ALLENTOWN, Pa. – It took several weeks after being extended into the new year following a holiday break, but Allentown City Council on Wednesday night selected a new member.
It didn’t come easily.
After the standard three rounds of voting, the council remained deadlocked and needed to hold a fourth vote.
- Allentown City Council selected Santo Napoli to fill an empty seat
- The seat was vacated after Josh Siegel was elected to the state Legislature
- Napoli joined the council and participated in Wednesday night's regular meeting
After that vote, which came with some confusion because council members Ce-Ce Gerlach and Natalie Santos wrote on the backs of each others’ ballots, business owner Santo Napoli was named to the council.
Napoli is the owner of Assembly88, a men’s shop in Center City, as well as an owner of residential and commercial properties in the region.
Napoli was selected after the three other remaining candidates who previously received a vote – real estate agent Rodney Bushe, former council president and former city Police Chief Roger MacLean and Allentown School Board member Patrick Palmer – were asked how they would address city infrastructure needs.
Napoli suggested using money from the federal American Rescue Plan Act to cover some of these needs. And he said that with smart investment, Allentown could make money from federal funds as well.
“We could turn our ARPA funds into more by investing them into high-yield securities, which earn more as the projects come into line,” he told council members. “So, for instance, if a project isn’t slated to start until 2026, we could be making money on that money.”
“For instance, if we look at firehouses, that’s something tangible that folks drive by every day, and they see where their tax dollars are going."Newly elected councilmember Santo Napoli
He also suggested seeking grants, depending on the project, and said new taxes wouldn’t be out of the question if it is needed for infrastructure projects “as long as it’s a project that the public can buy into.
“For instance, if we look at firehouses, that’s something tangible that folks drive by every day and they see where their tax dollars are going,” Napoli said.
He is not a newcomer to city government. He sits on the board of the Allentown Parking Authority and is chairman of the Downtown Allentown Business Alliance. He also ran unsuccessfully for city council in 2021.
Napoli took his seat among the rest of the council members at a regularly scheduled meeting not long after the special meeting to fill the vacancy.
The opening was created by the resignation of Josh Siegel, who was elected to the state House. He now represents the redrawn 22nd House District in Allentown.
He took his oath of office in Harrisburg earlier this week.
