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City Council

March 18, 2026 ·6:30 PM Final

Council Chambers

Agenda PDF 📹 Watch video Official record ↗

Agenda — 44 items

  1. 1 Invocation:
  2. 2 Pledge to the Flag ▶ jump to 0:27
  3. 3 Roll Call ▶ jump to 0:47
  4. 4 Courtesy of the Floor Please observe the Rules of Council when given privilege of the floor. A copy of the Council Rules can be found on the council agenda on the website. If you would like to speak, we are asking that you fill out a card – they are on the back table provide them to the clerk before speaking. Include your name and address. When speakers have the privilege of the floor, personal insults, attacks, name calling or other behavior that is inconsistent with the purpose of conducting official business will not be tolerated. Courtesy of the Floor is meant to provide public comments on items that are not on the agenda. Public comment during consideration of ordinances, resolutions and motions are limited by topic – your comments must be relevant to the subject matter of the proposed legislation. Public comments are taken before council votes on legislation. You are given the privilege of the floor to provide public comment; it is not a question and answer session. State your position clearly and concisely for consideration. If you speak on behalf of yourself, you have three minutes and if you are speaking on behalf of a group that has several members present, you will be given five minutes in place of everyone coming to the podium. Please address the Council President not individual councilpersons or city staff. Refrain from insulting or defaming staff, officials, and the public; refrain from using offensive language, cursing, and making noises while other people are speaking. Please be aware that comments and/or behavior in violation of these rules will result in a forfeiture of all remaining time and you will be asked to return to your seat. ▶ jump to 1:02
  5. 5 Contract Approvals ▶ jump to 6:01
  6. 6 R37 Authorization for Contract with Belfor USA Group, Inc. (d/b/a Belfor Property Restoration) in the estimated yearly sum of $25,000.00 to perform standard boarding up services for commercial and residential properties. One (1) bid was received, contract shall be for three (3) years with two (2) additional one (1) year renewals beyond the contract expiration period. 15-8313 approved Pass ▶ jump to 7:47
  7. 7 R37.5 Authorization of Cooperative Contract(s) in an amount greater than $40,000.00 to provide the City with various goods/services, for Granicus, LLC. 15-8329 approved Pass ▶ jump to 9:11
  8. 8 Minutes of Previous Meeting ▶ jump to 9:28
  9. 9 March 4, 2026 Public Hearing Intermunicipal Liquor License Transfer Request - Felix Restaurant, LLC 15-8311 approved Pass ▶ jump to 9:33
  10. 10 March 4, 2026 City Council Meeting Minutes 15-8323 approved Pass ▶ jump to 9:55
  11. 11 Communications ▶ jump to 10:14
  12. 12 Old Business: NONE ▶ jump to 10:27
  13. 13 REPORTS President Napoli: City Council will be holding Special Meetings on March 25 at 6:30 PM to consider the appointment of Frank Kane as Managing Director; April 8th at 6 PM with the Parking Authority and on April 22nd at 6 PM will be a discussion and Report with ANIZDA. Budget and Finance: Chair Pungo, Mota, Gerlach The Committee has not met since the last council meeting; the next meeting is scheduled for March 25th at 5:30 PM stating that is next week. Community and Economic Development: Chair Gerlach, Binder, Napoli The Committee met this evening. They discussed a number of Pass Through Grants that they will be voting on later tonight. Human Resources, Administration and Appointments: Chair Binder, Santos, Affa The Committee has not met since the last council meeting; there are no future meetings scheduled. Parks and Recreation: Chair Santos, Pungo, Binder The Committee met this evening. They had a series of presentations from the EAC and our Sustainability Coordinator, the next committee meeting is scheduled for April 1 at 6:15 PM. Public Safety: Chair Affa, Mota, Santos The Committee met this evening; there are no other scheduled meetings at this time. Public Works: Chair Mota, Pungo, Affa The Committee met March 11; the next meeting is scheduled for April 1 at 6:00 PM. Rules, Chambers, Intergovernmental Relations, and Strategy: Chair Napoli, Mota, Gerlach The Committee met on March 5, 2026, at 6:00 PM - the next meeting is not yet scheduled. Controller's Report: The Controller has submitted a PCard Report that is on the agenda website. Mr. Jeffrey Glazier thanked Mr. Napoli. He stated Mr. President he has a P Card Review for the month of December 20, 2025. He stated that this came out of March 9th. This review and stated that the reviewed 484 documents for a little bit over $141,000. He stated that the first issue that they came up with is what they believe is a violation of AIM 1106 which is operator responsibilities when driving a city vehicle. He stated that this is a city vehicle that passed a school bus. It was captured with the stop sign out. It was captured and the violations were sent to the city because it was the owner of the vehicle that is responsible for the violation and the city paid it and paid the convenience fee. He stated that it is the Controller's opinion that operators should be responsible to maintain their vehicles in a safe manner at all times. Whether it be something like this because he thinks that they all can agree it is not a good look to pass a school bus with a stop sign out especially when so much they do here in the city is public safety related and possibly put the life of a child in danger. It is not something they want to be identified with at any point in time. The department head responded. It was a very thoughtful response which lists the conflicts between what the AIM is and between what the state law is and between what bargaining unit contracts may be and generally you are going to end up contrary what bargaining unit contracts and arbitration. Another issue that was addressed was at and they are supposed to keep logs of vehicle usage. Clearly, an emergency vehicle on an emergency, you are probably not going to do that, but if somebody is taking a city vehicle and running to Home Depot to get a supply for a facility or something like that. Clearly, it is not an emergency situation. It should be adequate time to make sure they know who is driving that vehicle. In the instance, they couldn't determine definitively who was driving the vehicle. He stated that he thinks that there are some things they can work on to have these processes work better going forward with (inaudible) and unfortunately there is no great Resolution at the time being, but are forearmed and can deal with it in a more effective manner in the future. Also, in more quotidian. They identified one over payment. There is an unsupported balance of $58.72. The department was advised and they will be applying for credit. They had 10 instances where incorrect expense accounts were used. The departments were advised and journal entries were done. They had instances where sales tax were paid on invoices. One for $6.84; one for a $1.74 stating that while they are always interested in getting the money back, at some point they acknowledge that the effort to get the money back is greater than the dollar amount than it becomes important is that the department is fully advised and the people using the P Cards were fully advised and these transgressions or whatever mistakes were not repeated in the future. He stated that they all know from their own personal purchases, the credit card fees become kind of ubiquitous. The city allows certain charged fees up to $10. That is a pretty recent change. It used to be you were not allowed to pay any of them, but that is really the environment that we are in. He stated that they noted that one invoice with the charge of $10.72 and one was $10.50. The departments were advised and they will try to get a credit. He stated every once in a while we run into something even larger for a larger purchase. The purchase might be $30 or $40. They believe that should really be actionable. Untimely payments of invoices which they shoot for 60 days. He stated that there was a number of invoices. The six that were paid beyond that, the departments were advised and they were spotted with a reason and that is why the invoices were paid. He stated that it is 60 days and also in Munis, one of the things that they depend on is adequate documentation. Whether it be the receipt or whether it be the invoice. There were seven instances where adequate documentation was not provided. The departments were advised and the documentation was uploaded and stating that is his Report, Mr. President. Mr. Santo Napoli thanked Mr. Glazier. He stated for the Mayor's Report, nothing was submitted. He stated that they will move along to Ordinances for Final Passage. Mayor: The mayor has not submitted anything. ▶ jump to 10:33
  14. 14 Controller's Reports 15-8333
  15. 15 ORDINANCES FOR FINAL PASSAGE (To be Voted On): ▶ jump to 17:43
  16. 16 Bill 10 Amending the 2026 Capital Fund Budget to provide for an increase of Three Hundred and Forty-Six Thousand One Hundred Fifty-Eight Dollars ($346,158.00) to partially fund the reconstruction on Lehigh and Union Street as part of the Pennsylvania Local Share Account Grant the City was awarded. This grant is fully reimbursable and once the project has been completed, the City will be reimbursed. 15-8240 approved Pass ▶ jump to 18:22
  17. 17 Bill 13 Amending the 2026 Grant Fund to provide for a supplemental appropriation of Two Hundred Fifty Dollars ($250,000.00) from the PA DCED Local Share Account Grant. These funds are a pass-through grant that will support the Resurrected Community Development Corporation. 15-8281 approved Pass ▶ jump to 19:15
  18. 18 Bill 14 Amending the 2026 Grant Fund to provide for a supplemental appropriation of Four Hundred Thousand Dollars ($400,000.00) from the PA DCED Local Share Account Grant. These funds are a pass-through grant that will support the Jewish Community Center of the Lehigh Valley. 15-8282 approved Pass ▶ jump to 19:54
  19. 19 Bill 15 Amending the 2026 Grant Fund to provide for a supplemental appropriation of Two Hundred Ninety-Six Thousand Eight Hundred Seventy-Eight Dollars ($296,878.00) from the PA DCED Local Share Account Grant. These funds are a pass-through grant that will support the Museum of Indian Culture. 15-8283 approved Pass ▶ jump to 20:35
  20. 20 Bill 16 Amending the 2026 Grants Fund to provide for a supplemental appropriation of One Million Dollars ($1,000,000.00) from the State Office of the Budget, Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program (RAC-P). These funds are a pass-through grant that will support The Baum School of Art. 15-8284 approved Pass ▶ jump to 21:13
  21. 21 Bill 17 Amending the 2026 Grant Fund to provide for a supplemental appropriation of Seven Hundred Seventy-Five Dollars ($775,000.00) from the PA DCED Local Share Account Grant. These funds are a pass-through grant that will support the Allentown Art Museum. 15-8285 approved Pass ▶ jump to 21:52
  22. 22 Bill 18 Amending the 2026 Capital Fund Budget to provide for a transfer of Fifty-Five Thousand Dollars ($55,000.00) from a completed Capital account for the redesign of traffic signal upgrades at 17th and Linden St, 17th and Turner St, 17th and Chew St, and 17th and Walnut Street intersections. This project was mostly funded through the Multimodal Transportation Fund Grant (MTF-DCED). This will transfer the unused funds from a completed capital project to the correct account for these services. 15-8286 approved Pass ▶ jump to 22:52
  23. 23 Bill 19 Amending the 2026 Capital Fund Budget to provide for a supplemental appropriation of Forty-Five Thousand Two Hundred Ninety-Five Dollars and Thirty-Nine Cents. ($45,295.39). This was the result of payment in lieu of tree plantings from Allentown School District, QR III LLC, 309 E Hamilton ST LLC, The Waterfront Development Corp, North Sixth St Properties OP LP, Executive Education Charter School, and East Penn Properties LP. Funds will be used for the purchase of new street trees. 15-8287 approved Pass ▶ jump to 26:36
  24. 24 Bill 22 Amending the 2026 General Fund Budget to provide for a supplemental appropriation of Fifteen Thousand ($15,000.00) Dollars from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Office of The State Fire Commissioner (OSFC) Grant to the Allentown Fire and EMS Department for the purchase of equipment. 15-8289 approved Pass ▶ jump to 27:22
  25. 25 CONSENT AGENDA ▶ jump to 27:36
  26. 26 R38 231 N 7th Street and 232 N Church Street Apartment Renovations - Sewage Planning Module 15-8312 approved Pass ▶ jump to 28:41
  27. 27 R39 Tom Burke, Nuisance Abatement Board of Appeals, 3/19/2028 15-8320
  28. 28 R40 Ramon Nunez, Jr., Board of Parks and Recreation, 3/19/2031 15-8319
  29. 29 R41 Susan Gilbert Zencka, Environmental Advisory Council, 1/1/2029 15-8318
  30. 30 R42 Sewage Planning Module at 1 Center Square 15-8326
  31. 31 R43 Certificate of Appropriateness for work in the Historic Districts: 1515 Linden Street 15-8322
  32. 32 RESOLUTIONS FOR FINAL PASSAGE (To be Voted On): ▶ jump to 28:57
  33. 33 R44 Council President Napoli - Allentown Economic Development Corporation (AEDC) 15-8321 approved Pass ▶ jump to 29:26
  34. 34 R45 Approves the submission of the formal application to the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development for eight hundred seven thousand dollars ($807,000) from the Statewide Local Share Account (LSA) grant that will support the purchase of new equipment for the Allentown Police Department. 15-8325 approved Pass ▶ jump to 32:08
  35. 35 R46 Approves the submission of the formal application to the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development for two hundred ninety-five thousand three hundred fifty dollars ($295,350) from the Statewide Local Share Account (LSA) grant that will support the purchase of new equipment for the Allentown Police Department. 15-8324 approved Pass ▶ jump to 33:34
  36. 36 R47 - Transfers Public Works – Traffic Bureau – $168,000.00 is required because the contract for the redesign of S Jefferson Street came back higher than anticipated. Parks & Recreation – $10,979.50 is required to pay for permit fees to LCCD for this project’s NPDES permit that is required. 15-8309 approved Pass ▶ jump to 34:34
  37. 37 ORDINANCES FOR INTRODUCTION (To be referred to Committee with public comment prior to referral) ▶ jump to 34:48
  38. 38 Bill 23 Amending the 2026 Trexler Fund Springwood Budget to provide for a supplemental appropriation of Thirteen Thousand Four Hundred Sixty-Eight Dollars and Eighty-One Cents ($13,468.81) from the Springwood Trust portion of the Trexler Fund’s unappropriated 2026 balance per General Trexler’s will. 15-8314 ▶ jump to 34:52
  39. 39 Bill 24 Amending the 2026 Capital Fund Budget to provide for an increase of One Million Eighty-Seven Thousand and Three Hundred Ninety Dollars ($1,087,390.00) to fund the upgrade to the intersection of 19th Street and Roth Avenue as part of the Green Light Go (GLG) Grant the City was awarded. This grant is partially reimbursable and requires match funding. 15-8315 ▶ jump to 35:25
  40. 40 Bill 25 Refer to Public Works Amending the 2026 Capital Fund Budget to provide for an increase of Ninety-Five Thousand Two Hundred Twenty-Two Dollars and Fifty Cents ($95,222.50) to the Traffic Signals Upgrade expenditure account to repair traffic equipment at two intersections due to weather related damage that knocked down two traffic signals. Capital Fund Cash will be used to fund this project. 15-8316 approved Pass ▶ jump to 40:58
  41. 41 RESOLUTIONS FOR INTRODUCTION (Can be voted on or Referred to Committee): ▶ jump to 42:40
  42. 42 NEW BUSINESS: NONE ▶ jump to 42:43
  43. 43 GOOD AND WELFARE ▶ jump to 42:50
  44. 44 ADJOURNED: 7:13 PM ▶ jump to 42:54