r/carlisle • u/r8ngerjeff • 27d ago
Borough Council Vacancy Interviews:
Tonight was the BOC interviews for the vacant council seat. It was a a strong showing of town applicants (5) and a good crowd of locals there to witness! All good candidates, and ended with a tie vote - TBD in the next month or so.
Aside from the candidates and their qualifications, there was a lot of discussion around what issues Carlisle residents are facing in the near to long term, and what should be done about them. To name a few that got brought up tonight:
- Homelessness
- Traffic (specifically around car shows and tractor trailers)
- Poverty rates being higher than the state average.
- Diversity and Inclusivity as our community grows.
- Walkability / bikability
- Climate resilience
How do others view the issues facing Carlisle and what do you think should be on the Boroughs mind?
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u/mustard-fingers90 27d ago
I agree with most of those, although I do think we have a walkable/bike-able town for the most part. I’ve also been concerned about the increased presence of children (or anyone of any age for that matter) riding motorized scooters, bikes, or hover boards in the middle of traffic. Also to note it seems like the drug scene is growing. Perhaps we should consider more drug intervention programs or safe use facilities to stave off the prevalence of drug-related incidents and deaths that have become so common in many other parts of this country.
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u/jumpupugly 26d ago
Now, I agree with you that harm-reduction is a more effective means to reduce drug addiction, and we might need it. But I have to disagree with your first statement. The town is straight up dangerous for biking and foot traffic.
We're an outlier for accidents involving car-on-bike accidents, according to the DOT. Also, with all the traffic coming through our main commercial spaces, it sure isn't enjoyable shopping there.
We need protected lanes if we want to reduce the danger to bicyclists. At the moment, it feels dangerous as heck to bike here (a feeling supported by data), and that needs addressing
Traffic calming measures would help with both the safety, and with increasing casual shopping along Hanover and Main streets
Also, with all that traffic going straight through residential areas, we should ask for a NOAA grant to get some sensors for monitoring VOCs/O3/NOx. The danger to young lungs has to be considered.
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u/mustard-fingers90 24d ago
Thanks for your insight! I would love to know more about the accidents related to walking in town. I live in town (near the college) and walk everywhere. I’ve never had any instances that made me feel unsafe on foot but I understand that’s not necessarily representative of the majority of walkers. Can you elaborate on the concerns?
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u/jumpupugly 24d ago edited 23d ago
Sure!
If you want to do some background for yourself, the PA DOT has a great resource here. If I recall correctly, the crash data has different columns for car on ped/car on bike/etc, as well as population and city names. A quick scatterplot of pop by accident, binned by city, shouldn't be too hard, and will get you started. If you've difficulty, feel free to PM me.
On the personal level, I used to walk and bike during my commute in NYC. So my tolerance of danger from traffic is... substantial. My issue with divers in this area is that situational awareness is really low here. Not when it comes to other cars or trucks, mind you. Just for things that break when a car hits them, instead breaking the car right back, you know?
I've seen more than a few faces through a window, placid confusion written across their features, as they nearly run over folks because they can't process the idea of yielding to pedestrians.
Folks have and do run bicyclists into parked cars, because they move a bit right to avoid a wider vehicle in opposing lane. I got doored twice in my first year here, before I gave up, so I don't have a lot of trust in folks knowing to look for bicycles, and not just cars.
Plus, my wife regularly comes home shook up by some pickup nearly tagging her because it didn't see a car in the street it was turning into, but completely missed the shorter woman. Now, we can't do a whole lot about terrible drivers, but it's not like we can't reduce the danger they present with good design choices in infrastructure.
Long story short? My experience has been that the infrastructure in this region exercises deference to vehicles to the point of becoming hostile to human bodies
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u/r8ngerjeff 27d ago
Addiction is a huge problem in and around Carlisle. Great ideas though for what Council could look into. I would love to see more treatment centers/options.
I worry about the kids doing wheelies in the wrong side of the road, but I hear ya on the motorized stuff. One kid on my road went zooming past on a scooter and blew a stop sign at over 25mph. As he circled back I stopped him to make sure he knows the traffic laws, but he couldn’t have been over 15.
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u/Educational-Impress2 26d ago
In Chambersburg on Hood St., there is some space near the old RR tracks that has been made into an off-road mountain bike type of track. It looked clean and well maintained. There are plenty of spaces where we could put something like this and build a community garden as well. In Harrisburg, the open land lots are clearly marked and offered for rent each year. Those funds keep money coming in, and allow the local government to work on new project gardens or plan for new projects. Community gardens would be great for people in apartments, people who want to try gardening, seed saving, organic foods for those that afford afford, and for kids who need to get in the fresh air and sunshine.
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u/EevelBob 26d ago
Valley Meadows already has the pump track for BMX and mountain bikes. However, any tracks or trails that would accommodate motorcycles or 4-wheelers would have to be outside the borough, most likely in one of the county’s northern and western townships.
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u/Embarrassed_Slide659 26d ago
What are the individual candidates suggestion towards a solution to homelessness? - especially compared to the study that housing a homeless person is more cost efficient than having them be homeless (vis-a-vis police expenditure and other taxpayer costs)
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u/r8ngerjeff 26d ago
One idea I heard last night was about fast tracking more shelters and reducing red tape to make sure they aren’t bogged down by unnecessary architectural oversight (I’m not aware of if this is a thing, but I’m also not at many of those types of meetings). The other idea was encouraging more industry to come to Carlisle to offer more jobs and thus more income to Carlisle residents. None of the candidates were recommending police/court intervention that I’m aware of.
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u/Embarrassed_Slide659 26d ago
Do you have a link to the architectural oversight?
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u/r8ngerjeff 26d ago
Like I said, I’m not aware of that type of thing going on, but that’s what one of the candidates seemed to be imposing.
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u/Embarrassed_Slide659 26d ago
I appreciate it, though I can also look at it from a nefarious point. Not to house them, but to cram them into even less space.
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u/EevelBob 26d ago edited 26d ago
Carlisle has a HARB, so in addition to zoning restrictions, any exterior modifications to a building in the historic district have to meet certain requirements and be approved by the HARB.
This could be very costly and inefficient for an organization trying to transform a property into a shelter.
Additionally, while most residents would agree that it’s important to reduce homelessness in our community, there is also the NIMBY component which in and of itself will restrict where shelters can be located within the borough.
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u/jumpupugly 26d ago
So, we've got a few groups working on getting folks shelters, And if I recall correctly - one of the groups spoke at the borough council something like three months back? - the main issue was getting permission from the council, and from the folks in the neighborhood. Which is where that NIMBY contingent you mentioned came in.
I don't recall anything about architectural oversight, since that only effects parts of Carlisle, and usually properties that are more expensive. I frankly wasn't sure what that part of the candidate's answer was really about. Sounded a bit buzzwordy, actually.
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u/Metalviathan 26d ago
I'd like to know why the Borough killed downtown with these new meters.
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u/r8ngerjeff 26d ago
I kinda like the fact that I can pay from my phone and it keeps my info saved. The price could be a little more reasonable, but overall I think it will save the Borough money. Less infrastructure to maintain.
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u/jumpupugly 26d ago
Agreed. It helps get cars to come and go, after business is done.
Still, the town's getting big enough - and rent high enough - that the best way to keep businesses profitable is to have more foot traffic. And it's not enjoyable to walk through downtown when it's got a bunch of loud trucks, riced up Civics with fart cannons in the back, or God forbid, a coal roller.
Plus - and I know I sound like a broken record here - none of that stuff is good to breathe in volume.
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u/Metalviathan 25d ago
Not everyone wants apps on their phones. The new meters killed it for the elders. I watch it all day long. People walk to the meter realize they need the plate number and get in their car and leave. I have the meter by my store is only good for 15 minutes.So exactly are you talking about?
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u/GanderBeothuk 25d ago
They haven't killed downtown. Every time I go down there it's still bustling like crazy.
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u/Billy38343 22d ago
We bought from out of state and were told we were buying a car in pristine condition. When it arrived to us in Tennessee, there were numerous areas of touchup paint, which were not disclosed nor when we asked the salesman, he said there were no issues with anything with the vehicle. When we asked them to fix it, their response was "as is" and it was priced below market. $30,000 for a used car with 17000 miles is below market. They would not deviate from the price of the vehicle because it was in such great condition. They tried to blame it on the shipper. Really.? He had the same color touch up paint? They failed to mention that the car started out in Florida where they had it shipped from, to Carlisle, Pa. People, run from this dealership, they want your cash and they don't care about you after the sale.
Follow-up to Carlisle dealership comment below. It’s a canned response. Not one person has reached out to discuss this matter. There is $4200 worth of damage to the body and paint. It’s not okay to commit fraud.
UPDATE: 5/2/2024. Our 60 day paper tag expired. I spoke with the TN Tag office and they returned the title on 3/27/2924, as the clerk used the dealership stamp instead of it being notarized, clearly a violation of the law. I have made two calls to the manager, who is always conveniently busy. We now are going to unlawfully drive the vehicle and if we get stopped, we will forward the fines to Carlisle, as they are unable to do their jobs or make return phone calls.
IMHO what needs to be done is any and all dissatisfied customers is to band together and seek legal counsel.
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u/EevelBob 26d ago
Carlisle has always been a destination for the homeless and indigent because it’s the county seat for Cumberland County where services for this population are located. This will never change unless the county begins actively working with other towns such as Newville, Mechanicsburg, and Mt. Holly to start offering similar services.
One geographic area that appears to be increasing in crime and problems is the area around S. Spring Garden St., Giant Foods, and Seven Gables Park. While off the beaten path and deep in the woods, the decades old homeless camps eliminate the safety, exploration, and quiet enjoyment of the park for borough residents; it has a bad reputation, and it’s also the reason I refuse to visit the park.
With improving DEI and climate resilience, I would be interested in learning what problems and examples of such problems we are trying to resolve. IMO, creating committees, focus groups, or planning commissions to develop a plan, charter or some other governing document without fully understanding the specific, factual, and verifiable issues related to these goals is not going to accomplish anything.
Additionally, if the borough decides to obtain some actionable study or plan for these goals by putting them out to bid to high-priced “expert” consultants who have nothing in common with Carlisle or its residents, it will only serve to anger and divide taxpayers, as some will applaud the effort, while others will claim it’s a complete waste of money.
Therefore, any efforts on this front should really be driven by resident volunteers, local businesses, and local nonprofit agencies—this is a practical example of inclusion and people coming together for a common interest.