City Council
Council Chambers
Agenda — 51 items
- 1 Invocation:
- 2 Pledge to the Flag
- 3 Roll Call
- 4 Courtesy of the Floor Please observe the Rules of Council when given privilege of the floor. A copy of Council Rules can be found on the council agenda on the website; copies are also on the back desk along with the agenda. When anyone has privilege of the floor, I will not entertain personal insults, attacks, name calling or other behavior that is inconsistent with the purpose of conducting official business. 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. Courtesy of the Floor is meant to provide public comment on items that are not on the agenda. Public comment during consideration of ordinances, resolutions and motions is limited by topic – your comments must be relevant to the subject matter of the proposed legislation. Public comments are taken before council votes on items.You are given privilege of the floor to provide public comment, it is not a question-and-answer session. If you are speaking 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. 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.
- 5 Councilperson Gerlach: Request to suspend the rules and take Resolution 100 out of order, discuss and vote on it at this point in the agenda.
- 6 Contract Approvals
- 7 R101 Authorizes Engagement of Professional Services with Bowman Consulting Group, Ltd. in the amount of $12,950 in Public Works for services preparing and submitting applications, application narrative, conceptual plan exhibit, application schedule and cost information, coordination with other agencies, and on-line submissions, informal quotes, 2 responses.
- 8 R102 Authorization for Contract increase in the amount of $150,000.00; an increase from an estimated $30,000.00 per year to an estimated $180,000.00 per year, for a contract previously bid and awarded to Kost Tire Distributors, Inc. (d/b/a Kost Tire and Auto Service, Inc. d/b/a Big E Tire, Inc.) & McCarthy Tire Service Company, Inc. to provide various tires for City vehicles and equipment. The contracts will expire August 30, 2024, It has been requested to utilize the first of four (4) renewal terms and extend the contracts to August 30, 2025. Upon Written notification, these contracts can be extended for an additional four (4) one (1) year terms beyond the contract expiration period.
- 9 R103 Authorization for Contract with Joe Hunt & Associates, P.C. (d/b/a JHA Companies) for $88,400.00 to provide professional consulting and engineering design services related to the Dixon Street Pedestrian Bridge; two (2) bids received; one (1) year contract that can be extended for up to an additional five (5) one (1) terms beyond the contract expiration, with a rate increase of five percent (5%) each year following the contract term.
- 10 R104 Authorization for Contract with Penn Mount Stone, LLC in the amount of $117,016 to provide masonry repair and preservation the WPA Stage in Union Terrace, including both North and South Arms and Pylons.
- 11 R105 Authorization of Cooperative Contract(s) in an amount greater than $40,000.00 to provide the City with various goods/services. Schaedler Yesco Dist. – Street Lighting for Mack Boulevard & ESRI, Inc. – 2024 ESRI Advantage Program.
- 12 Minutes of Previous Meeting
- 13 June 5, 2024 City Council Special Committee Co Response Models Meeting Minutes
- 14 June 5, 2024 City Council Meeting Minutes
- 15 Communications
- 16 Old Business
- 17 REPORTS
- 18 Controller's Report
- 19 ORDINANCES FOR FINAL PASSAGE (To be Voted On):
- 20 Bill 53 Providing for the vacation of North Elizabeth Street from the centerline of Monroe Street to the centerline of vacated Wayne Street in the Seventeenth Ward of the City of Allentown.
- 21 Bill 54 Amending the 2024 Capital Fund Budget to provide for a transfer of Fourteen Thousand Five Hundred Eleven Dollars and Seventy-Four Cents ($14,511.74) from the Street Lighting Upgrade capital account to the Martin Luther King Jr Dr Lighting capital account. This will transfer the unused funds from the completed Street Lighting Upgrade project to the Martin Luther King Jr Dr Lighting capital account.
- 22 Councilperson Gerlach: Motion to reconsider Bill 40, the Parking Fine Increases.
- 23 Parking Fine Bill
- 24 CONSENT AGENDA
- 25 R106 Sewage Planning Module at 714 & 718 West Greenleaf Street
- 26 R107 Sewage Planning Module at 302 E Hamilton Street
- 27 R108 Craig Beavers (Replacing Hannah Clark), Planning Commission, Term Expiration: 06/27/2028
- 28 R109 Authorizes the disposition of certain records within Human Resources.
- 29 R110 Certificate of Appropriateness for work in the Historic Districts: • 25 N 11th St. • 617 ½ N 5th St. • 627 Park St.
- 30 RESOLUTIONS FOR FINAL PASSAGE (To be Voted On):
- 31 R98 Denial of a Certificate of Appropriateness – 825 W Gordon Street
- 32 R99 Denial of a Certificate of Appropriateness – 222 N West Street
- 33 R100 Supports an Unsheltered Declaration of Rights.
- 34 R111 Approves the submission of the formal application for the local share account grant on behalf of the Museum of Indian Culture. This will support Phase 2 of the Lenape Village Park and Trail Project.
- 35 R112 Allentown City Council seeks to engage the City Controller or other qualified professionals to conduct audits and review expenditures relating to administration's investigations, salary adjustments and bonuses, travel and training expenses, vendor reimbursement, grant funding, performance audit of the Human Resources Department and development of a Personnel Code
- 36 R113 Authorizes the expenditure funds to hire counsel to pursue any and all equitable and legal remedies against the Mayor to enforce an agreement and enjoin any further obstruction of the Investigation pursuant to Ordinance No. 15948.
- 36 R112 Allentown City Council seeks to engage the City Controller or other qualified professionals to conduct audits and review expenditures relating to administration's investigations, salary adjustments and bonuses, travel and training expenses, vendor reimbursement, grant funding, performance audit of the Human Resources Department and development of a Personnel Code
- 37 R114 Approves five transfers: (1) $172,365.88 in Parks and Recreation for construction inspection is part of the construction process for Bogert’s Bridge. The TASA grant we received is being used to pay for construction inspection and construction; (2) $85,100.00 in Stormwater that is needed to provide for legal services necessary for the City to construct formal comments due to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) within a 30 – day public comment period; (3) $49,822.74 in Parks and Recreation for improvements to Cedar Beach include upgraded lighting and new basketball hoops; (4) $33,588.00 in Finance to pay for the invoice received from NW Financial Group, LLC regarding the Allentown Parking Authority Study (Invoice #ALLNTWN2024-01); (5) $20,000.00 in City Council to hire Counsel to litigate the mayor’s obstruction of investigation.
- 37 R112 Allentown City Council seeks to engage the City Controller or other qualified professionals to conduct audits and review expenditures relating to administration's investigations, salary adjustments and bonuses, travel and training expenses, vendor reimbursement, grant funding, performance audit of the Human Resources Department and development of a Personnel Code
- 38 ORDINANCES FOR INTRODUCTION (To be referred to Committee with public comment prior to referral)
- 39 Bill 56 Amending the 2024 Capital Fund Budget to provide for a transfer of One Hundred Seventy Thousand ($170,000.00) Dollars from Irving Pool Improvements capital project into Dixon St Bridge to use for design of the bridge and Jordan Skatepark for construction of Phase 2 of the park.
- 40 Bill 57 Amending the 2024 Capital Fund Budget to provide for a supplemental appropriation of One Hundred Twenty Thousand ($120,000.00) Dollars from the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) to support construction phase 2 of Jordan Skatepark
- 41 Bill 58 Amending the 2024 General Fund Budget to provide for a supplemental appropriation of Seven Hundred Fifty ($750.00) Dollars from Keep PA Beautiful in their efforts to support a volunteer event by Giant/Martin Food Stores for supplies to conduct the volunteer event.
- 42 Bill 59 An Ordinance providing for the expenditure of certain monies received by the City of Allentown under Title I of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1976, as amended; The Homeless Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing Act of 2009; and Title II of the National Affordable Housing Act of 1990, as amended; for the purpose of undertaking programs of housing and community development within the City
- 43 Bill 60 Amending the Ethics Code Section § 36-6 Patronage, by prohibiting the hiring of anyone that has been engaged in remunerated political activity related to the election of City Officials.
- 44 Bill 61 Amending the Ethics Code Section § 36-5 Nepotism, by prohibiting the hiring of an elected official’s spouse or domestic partner, child or stepchild, sibling or stepsibling, parent, or member of his or her household, of an elected official during the office holder’s term and requiting a specific time frame for the Human Resources to carry out the responsibilities of reporting such relationships already prescribed in the code.
- 45 RESOLUTIONS FOR INTRODUCTION (Can be voted on or Referred to Committee):
- 46 R115 Approves the submission of the Action Plan to the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development.
- 47 NEW BUSINESS
- 48 GOOD AND WELFARE
- 49 ADJOURN