South Heidelberg police to get Tasers; public shooting-range questioned

by Steve Reinbrecht

South Heidelberg police officers are set to get Tasers soon.

And at their meeting Thursday, July 11, township supervisors tabled a decision that would permit a proposed shooting range off Penn Avenue.

Regarding the Tasers, Police Chief Barry Whitmoyer said he was surprised when he took the job July 1 to discover his officers haven’t been equipped with the weapons.

He said officers in adjacent municipalities have them.

Tasers and similar weapons fire tiny darts that are connected by thin wires to a battery in the gun. They deliver electricity to disrupt muscle control, dropping victims to the ground and leaving them unable to move for a moment.

Critics note rare injuries and deaths and the risk of abuse. Supporters say that such weapons reduce police injuries because they give officers an option between a wrestling match and shooting somebody.

In fact, Whitmoyer said, a township officer might have escaped injury if he had been able to use a Taser when two people attacked him this week.

According to the Reading Eagle, on Monday evening, Aug. 8, Officer Benjamin Shaner went to a house in the 200 block of North Sandy Lane to investigate a domestic dispute. When he tried to prevent Ariel Jimenez, 22, from leaving, Jimenez and his mother, Zenaida Altagracia Bisono, 51, attacked him, according to reports. Shaner, who was treated in an emergency room, has been cleared to return to duty, Whitmoyer said.

At the meeting, supervisors Thomas Bryne and David Schaeffer authorized Whitmoyer to get prices for the devices. Supervisor Richard E. Hummel was absent. Byrne said donations would cover some of the cost of providing a Taser for each of the township's 11 officers.

As for the shooting range, resident Sal Franco asked if township officials were aware of any studies that connected public shooting ranges with violence.

“I’m not against guns. I’m just thinking of the safety of the community.”

Chief Whitmoyer said he had no worries about the proposed business.

The planning commission had unanimously recommended the ordinance be approved.

CP Tactical Solutions filed a sketch plan for the shooting range and gun and ammunition shop on Caramist Drive, off Krick Road, behind the former Shurfine market. It would have room for eight to 10 shooters at a time and need to comply with noise requirements.

The use is not permitted in that zone. The proposal is for officials in Lower Heidelberg, South Heidelberg and Sinking Spring -- who share a zoning plan -- to allow the use in the C3 zone.

Whitmoyer and Gombar, the township’s lawyer, said restrictions by the township could run into Second Amendment challenges.

Supervisors also approved a design for a new sign to replace the one destroyed by a drunken driver in April. And they named office manager Shelly B. Keehn as interim township manager while they search for a replacement for Ron Seaman, who has taken a job as Berks County’s top administrator.

Southwestern Berks is next to rabies hotpot; reports here are rare

by Steve Reinbrecht

I’ve heard of two cases of rabies recently in Southwestern Berks County.

In early May, during the day, a resident killed a rabid skunk in his yard on Faust Road in Lower Heidelberg, according to the township. Because skunks, raccoons, foxes and bats are nocturnal, seeing them active during the day is a warning sign.

And a rabid bat was reported July 15 in Sinking Spring, according to the state agriculture department, which keeps track of cases in animals.

So far in 2016, Berks overall has had only seven reports of rabies, out of 223 reports year-to-date in Pennsylvania.

But Southwestern Berks is adjacent to the state's rabies hot spot.

“The southeast area of the state has reported the most rabies cases to date in 2016,” the state’s website says. “The southeast region frequently reports a high number of animal rabies cases in Pennsylvania.”

We abut Lancaster County, which has had 18 reports so far in 2016, the most in the state. Nearby Chester County has had 16 reports this year, the second highest number. [Maybe they have more disease; maybe better reporting.]

I’m from the generation that watched “Old Yeller” and “Cujo” in horror and recall gruesome stories of multiple painful shots in the belly as the only option to certain death. Rabies cases are rare and treatment much better. Only two or three people die of rabies in the U.S. each year, according to the federal CDC.

In the first seven months of the year, across Pennsylvania, rabies reports were up by almost 20 percent over the same period in 2015 – from 187 to 223.

Raccoons are by far the most common carrier, but don’t rule out other mammals: six cows, two goats and a horse were infected in Pennsylvania in the first half of 2016.

Lower Heidelberg dog park set to open Sept. 10

by Steve Reinbrecht

Dogs from Lower Heidelberg who want to run but need a fence to be safe are looking forward to the township’s dog park opening Saturday, Sept. 10.

All township dogs are invited to the opening celebration that day from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m.

Soon, though, dogs will need to prove they have licenses and rabies shots to use the new park, at the township building at 720 Brownsville Road.

Their people will need to prove they live in Lower Heidelberg. Then they [the people] will get key-fobs -- little plastic strips with a code – to get through the dog-park gate.

Dogs will have almost an acre for romping. Small dogs get their own, smaller, section.

Christopher Leisey, a Boy Scout, is installing obstacles so dogs can practice agility skills.

Part of the park is designed to be an ice-skating rink in the winter, for people.

Township workers and volunteers did much of the work getting the park ready. The township paid a contractor to install the fence.

Owners must clean up after their dogs. Those who don’t risk having a surveillance camera observe the violation and having their key-fobs deactivated.

Dog parks are good for dogs, who get to run safely and play with other dogs. It’s good for people, too, who get to go outside and socialize.

Wilson School District offers counseling to students, families after deaths of family

by Steve Reinbrecht

Counselors will be available Monday, Aug. 8, if people want to talk about the deaths of the members of the Short family in Sinking Spring.

Wilson School District counselors will be available at Green Valley Elementary School starting at 9 a.m.

County detectives continued Sunday to investigate the deaths of the five family members. Police found their bodies Saturday in their home at 51 Winding Brook Drive.

The father was Mark Jason Short Sr., 40. The mother was Megan L. Short, 33. The children were Liana G. Short, 8; Mark J. Short, 5; and Willow R. Short, 2.

A relative became concerned when Megan did not show up to a lunch date Saturday and asked police to check the house. Police forced their way in and found the bodies and a dead dog in the living room. All had been shot. A gun was found near one of the adults – the news release from the district attorney's office doesn’t say near whom.

Investigators found a murder-suicide note.

“This is an apparent tragic domestic incident,” the news release states.

Here is the text of a message from Wilson School District Superintendent Curt Baker, posted Sunday:

“It is with great sadness that I inform you that one of the children killed in yesterday's tragedy in Sinking Spring was Liana Short, a rising third grader at Green Valley Elementary.

“Any time death touches us, it is extremely stressful. This sudden death may be quite upsetting to you and your children. For this reason, we especially want you to know of our caring and support.

“If you feel that you or your children would benefit from speaking to a counselor or other caring adult, counselors will be available this afternoon at Green Valley Elementary School from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. and tomorrow (Monday) starting at 9:00 a.m.

“Yesterday's events have come as a shock to all of us and I ask that you keep the Short family in your thoughts and prayers.”

Ron Seaman leaving, South Heidelberg needs a new manager or two

by Steve Reinbrecht

South Heidelberg Township Manager Ron Seaman started working for the township in May 2003 after a career in Berks County government.

Now Seaman, 63, is returning to county government, and an office in Reading, to be Berks County’s chief administrative officer, the county's top non-elected post. The three Berks commissioners voted Thursday to appoint him.

After 13 years, Seaman will leave the township offices Aug. 12 and begin work for the county Aug. 17.

“These types of things don’t come along more than once in a lifetime,” he said

His exit means the township is stuck looking for a new manager. Or maybe two.

He said supervisors are considering hiring two administrators. One would manage public works – roads, storm management, parks. The other would take care of finances and day-to-day operations.

In the meantime, office manager Shelly B. Keehn will be in charge.

Berks County’s chief operations officer, Carl Geffken, left in March for a similar job in Arkansas.

Commissioner Kevin Barnhardt, a township resident, said the job opening came up informally in a conversation between him and Seaman. When Seaman said he was interested, Barnhardt and the two other commissioners decided to choose him or eliminate him before starting a search.

Workers violate erosion rules in leaving South Heidelberg slope naked

by Steve Reinbrecht

I've updated this with new information from PennDOT.

July 28

A contractor hired by PennDOT violated environmental regulations in a project at Penn Avenue and Green Valley Road, in Lower Heidelberg, across from the Sheetz.

“The earth disturbance is related to a Penn Dot project; there was a complaint and violations which have been temporarily resolved,” Berks County Conservation District spokeswoman Tammi Bartsch told me in an e-mail. “All parties are working towards a final resolution.”

J.D. Eckman, of Atglen, is the main contractor on the project, said PennDOT spokesman Sean Brown. The workers have installed more erosion control as required, he said.

In an arrangement with the state, the county conservation districts handle initial complaints about erosion problems, such as giant machines tearing off turf and exposing bare soil on a slope.

Empty Sinking Spring stores are getting attention; fitness gym will open soon

by Steve Reinbrecht

Owners of an anchorless Sinking Spring shopping center are in talks with businesses interested in opening stores in the Spring Market shops off Penn Avenue.

This is good news for the Spring Market, 3564 Penn Ave., where wrangles among owners have slowed business activities.

“There’s certainly interest,” said Keith Seymour, a leasing agent at Equity Retail Brokers, in Plymouth Meeting, trying to find tenants. The firm would not release more information until a lease is signed, he said.

Another good sign – a gym called “Iam Fit” – plans to open in the center in September. Permits were issued in June.