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LEHIGH VALLEY WEATHER

Library stays afloat another year

With the short-term fate of the community’s library hanging in the balance, borough council held a special meeting Jan. 31, helping the Hellertown Area Library stay afloat for at least another year.

The roughly half-hour meeting saw the approval of $75,000 in supplemental contributions from the borough’s American Rescue Plan funds. Council also approved a new two-year general agreement with the library in place of a scrapped three-way plan.

Council has been fairly united on this issue, which arose when Lower Saucon Township, which has been the borough’s partner in the Hellertown Area Library for several years, chose to cut its share of funding by half at its Jan. 19 meeting.

Lower Saucon Township Council, led by its President Jason Banonis, claimed to have been shut out of important decisions, despite the shared contract. The HAL Board of Trustees then voted to reject the now-$50,000 donation at the time, to which Banonis and the council attempted to attach a clause that would bar the library from restricting services to township residents.

Residents of both municipalities spoke in support of the library at the meetings. In response, Banonis suggested that Lower Saucon begin exploring deals with other neighboring libraries.

Hellertown Council previously held a special meeting Jan. 26 to address the controversy. Mayor David Heintzelman and Rieger gave statements refuting Banonis and the Lower Saucon Council’s depiction of past events. Rieger even suggested that the relationship between the two municipalities has soured on a greater level.

Additionally, the HAL board released a statement before the meeting in which its president, Ken Solt, said a motion unanimously passed to continue providing services to Lower Saucon residents through at least Feb. 28. Rieger suggested that depending on state rules, the library may continue to offer some services to students and senior citizens in the township beyond the end of the month.

The following morning, Rieger – who has been the most vocal of borough council members on the topic – posted the following on his campaign’s official Facebook page: “I encourage all residents of the Greater Hellertown Area to consider sending a donation to the Hellertown Area Library or work with Friends of the Hellertown Area Library to make sure this valuable service continues for future generations.”

Press photo by Chris Haring Council President Thomas J. Rieger addresses the crowd at the Jan. 31 special emergency meeting.