Parking spots are causing a ruckus at Catasauqua Towers, with some residents afraid to speak out about their opposition to a new policy.

The issue began Jan. 23, when Xai Yang, manager of the senior citizen high-rise apartment building at Third and Pine streets, Catasauqua, sent a letter to all tenants announcing a new parking policy.

Betty MacHose, senior citizen and Towers resident, contacted The Press about the issue. According to MacHose, there aren't enough parking spaces for all residents that have cars.

"What has happened here for 30 years is that, if you need a parking space, you get put on a list and when one becomes available, then you can get it. I waited four years to get my space," she said.

"Everything now is going to be first come, first served," said MacHose.

In Yang's letter, she said that all tenants must agree to the policy by March 1 or they must vacate the property in 30 days. This has many tenants frustrated and angry.

MacHose and others in the building attempted to contact Jerry Alfano, CEO of the Alliance for Building Communities, which owns the building.

"No one answered our calls," MacHose said. "We contacted HUD [Housing and Urban Develpment, the federal organization that funds a portion of the property] but the number we had in Baltimore doesn't work. I called Philadelphia and they put me in contact with someone in Harrisburg."

The relationship between the tenants and management has been rocky, according to MacHose.

"The last time Jerry Alfano came down here, he said this was the worst building they owned and that we were a bunch of troublemakers," she said.

Although Yang states in her letter that there are no reserved spaces, MacHose read HUD rules that require people with mobility issues be given a reserved space, even if the lot is unreserved.

MacHose scheduled a meeting with the management for Feb. 28, but Yang postponed the meeting and rescheduled it for March 3.

Although Yang attended the March 3 meeting, once she became aware that Catasauqua Mayor Barbara Schlegel was present, she left.

"I was here to listen to the concerns of the residents and what management had to say, not to make any judgments," Schlegel told The Press.

MacHose distributed a letter she sent to Congressman Charlie Dent concerning the matter.

"I got him involved because this is a HUD property," MacHose said.

Many of the residents had signed the forms requiring them to accept the change.

"We don't have much of a choice," said one resident, who did not want their name used due to fear of retaliation from the management. "I signed it under duress. Most of us have nowhere to else to go."

MacHose said, and others agreed, that management has favored certain residents.

"They have people that are able to get away with parking in the lot. A woman was in the hospital for weeks and they let her car stay in the lot," she said.

The rules state that if a car is not moved in seven days, then the owner loses the spot.

"I have pictures of a car with Wisconsin plates parked in the lot and they just moved in here," said another resident.

Parking is available on the streets around the Third Street location, but some feel unsafe walking the distance to their vehicles. One resident reported that during her walk to the building, a youngster had demanded money.

There is some potential to add parking in a grassy strip adjacent to the building. Catasauqua Council at one time debated converting the small park into a parking lot, but rejected the measure. The building owner did not pursue the matter. Any parking lot expansion requires local investigation and approval from neighbors in this historical area.

"There are also dedicated trees in that strip that would need to be preserved," Schlegel said.

Management has not set a new meeting with residents, but have not issued eviction notices either.