Emmaus council adopts disabled-parking ordinance, approves pension obligations, procurement policy and bill payments

Emmaus Borough Council on Sept. 16 adopted Ordinance No. 1282, changing disabled-parking designations on Jubilee and Evergreen streets, and approved a package of routine financial and policy measures including the bill list, the borough's procurement policy and the minimum municipal obligation calculations for the police and employee pension plans.

The ordinance amends Chapter 15, Section 602.3(a) of the Emmaus Borough Code to remove a residential disabled parking sign in front of 572 Jubilee Street and to change a reserved permitted disabled parking space in front of 902 Evergreen Street to a public disabled parking space. The ordinance passed on a roll-call vote with six ayes: Council member Chad Balliett, Council member Watt, Council member Anders, Council member Liebenberg, Council member Brown and Council member Baumgartner.

Council approved Resolution 2025-27 to authorize payment of the bill list dated 09/15/2025 as presented in the meeting materials. The materials listed a bill list amount of $105,955.51, payroll of $1,898,529.38 and payroll taxes of $63,977.36; the meeting materials also listed a total of $368,462.25. Council moved and seconded the resolution (mover: Council member Ladenburg; second: Council member Anders) and recorded six ayes.

During the meeting council also approved the borough's calculation of the 2026 minimum municipal obligation (MMO) for the police pension plan and the employee pension plan. The police pension MMO was given in the meeting as "544,000, and $67.13" and is recorded here as $544,067.13 to reflect standard currency formatting; the motion to approve was made by Council member Ladenburg and seconded by Council member Watt and passed with six ayes. The employee pension MMO was presented in the meeting as a stringed phrase that the council recorded as $116,928.76; the motion was made by Council member Lindbergh and seconded by Council member Watt and passed with six ayes.

Council adopted a written purchasing and procurement policy and procedures document covering credit-card use, departmental purchases and related controls. Council member Ladenburg moved the measure and council approved it (six ayes). Council members and staff described the document as roughly 48 pages and the product of several months of work by the administration and committee reviewers.

Committee reports and communications filled the remainder of the brief meeting. Public works reported continuing work on PFAS at Clines Lane. Under health and sanitation codes committee remarks, council discussed a property on Jubilee Street (the Switchback pizza shop) and requests related to zoning and possible craft-brewing operations; council members said they had received correspondence from the business's legal counsel and directed staff to review the applicable zoning and overlay provisions rather than act immediately.

Council also accepted notice of resignation from Ricky Stringfellow from the Emmaus Library Board, effective Sept. 30, 2025; the borough noted it will send a thank-you. The borough manager reported the hire of Cheryl Smith as a part-time EMT and said budget materials and three-year departmental plans had been posted to council iPads in advance of an accelerated workshop schedule.

The meeting was brief: all listed votes recorded six ayes where noted, and council adjourned at 6:18 p.m. The council scheduled several committee meetings and advised that the public will see department-submitted budget requests in advance of upcoming workshops.