2010 News

October 21, 2010

“A Good Deal for Fire Service in Bucks County"
Commissioners Visit Croydon Fire Company for Bi-Monthly Business Meeting

The Croydon Fire Company is located less than a mile-and-a-half from the site of the future Lower Bucks Public Safety Training Center. Moments before joining federal, local and Bucks County Community College officials to break ground on that projected $7.5 million facility on the Dow Chemical property in Bristol Township, the Board of Bucks County Commissioners approved 47 contract resolutions for 18 county departments during its bi-monthly slate of public business.

Welcoming the commissioners and other county administrators to the fire house was Croydon Fire Chief Tom Tryon. He thanked the board for its commitment to public safety and the geographically friendly training center that will save lower-end firefighters countless hours in commute time. Their current training regimen requires them to travel to Doylestown Township for drills. Commissioner Chairman Charles H. Martin presented the Croydon Fire Company with a Bucks County flag to fly above its State Road headquarters.

Among the approved resolutions was a much-discussed Corrections contract with Kintock Group of King of Prussia to provide housing for up to 25 female inmates. According to Corrections Director Harris Gubernick, the contract will allow the county to alleviate overcrowding of females at the Bucks County Correctional Facility (BCCF). The county will pay Kintock Group, an accredited corrections housing agency, $75 per day per inmate for its residential services. The commissioners joined Mr. Gubernick in thanking Kintock Chief Executive Officer Diane DeBarri for working with the county to answer several concerns regarding the contract.

Less than two weeks prior to the Nov. 2 General Election, the board approved a trio of contracts with voting machine vendor Electec to extend the warranty on county machines, to pay a software license fee and to provide technical support for the election. Commissioner Diane M. Ellis-Marseglia, LCSW voted no on all three contracts, which passed by a 2-1 margin. She also voted against an annual flood insurance renewal for the Finance department, and opposed a $174,209 HVAC contract renewal for General Services because the work is being outsourced rather than performed by county staff HVAC personnel.

In the Human Services realm, the board approved three contracts for Children & Youth, 11 contracts relating to case management, treatment and community service, and nine contacts for Mental Health/Mental Retardation.

During his chief operating officer’s report, county COO Brian Hessenthaler reminded the public that the 5th Annual Pandemic Flu Drill will take place from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. on Saturday, November 13 at Sesame Place in Middletown Township (100 Sesame Place, Langhorne, PA 19047). Additional information about the traffic route for this drive-thru inoculation event will be forthcoming, and a map of the drill site will be available on the official county website, www.BucksCounty.org.

Mr. Hessenthaler stated that the 2011 county budget process is progressing toward a November preliminary release, with the next few weeks representing a “very intense” phase. He also provided an update on the county Parking Garage-Courthouse shuttle, which accommodated 315 riders during its first four days of service (October 12-15). The free shuttle service is available on county business weekdays from 7 a.m.-9:30 a.m. and 3 p.m.-5:30 p.m.

During her chief clerk’s report, Lynn Bush referenced 2011 as the 60th anniversary of the Bucks County Planning Commission (of which she is the executive director). She noted that Tullytown recently became the latest municipality to work with the Planning Commission to update its plan, meaning all 54 county municipalities have utilized the Planning Commission’s expertise.

As part of its “other civics” contribution program, the board unanimously approved $5,000 allocations to the Bristol Riverside Theater and the Towns Against Graffiti (TAG) program.

The next meeting of the Board of Bucks County Commissioners will take place at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday, November 10, in the Bucks County Courthouse Community Room. Please note that this date is one week later than usual in order to accommodate the General Election.