Macungie Borough Council met May 16 where Mayor Gary Cordner spoke on three topics: crosswalks, Lumber Street and Wheels of Time.

The crosswalks within the borough have been under scrutiny by council, with pedestrian and traffic safety as the primary goal. Cordner believes the enhancements coming to the borough, including the Main Street Streetscape plan and the new traffic light on Church street, will aid in the safety and peace of mind within the community.

At an earlier borough council meeting, it was brought to the attention of the council drivers were having issues seeing traffic coming out of the intersection of Lumber Street. Cordner spoke with an engineer who suggested making a no parking space along the corner of Lumber Street and Route 100. No action has been decided and further inspection will be given to the situation.

Wheels of Time representatives met with Cordner earlier this month. It was a productive meeting and the organization is not leaving the borough.

Construction on Cotton Street was bumped up from a June start to May 23. This was news to council. When asked why construction was going to start so soon, Borough Manager Chris Boehm said the contractor was ready to get started.

The crew is unable to get into the creek June 16 to Sept. 30 due to fishing season.

Cotton street will close with the start of construction. Council President Chris Becker is hesitant about the project, because he is concerned about cost. The current bid price of the whole Cotton Street project is $399,915.50. This number is much higher than the projected price bid in October of 2015. Becker brought a list of items that could be cut from the project to save some money and not lose value in the long run.

Council agreed to eliminate the mill and overlay of Cotton Street, saving $13,100. Additionally, council will have the sidewalk reduced to four feet. The sidewalk and the guiderail will be eliminated from Bridge East on.

With these cuts to the Cotton Street project, an estimated $45,405.50 will be saved. This would bring the current bid price down to $354,510.

The goal is to eliminate these items currently and postpone their construction until a later date.

In other news, Boehm recently visited the Estates at Brookside to see what properties were interfering with the drainage easements put in by the contractor. She concluded there were enough encroachments that will need to be fixed, however no immediate action was taken at the time of investigation.

Becker asked if the people moving into the Brookside development knew about the location of the drainage easements in their backyards. Boehm replied the easements are in the deeds of each home. Council member John Yerman suggested sending letters to the homeowners once they move in. The majority of council agreed this would be a wise decision.

Boehm said not many homes were in violation and a borough representative is slated to visit the homes of those encroaching on the drainage easements.

The Main Street Streetscape plan is slated to start in early November.

Ryan Keiser has been offered and has accepted the position of public works mechanic. His new position begins May 31. John Schlener has resigned from the zoning hearing board.

The Lehigh Valley Hazard Mitigation Plan was updated to include plans for both natural and man-made disasters. Boehm was elected as the borough’s person of contact by the council. Macungie Fire Chief Mike Natysyn was appointed secondary person of contact if needed.

In April, Boehm and Council Vice President Roseann C. Schleicher attended the first meeting for the SW Lehigh Comprehensive Plan. At this meeting, the borough map was discussed and fixed according to the current layout of the land. The next public meeting was scheduled May 24 in the Upper Milford Township Building.

The public hearing for the vacation of Creek Street will be held 7 p.m. Aug. 7 at the Macungie Institute building. If the street is kept, an estimated $80,000 would be needed to repair the road. The meeting will discuss the future of the street and options to vacate the property and leave the upkeep to the surrounding neighbors.

The annual VFW Memorial Day Parade will be held May 30. The parade starts 10 a.m. at Shoemaker Elementary School and will continue to Macungie Memorial Park with a reception to follow.