Myerstown Borough

Irises beginning to bloom. They look really good against the Homestead even better in person.

Here is a digital copy of our Spring 2021 Newsletter, which was published last month! A big thank you to SkyLimit Marketing and Kapp Advertising for their help with the design, publishing, and distribution! You can download a pdf here for easier reading: https://www.myerstownpa.org/Myerstown%20Borough%20Newslette... If you have a community organization that is interested in publishing an article in our Fall 2021 Newsletter, please let us know!

Calling all Myerstown Entrepreneurs and Small Business Owners! Check out this great opportunity!

The Easter Bunny has been to the park!!! Easter Egg Hunt starts at 10:00am!!!

The snow has melted and spring is here! For homeowners that means it's time to clean up our yards after the winter storms. Your Public Works Department will collect and dispose of all properly-bagged yard waste every Monday and Friday during the month of April and the first two weeks of May: April 5, 9, 12, 16, 19, 23, 26, and 30 May 3, 7, 10, and 14... Yard waste consists of leaves and small sticks, and must be placed in a CLEAR plastic bag at your curb by 7:00 a.m. on any of the above collection days. Clear bags are available for purchase at the Borough Office for 25 cents each. If you have large branches that are too big to fit in bags, or if you have yard waste after the above dates, you may arrange for collection by calling the Public Works Department Highway Garage at 717-866-6948. Please leave a message if there is no answer.

REMINDERS ABOUT THE FALL LEAF AND YARD WASTE COLLECTION PROGRAM: Acceptable Yard Waste consists of leaves and small sticks. Yard Waste must be properly bagged in clear plastic bags, which can be purchased at the Borough Office at the Myerstown Community Center at 101 S. Railroad St. for 25 cents per bag. ... Bags must be placed at the curbside before 7:00 A.M. on advertised collection days. Bags may be placed at the curbside in the evening the night before collection day and left overnight for morning pickup. Remaining advertised collection days for 2020 are as follows: November 30 December 4 December 7 December 11 If you have large branches that are too big to fit in the proper bags, contact the Public Works Department at (717) 866-6948 and leave a message with your name, address and phone number. A staff member will return your call to arrange a collection time. Thank you for your cooperation!

THANK YOU to our incredibly generous community for your donations of toys for the needy. A whopping 135 TOYS(!) were donated in the Toys for Joy box located outside the Borough office, and a total of 343 toys have been collected from all Toys for Joy locations! The Toys for Joy program was created by ELCO High School students from the Career Connections class to deliver toys to needy ELCO families during the holidays. Thank you all for your efforts! This will make a huge difference this holiday season.

Myerstown-ELCO Rotary recently completed a beautification project at the Isaac Meier Homestead that included the installation of a raised shrubbery bed with period-era plants, shrubs, and flowers. The project replaced two old and unattractive telephone poles which were being used as parking curbs. They also installed a new sign at the Recreation Area Fish Pond identifying the park and the decorative fountain that was installed by the Rotary Club in 2018. Thank you Myerstown-ELCO Rotary Club for helping to make Myerstown a more healthy, vibrant, and welcoming community!!! More at: www.myerstownpa.org/news_detail_T6_R75.php

Please share with everyone you can. Thank you to the Keystone Hook & Ladder Company #1 for your incredible service to the community!

The Lebanon County Chiefs of Police have officially announced that trick-or-treat will be postponed due to forecasted rain from Tropical Storm Zeta. Myerstown Borough is following this recommendation and our trick-or-treat will be held on MONDAY, NOVEMBER 2, FROM 6:00 P.M. to 8:00 P.M.

SNOW AND ICE EMERGENCY - BEGINS 9:00am TOMORROW Mayor Gloria R. Ebling has declared a Snow and Ice Emergency for the Borough of Myerstown which starts at 9:00 a.m. on Wednesday, December 16. During this emergency, it is unlawful to park on any Snow and Ice Emergency Route. The Snow and Ice Emergency Routes in the Borough are as follows:... 1) CHERRY STREET between East Washington Avenue and East Richland Avenue. 2) COLLEGE STREET between the north Borough line and south Borough line. 3) MAIN AVENUE between the east Borough line and west Borough line. 4) RAILROAD STREET between the north Borough line and south Borough line. Off-street parking regulations in Borough-owned municipal parking lots during the period of the Snow and Ice Emergency are as follows: 1) NO PARKING in the parking lot on the east side of College Street, just north of Main Avenue, located at 57 West Main Avenue. 2) NO PARKING UNTIL AFTER SNOW HAS BEEN CLEARED in the parking lot on the west side of South Locust Street from Main Avenue to Madison Alley. 3) PARKING IS ALLOWED AT ALL TIMES in the parking lot located at 6 to 8 East Main Avenue and in the Swimming Pool Parking Lot located at the southwest corner of West Center Avenue and South Railroad Street. Details in the link below. http://myerstownpa.org/news_detail_T6_R78.php

The Myerstown Vitality Partnership is hosting a Christmas Lights Contest. Follow the link for more information and to enter!

*** NOTICE *** Upon recommendation from the Lebanon County Chiefs of Police, the RAIN DATE for trick-or-treat night will be Monday, November 2, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

*** WANTED: VOLUNTEERS TO HELP REVITALIZE MAIN STREET!!! *** The Myerstown Vitality Partnership, an organization dedicated to the revitalization of Myerstown, is looking for volunteers to serve as subcommittee members for its Main Street revitalization program. Subcommittee members will be asked to contribute their time and expertise to help create our strategic plan. Subcommittee members will be asked to serve for a one year term. If you are interested, complete the attached survey to submit your contact information. Any questions should be directed to Jack Gombach: [email protected]

*** NOTICE *** Upon recommendation from the Lebanon County Chiefs of Police, the RAIN DATE for trick-or-treat night will be Monday, November 2, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

ELCO High School Career Connections TOYS FOR JOY!!! A collection box has been placed outside the Borough Office by ELCO students in the Career Connections class to collect toys for children in need within the Eastern Lebanon County School District. Toys should be for kids 12 and under, and can include:... - New toys in the box - Art supplies - Board games - Matchbox cars - Dolls - Action figures * Please no stuffed animals. Toys can be dropped off during office hours, between 7:30am and 4:00pm. Toys can be dropped off from now through December 16th. The Borough Office is located in the Myerstown Community Center at 101 South Railroad Street in Myerstown Borough.

WATER AUTHORITY BOARD VACANCY The Myerstown Water Authority has an immediate opening on its Board of Directors. The Myerstown Water Authority Board is a governing board composed of volunteer citizens that govern the activities of the Myerstown Water Authority. The Water Authority Board is a 5-member board appointed by Myerstown Borough Council serving staggered 5-year terms. Board Members must be taxpayers in, maintain a business in, or be a citizen of Myerstown Borough or ...the portion of Jackson Township served by the Myerstown Water Authority. The Board meets monthly for their regular meetings on the second Thursday of each month at 7:00 p.m. in the board room at the Water Authority Treatment Plant at 601 Stracks Dam Rd, Myerstown, PA. If needed, the Board also meets on the fourth Thursday of the month at the same time and place. If you are interested in filling this vacancy, or have questions about the vacancy, please contact the Operations Manager, Chris Strause: Chris Strause Operations Manager Myerstown Water Authority 601 Stracks Dam Road Myerstown, PA 17067 P: 717-866-9301 F: 717-866-5499

Fall 2020 Leaf and Yard Waste Collection dates are as follows: October 5, 9, 12, 16, 19, 23, 26 & 30 November 2, 6, 9, 13, 16, 20, 23 & 30 December 4, 7 & 11... Click the link for collection guidelines. http://www.myerstownpa.org/news_detail_T6_R70.php

Myerstown Borough will follow the recommendation of the Lebanon County Police Chiefs and hold Trick or Treat on Thursday, October 29, 2020 from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Click the link for more information: http://myerstownpa.org/news_detail_T6_R72.php

The final phase of our Main Ave and N Railroad St reconstruction project begins today with construction crews applying the scratch course. Asphalt overlay is scheduled to be completed tomorrow, weather permitting. Traffic and parking restrictions will be in place. Extreme caution should be used when traveling through the construction zone, as utilities such as manholes and valve boxes may be exposed. Thank you for your cooperation and patience during this project, as the Borough works to improve its infrastructure.

Take our survey, share your story! As a part of the Myerstown Vitality Partnership’s efforts to create a 5-year strategic plan for revitalizing Downtown Myerstown, a survey has been created by the Pennsylvania Downtown Center to gauge people’s perceptions of our downtown. The results of the survey will be used to develop community-driven goals and objectives for the 5-year plan. Along with that survey, we’ve created a page where people are encouraged to share their stories,... photos, and videos of Myerstown’s history. The MVP plans to use these stories, photos, and videos to help determine the vision and mission of the MVP, and to help tell the story of Myerstown! Please click the link below and take a couple minutes to complete the survey, and share with your friends!. Our goal is to have a response rate of over 100 people by the time the survey closes on September 18th. http://www.myerstownpa.org/myerstown_vitality_pa/survey.php

Thank you to everyone who came out to tonight's town hall meeting on the creation of a borough police department. It was important to hear from borough residents and taxpayers on this consequential matter. For those who were unable to attend, or who want to share a comment or concern, please email [email protected] with your message, and identify if you are a Borough resident or taxpayer. All comments will be forwarded to Borough Council and the Mayor for consideration.

On Thursday, August 20th, reconstruction and resurfacing of the following streets will begin: WEST MAIN AVENUE between N College St and N Railroad St NORTH RAILROAD STREET between Route 422 and E Washington Ave... Construction crews will be milling the pavement on Thursday and Friday, weather permitting. Paving will take place at a later date. Traffic and parking restrictions will be in place, but vehicles will still have access in and out of driveways. Extreme caution should be used when traveling through the construction zone, as utilities such as manholes and valve boxes may become exposed. Thank you for your cooperation and patience during this project, as the Borough works to improve its infrastructure.

The Borough has received a report of a missing person. Please see the notice below.

DID YOU KNOW that in 2017, Myerstown Borough completed a comprehensive update of its Zoning Ordinance and Zoning Map? The purpose of the update was to promote business development in the borough by removing outdated and unnecessary regulations in the 1979 Zoning Ordinance that prohibited land use for business purposes. The entire project took approximately 12 months to complete, with several Council workshops and planning meetings held before its adoption on May 22, 2017. Th...e effort was financed with an Early Intervention Program grant from the PA Dept. of Community and Economic Development. Highlights of the update include: - Allowing low intensity businesses outside downtown along Main Avenue and College Street (SR501) where it was not allowed previously. This includes uses such as retail sales, office and personal service uses, day cares, and bed and breakfast inns. Storefront businesses with apartments above them are also now allowed where they previously were not. - The downtown district was expanded and priorities were put in place to encourage turning Main Avenue back into a "classic downtown" with walkable streets and retail stores. The downtown district continues to allow apartments (except along the first floor street frontage), retail stores, offices, theaters, hotels, recreation uses, restaurants without drive-through service, personal services, funeral homes, day cares, and other similar uses. It is also possible to develop microbreweries and taverns. The maximum height of buildings has also been raised from 45 to a maximum of 70 feet or 5 stories. - Dimensional requirements for the general business district (along SR422 and the former shirt factory complex) were updated to be less restrictive for business use. It should be noted that the new ordinance applies only to FUTURE changes in use or construction. For any questions concerning the zoning ordinance, call the Borough Office. For a more comprehensive summary of the changes, click the link below to access the summary document that was provided at a public meeting on February 13, 2017. http://www.myerstownpa.org//Summary%20of%20Zoning%20Ordina

On Monday, July 27, 2020, Myerstown Borough became aware of politically-divisive remarks posted on social media by the Myerstown Activity Network (M.A.N.) regarding a National Night Out event they were scheduled to hold in the Borough’s Recreation Area on the evening of August 4, 2020. Because the M.A.N. is an agent of the Borough, we must state unequivocally that the Borough does not support or condone the remarks made by the M.A.N. Myerstown Borough is committed to foll...owing State and Federal guidelines related to holding events safely in public parks and recreation areas. Myerstown Borough at all times strives to serve the best interests of its residents on a non-partisan basis. Accordingly, the Borough expects all of its employees, volunteers, and agents to refrain from making statements and engaging in activities which may undermine public confidence in the Borough. Because of these remarks, the M.A.N. has been instructed that they may not hold their event in Myerstown Borough, nor as an agent of Myerstown Borough. The National Night Out event is described as an annual community-building campaign that promotes police-community partnerships and neighborhood camaraderie to make our neighborhoods safer, more caring places to live. Myerstown Borough hopes to continue these events in the future with the full participation and support of its law enforcement partners. Myerstown Borough is Built on Community. We will continue to support any and all of our community organizations whose efforts aim to build our community and make Myerstown a safer, more caring place to live.

Myerstown Borough Council will hold a town hall meeting on August 17th to discuss the creation of a Borough Police Department. Read more: myerstownpa.org/news_detail_T6_R69.php