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Mayor withdraws $50,000 budget memo to fund weekend homeless services
Summary
The mayor withdrew a proposed $50,000 budget memo to expand weekend services for unsheltered residents after explaining the request came from a community roundtable and the conference director estimated the cost; the administration withdrew the memo citing fiscal constraints.
The mayor of Allentown withdrew a budget memo proposing a $50,000 increase to the mayor's operating budget intended to fund additional weekend services for unsheltered residents provided by the Conference of Churches.
The mayor said the request originated after a resident-hosted roundtable on homelessness and that Abby Goldfarb, director of the Conference of Churches, estimated the cost to provide added weekend coverage at about $50,000. “Miss Goldfarb estimated $50,000,” the mayor said when describing the origin and estimate for the request. The mayor said he was grateful to community partners but decided to withdraw the memo because adding that expense would be fiscally irresponsible given the council's current posture toward drawing reserves.
Council procedure treats sponsored budget memos like legislative items, and when a sponsor withdraws a sponsored item it is removed from the agenda. The clerk confirmed that because the mayor was the sponsor and the mayor withdrew the memo, the item would be removed and no vote would be taken. The special meeting then adjourned for a short recess before the regular council meeting.
The mayor framed the request as an attempt to add weekend options for organizations that provide weekday drop-in services, noting that some organizations are closed Saturday and Sunday. Administration and council members did not adopt the $50,000 memo during the special meeting; the mayor withdrew it to avoid adding expense to an already tight budget.
