By Betsy Brewer Brantner
Contributing Writer

At the most recent borough council meeting, Oxford officials discussed a proposed project in a neighboring municipality, police department staffing, and an initiative that will make local lawns healthier for people, pets, and wildlife alike.

Matthew McKeon, a representative for Providence Place, a senior living community that is proposed for neighboring Lower Oxford Township, introduced himself to council members.

“I’d like to ask if I could be on the agenda each month as a scheduled visitor, just to make sure we are moving forward in a collaborative effort between two municipalities,” he said.

Lower Oxford’s solicitor is currently reviewing the plans for the development, but due to the close proximity of the property to the borough it is expected to bring up concerns from Oxford Borough officials as well.

Borough Manager Pauline Garcia-Allen briefly explained that the borough has a waterline easement on that property, and she said the borough’s interest would also need to be protected.

Borough solicitor Stacy Fuller said the borough would need well-head protection for the borough-owned Well No. 8. This will be discussed in upcoming meetings.

In other business, Oxford Borough Police Chief Sam Iacono explained that a police test was administered on March 8. He said that three people applied for a position in the police department, but one failed the physical and one was a no-show for the test. One passed the physical portion of the test and they are currently waiting for his score on the written portion of the exam.

“We are one full-time officer down at this point,” Iacono said. “We would also like to have a list for the future.”

Fuller explained to council that she is continuing to work on ordinances, specifically the subdivision land development ordinance. There will be a meeting and she is hopeful that they can pull together a red line document. She is also working on revisions to the special event ordinance.

Garcia-Allen told council they are still working updates for the security cameras in the garage. They have received a number of proposals which will be discussed at the next meeting.

The residential parking zone is also being updated to make it easier for residents.

Council also received a theatre project update. Garcia-Allen explained, “The committee has met their milestone, and certain objectives. They are making progress.”

Market Street and Sixth Street repairs will start soon. The borough has received a PennDOT permit for construction.

Garcia-Allen told council that if anyone has any ongoing concerns about the water meter update or want to schedule an appointment, they should contact the borough. So far, 1,740 water meters have been changed and 160 more have scheduled an update. They are working on new appointments for people who will be replacing meters.

This year, Oxford Borough is encouraging residents to voluntarily participate in No Mow May, an initiative to increase the understanding about how we share our lawns with many small creatures.

Gone are the days when the focus of many property owners was a weed-free, lush and green lawn. Now, people understand that the path to that enviable lawn was only possible through the use of harmful herbicides. Herbicides are not safe and can pose significant risks to health, causing cancer, damage to kidneys, heart and lungs, headaches and fatigue. They can also kill wildlife, including birds and bees.

Lawns cover 40 million acres, or 2 percent of the land in the U.S., making them the single largest irrigated crop we grow. And it costs a lot of money to care for those lawns. Lawns provide little benefit to wildlife, and can be harmful to pets if they treated with dangerous weed-killers. Having realized this, many property owners now want a healthy lawn that is also safe for humans, pets and bees.

This May, property owners can register to participate in “No Mow May” and keep those lawn mowers in the garage a little longer. According to Kathryn Cloyd, the Oxford Borough Council President, “This is a great opportunity to show what bees need to survive. Consider planting native plants and practice conservation.”

For more information about No Mow May check out the borough’s website at oxfordboro.org.

Oxford Borough Council also approved the following:

• A motion to authorize the advertising of an ordinance pertaining to special events;
• A proposal by Pole Mole Trenchless in the amount of $9,155 for a water leak detector for the Water Department. This was paid for out of the Water Capital Fund;
• A Financial Security release for Sycamore Crossing Phases 6 and 7 in the amount of $711,702.50 from the development bond;
• A resolution supporting the filing of a grant application with the Chester County Department of Community Development, for the 2025-2026 Community Revitalization Program (CRP), consisting of improvements to Niblock Alley;
• A resolution supporting the filing of a grant application with the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) Community Conservation Partnerships Program (C2P2) to support improvements to Oxford Memorial Park;
• The Historical Architectural Review Board Certificate of Appropriateness for 532 and 534 Broad Street;
• A Special Event Permit application submitted by the Oxford Area Chamber of Commerce (OACC) for the Memorial Day Walk on May 26 from 10 a.m. to 10:30 a.m., conditioned upon payment of $139.86, which is the 50 percent deposit for two-thirds of the cost to provide police services;
• A lease proposal from Docutrend multifunctional printer/copier in the amount of $2,040 annually, $10,200 over 5 years.
• A proposal from Pennoni in the amount of $25,000 to develop the Borough’s Geographic Information System(GIS) mapping site and the related annual ESRI Licensing Subscription fee in the amount of $1,250.

The next Oxford Borough Council meeting will be held on April 7 at 7 p.m. at the Borough Hall.