Deborah Bacon of Zelenkofske Axelrod LLC presented the 2019 Hellertown Borough Audit at the June 1 borough council virtual meeting. She opened on a positive note, saying that the audit demonstrated an “unmodified or clean opinion on the financial statements and there were no findings to be reported.” The audit reported a $1 million dollar surplus of borough revenues versus expenses, compared with a $200,000 shortfall in 2018 and a $400,000 surplus in 2017. The borough’s general fund, which is used for operations, has increased over the last several years, from standing at $2.6 million as of the end of 2015 to $4 million at the end of 2019.

Council President Thomas J. Rieger elaborated on the figures, saying “the fluctuation in annual revenues over expenses has a lot to do with when we get reimbursements by state grant.” He went on to say “We front load a lot of the money for a lot of the grant projects we do and it takes upwards of a year after the projects are done to receive those monies in … a lot of it is a timing thing.”

Reiger also reported from the Hellertown Chamber of Commerce’s Annual Planning Meeting in late May that “well over 15 local businesses were recipients of the chamber’s grant program. Upwards of $25,000 came back into the community from the chamber’s COVID Response Fund.

He discussed the possibility of temporarily closing off some parking areas to allow for more outdoor seating for borough restaurants, as well as other accommodations such as temporarily suspending restrictions regarding alcoholic beverages on sidewalks similar to what is being done in neighboring communities. Borough Manager Cathy Hartranft seconded these suggestions and said that she has been working closely with the borough’s businesses to get ready for Northampton County’s impending move to the “Yellow Phase” of Governor Tom Wolf’s COVID-19 restrictions June 5.

In other business, a motion was made by Councilman Earl Hill and seconded by Matt Marcincin to reopen the Saucon Valley Compost Center to normal hours, which are from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. The center had been open since early May on Mondays through Fridays from 8:00 am to noon to allow for easier social distancing. The motion carried with no objection.

Police Chief Robert Shupp III gave an update on COVID-19 cases, which are continuing a downward trend.

“What’s really going to help (Northampton) county specifically is that Gracedale is starting to see a downward trend in new cases,” he said. Regarding the borough’s slow return to normalcy, he added that the department is seeing an uptick in calls.w

“We are definitely starting to get busier,” he said. Shupp also informed council that the police department is planning to hire more part-time officers due to budgetary concerns, as they recently lost two officers to full-time positions in other municipalities. He asked council to approve at least one imminently - Officer Stephen Pinsker, a Hellertown resident who has been serving other local municipalities (including Nazareth) as a part-time officer. Hill made the motion and Gil Stauffer seconded, and it was approved unanimously.