— Jeff Ward, Lehigh Valley News Briefs
Bethlehem City Council will discuss code-enforcement issues at a committee meeting Tuesday, before moving on to the salaries of elected officials.
Council member Grace Crampsie Smith said last week that she will raise issues of code enforcement related to the condemned building at 453 Main St. The building’s rear wall has partially collapsed, and the big CONDEMNED sign is not a welcoming sight to visitors.
With the city gaining UNESCO World Heritage status for its Moravian history, having a condemned building up a few doors from the Hotel Bethlehem does not present a good image. However, dealing with private properties is time-consuming.
The condemned building is owned by Wens Inc., which is based at a private home in Lower Nazareth Township. It was once a consigment store and is now vacant. There is a pile of rubble at the rear of the building.
That issue will come up at the Community Development Committee meeting at 6 p.m. in Town Hall. That meeting and the full meeting of City Council at 7 p.m. Tuesday will both be shown on Bethlehem’s YouTube channel.
At the full meeting, City Council will discuss raising the salaries of the mayor, controller and council members. That is always a tricky issue, and particularly in an election year. Crampsie Smith is challenging incumbent J. William Reynolds in the Democrat Party’s primary election.
Salaries for elected officials in the city have not gone up for more than a decade.
The proposal is to raise the pay of council members to $10,650 from $7,100, with the president of council receiving $11,400 ($750 more than other members).
The salary of the mayor would go up to $98,000 from $90,500, while the controller’s pay would go to $56,000 from $49,000.
The controller is the city’s elected financial watchdog, reviewing contracts, spending and procedures.
Lehigh Valley News Briefs 