Catasauqua heads to the polls amid bleak finances and unrealized potential

• In Catasauqua, seven candidates are vying for four seats on borough council
• The winners could decide the future of the financially distressed borough
• This election will be the first time since the tax hike that voters can select new leadership

CATASAUQUA, Pa. — A race that has seven candidates running for four open borough council seats could decide the future of the financially distressed community.

The winners of the general election will inherit a local government struggling to stay solvent after years of financial mismanagement, records show.

But with the right breaks, they may kick off the redevelopment of an iconic property that could redefine the borough's downtown and character.

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Kim Brubaker, a Republican seeking her first term in office, is president of Catasauqua Main Streets.

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Democrat Robert Nappa has criticized council's decision to double property taxes. It's his first time running for public office.

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Incumbent Eugene Schlegel, a Republican, is seeking re-election to Catasauqua Borough Council.

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Republican Virginia Schlegel was appointed to a vacancy on council in March. She's now seeking a full-term of her own.

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Vincent Smith, who previously served 16 years on council, is running as a Democrat.

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Democrats Robert Nappa, Brian Bartholomew and Vince Smith, all of whom were unopposed in the May primary, will face off against Republicans Virginia Schlegel, Tammi Hauser, Eugene Schlegel and Kimberly Brubaker — whom voters chose from a group of six Republicans in the primary.

In 2013, borough council bought the Iron Works, a historic 10-acre industrial riverfront property, with the intention of overseeing needed redevelopment. But those plans never came to fruition.

And as deals petered out, local government burned through cash.

From 2018 to 2022, the borough's $2.1 million reserve became a $580,000 deficit, despite a property tax increase in 2020.

With the borough's bond rating in tatters, council opted to more than double property taxes this year rather than seek a state takeover.

A new borough manager and treasurer are in place, but this election will be the first time since the tax hike that voters can select new leadership.

Old guard candidates

Longtime incumbents Bartholomew and Eugene Schlegel said the borough finally is on the right financial footing after recent hardships.

Past councils planned to sell the remaining Iron Works property to developer Dunn Twiggar, but the deal would have required the borough to pony up $5 million of infrastructure improvements, they said.

They described it as a foolish plan the borough couldn't afford. Dunn Twiggar pulled out of the deal in 2022 after council allowed the terms to lapse.

"It was a big blessing in disguise," Schlegel said. "We were on the brink of bankruptcy."

After the deal fell through, the former borough manager and treasurer resigned.

Their replacements quickly began raising alarm bells, saying the borough was deep in the red and unpaid bills literally were piling up.

Council made painful choices to double property taxes, Bartholomew and Schlegel said, but those hard decisions should eventually pay off.

Once Catasauqua's in the black, they said, they support lowering property taxes. However, each agreed that likely won't occur during this upcoming four-year term.

But both Bartholomew and Schlegel said their decisions have provided a light at the end of the tunnel.

The borough has partnered with the reformed Lehigh County Redevelopment Authority, which will oversee development of the Iron Works.

Unlike the borough, the authority isn't legally obligated to sell the land to the highest bidder, which will give locals more control over what ultimately winds up on the pivotal riverfront plot, they said.

Current zoning allows a wide range of uses, they said.

"My biggest goal is having somebody give us a check for the property. I wish it had been done before," said Bartholomew, who supported turning the land into a senior living community.

But Smith, who served 16 years on council before losing in 2021, blamed this council for the current financial predicament.

Had the borough completed the Dunn Twiggar deal, local government would be sitting on the proceeds of the sale plus hundreds of thousands of dollars in additional tax revenue every year, Smith said.

The borough could have applied for economic development grants to lower how much Catasauqua would need to put forward, he said.

Had the development gone through, the infrastructure improvements would have been paid off in 10 years, and the downtown would have been rejuvenated, Smith said.

Lehigh Valley Planning Commission even awarded the borough the Community of Distinction Award in 2017 based off the merits of the redevelopment plan, he said.

Smith said he's on board with partnering with the county redevelopment authority, saying it's likely the best way to boost downtown development at this stage.

But a lot of pain and turmoil could have been avoided had council simply stuck with the original plan, he said.

"I would not change horses halfway across the stream," Smith said. "That will cost us like the new council did."

Bartholomew and Schlegel served on council for five straight years during which the borough failed to meet financial projections and deficit-spent, wiping out the reserve fund.

Smith served for the first four of those years.

Even an 8.2% tax hike in 2020 was not enough to stabilize the borough.

All three men acknowledged the borough had a spending problem on their watch, but said they tried to govern with due diligence.

Council members are part-time, and none of the three have a background in finance. They said they routinely checked in with the former treasurer and borough manager and believed the borough was financially healthy.

Smith said former Manager Steve Travers recommended another tax hike in 2021, but council could not arrive on a deal.

"We kept asking, 'Can we afford this?' Me and Mr. Bartholomew were schnookered," Schlegel said.

Smith said, "I'm not an accountant. We don't do this stuff professionally. We do the best we can with all we have."

New(er) faces

The 103% tax hike sent shockwaves through the community and sparked a wave of interest in local government.

Officials originally planned to raise taxes 33%, so outrage surged through the community after higher millage rate passed in December.

Robert Nappa, a math teacher at Executive Education Academy Charter School, argued council botched its response to the financial challenges.

While letting the state take over local finances would not have guaranteed a lower tax rate, Nappa said council owed it to residents to turn over the reins.

Catasauqua is among the poorest communities in the Lehigh Valley; some 8.6% of locals live below the federal poverty line, according to the U.S. Census.

Doubling taxes on this population was unconscionable, Nappa said. He said he did not trust the people responsible for getting residents into the mess to get the community out of it.

If elected, Nappa said, he would try to find ways to jumpstart investments in the downtown.

He would look to restart local festivals as a way to boost pride in the community and get people to visit the borough.

Nappa said he did not have a silver bullet that would solve all the community's problems and economic development would likely take time. However, he said he was willing to put in the work to make it happen.

"We need to invite people to invest in our town," Nappa said. "We have a terrible image now. I want people to enjoy living in Catasauqua."

Kim Brubaker, president of Catasauqua Main Streets, said the borough needs to make better use of the resources still available — namely, volunteers.

She said she understands why council cut a budget line item to her organization, but local government has been dismissive to many of the efforts to beautify and improve Catasauqua, she said.

Groups such as Catasauqua Public Library, George Taylor House and Friends of Catasauqua Parks have put sweat equity into the community and should be recognized and celebrated, Brubaker said.

Taking the time to make human investments can pay real dividends, especially in a community that's as divided as Catasauqua is, she said.

Brubaker said she supports the decision to turn the Iron Works property to the county authority, but questioned how council let the financial situation devolve so badly.

She said Catasauqua needs to move beyond pointing fingers while still holding people accountable.

"If people want something different, maybe they don't want the same people who have been in there for years," Brubaker said.

Virginia Schlegel, a pastor at St. John's UCC-Mickley, was appointed to council in March to fill a vacancy.

She was not in office during the tax hike vote, but said she believes it was the best — if regrettable — option for the borough.

If elected to her own four-year term, she said, she wants to improve communications with the public so there are no surprises about the state of local government and efforts to bolster the community.

After the tax hike, people posted angry reactions on social media, but few bothered to attend council meetings to demand an explanation, she said.

Schlegel said she wants to host regular talk sessions at which residents can gather over pizza or coffee to air grievances and get updates about what elected officials are trying to build a stronger Catasauqua, she said.

"If you don't understand what was done and why, you can have an opinion, but you may not have all the information about why this happened," she said.

Candidate Tammi Hauser, who previously served a two-year appointment on council, said her business acumen would be an asset to the borough if she's elected.

Hauser is an Allentown teacher during the day but runs two family businesses, Tammi Hauser Leasing and Black Sheep Leasing, she said.

While she said she's on board with the partnership with the county authority, she criticized past councils for acquiring the Iron Works property in the first place, saying the borough should have steered development through zoning without involving taxpayer dollars.

Hauser, who said she owns several rental properties in town, said she hopes to lower property taxes within her term if elected.

But she said she also believes there's a need to provide more events within the community. She said she recalls when there were teddy bear parades and dips and dances at the borough pool during her childhood.

It's important to promote activities and events that won't break the budget but still give people a reason to draw people into town, she said.

"I just think Catty, for me, was such a great town to grow up in," she said. "It had that small town charm and charisma. I'd like to see more at the park, specifically for the children."

In addition to the seven candidates seeking four-year terms on council, there's another open two-year seat. Tara Nicholas is running unopposed.