Courtesy of the Floor Courtesy and Privilege of the Floor Rules Hi Mr. Hanlon, I am a resident at 958 W. Walnut Street and I am getting in touch about the proposed garage along Walnut that is coming up for a vote. I have been a parking subscriber in the Fountain Lot for 14 years. My main concerns are: Where will we be able to park during garage construction? Can the Parking Authority create zone parking in our neighborhood while this takes place? In the 900 block of W. Walnut there are just 3 properties with off-street parking out of dozens of homes and rental units. Plus the buildings on Jackson St have zero street parking so parking is quite limited in the neighborhood. And as a subscriber, will we be given preference to obtain a permit for the new garage? I fear the new apartments will be given priority for garage spaces and those of us in the neighborhood might miss the chance before it fills up. My household works entirely from home and 24-hour parking is important to us. Thank you for considering my comments and concerns. Sincerely, Sarah Fulton c- 570-249-0131 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hello, this is being submitted to be read aloud for public comment at council tonight. I'm Ashleigh Strange, she/her, I live on S. Front St in Allentown and I'm the organizer for Lehigh Valley Stands Up. Back in February, members of the community spoke at city council to say that council needs to look into the dealings of the ANIZDA board before they can progress any further with appointment. The minutes are here. https://allentownpa.legistar.com/MeetingDetail.aspx?ID=761604&GUID=2D8FE406-955D-4FA9-A3A7-CA8C526CF9D3&Options=info%7C&Search=anizda# Council made a promise that they would look into this and by proceeding with the appointments, you are allowing a corrupt board to continue promoting gentrification in Allentown. The ANIZDA board is one of a kind in many ways, but most prominently it is an authority with no oversight and very little input from the community. I ask again that you delay the appointments for new ANIZDA board members until a date is firmly set that they will answer for their misdeeds to council. Ashleigh Strange -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The e-mail this morning from Michael P Hanlon directed to Steven Bamford, Executive Director of ANIZDA, has been forwarded to me as Solicitor for response. The ANIZDA board does not select its members nor does it establish criteria. The members of the board are selected by Senator Browne, Mayor O'Connell, and Representative Schweyer applying criteria they believe to be appropriate. The Chairperson of ANIZDA simply forwards their selection to the Mayor who then makes the appointment subject to the concurrence of City Council. If any member of City Council has questions regarding selections, those questions would best be directed to Senator Browne, Mayor O'Connell, and Representative Schweyer. As for the changes to the ANIZDA bylaws made in January 2020, the amendment was requested, reviewed and agreed upon by Senator Browne, Mayor O'Connell, and Representative Schweyer and was intended to codify the process that had previously been used to select appointees to the ANIZDA board. The amendment requires unanimity among the 3 elected officials who each have 3 selections to the nine member ANIZDA board. I have attached a copy of the current By Laws. Please refer to Section 2.11 for clarity. Thanks. If you have any further questions, please let us know. Jerome B. Frank, Esq. on behalf of Steve Bamford Executive Director