During the Catasauqua Borough Council meeting July 20, Brian White, the head of the borough’s public works department, was also named the deputy assistant borough manager. There is no salary increase with this new title.

Borough Manager Glenn Eckhart noted White already often acts in this capacity, filling in for Eckhart when he is away. He also noted this departmental cross training helps fill potential gaps and allows for more administrative and procedural stability.

“He’s always been a team player,” Eckhart said of White, adding they’ve gotten to know each other better over the years.

A number of approvals were made to continue moving the Iron Works project forward, including the extension of Chad Helmer’s contract, not to exceed $13,200; the funding agreement with the Redevelopment Authority of Lehigh County; and approximately $13,000 for engineering work for Department of Environmental Protection Act 2 compliance for environmental cleanup.

Council also voted to approve the retaining wall design plans as submitted in the request for proposal. According to the agenda’s supporting documents, the professional services agreement would be with Colliers Engineering and Design. Solicitor William H. Platt II noted they are still in discussions and are expecting an answer shortly, so the wording of the approval was important if they did not want to wait another month to vote on the agreement. Eckhart reported they want to keep this process moving along quickly.

Councilman Howard Cunningham said the design work for the Iron Works site continues, and they are currently exploring wider sidewalks than initially planned. He noted the phase 1 preliminary plans are expected for council review in the next few months.

In other business, council approved ordinance 1467, which extends the no-parking area at Sheckler Elementary School on North 14th Street. There were changes in four locations. The ordinance passed with a vote of 6-1, with Councilman Brian Bartholomew opposed.

Ordinance 1468 was also approved, which added a handicapped parking sign at 537 Walnut St. It was reported there is already a handicap spot at that property, but both occupants qualify so a second sign was needed to accommodate them. Council approved the request unanimously.

Platt asked if the borough had a code hearing board. Eckhart and Councilwoman Tara Nicholas reported they’ve been trying to get residents to volunteer for the board for more than a year, with no interest. Rich Luthcke, the borough code enforcement officer, said he believes the board last met in 2017.

There were discussions on changing the board from five members to three in an effort to get the board put back together and meeting.

Mayor Anthony Alcalde talked about attending the Pennsylvania State Mayors’ Association conference. He said they discussed data centers, e-bikes and scooters, ATVs and more. He described the event as “eye opening” and said he is working to “take ownership of the mayor role” beyond just meetings and agendas.

Alcalde also reported the potential Mighty Pawz contract is still in process. Next steps include sharing the proposed contract with council members and discussing the specifics in executive session before taking a vote.

Engineer Vanessa Nedrick presented council with options for the stormwater and street drainage improvements project at Front and Liberty streets. She noted they received three bidders for the project and included three options, with a base option and two alternates. The base option was for the street drainage improvements, and the alternates added sidewalk improvements and Americans With Disabilities Act curb ramp and pipe work.

Nedrick reported Passerini and Sons came in as the lowest bidder for all three options, and council needed to decide the scale of which to approve for the project. Eckhart and White recommended approving the full project with all three options.

The borough received $170,681 in grant funds for the project. The Passerini bid for all three options came in at $260,272, so the borough will need to pay for the additional $89,591.

“We can find the money,” Eckhart said. “It needs to get done.”

He added the homes in that area have had extensive flooding issues for at least five years, so they need to do something to help fix the issue for those residents.

Nedrick also noted the design has been revised for the Main Street and Lehigh Valley International Airport drainage project, so she will touch base with the airport to keep the project moving.

Bartholomew also brought a potential flooding issue on Lehigh Street to Nedrick’s attention. She noted it is near the work Pennsylvania Department of Transportation is doing, so she will reach out to PennDOT to investigate.

Council also approved a payment of $41,415.40 for the wastewater treatment plant pole building.

Councilman Sean O’Boyle reported the borough’s new phone system is coming soon, so there might be some hiccups while they get it all settled.

Regarding public safety, it was noted the borough could use at least three more crossing guards during the school year but would also like to have some backups.

There was discussion about the agreement with the borough and police department with the Lehigh Township police firing range. Platt will draft a liability release for council to sign, and Alcalde will connect with Chief John Wiseman to make sure everything else is settled for the agreement.

Councilman Robert Zakos reported next steps for the shade tree commission would be to shift into more of an advisory board for code enforcement.

Nicholas reported the Battle of the Balloons was a fun day, despite needing to move days because of the weather. The event’s basket raffle raised $431 for the George Taylor House window project.

The Walt Winch memorial basketball free throw shooting contest is set for Aug. 15. Registration begins 9 a.m.

There is a National Night Out event being held 6-8 p.m. Aug. 4 at the municipal complex.

Council will next meet 6 p.m. Aug. 3 for committee and workshop meetings and then 7 p.m. Aug. 17 for the regular business meeting. Meetings are held at the municipal complex, 90 Bridge St.