Residents discussing local issues, and being invited to do so in the future, were the main focus of Slatington's Finance/Planning/ Zoning, Public Safety, and Human/Community Services committee workshop meeting Monday.

First up, oft-time visitor and resident Mel Gildner again asked council about borough water and sewer rates, particularly in regard to billing apartment buildings.He said the numbers he came up with show that a particular apartment building within the borough could bring in an additional $994 per quarter if billed differently."You really need to look at it seriously because we're losing a tremendous amount of money," he said.Councilman Bob Steets, who is not a member of any of Monday's committees, asked members about a rumor he had heard.He said that, since his wife receives dialysis, he was privy to talk that local townships and boroughs may have ordinances obligating them to provide emergency transportation to residents so they can receive their dialysis treatments, even in times of severe snow, and wondered if that were true.However, members said that is not the case.Afterward, Public Safety Committee Chairman Jon Rinker announced that an emergency generator for the police department, a subject debated at council meetings for at least a year, has been included in the 2015 budget in the amount of $10,000.Next, he mentioned that some residents have been asking about the animal control car."People have been complaining that they see it around, and not on dog calls," he said.He suggested a policy be made on the car to "stay in the lot like it used to".From the audience, Steets asked if he could comment since his wife, Linda Steets, is the borough's animal control officer.He said his wife is on-call 24/7 and was recently called to work at the Vigilant, which is why she was using the animal control car."That's the only time she takes the ACO (car), in case she gets a call on her radio, she can go," he said.Human/Community Services Committee Chairman Dave Schnaars said the public is encouraged to attend a public hearing at 6:45 p.m. Dec. 8 to openly question and discuss the possibility of adopting an ordinance to create the Northern Lehigh Recreation Authority with Walnutport and Washington Township."A lot of people seem to think that the only thing on that authority's agenda is (the completion of) the rec center," Schnaars added."But yet the whole thing is to get a recreational professional available...so we can attract more grant money into the area (for all three municipalities). As a regional recreation authority, we'll attract more dollars than we will as individual municipalities. People seem to forget that was the original idea of the authority."