City Election Update

The fall election season is upon us, finally!

Voters in the City of Bethlehem will be electing a new council person and a new controller.

The City Council are as follows:
Democractic Ticket: Robert Donchez, J. William Reynolds and Gordon Mowrer
Republican Ticket: Esther Lee

Reynolds is the 26-year old legislative aide to State Rep. Steve Samuelson. He pulled off his major victory in spring when he came in second in a crowded Democratic primary that included an incumbent councilwoman, a former councilman and a former county councilman.

Lee is the party hopping head of the local chapter of NAACP. She was a Democrat in the past and has been a Republican for the past few years. Earlier this summer she led the protest against the Ludacris performance at Musikfest. She was also a member of the Bethlehem Defense Fund, a group which unsuccessfully attempted to stop the Sands-Bethworks project.

Donchez, the recently retired Allen High School teacher and winner of the Democratic primary, will be running for his 4th term on Council. He has recently joined State Rep. Joe Brennan's office as a Legislative Aide.

Mowrer, who finished third in the primary, will be seeking his 2nd consective term, after previously serving as Mayor and on City Council in the 1960s and 1970s. He is currently a local Moravian minister and was a strong anti-casino voice on Council.

Analysis: Are there any Republicans in Bethlehem to vote for Esther Lee? I will go out on a limb here and predict that the Democrats sweep. Reynolds will become the youngest council person in Bethlehem history.

City Controller Race:

The City will have a new controller for the first in a long time. Wallace DeCrosta was the long time controller passed away last year. The remainder of his term was filled by Alan Blair, who was the assistant controller. I think people forget the importance of this position until something happens like it did in NorCo's Clerk of Courts office or with Marge Szulborski in Upper Macungie. People need to make informed decisions when voting a controller.

The candidates for Bethlehem Controller are:
Democrat David Digiacinto, a former member of the Bethlehem Authority; and
Republican Meg Holland, who owns Meg Holland & Associates, a local accounting company.

I admittedly know little about either candidate. Ms. Holland's resume is quite impressive, though.

I think I will need to pass on the analyis of this race until I can look at each candidate more closely. Look for a post in the future.

Quick Hits for Wednesday

Back from a few days at the beach with a few quick hits for Wednesday.

1. The July 5th Morning Call tells us Council quietly enacted the new recreation fee at the July 3rd meeting.

2. The July 5th Morning Call also tells us that Council President Schweder and Councilman Leeson criticized Mayor Callahan for swapping his older Chevy Impala for the a new one that was approved in the budget, but was designated for the city inspector. The problem, according to Leeson, was that City Council did not authorize the Mayor to get a new car.

My view: City Council authorized a new car, after that it is up to the director of public property to decide who gets it. Who knows who needs a new car better than the man in charge of the cars. This is just overly critical of Leeson and Schweder.

3. District Attorney John Morganelli prematurely announced his intention to run for Attorney General, again.

My view: He is running for Attorney General, again. Move over Lou Barletta, Morganelli will be running on the immigration reform platform.

4. I hate getting into school board business, but the Bethlehem Area SD School Board has decided to continue a policy of not allowing students at Freedom and Liberty receive credit for volunteering at Musikfest.

My View: This stinks. The whole idea of mandatory community service stinks. Bethlehem needs to reevaluate the whole program and establish better definitions, according to Director Charlene Koch. I agree. I also think that volunteering at a community festival that brings lots to the city is community service.

5. Councilman Leeson already has a plan to spend the new recreation fee money. He wants to keep one of the City's pools open year round. I like the idea, but think the money should first be used to modernize and clean up the parks and pools in the city currently. This idea coming from the fiscally conservative Leeson surprises me, I guess someone in the Leeson household likes to swim.

6. Finally, new Morning Call Blog, Bethlehem Daily Star, informs us today that Councilman Robert Donchez has retired from the Allentown School District and is working in State Rep. Steve Samuelson's office, alongside council candidate J. William Reynolds. Word on the street is that Donchez is actually working in State Rep. Joe Brennan's southside office.
UPDATE: The article has been corrected to state that Donchez is working for Brennan and not Samuelson.

My view: Donchez is a good public servant and his working for one of the State Reps can only help Bethlehem and the surrounding communities.