Allentown City Council Meeting - April 15, 2026: Homelessness Crisis, Budget Amendments, and Contract Approvals
Allentown City Council Meeting - April 15, 2026
The Allentown City Council met on Wednesday, April 15, 2026, at 6:30 PM in Council Chambers. All seven council members were present: Cynthia Mota, Natalie Santos, Ce-Ce Gerlach, Candida Affa, Santo Napoli (President), Jeremy Binder, and Cristian Pungo. The meeting lasted until 8:07 PM and included the adoption of several contracts and budget amendments, but was dominated by discussion and action regarding a homeless encampment sweep. Council passed a resolution urging city and county action on the homelessness crisis and approved two related motions.
Consent Calendar
- No items were on the consent agenda.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Denise Houser (1331 S. 10th St.) thanked Council for helping resolve neighborhood issues including illegal dumping, noise, and trash, particularly noting the assistance of Councilwoman Affa.
- Mark Lima (523 W Turner St.) requested a waiver or reduction of garbage fees for unused units at his property, arguing that the city’s push for deconversion is costly and unfair. He noted he has maintained his property for 37 years, pays taxes on time, and never had police or emergency calls.
- Regina Padilla (35 N 18th St.) spoke during the later Resolution 57 discussion, sharing her personal story of housing instability and criticizing the encampment sweep policy. She stated the draft policy’s 10-day notice and language like “the city does not provide housing” is inhumane.
- Kyle Ropski (Chair, Allentown Environmental Advisory Council) expressed support for Bill 28 (USDN grant), praising the Sustainability Department’s success in securing grant funding for community initiatives.
- Several unhoused individuals and advocates spoke during public comment on Resolution 57, pleading for a halt to the encampment sweep. Speakers included Vanessa Canere (Homestead Sanctuary), Swain Flag, Jasper, Jess Benson (Community Advocate), Anthony Alcado, Tina Wood (with her daughter), Kelly Peters (amputee), Gwen Dietrich, and Michael Johnson. They described the encampment as a clean, safe community and asked for more time and a permanent solution.
- Meghan DiPiero (co-chair, Allentown Commission on Homelessness) thanked Council for unity and visiting the encampment, but emphasized the need for better communication and oversight.
Discussion Items
- Contract Approvals (R53–R56): All four contracts were approved unanimously (7-0). R53 authorized a $32,549 change order with Maxiom Corp. for website maintenance (new total $113,494). R54 approved cooperative contracts with multiple vendors for goods/services. R55 awarded a $286,500 contract to Baseline Contracting Inc. for ADA ramp construction. R56 awarded a $270,329.42 contract to Granicus LLC for meeting management software. Councilman Binder noted the Maxiom contract has received substantial funding and should be reviewed at budget time.
- Minutes of Previous Meetings: Minutes from January 5 (Organizational), March 25 (Special – Managing Director Nomination), and April 1, 2026 were approved 7-0.
- Reports: Committee chairs reported: Community & Economic Development had an update from the Commission on Homelessness; Parks & Recreation and Public Works committees met; Public Safety and others reported no recent meetings. Controller Jeffrey Glazier gave a brief report on February P-cards, noting four wrong account uses, two instances lacking documentation (since resolved), and one instance of sales tax paid (department seeking reimbursement).
- Ordinances for Final Passage (Bills 26–30): All passed 7-0. Bill 26 amended the Allentown Parking Authority board to remove the requirement for an AEDC representative and, per an amendment by Councilwoman Gerlach, limit the board to at most one council member. Bill 27 added $800,000 from DCED for MLK Trail Phase 2. Bill 28 added $16,000 from USDN for a citizen science pilot with Easton, Community Bike Works, and Penn State. Bill 29 added $5,050,000 for Public Works capital projects. Bill 30 upgraded a Parks and Recreation position from Project Coordinator to Project Manager, funded by the Trexler Fund.
- Resolution 57 and Related Motions: After suspending the rules, Council took up Resolution 57, which strongly urges the city and county to address the crisis created by posting an encampment sweep after the warming shelter closed. Managing Director Frank Kane (newly appointed) presented a draft encampment policy and stated the administration supports the resolution’s goals, but could not unilaterally stop the current sweep. Multiple council members expressed frustration over lack of communication, the 10-day notice period, and called for a 30-day notice and regular reporting. Council adopted (7-0) a motion by Councilman Binder to have staff work with Councilwoman Gerlach and the Homelessness Commission to create a plan for oversight and reporting on encampment procedures, with reports at each council meeting until a full plan is established. Council also adopted (7-0) a motion by Councilwoman Gerlach to request that the administration stop the eviction/sweep scheduled for April 20 at the Fountain Park encampment, and that the mayor inform Council of his decision by end of business Friday, April 17.
Key Outcomes
- All contracts and ordinances (R53-R56, Bills 26-30) were approved by unanimous 7-0 votes.
- Resolution 57 was adopted 7-0, urging the city and county to address the homelessness crisis following the encampment sweep posting.
- Motion on Encampment Oversight (Binder/Gerlach): Passed 7-0. Requires a plan for oversight and reporting on encampment procedures, with administration reports at each council meeting going forward.
- Motion to Halt Encampment Eviction (Gerlach/Mota): Passed 7-0. Requests that the administration stop the April 20 sweep at the Fountain Park encampment and that the mayor decide by Friday, April 17. This motion is a recommendation, not binding, due to the strong-mayor form of government.
- Future Meetings: Special Council meetings announced for April 22 (discussion with ANIZDA) and April 29 (discussion on AEDC role and review of Bill 21 – encampment legislation).
Meeting Transcript
Which is for anything that's unrelated to our agenda. So if you're here to speak to an agenda item, whether it's um a resolution or ordinance, if it's about the homelessness, you will have that opportunity when we get to that point of the agenda. But if there's anything else you want to speak to that is not on the agenda, please make sure you fill out a card with our city clerk, and uh we will take courtesy to the floor at that portion of the meeting. So anything that's not on the agenda, uh, you will need to fill out a card. Thank you. Okay, we'll set it. Okay. All right, so we're gonna kick off this meeting. Uh we'll start with uh invocation, a moment of silence. Okay, thank you. And we'll do a pledge to the flag. Yes, okay. Um Mr. Hamlin, if you want to start with a roll call, please. Ms. Appa. Here, Mr. Mumbell. Here, Ms. Moda. Here, Mr. Bender, President Santos, here. Mr. Lacker. Here. Ms. President, everyone. Okay, thank you. So we will start with courtesy of the floor. Again, this portion is for anything that's not on the agenda this evening. Uh, do we have any cards, Mr. Hammond? First part is here. Denise House. Okay. And if you can just provide your full name, please. Denise Hauser. Okay. I was here probably six weeks ago. I spoke to all of you about issues in my neighborhood. And I'm back because I wanted to thank all of you. Well, this council, Candida helped me a lot. She guided me to the right people and got them to respond to the issues that I have. And I had fire department, I dealt with sweep department. Officer Conrad took care of four violations in my neighborhood. They came out and sighted people. I got garbage picked up. Trash where they were piling it up that people just think you can go out in your backyards and just throw things away. I got that taken care of. Noise levels are way down.
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