City Council Committee of the Whole Meeting 11/09/26 | City of Reading, PA

Reading City Council’s Committee of the Whole met on November 9, 2026. The committee reviewed PennDOT’s Center Avenue Bridge alternatives, comparing a rebuilt, elevated one-lane bridge with removing the bridge and rerouting traffic. City staff and public-safety representatives favored keeping the bridge, citing access and traffic concerns; the removal option would also require a city-maintained stormwater pump station. Council members requested written clarification of who would maintain the retaining walls and asked that the design address effects on a nearby park. Construction was discussed as likely to begin around 2030. The discussion sought direction to advance engineering, but no final council vote on the alternative is recorded in the transcript.

Procurement and budget items included a proposed CoStars contract award of $91,032.24 to Coastal Technical Sales Inc. for replacement hypochlorite storage tanks, following three vendor quotes; the existing tanks were leaking, and the chemical system is needed for permit compliance. Council also reviewed a sole-source professional-services agreement with Morgan Boyd / Paper Plane Advisory for economic-development and tax-incentive advice: the first year was amended to $4,500 per month, with an optional second year at $6,000 per month. Other fiscal items included proposed 2026 budget amendments of $18,500 for solid-waste fuel and supplies and $45,000 for fire-department fuel, review of a 2027 CDBG action plan, and projections showing that property-tax increases alone would not close the city’s projected budget gap. No votes on these items are recorded in the transcript.