Hellertown Borough Council Nov. 2 primarily discussed the 2019 Hellertown Area Library report.

The report, presented by HAL Director Noelle Kramer, provided a rundown of its operations in 2019, with statistics indicating the number of community members served and items in circulation through the year. She also highlighted the over 500 programs the library held, with nearly 7,500 total participants ranging from toddlers to senior citizens. “We like to think we are a well-rounded option for all age groups and demographics,” she said.

Kramer also touted the library’s internet access services, helping adult citizens with “all sorts of different (items),” including “resumes, job applications, vehicle and voter registrations, banking and medical purposes, taxes and entertainment as well,” she said. Library staff is trained and eager to help patrons with all of these and more, regardless of their level of computer literacy, Kramer added.

She also talked about their new Library to Go program, launched last year, featuring Wheelie the Book Bike, which she said has been especially popular with children in the borough. “Miss Andrea has taken Wheelie and visited neighborhoods, parks and community events,” she said, and hopes to be able to do more next year, as COVID-19’s impact has been restrictive in 2020.

Even with the pandemic’s impact, Kramer proudly described the HAL as a “community focal point” and Council President Thomas Rieger asserted that the borough’s ongoing commitment to the library will continue.

In other news, Police Chief Robert Shupp elaborated on previously-discussed potential plans to adjust Furnace Street’s traffic pattern to one-way. He said he spoke with the residents on the street, who are largely not against the idea, but described a potential issue with redirecting traffic to Oak Street, which he described as “not in very good shape” and even narrower than Furnace Street.

The council also heard a bid from J.P. Mascaro and Sons, Inc. to provide recycling services for the borough. Borough Manager Cathy Hartranft explained that despite advertising the contract twice, Mascaro was the only bidder. Their bid would bring a 56 percent increase year-over-year, Rieger said, but in doing research he found that many other municipalities are seeing similar rises in cost. The council ultimately voted to award the contract to Mascaro, saying they felt as though they had no other choice but to do so.