Tamaqua Council thinks summer

Tamaqua Borough Council was definitely thinking of warmer weather at its meeting Tuesday night, giving approval to a number of spring and summer related requests for the use of borough facilities and moving forward on plans for renovations to the bathhouses at the Howard D. Buehler Memorial Park.

Larry McCullion Electric was the lowest of four bidders for electrical work at the bathhouses. He was awarded the job, at a cost of $10,600.

Roof replacement and repairs to a retaining wall garnered only one bid, for $49,987.50, which was considerably more expensive than the engineer’s projected cost. The bid was rejected and council will re-advertise the project.

Memorial Day

A letter was received from the Tamaqua Remembers Committee, providing details for the opening ceremony, “A Night of Honors,” scheduled for May 1. The event will be held on what is now known as South Nescopec Street, between Broad and Cottage Avenue. Council has approved renaming the street in honor of the 150th observance of Memorial Day. The new name, as well as a mural honoring the 91 Tamaqua men killed during times of war, will be unveiled that night.

The committee was asking council for permission to ban parking on the street and the adjacent parking lot to enable the placement of 91 weather resistant patriotic wreaths, to be crafted by Cindy Miller, and to accommodate any crowd. The wreaths will then be moved to Depot Square Park, where they will be displayed for the rest of the month, leading up to the Memorial Day Parade and service.

As May 1 is a regularly scheduled council meeting night, President Dave Mace agreed to look into the possibility of rescheduling or canceling that night’s meeting so members could attend the event.

Council also approved a request to close South Lehigh Street (Stadium Hill) from 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. on May 22 or 23 to allow high school students to whitewash the hill with the names of the 91 veterans. There was much discussion about the logistics of doing that on a school day, as well as the ramifications in the event the South Ward Fire Company needs to respond to an emergency.

The request was granted, contingent upon working out details with the school district’s transportation director and the fire chief. School bus traffic for the senior high and middle school students will have ended by 7:30 a.m., but there’s still the matter of elementary transportation to consider, as well as the end of the school day.

In related correspondence, Dave Meredith of the Tamaqua American Legion provided details of the Memorial Day Parade, which will begin at 10 a.m. on May 28. The parade will form on East Broad Street, in the area of the former Maff Motors, then head west to the Odd Fellows Cemetery for the annual service. Meredith asked for a parking ban along Broad Street and encouraged council members to participate.

Mace said he will be providing a vehicle for those council members who will not be parading with their individual fire companies or service groups.

Summer events

The Revive Community Fellowship was seeking approval to conduct summer activities at the borough’s recreational areas. The group plans to conduct cleanup campaigns at the South Ward, North and Middle Ward and Dutch Hill playgrounds, followed by several community events in June and July. The schedule includes events at the South Ward Playground from June 18-21, June 25-28 and July 16-19; North and Middle Ward Playground from June 18-21 and July 18-19; and Dutch Hill on June 25-28.

Permission was granted with the provision that all events are coordinated with the respective playground associations.

A request to hold a community carnival at the North and Middle Ward Playground on July 17 was also granted.

Council also discussed a request from Josh Schaeffer of On The Grind, the group currently trying to restore the skate park at Willing Park. The group is interested in holding a carnival at the park on Father’s Day, in lieu of the Summerfest event which has been canceled this year due to a Pennsylvania Department of Transportation bridge replacement project. More information is needed before council agrees to the proposal.

The skateboard association is planning a cleanup of the area on March 24 and an Easter Egg Hunt on March 31. There was some discussion about local, state and federal requirements for events geared toward children, but council agreed that activities such as the cleanup and egg hunt don’t need specific council approval. The carnival request will be revisited after council receives more information.