Regrettably, I was unable to make the West Easton council meeting this evening. I had wanted to attend, but personal business had me occupied.
I had to read about it in Jim Deegan’s column on Lehigh Valley Live.
Much of what he reported, I had written and published previously. No police department, no rebate of an increased tax that was raised under the guise of financing our own police, and the budget being reopened in order to spend that money elsewhere.
What hadn’t been known before was the belief by Mayor Gross that residents are content with State Police coverage. According to the Deegan story, Mayor Gross “knocked on a couple of doors.”
Was anyone home?
The ones I’ve talked to aren’t so happy about having State Police for protection. Especially when their taxes went up on a promise of having our own police department. They don’t like being played for fools.
Most worry that response time is much slower. State Police also don’t enforce local ordinances, such as abandoned vehicles, barking dogs, and others. State Police have already told residents that certain complaints won’t be addressed by them.
Something Mayor Gross is aware of, but seems to overlook.
Mayor Gross also stated again, something he is pleased about. The generation of money for West Easton when traffic violations occur. My understanding is that because the population of West Easton is small, a larger percentage of the fines paid by violators is returned directly to West Easton. More than was received when Easton provided coverage.
He said the borough never hired a chief and spent $1,100 on two vehicles – a 2000 Jeep Cherokee and another 1997 Cherokee, according to borough records. What was omitted, according to my information was another few thousand dollars spent to have those vehicles repaired and fitted for police work.
We no longer have a borough manager, but Mayor Gross didn’t seem to suggest hiring someone to replace his daughter – says the Deegan story – only hiring someone to assist Council President Kelly Gross, who has been acting as the Borough Manager the last few years.
It would appear that the bait and switch of raising taxes for police and then using that money for something else is now official.
That’s something that can cost people an election.
A surprise that I have never witnessed apparently occurred, as I read that one of the council members, Vice President Louis Niko actually took umbrage with the Mayor’s statement regarding his daughter being overwhelmed and what I’m hearing is that there may well be more council members standing up to address problems with leadership.
The days of 7-0 votes may be fast approaching their end, as replacements aren’t so compliant in agreeing to everything being done in the borough. From what I’m hearing, a couple are beginning to ask questions.
Could there be a coup d’etat brewing and can West Easton survive as an independent borough?
Disclaimer: On January 4, 2016, the owner of WestEastonPA.com began serving on the West Easton Council following an election. Postings and all content found on this website are the opinions of Matthew A. Dees and may not necessarily represent the opinion of the governing body for The Borough of West Easton.
