The March 15 Hellertown Council meeting saw discussions on several items of interest for borough residents with continued sights on returning to increased normalcy as winter turns to spring and beyond.

Borough manager Cathy Hartranft shared some items of note with the council, including positive words on the borough’s finances. Hellertown is one of the only boroughs in Northampton County with increased income tax revenue thus far in 2021, and is “holding (their) own financially,” she said. In addition, Borough Hall will likely be reopening to the public June 1, she added, barring any COVID-related setbacks.

While on the topic of borough finances, council president Thomas J. Rieger mentioned he very recently found out via a Morning Call article that, due to the recent passing of the American Rescue Plan bill, Hellertown is soon slated to receive close to $600,000 in funding from the federal government. He called the news a “surprise” and said more details on the unexpected, yet welcome, windfall are to come.

Hellertown Historical Society president Stacie Torkos and Lower Saucon Fire Rescue captain Robert Gearhart joined to discuss temporary traffic restrictions around Dimmick Park for their upcoming Easter Egg hunt drive-thru event. No assistance would be needed from the public works department in redirecting vehicles for the event, Gerhardt added. The event is scheduled for Saturday, April 3, from 9 a.m. to noon.

With an eye on “the fun things that our borough (was) used to,” Mayor David Heintzelman joined the meeting to confirm that borough officials are moving ahead with the annual Saucon Valley Spirit Parade this autumn, and have begun preliminary planning discussions. He publicly asked for commitments from donors and sponsors, particularly businesses at amounts of $500 or more, he said. The popular event is scheduled for Oct. 24.

Bryan Smith of Barry Isett and Associates asked council to approve multiple grant applications for several outdoor projects, including a greenway corridor study and master site plan for the former Thomas Iron Works site, as discussed at the March 1 meeting, and improvements to the basketball courts at Dimmick Park.

The grants are being applied for through multiple providers, and approval of the applications will not necessarily tie the borough to the projects in the event that one or more of the grants is denied for any reason, Rieger clarified. The council voted unanimously to move the applications forward.

The meeting wasn’t all positive, however, as well-known local real estate investor and developer Abe Atiyeh had trouble getting council to back his proposal to construct a 40-unit high-rise building for senior citizens on a wooded lot at 30 Bachman St., next to Furnace Street. Atiyeh, who owns several other senior housing facilities in the area, denounced concerns from council regarding effects on parking and other aspects as unfair and “embarrassing.

“You do not have any affordable elderly housing” in Hellertown, Atiyeh said, as he continued uninterrupted for several minutes before Rieger eventually cut him off. Councilman Earl Hill acknowledged the need for local affordable housing for seniors, but maintained his opinion that the area Atiyeh proposed is likely too small to be home to such a structure. Council voted to not recommend the requested variances for rezoning, as the project was set to come up before the Hellertown Planning Commission at an upcoming meeting.