The Phoenixville Borough Council met on Tuesday Oct 13 for their monthly meeting and check-in to discuss various topics, from mail-in voting updates to borough trick-or-treat best practices.
The topic of mail-in ballots was discussed, and the mayor Pete Urscheler remarked on the large amount of questions being asked about the process.
“There is an official ballot box at the Phoenixville library and it will be here from now until election day,” he stated, later adding, “Don’t send in a naked ballot, meaning send it in the official envelope.”
A brief COVID update was also relayed, and it was noted that Phoenixville had 20 new cases in the past month. Cases in other areas of Chester County are starting to spike, and the mayor urged Phoenixville residents to continue to follow safe and socially distant practices.
He ended the briefing by thanking all of the non-profit organizations and festivals that had engaged the public online during the last few months.
Various borough recommendations around the topic of Halloween were also discussed by the council.
“It has been a hot button topic around the borough,” Urscheler stated. “We are suggesting that we refrain from trick or treating this year, at least in the traditional sense.”
He went on to describe other events that residents can participate in to support his “spookily distant Halloween celebration.” These included a virtual costume, coloring, and decoration contest to be held on Halloween for residents of the borough.
Several ordinance projects were discussed, and the council was briefed on the ongoing plans to sell bonds to the public on order to gain money for a new Phoenixville firehouse. These bonds will be sold in a sort of reverse auction setting, and a motion was put forward to schedule a hearing for public opinion on the matter.
There was a short tribute to David Freeze Jr. with council member Richard Kirkner stating, “He loved this community and he devoted his life to it like no one I’ve ever known.”
The next council meeting is to be scheduled sometime in November, and meetings will remain virtual for the remainder of the year.
Alex Johnson 