Macungie Borough Council is moving forward with developing ordinances designed to affect parking and speed limits in the borough.

Most notable among changes created by the ordinances is parking on Brookfield Drive. This short stretch of road has been the topic of much discussion for weeks, as council officials seek a solution to a recurring problem with large commercial trucks parking on the road and obscuring sight lines for cars making turns into and out of Brookfield.

At the Oct. 6 meeting, council discussion reviewed plans to prohibit parking on the east side of Brookfield and allow parking on the west side for 330 feet north of the Main Street corner except for tractor trailers. Drivers choosing to park on Brookfield will have to come up West End Trail and around the block to park facing the proper direction.

The difficulty arises in how to class which kinds of vehicles are and are not prohibited. It was the police chief's idea to allow parking and produce signage for only passenger vehicles, which would be the easiest for the general public to understand and for police officers to enforce.

In addition, a weight limit of 26,001 pounds can be imposed to include most commercial motor vehicles.

In tandem with this change the ordinance also addresses parking on nearby West End Trail, which will now be for passenger vehicles only.

Mayor Gary Cordner pointed out during discussion the ordinance is increasing the number of available parking spaces.

At the corner of Lumber and Main streets parking is being eliminated to meet the Highway Occupancy Permit requirement. Two parking spaces on Main Street north from Lumber Street and five south from Lumber Street will be removed. Residents are reminded four spots are still available on Lumber Street itself.

In addition, a handicap space is being installed at 65 S. Lea St. by request of the business there.

There was further discussion on handicap accessibility on Main Street at the railroad crossing. A Transportation Alternatives Program Grant already acquired by the borough may help cover construction of a curb extension north and south of the railroad to aid in crossing Main Street.

Council is awaiting a response from PennDOT, but no one was opposed to the idea of building curb extensions there. Borough Manager Chris Boehm said PennDOT will find the money in the TAP Grant if council approves the idea.

At present the only handicap access from north of the railroad tracks across Main Street is by entering the lane of traffic. A curb extension would cause drivers to slow down and allow for safer and faster crossing.

In other meeting news, council was asked to approve the appointment of a deputy real estate tax collector under Harry Buchin. The current requirement for the tax collector is the collector be a resident of the borough and council discussed whether it could request the deputy be a resident as well.

Council President Chris Becker in particular was in favor of stipulating the deputy be a resident of the borough, though he acknowledged considering the size of the borough there may not be a resident interested in the position.

Council agreed to write to Buchin making this request.

There was also some discussion of the Southwest Lehigh Comprehensive Plan. According to Boehm, who attended a recent meeting, the planning commission of the comprehensive plan group is looking for municipalities to participate in a charrette and implementation.

A charrette which was described as a kind of "visioning" or brainstorming is an intensive planning and design stage. Boehm said a report will be prepared after the session. The main point is the planning commission is trying to move the updating of the comprehensive plan forward. It has been lingering in the update stage for two years.

The comprehensive plan is meant to be the guiding force behind participating municipalities' zoning ordinances, which also serve as its implementation or give it teeth, as Becker said. But Boehm pointed out the comprehensive plan is not an agreement unless there is a shared regional zoning ordinance and zoning authority. There has to be a regional traffic impact study in order for any agreement to cross municipal lines.

There was no further discussion on the borough's capital projects. Becker noted council is still seeking someone to fill the position of civil service commission alternate.

The first borough budget workshop is Oct. 14 and is open to the public.

The mayor confirmed the Halloween parade is scheduled 7:30 p.m. Oct. 25. The rain date for the parade is Nov. 1. Trick-or-treat night in the borough is 6 to 8 p.m. Oct. 31.