Board updates emergency declaration

Bills paid, staff thanked during township’s first virtual meeting

“Thank you to the residents, for doing their part during this pandemic, to keep themselves safe, and each other. I’m so proud to be a part of this community.”

In the nearly 130 years that Upper Gwynedd has existed, it hasn’t had a morning quite like Monday’s. At 11 a.m., from locations all around the township, four of the five commissioners, a handful of officials, and about a dozen residents took part in the first-ever virtual board meeting.

“Thank you to the residents, for doing their part during this pandemic, to keep themselves safe, and each other. I’m so proud to be a part of this community,” said commissioners President Liz McNaney.

Ever since the current coronavirus closures have swept across Montgomery County, Upper Gwynedd has closed the doors of the township building and most park facilities to the public, canceled a series of planned public meetings, and kept the public informed via

— Commissioners President Liz Mcnaney

Facebook Live chats with staff and board members.

A special meeting held Monday morning brought

the board back to business. Township Manager Sandra Brookley Zadell and Assistant Manager Megan Weaver oversaw a live video chat to conduct a series of formal actions and update the public on the township’s coronavirus response.

“We do have five cases in our township, and we wish them well. Everybody is here for our residents, and how we can be reached is on our website, but we’re here for all of you, 24/7. We’re in this together,” McNaney said.

The meeting started with a roll call confirming that four of the five commissioners were present on the online stream (with board member Katherine Carter absent) along with Zadell, Weaver, Police Chief David Duffy and Finance Director Dave Brill. About a dozen residents were also on the line as township Solicitor Lauren Gallagher gave an update on several executive sessions held over the past two weeks.

“On March 17, the board had an executive session via conference call to discuss matters of personnel. The board also discussed township procedures related to

the COVID-19 pandemic, at which time the board did authorize a declaration of disaster emergency, which will be subject to ratification today,” Gallagher said.

At that meeting, according to the attorney, the board also authorized payment of part-time employees through March 27, subject to formal ratification at the March 30 meeting. Another conference call executive session was also held on March 18, Gallagher said, at which the board discussed the pandemic and authorized “the posting and distribution of a social distancing policy to all township uniform- and non-uniform employees.”

Another conference call executive session was held on March 19 to discuss personnel matters, Gallagher announced, and on March 23 the board met with the township emergency management coordinator via

conference call to hear an update on the township’s emergency management plan. On the 23rd the board also authorized extending the disaster declaration, and another conference call was held on March 25 to discuss personnel and public safety matters, the attorney said.

Those three emergency declarations, dated March 17, 23 and 30, were all approved unanimously Monday morning as separate action items, with details on each available in the board’s meeting materials packet. McNaney asked if the board could authorize a longer emergency period, and Gallagher said her firm is advising towns to stay short, for now.

During the executive session announcements and votes, Zadell muted all callers listening in, then unmuted for the public comment portion of the meeting. The special meeting agenda included a header with a phone number and access code to call in, and Zadell also fielded questions emailed in once the meeting was underway. One public comment was made, by a resident asking about how to file for unemployment benefits if she is the sole proprietor of a business, and Gallagher suggested contacting state agencies for the latest information.

The board also unanimously approved several other action items, including a two-month extension on the discount period for municipal taxes to be paid. That discount period would have ended March 31 but now ends May 31, with the subsequent face value payment period also now extended two months to July 31, according to Zadell.

Board Vice President Denise Hull used her code enforcement report to suggest residents use their downtime during quarantine to fill out their 2020 census forms. Police Chief David Duffy then gave a police update in place of Carter’s public safety report.

“Our cars have never been cleaner on the inside, I’ve never smelled so much Lysol and disinfectant in our station as before, but it’s a continuous effort, it’s our honor to serve you, an we encourage people to still be vigilant,” Duffy said.

Commissioner Ruth Damsker had a suggestion to anyone feeling cabin fever: Spend some time outdoors.

“Keeping your social distance if you’re walking, is great. In fact, I’ve even lost a pound or two, so there’s an advantage to it,” she said.