Borough reports captured most of the Alburtis Borough Council’s attention at the Jan. 29 meeting.

Council evaluated the Lower Macungie Fire Department’s “Statistical Year in Review: 2019,” a report by Ott Consulting Inc. and several ordinances.

Fire Chief Dave Nosal of the Lower Macungie Fire Department attended the meeting to brief council on important numbers such as incident reports, incident types and mutual aid.

With Nosal, Alburtis Police Chief Robert Palmer and another officer in attendance, Mayor Kathleen Palmer swore in Ryan Geist as a part-time officer.

Ott Consulting Inc. delivered a report regarding the operations intended to take place this year. Some of these projects include street light installation, land development, several sewage projects and stormwater management efforts.

Council carried two motions to adopt Ordinance No. 561 and Ordinance 562.

The first ordinance indicates council received an application for a handicapped parking space on Franklin Street and plans to fulfill the request. Ordinance 562 reappoints Christina Kaufman to a new four-year term as a member of the Alburtis Planning Commission. Her current term will expire March 4.

Council next discussed a request for Lower Macungie Township Special Fire Police.

Alburtis Borough Manager Sharon Trexler wished to direct council’s attention to the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission’s letter indicating Lower Macungie Township must complete the alteration of the crossings on Orchard Road and Schoeneck Road. Due to the numerous requests for extensions of time, the commission explained a further extension of time would not be granted, formally denying the petition.

In other meeting news, J.P. Mascaro and Sons also reached out to the borough to provide useful information regarding recycling. The company explained by partnering with Material Recovery for the Future they could now take more recyclable items and aim to promote sustainability.

The following items will now be considered recyclable materials: pet food bags, food storage bags, baby food pouches, cereal bags, detergent pouches, bread bags, paper towel overwrap, case wrap, shopping bags, food pouches, diaper wrap packaging, salad bags, snack food pouches, wipes pouches, bubble wrap, meat and cheese bags, pet treat pouches, air pillows, chip bags and drink pouches.

Before concluding the meeting, Lehigh County Executive Phillips Armstrong encouraged council to promote political participation within the community. Armstrong told council he wishes for every person in Lehigh County to be accounted for in the 2020 Census to avoid losing a significant amount of money as in past years.