Catasauqua Press

Plans made for the season opening of the George Taylor House were curtailed when the day was greeted with a down-pouring of rain just as a parade was set to begin. Calliope music for the event was a no-show, and the parade was canceled.

With plenty of cake and coffee on hand, house activities director Emily Zacharda swung open the doors and hoped for the best.

At Hanover Township Council’s meeting May 18, a debate continued on an ordinance to ban recreational vehicle parking on public streets.

When council discussed the issue at their previous meeting, a proposal was made to put a time limit that a vehicle could park on public roadways in the township. Council also asked the solicitor to define a recreational vehicle. Solicitor Jackson Eaton amended his recommendation adding the definition and a time limit of three days.

With plans and ideas for the Borough of Catasauqua’s Iron Works property floating around for over a year and not a shovel of dirt turned, The Press sat down with Councilwoman Christine Weaver and Spillman Farmer Architects lead team, Eliot Nolter and Russ Pacata, to get details on the process that turns ideas into glass and steel.

“We understand that this has been a long process and there is little to show for all the decisions that have been made, but we have one shot at getting this right, so we need to make the best of it,” Weaver said.

Police Chief Douglas Kish presented Catasauqua Borough Police Officers Donald Stratton and Scott Rothrock with the Combat Cross, a merit award for action taken Feb. 23, 2015, against an armed suspect. The presentation was made at the April 4 meeting of Catasauqua Borough Council.

Catasauqua’s Front Street Traffic Committee met April 28 to put plans and schedules together to turn Front Street into a two-way corridor.

“In our discussions with Taggart Associates, they said there is little interest from business owners and developers in the Iron Works site if Front Street is not two-way,” Councilwoman Christine Weaver said.

The borough hired Taggart Associates to help market the Iron Works site to developers and future business owners. The goal was to attract unique, boutique businesses to attract visitors to the new downtown area.

Solicitor Thomas Dinkelacker called a special meeting of Catasauqua council recently to discuss a development on the borough’s Iron Works site.

“We have an easement agreement that we worked out with Catty Charter LLP that will give us a second route out of the municipal building site,” he said April 20.

At Catasauqua Borough Council’s May 2 meeting, Deborah Penn took to the podium to address council on proposed changes to the traffic flow on Second Street.

“I feel I have no voice in this agreement,” she said. “When council members are running for election, they can stop by my house, but no one talks to me when changes this important are happening.”

Penn presented her list of complaints. She said removing parking options will not only lower property values but may render a home unsellable.

Every year, in observance of Arbor Day, a number of trees are planted in Catasauqua honoring current and former residents. On April 23, 11 trees were dedicated in honor of residents, including librarians, a teacher, a coach and a historian.

Although the weather was only fit for trees, with hints of rain and a cool breeze, several residents attended the event.

Robert Bastian, chairman of the Catasauqua Borough Shade Tree Commission, opened the ceremony. The Rev. George Spieker offered the invocation and benediction.

On the agenda for Hanover Township’s May 7 meeting was an ordinance restricting parking recreational vehicles on public streets. Council members were split on the matter.

Solicitor Jackson Eaton’s proposed ordinance addressed three types of recreational vehicles: self-contained RVs, van-style campers and towable motor homes.

The controversy started over a RV with an attached trailer that blocks a line of sight in the Chestnut Grove development.

Currently, there are no provisions to cite the RV owner for parking it on the property.

“We received a call from the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission asking for us to attend the meeting,” said Catasauqua Borough Manager Eugene Goldfeder. The borough applied for a Transportation Alternative Project (TAP) grant. “There are a lot of municipalities competing for these dollars, and I think we made a good case for our project,” Goldfeder said. Since the 1990s, over $20 million has been awarded locally to more than 50 TAP projects.