After Scott Shearer, of PFM Financial Advisors, briefed the Bethlehem City Council on the final details of the planned $6 million general obligation bond and his plans to offer it up for public sale, the council approved the sale 5–0. Council members Olga Negrón and William Reynolds were absent.

The money will fund non-utility capital projects such as renovations, upgrades and improvement to public safety projects, including traffic lights, street paving, bridge repairs, storm sewer improvements and various heating and air conditioning projects.

In public comment Elizabeth Behrend, a member of the of Bethlehem Environmental Advisory Council (EAC) and head of its Waste Reduction Committee, advanced a proposal to ban single-use plastic bags in Bethlehem.

“The EAC recently submitted a proposal to city council to pass an ordinance that would ban single-use plastic bags and apply a fee on all paper bags given to customers at the point of sale,” said Behrend. “I would like to see city council move forward with this measure. I ask for your support for a ban on plastic bags.

“Eighty percent of business owners who responded were either in favor of eliminating plastic bags or are neutral on the subject. Bethlehem is ready for this change, and I ask that you follow the lead of Narberth, Pennsylvania, and ban these unnecessary items.”

Behrend thanked Mayor Robert Donchez (who was absent, but represented by Business Manager Eric Evans) for attending the conference on sustainability and for showing a commitment to the planet.

Doug Roysdon of the Sierra Club spoke on behalf of the proposed pedestrian bridge linking West Bethlehem with Southside Bethlehem. He said it will contribute to “re-inventing the public sphere.” He said good grant work will be needed to fund the project. Its proposed location was not discussed, though he envisioned it linking the two parts of the city through Sand Island.

The Council later gave preliminary to apply for a Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) grant application for $40,000 for a feasibility study for the pedestrian bridge. DCNR Grants is an electronic grants system that provides one-stop shopping to the grantee community for many Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources supported projects.

Barbara Diamond presented a look back in local history to Nov. 1967, when Bethlehem Public Library needed to move its 80,000-book collection from its old location at New St. and Market St. (now the location of the Moravian Middle School) to the new building (its current location near City Hall). She said over 700 citizens answered the call and helped pack, stack and carry books to the new location in an effort dubbed “Operation Book Move.”

Organizers of the effort, Ed and Eleanor Beighe were in the audience.

In a preliminary or first reading, the Council approved plans to apply for a five-year Keystone Enterprise Zone designation for Bethlehem through the Keystone Communities Program.

The Director of Community and Economic Development recommended awarding a marketing services contract to the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce.

The Department of Public Works Director Michael Alkhal proposed an agreement between PennDot and the city for finalization of the automated red light enforcement program project to improve pedestrian traffic at Elizabeth Avenue and Linden Street near Liberty HS. According to his memorandum, 75 percent of the project has been accomplished leaving on the pavement markings to be done.

In other business, the City Council approved several mayoral appointments: Alexander O. Ward to the Fine Arts Commission; Nancy Topping to the Sister City Commission, Peter J. Schneck as an alternative to the Zoning Hearing Board; Jennifer Rowe Hawk to the Board of Historical and Architectural Review; Adrianne Pauling to the Human Relation Commission; and Rodman D. Young to the Board of Historical and Architectural Review.