Pottstown council leadership unchanged after reorganization meeting; public comment rules changed

POTTSTOWN — Although there may have been no contenders to oppose the three incumbents in this year’s election for borough council, there were some contenders for the top spots on the council.

Tuesday night, the council held its reorganizational meeting, a normally routine affair during which the president, vice president and president pro tem of council are elected from among the members, along with annual appointments such as the solicitor and the engineer.

Unlike in previous years, however, Dan Weand’s reelection as president of borough council and Don Lebedynsky’s as vice president were not unanimous.

When the time came for nominations, Councilwoman Lisa Vanni nominated Councilwoman Trenita Lindsay for the president’s post as well. Lindsay won support from Vanni, Councilman Joe Kirkland and herself. Weand was supported by himself, Lebedynsky, and councilmen Ryan Procsal and Andrew Monastra.

That same majority of four supported Lebedynsky for vice president. Lindsay has nominated Vanni for vice president, who won support from herself, Lindsay and Kirkland.

Kirkland even voted against himself for the position of president pro tem, the person who takes over the meeting if the president and vice president are both absent. He, Vanni and Lindsay supported Vanni for that post. Nevertheless, Kirkland remained president pro tem as the result of votes from Weand, Lebedynsky, Procsal and Monastra, leaving council’s leadership team unchanged from the previous four years and Kirkland to remark “same old, same old.”

Also unchanged are the post of borough solicitor, who is Charles D. Garner Jr.; assistant solicitor, who is Matthew Hovey and the borough engineer, who is Pottstown-based Cedarville Engineering.

Rule Changes

There were, however, some changes proposed to the operating rules by both Vanni and Monastra.

Vanni suggested that in addition to the council president, vice president and borough manager being present for the “pre-agenda meeting” — the meeting at which council meeting agendas are decided upon — that another member of the council be allowed to attend as well. Previously, said Kirkland, he had attended as president pro tem, but Vanni replied she believes “that seems like the same old, same old too” and advocated for any member of council to be there, a change which was adopted unanimously.

Vanni also asked for a change expanding the amount of time permitted for public comment to be expanded from three minutes to five minutes.

“It’s really hard to make a point in three minutes,” she said. “People struggle and two more minutes is not going to make or break a meeting. We’re here to listen, so we should give them time to speak.”

That change was adopted with only Lebedynsky voting no.

While Vanni’s change expanded potential public comment, Monastra suggested a change restricting public comment to “residents and taxpayers, translated, stakeholders in this borough. Taxpayers, residents should be speaking.” The change was adopted with Vanni and Kirkland voting no.

As a result, the first person signed up to give public comment, Leanne Boyer, a resident of Barto who runs a nonprofit agency aiding unhoused people, was not permitted to speak as she had at previous meetings.

Resident and business owner Sheila Dugan seemed to allude to such previous speakers when she talked about “how many outsiders come in to rescue our town. I’m here to tell you, it’s not the way to save us.”

Dugan who, with her husband Gene runs Grumpy’s Handcarved Sandwiches, said the couple lives, works and has raised their family in the borough, and “my husband and I certainly have helped in many ways those that are underserved. But when we continue to have the bar so low by allowing others to bring in their free care for the homeless in Pottstown; by asking that the homeless should have special privileges when they are trespassing on private property we do not make a change for the better.”

Added Dugan, “I am only asking for other towns to share in this burden. Allowing 50-plus sober houses in this town, we will never reach revitalization.” Her husband Gene picked up on the same subject, noting that “West Norriton has a policy that they can’t have any sober houses within 650 feet of the previous one” whereas there are two right next to each other on the street where he lives.

Charging that such homes “are money makers,” Gene Dugan said when residents are kicked out of such places for failing a urine test, “where are those guys gonna go? Back on the streets. They’re not helping nobody. I have a 16-year-old daughter who watched a guy masturbate on the street in front of Jean’s Lingerie. Fortunately, the cops got there in the nick of time. Four nights later, he was on the bottom of my steps, asleep.”

Another business owner, Lindsey Neh, owner of Laurel and Lace Floral Design, said she wears gloves when cleaning up around her North Hanover Street store because of how many used syringes she finds there.

“Over the last several months, there have been shootings in uncomfortably close proximity to my shop,” she said, adding “I’ve seen the toll these incidents take on residents and other businesses firsthand, and it isn’t good.”

This public comment rule change was further put to the test when Borough Manager Justin Keller struggled to determine if Jodie Kandy, an unhoused person who gave an address of 53 College Drive, fit the definition of “resident.”

“Unfortunately it does not seem like I cannot take your comment because you’re not a taxpayer,” Keller said.

“I’m not a taxpayer even though I’ve lived in the borough for 20 years and I have only been living here for six months?” Kandy replied.

Mayor Stephanie Henrick then wondered aloud how the word “taxpayer” is being defined for the purposes of giving public comment. It was quickly decided that paying sales taxes at a borough business does not qualify. However, Kandy was ultimately allowed to speak because she gave a borough address.

“Go ahead, you have your five minutes,” Keller said.

Kandy, who spoke at a previous council meeting, again addressed how the issue of the unhoused is being addressed in Pottstown.

“I understand how everyone wants to point their fingers at the homeless and how we’re easy targets,” she said. “It’s equal, the crime inside of homes to crimes outside of homes, it’s just that people committing crimes outside of homes, its easier to point a finger at.”

She said “Yes, a homeless person got shot. But it wasn’t a homeless person that shot him,” referring to the daytime Nov. 22 shooting and killing of Jeremiah Hawkins.

“I have no help,” said Kandy, adding that Boyer “is amazing with all the things she does, but she can’t talk because she doesn’t live here, even though she’s taking care of the problem that no one else wants to take care of.”