In a recent meeting on Tuesday, November 14, the Borough of Newtown Board of Burgesses addressed a number of significant community and zoning matters.

The meeting opened with Warden Jay Maher expressing his commendation to Main Street homeowners for representing the Borough community so well during their “exemplary” Halloween celebration.

Maher noted the impressive turnout, stating, “It was a very good, safe evening. By one Main Street count, we had 1,945 customers.”

Burgess Jim Gaston offered an even higher figure, stating his estimate “was between 2,800 and 2,900 based on our candy.”

The Warden also extended gratitude to the police department for their role in ensuring a safe and enjoyable evening for the community.

A key discussion during the meeting involved a report from Douglas Nelson, chair of the Borough Zoning Commission, who highlighted two primary concerns: buffer requirements and LED lighting regulations.

He pointed out the need for a re-evaluation of buffer requirements, given the small size of Borough properties and the necessity for flexibility in decision-making on a case-by-case basis.

“The reason why it was a problem for us was that we had very stringent requirements for buffers that don’t really work in the Borough because the Borough properties are small,” he explained.

Regarding LED lighting, chair Nelson’s primary concern was to maintain lower brightness levels. He mentioned, though, that some lights, particularly those near local banks, had exceeded the usual threshold of 3,000 lumens.

Another topic of note was a reexamination of a decades-old ordinance targeted against vendors, hawkers, and salespeople.

The Burgesses uniformly defended the relevance of this ordinance, with Gaston emphasizing, “We don’t want people knocking on our Main Street doors as vendors or salespeople. If you’re going to do that, we should know that you’re going to be doing that, and we should charge a fee.”

Unexpected Revelation

The meeting took a significant turn when discussing new business, when the Burgesses turned their attention to the ongoing preservation effort at Deep Brook Farm on the part of Newtown Forest Association (NFA).

Earlier in the meeting, an unexpected accounting revelation showed that the Borough’s American Rescue Plan (ARP) account held $190,000 more than anticipated.

“That’s a nice error to have,” Gaston mentioned.

“That is the silver lining. Otherwise, I’m mortified!” joked Borough Treasurer Paula Brinkman.

Gaston proposed that some part of the funds be utilized to support NFA in its bid to preserve the Deep Brook property, which is currently short $300,000 of the ultimate offer they hope to make.

“It’s a historic farm. I would like to see it preserved,” he passionately stated. “That $190,000 of found money — I think we should contact the Forest Association to see if we can use that money to try and narrow that gap, how much if not all of it.

Maher echoed Gaston’s enthusiasm, saying the property, which abuts the Borough, “is something that I’m quite familiar with. It’s a true treasure.

“The idea of paving those roads to develop property is something that I can’t really comprehend. So anything that the Borough can do to help the Forest Association, I’m all for,” Gaston added.

Gaston also suggested that at least some of the ARP funds be diverted to lighting improvements along Church Hill Road, at the recommendation of the Zoning Chair.

The Board agreed to appoint Maher as the liaison to contact NFA Association and explore the possibility of making a significant conditional contribution to the Deep Brook Farm preservation effort.

In other discussions, as part of the Borough’s ongoing commitment to maintaining its green landscape, the success of a recent tree planting at 50 Main Street was highlighted, replacing one that had to be removed previously.

John Madzula II was appointed an interim burgess, filling a vacancy left with the move out of the Borough by Meghann Buck. Madzula will remain in the interim position until the next Borough elections in May.

Chris Gardner reported damaged signs on the Main Street flagpole will be replaced by Public Works.

In response to a question to the Board, West Street resident Sue Torrey was informed that property owners within the Borough are responsible for cleaning up after Halloween.

Reporter Owen Tanzer can be reached at owen@thebee.com.