approved the path to extending the current stipend to also cover office employees. In the coming meeting, a resolution will be presented which would similarly mimic the current approach for the public works department.

A notice from the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation was presented regarding future traffic counting on municipality-owned roads. Many roads were identified during the meeting, including Chestnut Hill Church Road, Elementary Road, Janes Lane and others. The supervisors also made a motion to remain a part of the Southwestern Lehigh County Comprehensive Plan. Despite what is anticipated to be a couple of years’ worth of finalizing the plan, they will look to update it and anticipate no significant changes.

The agenda item pertaining to an update of the electronics policy was tabled as the supervisors need to do a deeper dive into the policy before taking any next steps.

The Lower Milford Township board of supervisors will meet 6:30 p.m. May 21 for their next regularly scheduled meeting.