Wilkes-Barre City Council will welcome public back to meetings next month

WILKES-BARRE — City Council Thursday met for what could be the final online meeting since the pandemic began more than a year ago and approved a new schedule for the remainder of 2021.

The public will be allowed to attend Council’s next work session set for 6 p.m. on June 15 and the regular voting session to follow on June 17 at City Hall.

Council approved the five resolutions presented by City Administrator Charlie McCormick, who filled in for Mayor George Brown. The mayor, who sits as a trustee for Luzerne Community College, attended the school’s three graduations Thursday and was unable to attend Council’s combined work and regular sessions that were streamed live on the city’s YouTube channel.

The city will apply for a $415,000 grant from the state’s Commonwealth Financing Authority for an engineering study of the Mill Creek levee. The study would be done to gain accreditation of the levee by the Federal Emergency Management Agency that affects flood insurance costs for residents in Miners Mills and Brookside neighborhoods.

The 2011 flood changed FEMA’s hydraulic calculation for baseline flooding and new measurements must be taken along the two sections of the levee, McCormick explained.

”So there’s nothing to worry about down there. It’s not a study to make sure the dikes are sufficient to hold back anything. It’s just a modification,” McCormick said.

It could take between two and four years for the final decision on the accreditation, McCormick said.

The city also will ask the CFA for a $250,000 grant through the state’s Greenways, Trails and Recreation Program for the skate park proposed for Hollenback Park.

Grant funding from the Pennsylvania Department of Health will ensure the city’s Health Department has money to provide a host of services, including responding to the COVID-19 epidemic. Council approved that the city request $1.1 million from the state.

On the federal funding level, the city was notified it will receive half of the $37.1 million promised under the American Rescue Plan by the end of the month.

In a last-minute addition to the agenda, McCormick asked for and received approval to set up a new bank account specifically for the funding with M&T Bank.

“We have to set up a separate bank account so we can track everything,” McCormick said.

Responding to question from Council Vice Chairwoman Beth Gilbert McBride about how the city plans to use the federal money, McCormick said most of the clarifications on spending it have been cleared up.

“We have a pretty good idea, but it’s still up in the air how it can be placed in your budget, etc,” McCormick said.

McBride also asked about spending money on infrastructure, specifically the sewer system. “Has that been discussed at all?” she said.

“Yes,” McCormick said. “Just in a general thing, it’s important for the city, the mayor is really interested in looking the city five, 10 y ears down the road … because this is the type of influx of money you’re never going to see again probably.”

Councilman Bill Barrett said the pleasant weather reminded him of the car shows on Public Square and how he enjoyed going to them.

“Whatever happened to all that? I know there was some sort of problem with having the car shows on the Square. They moved it to some place else. That brought a lot of people downtown I know,” Barrett said.

McCormick said the administration was in touch with the car show group last year about where they could park and the pandemic hit, cancelling the shows.

“They did not reach out this year at all,” McCormick said. The administration reached out when it heard the shows moved to Kingston.

“We’ve just made a recent contact with them again about two weeks ago and said we’re willing, able to recharge this,” McCormick said.

Barrett suggested the administration consider contacting a different car club to come downtown if the other group doesn’t return.