Catasauqua Council had a few items on the agenda, all of which needed attention at its March 3 meeting.

The proposed FedEx hub in Allen Township will have sewage flow to the Catasauqua Wastewater Treatment Plant.

"We have the capacity to handle the additional flow [estimated at 50,000 gallons] and there are a couple of options to get it here," said borough Manager Eugene Goldfeder. "They can send it through Hanover Township or they can build a direct pipeline."

In Goldfeder's analysis and discussions he had with FedEx representatives, the least expensive route will be to use the Hanover Township Lehigh County system.

However, as Goldfeder explained, the new extension will not be a gravity-fed system, no matter which route is selected.

The additional costs to pump sewage will be borne by Allen or Hanover township.

According to Solicitor Jeffrey Dimmich, the end customer must be a municipality.

"We can't just go direct to FedEx," he said.

In related news, Goldfeder asked council for approval to conduct a study on FedEx traffic traveling west at the Willowbrook Road intersection and potentially through Catasauqua.

A special vendor needs to be selected because the borough's engineer, the Pidcock Company, performed the traffic study for the FedEx hub.

"It would be a conflict of interest to use them for the study," Goldfeder said.

In other business, Dimmich reported the police contract is complete and the borough is waiting for police representatives to sign off before releasing the details. Dimmich claimed that property tax collection delinquencies are down from 107 last year to 59. According to Dimmich, aggressive enforcement made the difference.

"The change in the code will allow us to go after delinquent refuse bills," he said. "We will now be able to include attorney's fees in the total."

Also at the meeting, Borough Engineer Steve Henning reported modifications to the wastewater treatment plan are proceeding on schedule.

"Piping is complete and electrical connections to the digester are under way. The UV [Ultra Violet] purification system is in place," he said.

Council agreed to allow the borough to be a sponsor for Old Home Week.

According to Councilwoman Deb Mellish, no fee is required, but the borough action will ease the paperwork needed for using the borough's facilities during the planned festival week.