It was standing room only at Wednesday night's Schuylkill Township meeting.

Over 60 residents packed the township building and out into the hallway. Several even stood outside the building near open windows to hear what was going on inside. The hot topic? A proposed quality of life ordinance that supervisors had planned to vote on during the meeting.According to township solicitor Michael Greek, a quality of life ordinance is not a new thing. He cited several local communities who have already adopted similar ordinances, including Tamaqua and Pottsville.The quality of life ordinance is designed to give local officials an immediate recourse for "nuisance" issues, as opposed to following the current ordinances, which require things like high grass, abandoned vehicles, and the accumulation of garbage on a property, to be pursued through the magistrate.The supervisors explained that following the current course of action, high weeds could persist for months, through the citation and appeal process, before anything could legally be done by the township to alleviate the situation.Under the proposed ordinance, a designee of the township, typically a code enforcement officer or a police officer, would be able to issue a ticket, similar to a parking ticket, immediately. If the fine was not paid and the nuisance not corrected, the township would be able to pursue cleaning up the nuisance within a matter of days and then go after the property owner to recoup their loss.While several residents brought up problem properties in the municipality and asked what could be done about them, the majority of those present were not in favor of the ordinance."This is a burden," said John Bubon, of Brockton. Bubon said that the township was following the "broken window" approach that New York City used to combat urban decay and gang violence in the 1990s. Bubon and others went on to say that treating urban decay is a different ballgame than treating nuisance properties in rural areas."This is going to affect the poor, the disabled, the elderly, who may be both poor and disabled, and the small businesses," he said.David Pysanchin questioned how objective a designated public official could be."This gives you your own little police force," he said to the supervisors. "I'm not saying you're going to take us into the concentration camps, but you are going to hit us in the pocketbooks. They're going to drain you, and you, and you, and you," he said, pointing to various members of the audience. "Where will it stop?"Quite a few of the questions centered on language in the ordinance that regulates having cars and car parts on personal property. Many asked if they would be able to continue working on their own vehicles in their own driveways. Several residents who do part-time auto work or automobile restoration as a supplemental income or hobby, asked where they were supposed to go to do their work. Supervisors assured residents that the intent of the ordinance is not to prohibit work like that.The supervisors explained that amendments had been made to the original ordinance and said that the copy that most residents were working off of was an outdated one.Resident Tony Zawada asked how the ordinance would be enforced in various parts of the township."What you're calling a weed over here, I like to see the deer come and eat it. Some of us live out in the woods. I have bears walking through my yard, doing their business," he added, alluding to the ordinance requiring dog feces to be cleaned up every 24 hours.Another man said that the ordinance refers to a dandelion as a "noxious weed.""Someone else might not see it that way," he said.Resident Rich Magnani probably summed up the feelings of the crowd best when he stated loudly, "We don't want this!" The room erupted in applause after his statement.The supervisors and Greek fielded as many questions as they could. Supervisor Christine Verdier attempted to explain the complicated process that must currently be followed under the existing ordinances."They are enforceable, but this is a way for us to work on a local level," she said.Chairman Linda DeCindio eventually moved that the ordinance be tabled for now and asked for a group of residents to form a committee to work on an ordinance that would better suit the needs of the township. Approximately 20 residents signed up after the meeting adjourned."This is a two-way street," said Verdier, who commended residents on coming out and speaking up.In other business, the supervisors voted to give Officer Jennifer Dempsey a raise from $10 per hour to $15 per hour. Both the supervisors and residents stated that Dempsey has been doing a good job. A motion to hire a code enforcement officer was tabled.Roadmaster Charles Hosler said that the township is currently working to get a loan through PennDOT that would pay off the township's current loan, which was taken in 2006, for $400,000, at a rate of 4.5 percent interest. The loan they are working to get would pay off that loan and free up some funds due to the fact that it would have a lower interest rate. In the meantime, the township expects to continue patching roads.Township secretary Mary Bubel reported that there are still 50 delinquent sewer bills and garbage pickup has stopped for some of those delinquencies as of today."That will continue until they are paid," she said.The township has received a notice of cancellation on its workman's compensation insurance as of the end of November. Verdier said that they will be shopping around for new coverage.DeCindio reminded residents that flags can be purchased in memory or honor of a loved one for $20.The Sept. 4 meeting has been moved to Sept. 11, due to another meeting that the supervisors must attend.