~ BERLIN BOROUGH NOTESll

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1 ~ BERLIN BOROUGH NOTESll Spring 2015 Clean-up Day Thursday May 14, 2015 All Items for Collection Must Be at the Curb by 7:00 a.m. Items Not Accepted: TVs, Computers or Their Components., Refrigerators, Freezers, Paint, Air Conditioners, Dehumidifiers, Tires, Vehicle Batteries, Buildings or Demolition Waste Please contact the Borough Office at for information where to dispose of TVs, computers, computer accessories, and lithium batteries. New Billing Program The Borough will be implementing a new billing program called Muni-Link. Over the next year we plan to implement new features associated with the new program such as paying online and e-billing. Also you will have access to your account to check previous bills, payments and consumption. Watch for the notices on your bill for these changes. You will see a new look to your postcard bill, which will start with our June billing. Summer Refuse Collection Schedule The Berlin Borough Offices will be closed on Memorial Day, July 3rd and Labor Day. There will be no garbage collection on these days. Please mark your calendar. The revised garbage collection schedule is as follows: Normal collection day Will be collected on this day Memorial Day, Monday, May 25, 2015 Tuesday, May 26, 2015 Friday, July 3, 2015 Thursday, July 2, 2015 Labor Day, Monday, September 7, Tuesday, September 8, 2015 Annual Drinking Water Report THE 2014 CONSUMER CONFIDENCE REPORT FROM OUR MUNICIPAL AUTHORITY CAN BE FOUND ON BERLIN BOROUGH'S WEBSITE AT: pdf WE WILL ONLY MAIL THIS REPORT AT YOUR REQUEST. YOU MAY ALSO OBTAIN A COPY AT THE BOROUGH OFFICE.

2 ~ERLIN BOROUGH - ADDITIONAL NOTES Page 2 Tree Trimming Berlin Borough has contracted with Wiedenhoft Electric to trim tree branches and limbs from several Berlin Municipal Electric System power lines. If you have concerns or questions regarding this tree trimming, please contact the Berlin Borough Office at Dirt and Debris Clean-up from Sidewalks The Borough Council is requesting that dirt and debris be removed from the sidewalks for pedestrians. Also, be aware that you should not throw or sweep shale, grass, or other materials from yards and sidewalks into the streets. Please gather waste and place in buckets for Thursday pick-up. Shrubbery vs. Meters Please clear any shrubbery around the area of your electric meter and water meter remote so that our Meter Reader can easily capture a reading from the meter or remote. Building Permits If you are planning a construction, alteration or repair project to any building or structure you are encouraged to contact our Office at or the Commonwealth Code Inspection Services, Inc. at the Georgian Place Suite #421 in Somerset, Application packets, for new home construction, are available at the Borough Office. Reminder: Call before you dig. Dial 811 to give your information. Berlin Borough Intenet Sites and Website... Twitter account Facebook/Borough of Berlin Pennsylvania [email protected]

3 BERLIN BOROUGH - ADDITIONAL NOTES Page 3 Important message front the Mayor's desk... There are several areas and businesses that have handicap parking areas. Please pay attention to these areas. Only park in these areas if you have a handicap license plate or window placard. Anyone found parking illegally in the handicap parking areas will be ticketed. OBEY THE PEDESTRIAN SIGNS Pedestrian signs are l<>cated in various crossings within the Borough. Pennsylvania Law requires that motorists yield to pedestrians when: A pedestrian is within a crosswalk at an intersection or A pedestrian is crossing any other marked crosswalk. STATE LAW v;:y T,0 ~ WITHIN CROS~WA L K Be prepared to stop if a pedestrian steps into the crosswalk area. Smoke Control for Diesel-powered Motor Vehicles PA Vehicle Code 4532 states that no person shall intentionally change or alter a factory installed smoke control system on any diesel-powered vehicle or its fuel system so as to limit the ability of the system to control smoke. Operators who intentionally cause a vehicle to emit black smoke could be subject to a $100 fine if the above fuel system is found to be altered. Reminder about Curfew... There is a Curfew Ordinance in the Borough for individuals up to age 18 as follows: 10:00 p.m. - Minors 11 or less years of age. 10:30 p.m. - Minors 12 & 13 years of age. 11 :00 p.m. - Minors 14 or more years of age; except on Fridays and Saturdays when it shall be 12:00 midnight. Parents may be fined for violations of minor children.

4 I BERLIN BOROUGH - ADDITIONAL NOTES I Page 4 Electric Generation in a Nut Shell With all of the talk about Berlin Borough's Electric Generation Project, maybe a few quick facts might help. 1. Why is the Borough Council considering internal generation? If we run a four megawatt generator just six hours per year, we can save over $300,000 per year. Just to re-emphasize that this is not a misprint, run the generator six hours per year and save $300,000 or more. That, in a nut shell, is why internal generation for peak shaving is a no-brainer for Berlin Borough. At first glance, this seems rather peculiar but it's an intentional effort on the part of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to incentivize what they call Distributed Generation and Peak Shaving, which basically means moving the electric generation closer to the load and shaving the peak off consumption during times of high energy usage. The price we pay for energy is based on our consumption as measured during 6 one hours periods throughout the year and then used as a multiplier to factor the price that we pay on the following year. This multiplier is called our Peak Load Contribution or PLC. So it follows that if we can zero peg our PLC by running a generator at just the right time, we can reduce or eliminate our PLC. Please bear in mind that the generator is NOT intended to produce continuous energy (Although they can do that should the grid go down) but will only run during a one hour window six times per year when they measure our PLC. As such, fuel consumption and maintenance are really not much of an issue. In fact, the money saved in energy consumption is more than enough to cover fuel and maintenance. 2. How much will this cost? The cost depends on the size and type of generator that we select. For instance, if we wish to cover the borough's entire load, we need to have a generator in the 4 megawatt class. Your Borough Council is trying to find that balance between capacity and affordability that hits the "sweet spot" for Berlin Borough's Energy Portfolio. Our best estimates run from $505,000 for 1 MW to $1.8 million for 3 MW with a payback running at nine years for both.

5 I BERLIN BOROUGH - ADDITIONAL NOTES I Page 5 3. What's in it for me? As you probably already know, Berlin Borough operations are largely funded not by taxes but by the proceeds from our municipal electric system through Payment In Lieu Of Taxes or PILOT. It's the PILOT payments that support nearly all of the borough functions and allows taxes to remain at a mere 1.5 mills. While the municipal electric system subsidizes everything else in the borough, your electric rates are the lowest of any municipal electric in the state. This is no small accomplishment and one for which we can thank the wisdom of our forefathers in retaining the borough's electric system. Our challenge is to continue that frugal tradition and maintain the electric system in a form that provides both PILOT subsidies and low rates. But with recent EPA decisions to close coal-fired power plants, forecasts show energy prices climbing by over 63% over the next ten years. As a result, your Borough Council faces the dilemma of either raising electric rates to reflect the growing energy costs or raising taxes to compensate for the diminished PILOT subsidies from the electric system. Fortunately, your Council is seeking a third option by adapting to the FERC mandated Distributed Generation I Peak Shaving price structure in an effort to maintain your bargain electric rates while retaining the PILOT subsidies that keep your taxes low. That's why Internal Generation is our opportunity to anticipate the coming energy challenge in a proactive way that keeps taxes low, rates even lower, and lights on in your home when the rest of the world is dark. Peak Shaving Alerts!!!!! Until the generation project is decided..... The Borough of Berlin will request electric customers to voluntarily reduce energy consumption several times a year. As temperatures change to extremely warm or extremely cold, Berlin electric customers are being asked to conserve power during the time of high or peak energy usage, where electric utilities experience the highest prices. The Borough Office will notify our Customers with an automated phone message of the day and time to conserve. By working together, we hope to keep electric cost from increasing.

6 The Borough of Berlin The Municipal Authority of the Borough of Berlin 700 North Street Berlin, PA Presorted Standard Mail U.S. Postage Paid Berlin, PA Permit #4 COMMUNITY EVENTS - MARK YOUR CALENDAR Memorial Day Parade Monday, May 25, 10:00 a.m. Starting at the Upper Diamond Sponsored by the Berlin Veteran's Assoc. Mt. Lebanon Cemetery Service Sunday, May 24, 2015@ 2:00 p.m. Berlin Benefit Day Saturday July 11, 2015 Contact Tracy for a space along Main Street. If you are setting up at your home, they are asking for a free-will donation. Donations can be dropped at the Holy Trinity Lutheran Church Luther Haus Monday - Friday Between 8:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Donations Benefit: Berlin Food Pantry and Berlin Playground Sponsored by the Holy Trinity Lutheran Church Mission Group Firernan's Block Party June 23-27, 2015 Parade: Thursday, June 25, 2015@ 7:00 p.m. 4th of July Celebration Festivities are set to begin at 11 :00 a.m. At the Community Grove along Buelab Rd. Blue Grass Music, Food and Fun Fireworks to be displayed at 9:30 p.m. Red Cross Blood Drive Schedule Monday, June 8, 2015 Monday, August 3, 2015 Monday, October 5, :30 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. Sponsored by the Berlin Lions Club and the Fire Department' s Ladies Auxiliary