Aug. 19, 2024
Bethlehem City Council will meet Tuesday, Aug. 20, with what looks like a light agenda. They may slip something in, though, one never knows, and I didn’t go over this one line-by-line.
Here is the agenda of the 7 p.m. meeting in Town Hall:
Here are links to each item:
https://www.bethlehem-pa.gov/Calendar/Meetings/2024/City-Council-Meetings/337
The meeting will be on livestream.
With summer, there has been some relief as Lehigh University students and others have not been coming up to demand that Bethlehem City Council not vote for a ceasefire in Israel’s war with Hamas.
This is refreshing, as most of us realize that City Council has no such authority, that neither side cares what Bethlehem wants, and that Bethlehem’s wishes will not sway U.S. policy.
BTW, Gaza is about 5,700 miles away. Town Hall is not the place to “demand” anything, including a ceasefire in the Middle East. It’s nice thought though, right?
Once mildly noteworthy item for Tuesday (I didn’t look too hard to be honest) is a plan to replace a 2-million-gallon drinking-water reservoir on South Mountain in Lower Saucon Township.
The reservoir is 100 years old. Much of America’s water system is old. Part of the $229,000 project will be funded by a Pennsylvania grant.
The city Water Authority recommends Herbert, Rowland & Grubic for the job. That firm, known as HRG, works out of Lehigh County.
Here’s the proposal:https:
Just because an agenda doesn’t look big doesn’t mean something big won’t happen. Now and then there is unexpected drama, and the public comment section can often take a lot of time, even if most of it focuses on actual city business.
Bethlehem City Council will meet at 7 p.m. Tuesday in Town Hall, the building between City Hall and the Bethlehem Area Public Library. The meeting is also available via livestream; see links above.
Engineering consultant shall provide design, permitting, land development, bidding, and
construction administration services to replace the 100 year-old 2 million gallon drinking
water reservoir located on south mountain in Lower Saucon Township. Funding for the
project provided in part by a H2O PA Grant.
- State the actual or estimated price to the City or the proposed Department budget allowance
for the initial term; and state payment rate per unit of service if applicable:
$229,000 - Number of renewal term options and duration of each renewal, if any:
None. - Maximum dollar value of all renewals provided for beyond the original term as if all
renewals were exercised:
$229,000 - Reasons for recommendation of Administration and Council approval of contract:
- Six proposals were received from reputable engineering firms with experience in tank
design. HRG was selected based on fee, experience, interview, and project approach.
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