An attorney representing a member of the Coplay Feral Cat Committee attended Tuesday night's borough council meeting.

At last week's workshop meeting, code enforcement officer Ron Helman said he condemned a property which belongs to another member of the Feral Cat Committee.

Discussion revealed Councilman Bill Leiner Jr. chairs the committee and works with committee members Karen Shields and Joan Jacoby.

After the meeting Leiner said it was Shields' property that was condemned.

During public comment, Attorney Zach Fowler of Gross McGinley in Allentown, told council he represents Jacoby.

He asked for but did not receive any information about what would turn out to be an approximately 30-minute executive session to discuss an "administrative search warrant."

"I just ask that any future correspondences, or anything that you guys may need, just come through me," said Fowler. "I'm pretty reasonable. I think a solution could be worked out if you came through me rather than through her."

Questioned by The Press after council convened its executive session, Fowler declined to reveal why Jacoby had retained his firm.

He said her property was not the one condemned but it is the property involved with the administrative search warrant.

Council took no action after reconvening the meeting following the executive session.

During the regular meeting and before the executive session, Councilman Charles Sodl requested Leiner and members of the Feral Cat Committee meet with him, Councilmen Joseph Groller and Council President Lou Bodish "to talk about the cat problem.

"It was suggested that we meet with your committee and you weren't sure you had a committee," Sodl said.

"It might be a committee of one," said Leiner.

He invited Sodl to attend the reorganization meeting of the Feral Cat Committee, which is part of Coplay Town Watch. The meeting is set for 2 p.m. Jan. 19 at Samuel Owens Restaurant.

"I want to address this problem as soon as possible," Sodl said, suggesting they meet sooner. Leiner agreed to meet 7 p.m. Dec. 19 in council chambers.

Editor's Note: In an email sent 9 p.m. Wednesday night, Leiner cancelled this meeting due to a scheduling conflict.

After the meeting, Leiner said he would be glad to meet with Sodl, Bodish and Groller but did not think such a meeting would last very long.

"There's nothing to talk about," he said.

The code enforcement issues faced by Jacoby and Shields are personal and not related to their function as members of the Feral Cat Committee.

"My job as chairman [of the cat committee] isn't monitoring people's private lives," he said.