Bethlehem City Council convened Tuesday to discuss and vote on funding for the UNESCO World Heritage Site Manager position, updates to the North Side Alive Plan, the development of the Revolving Loan Fund and Bethlehem Police Department officer recruitment.
UNESCO World Heritage Site Manager
The city council voted 5-0 in favor of a $150,000 contract for a role operated under Moravian University to manage Bethlehem’s UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Moravian Church Settlements. The site manager will help preserve the heritage sites, work to achieve global partnerships and oversee operations of the site.
Jeffrey Parks, the president and chief quest officer of ArtsQuest, said he hoped the council would approve the funding for the position to support the world heritage site designation, believing the designation will have a broader impact on the Bethlehem community.
“I think it will have the same level of impact that Musikfest and ArtsQuest have had in terms of the social, economic and cultural development of this community for many years to come,” Parks said.
The Northside Alive Plan
The council passed a request 6-0 to approve a $39,960 contract with WRT, an urban development and architecture firm, to update the Northside Alive neighborhood revitalization plan, a program in Bethlehem that improves the North Side neighborhoods through housing, park and community projects.
Council members asked if there were geographical boundaries outlined in the plan that limit the areas addressed. They also asked if the plan and its developments would take residents’ attention away from activities that happen in downtown Bethlehem, like on Main Street.
Laura Collins, Bethlehem’s director of community and economic development, said all residents are welcome to participate in activities created by the plan.
“Ultimately the goal is the same, and it’s improving the quality of life in the neighborhood,” Collins said. “And that’s not competing with downtown.”
Councilwoman Colleen Laird asked Collins if WRT will also work on community engagement efforts.
Collins said the company will conduct engagement through meetings, focus groups and neighborhood walks as part of the updated plan.
Councilwoman Kiera Wilhelm said she also thinks the plan will be beneficial to the broader community.
Revolving Loan Fund Development
The council also voted 6-0 to approve a $12,000 contract to create a revolving loan fund, which will help finance mixed-income and affordable housing projects in Bethlehem as part of the city’s “Opening Doors: Strategies to Build Housing Stability in Bethlehem” plan.
The city will create this fund by partnering with the nonprofit organization called the Center for Public Enterprise, which works to develop the public sector by partnering with agencies to implement policies and programs.
The council voted to pay the nonprofit $12,000 to create a fund that offers low-interest loans that go toward the development of mixed-income housing.
Councilwoman Rachel Leon said this loan fund will allow Bethlehem to have better control over the types of housing projects being built. She also said $12,000 is a low price for what will be offered.
“We are really allowing (the Center for Public Enterprise) to look at Bethlehem and see what might work best here,” Wilhelm said. “But just overall, this feels like a very modest investment for something that has the potential for a great payoff.”
Leon said most of Bethlehem’s available land is being bought up by large companies, and the plan could give residents a greater say in what they’re seeing.
“This could be kind of like the cooling effect that we were talking about earlier, but in a way that would incentivize affordability,” Leon said. “So this is pretty exciting and a very modest price, all things considered.”
Bethlehem Police Department
Bethlehem Police Chief Michelle Kott discussed the number of police officers employed by the department and vacancies. She said the Bethlehem Police Department currently offers 154 positions, and the department has 14 open positions.
Kott said outside of vacancies, there are officers who can’t work due to long term injuries and some who are on military leave, which also lowers the number of present police officers.
Kott also said the applicant pool for police officers has been shrinking on a regional level.
“It is no longer a pool, it’s actually a puddle,” Kott said. “So we’re doing the best we can to attract people to come to our police department, to come to our city to serve. We’re going to continue to do that to try to get the best-qualified, diverse candidates to serve in our police department.”
The city council will meet next on Oct. 21. The agenda for the next meeting is posted on the City of Bethlehem’s website the Friday before.
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