During the Feb. 19 meeting, North Catasauqua Borough Council discussed future road closures for paving purposes. North Catasauqua Borough Public Works Department anticipates work will begin mid to late April, and residents can expect road closures on Main Street, where previous storm sewer work was done; Wyandotte Street, from Main to Lincoln streets; Lincoln Street, from Wyandotte to Green streets; Green Street, from Lincoln to Washington streets; Washington Street, from Hunter Street to the North Catasauqua Borough line; Hunter Street, between Washington and Lincoln streets; and Green Street, between Lincoln and Seventh streets.

Council has advised this is only a preliminary plan, and there are no guarantees the mentioned roads will be completed in 2024. Borough officials will continue to update the website and Facebook page as plans become more definite.

In other news, North Catasauqua Police Department has extended an employment offer to Quentin Knecht. He was selected from the Civil Service hiring list and has accepted the offer as a full-time position.

North Catasauqua Fire Department Chief Roger Scheirer mentioned 90% of the department has become certified as Firefighter Level 2. This achievement requires additional training that volunteers complete during their personal time. The department continues to keep response times down and improves in effectiveness due to continued and consistent education and development training, Scheirer said.

During Scheirer’s Civil Service and operations report, he mentioned the borough hall needs a new heating system. The current system is about 30 years old and has been experiencing frequent failures as of late. Maintenance calls have also confirmed parts for the system are no longer produced.

From previous bids, council estimated a replacement could cost between $28,000 and $35,000. Solicitor Stephanie Steward confirmed council could vote on a resolution to solicit for phone bids regarding a new system since this situation falls under an emergency, as the heating continues to go out. Council approved the resolution and directed Scheirer to collect some bids. More information is to come.

Also at the meeting, council heard a brief speech from Collin Paone regarding his proposed Eagle Scout service project. The service project would include the addition of a kiosk on the D&L Trail, sanding and repainting wooden benches in the borough parks and creating a gravel bed along the trail head for a bike pump station.

Collin will also need someone to serve as his project coach and borough representative, who will watch over the project and interject for thoughts from the council. Public works Supervisor Travis Brett was appointed. Collin expects the project will take about a year to complete but has four years until his Eagle Scout project is due.

Council will next meet 7 p.m. March 4 in the basement-level meeting room at borough hall, 1066 Fourth St.