During the April 8 meeting of the Lehigh Township Board of Supervisors, Northampton County judge candidate Jeremy Clark introduced himself and invited anyone to ask him questions after the meeting.
Following, Joe Gruber, of Benchmark Civil Engineering, represented Tyler and Emily Landis, who had submitted their final plan for their minor subdivision. Township Engineer Michael Muffley confirmed that the plan is good to move forward, aside from needing a few minor touch-ups, and Gruber requested a few waivers for items that were not relevant to the property in question. The supervisors voted to accept the plan, conditional to receiving letters from certain required agencies and the applicants paying the recreation fee.
Next, a discussion was held concerning the advertising signs being sold for display at Danielsville Park. It was explained that local businesses may pay the township $1,000 for the advertising, which includes the cost of the sign and a three-year term of display. Once the three years are over, the business may renegotiate the deal or take the sign for their own use. There was some contention over whether the recreation board was aware of the fee. Township Solicitor David Backenstoe recommended that the full recreation board meet as soon as possible to reach a consensus and clear up any misunderstandings. The signs which have already been purchased, meanwhile, will be displayed, and whatever profit remains after the signs are printed will be exclusively earmarked for Danielsville Park.
Following, Public Works Director Frank Zamadics said that his crew is waiting for the road temperatures to get high enough to begin line painting.
Board President Michael Jones inquired as to whether the township owns signage to advertise burn bans when in effect. Zamadics confirmed that the signs are there and can be displayed whenever the supervisors request it.
Fire Commissioner Richard Hildebrand said that the fire company also has a sign of this type which they can display at the intersection of Route 248 and Blue Mountain Road. Residents were reminded to call the non-emergency line to let the township know when they are planning a controlled burn.
Zamadics also provided supervisors with a list of roads in the township which will need oil and chip repair.
Katherine Mack requested that the public works crew look into the non-functioning light in the parking lot of the administration building.
Under zoning, Zoning Officer Elizabeth Amato received 56 new permit applications in March, 35 of which were granted. She also received six new complaints and is beginning to issue citations. She was recently in court with regard to two offenders, noting that the response to their violations will be “heavy-handed.”
Variances have been received for a winery, a kennel and many other items.
Under police, Police Chief Scott Fogel presented the supervisors with five years’ worth of data, noting that traffic citations and criminal arrests have been on a decline during that time. However, as the township population has increased, so has the number of calls. A core services study indicates that with this increase in call volume, the township police force should have between 18 and 20 officers rather than the current 12, particularly with the amount of data that must be reviewed daily such as body cam footage.
The supervisors granted Fogel’s request to apply for a hiring grant, in the hopes of slowly increasing the police force. Fogel recommended adding two more officers in 2026, then skipping a year or two of hiring to allow training and development without overwhelming the system.
Next, Hildebrand reported that the fire company’s annual sportsmen’s night was a rousing success and has covered the firehouse’s electric bill for the next year. The fire on Cherryville Road continues to burn, and even the recent rain did not help because the fire is too far below ground for water to reach it without evaporating. All the company can do is monitor the situation and wait for the fire to burn itself out.
Meanwhile, the new truck which had been approved for purchase and which was expected to be ready in 2026 now looks to be ready by August, due to supply lines having opened up. At the recommendation of Backenstoe, the fire company will accept the truck once completed and work out a payment agreement with the manufacturer.
Hildebrand said that the Catasauqua fire commissioner gave him some information about how they lease vehicles, so he feels this can be arranged without much difficulty.
The parts for the new maintenance building have been received by Vision Mechanical and they are scheduling repairs.
Following, supervisors continued their discussion from the previous meeting with regard to renewing leases. The leases will have the fire tax addendum put into them. The lease held by Blue Mountain Quarter Midgets for the race track has expired and will be redone. The Blue Mountain Quarter Midgets also requested to add some fencing and blacktop to the property on their lease, for increased safety, and the supervisors agreed to this as long as they get the necessary permits from the zoning board.
After the previous meeting, at which the supervisors voted to allocate emergency funds to the fire department for the Cherryville Road fire, Township Manager Alice Rehrig drafted a resolution in the event of a similar event in the future. The resolution was discussed and amended slightly, and the supervisors voted to grant the township manager the discretion to allocate emergency funding of no more than $10,000. Should the amount needed be greater than that, the board will convene an emergency meeting.
On a final note, board member Cynthia Miller said that she received a call about the timing of the traffic light at the Cherryville Road intersection. The board will examine the data and see what might be done about it.
The next meeting of the Board of Supervisors will be held at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, April 22 in the municipal building at 1069 Municipal Road, Walnutport.
