November 2025 Minutes
Merion Civic Association Board Meeting
November 25, 2025 - 7:30pm via Zoom
President Eileen Bruckman opened the meeting at 7:37 p.m. virtually via Zoom.
Officers & Directors in Attendance:
Eileen Bruckman, Li Halpern, Brian Gordon, Renee Hill, Carol Lavoritano, Steven Ludwig, Kevin Murphy, Craig Oliner, Melanie Schafmeister.
Guests in Attendance:
Jason Landau Goodman, Bala Cynwyd Neighborhood Club.
Updates from the President:
Eileen reminded that the Civic does not have a secretary. Directors will continue to rotate note-taking. If unable to take minutes on the assigned night, reach out to fellow Directors to find a replacement.
October Meeting Minutes:
With three amendments, the October 28, 2025, meeting minutes were approved.·
Treasurer’s Report:
Kevin Murphy stated that the most recent accounting was emailed to all directors. Merion Civic Association’s financial status is satisfactory and stable. The report was approved.
Commissioner’s Report:
There was no report as Todd Sinai did not attend the meeting.
Federation of Civics Report:
There was no report as Les Greenberg did not attend the meeting. Karla Moras has stepped down as Director and Federation representative. Eileen stated that the Federation minutes will be emailed to all Directors.
Merion Community Coalition Report:
There was no report as Alice Cheng did not attend the meeting.
St. Charles Seminary Development Report:
There was no report as Susan Guthrie did not attend the meeting. Eileen stated that the Civics as a group are arranging an informational session with Main Line Health, date to be determined but possibly December 2025.
Lower Merion School Board Report:
Melanie Schafmeister provided an update. After a four year term, Melanie is leaving the School Board. Her most satisfying accomplishment was participating in the Individualized Education Program upgrade. Newly elected Board members begin December 1, 2025.
Old Business:
Merion Shtiebel’s application to use Kohelet Yeshiva’s building: The Zoning Hearing Board issued a mixed decision. Certain religious activities, such as Friday and Saturday Sabbath and holiday prayer services, constitute lawful institutional accessory uses. Others, such as daily morning prayer and celebratory events (e.g., Bat Mitzvahs, weddings) are prohibited.
The Board of Commissioners enacted an ordinance regulating gas powered leaf blowers. Starting June 1, 2026, gas blowers are banned in summer and winter. Starting January 1, 2028, gas blowers are banned spring, summer, and winter. Their use is permitted only in fall. Starting January 1, 2029, gas blowers are banned year round. Electric blower use permitted year round.
New Business:
Craig Oliner provided a brief review of Bartlett’s recently released Tree Canopy Management Plan.
The key takeaway is that over the 12 study years, 2010 to 2022, tree canopy township wide decreased 2.2%, equivalent to a loss of 22,000 trees.
Of 16 communities, none showed a statistically significant increase in tree cover. Ten of the 16 had no change. Six, of which Merion was one, displayed diminished canopy.
Merion lost the equivalent of 13% of its trees, one in eight.
Although Bartlett did not assess reasons for loss, they postulated as possibilities Ash Borer disease, natural loss at end of life, and development. Craig added another explanation – the township has not adequately replenished lost trees in the right-of-way and township parks, and private landowners’ sometimes do not replace removed trees at all or they replace large trees with small maturing trees (e.g., planting a dogwood for an downed oak).
Craig explained that of the 200 free shade trees township-placed this year, only 18 went to Merion, this primarily because of a small number of requests.
Brian Gordon spoke about prior efforts to generate more Merion requests and planted street trees. He and Craig will consider a letter writing campaign to inform Merion residents about the township’s free shade tree program.
Property owners who would like to have a tree planted in the right-of-way on their property can contact Township Arborist Joe Marco at 610-726-7141 or fill out a form at https://www.lowermerion.org/departments/sustainability/request-a-shade-tree .
Craig plans to continue his crusade to encourage Lower Merion to plant additional street trees. Although not Craig’s specific endeavor, to increase tree cover the township needs to install more park trees and to incentivize the planting of extra private property trees.Movement to have an abbreviated Zoom meeting for November due to poor attendance with Thanksgiving in two days:
The meeting adjourned at 8:13pm.
Submitted by Craig Oliner.