Emmaus Borough Council convened for its regular meeting Feb. 20 where personal appeals took center stage.

A resident who lives off Harrison Street was in attendance to complain about the water and sewage seeping into their home. They stated the borough has done a good job of maintaining the issues; however, issues are starting to rise. The borough solicitor said the public works department is looking into the issues and they are working on a fix for the resident.

Next, a resident brought concerns to council about creating a four-way stop at Cherokee Street and Liberty Street. Concerns were over the turning capabilities and a terrible line of sight. Councilman Chris Hoenscheid expressed his support after the residents’ comments. A traffic study will be done; however, no immediate decision was made. Mayor Lee Ann Gilbert did comment there was no traffic history at that intersection.

Councilman Roy Anders highlighted on April 26, the Shave for the Brave event will be held at Emmaus High School. It is a fundraiser for those with cancer and is a worthy event for anyone to attend. “It’s a tearjerker event for sure,” Councilman Roy Anders said.

There were no special presentations.

Council approved the reading of the previous minutes, which included a review of the Feb. 5 Emmaus Borough Council meeting minutes and the Feb. 15 special council meeting minutes.

Lions Park was approved as the official name of the property near the Emmaus Fire Department during the parks and recreation report. Residents have referred to the property as Lions Field or Lions Playground.

Resolution 2024-7 was approved during the public safety report. This resolution allowed for fire service fees and charges for fire services.

Next, Adam Priest was promoted to ambulance chief. “While Chief Priest still has a great deal of development needed, I truly believe that he is, by far, the best ambulance chief we have had in my tenure,” Borough Manager Shane Pepe said.

The agreement between the Borough of Emmaus and East Penn School District was tabled for the management of traffic and pedestrians at certain locations where school children may cross. This gives the school district the power to hire and provide their own crossing guards. The details are still being ironed out.

In budget and finance, the bill list amounted to $974,608.81.

In community relations, planning and development, there were a few appointments made. Taylor Rojeck and Hattie Freye were assigned 3-year terms to the Emmaus Arts Commission and Pat Merkowsky was assigned to a 3-year term for the historical commission. Alison Hudak was approved as an alternate.

The borough engineer’s report and solicitor’s report were also approved. Taylor Vandegrift sent a letter to formally inform council of successful completion of the probationary period with the public works department. He was appointed unanimously.

In unfinished business no decisions were made.

The next Emmaus Borough Council meeting will take place 6 p.m. March 11.