When: Lancaster City Council committee meeting, May 9.
What happened: Council passed an administrative resolution “recognizing the city of Lancaster’s commitment to welcome our immigrant community.” That happened despite a request from Daniel Alvalle, state director of the advocacy group CASA, who asked the resolution be tabled to allow council to further consider legislation the organization dubbed the Lancaster Trust Act. Alvalle argued the latter could have longer-lasting teeth.
Wording: The proposed administrative resolution states that city police officers do not intervene in federal immigration matters and “only cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement when required by applicable law” and “that all persons, regardless of their actual or perceived citizenship or immigration status, should feel secure that contacting or being addressed by members of the Lancaster Police Bureau will not lead to an immigration inquiry.” It notes that administrative police policies are in the process of being codified to formalize a longstanding practice of not cooperating with ICE.
Vote: Council member Janet Diaz made a motion to table the resolution. Nobody seconded that, so the resolution went to a vote. Diaz and all other members voted to approve it. Mayor Danene Sorace and some other members of council said they did not believe passing it would prohibit future Trust Act discussions.
Background: The resolution lists much of what Sorace said last month the city was already doing following CASA’s news conference outside City Hall. CASA is urging council to adopt the Trust Act, which aims — among other things — to ensure city police and staff not cooperate with ICE.
Mayor response: Sorace told Alvalle that things started off on a bad foot between them in part because of the April 11 press conference and CASA members sharing stories during a council meeting right after about encounters with law enforcement that led to encounters with ICE.
Quotable: “Even you yourself sent me a note saying that after a deeper dive you realized that those stories did not … involve Lancaster city police,” Sorace told Alvalle. “So … we started this conversation off by confusing the very residents that we are trying to protect by calling forth these examples when, in fact, they involve county government.”
CASA response: Alvalle apologized to Sorace and said he is confident they will have continued discussions.
Short-term rentals: Council heard comments for and against passing an ordinance change that would allow for short-term rentals (such as those found on Airbnb) to be allowed in apartments located above businesses in commercial districts. Currently short-term rentals are only allowed in single-family-homes in those districts. That goes up for a vote on May 23.
Water mitigation: Council approved an agreement with the School District of Lancaster, which means the city will pay for part of a water containment system being installed outside Wickersham Elementary School. The district plans to install a synthetic turf field there. Stephen Campbell, public works director, said containment tanks will be put there for future city water mitigation plans, but it makes sense to install them before turf goes in.
Heated discussion: Things got tense when Darlene Byrd again questioned whether conflicts of interest were involved in the allocation of American Rescue Plan Act funds. Byrd represents South Ann Concerned Neighbors — a nonprofit organization that council last month approved to receive $250,000 of the city’s ARPA money. That’s less than the $400,000 Byrd asked be allocated toward the organization’s planned community hub in the Seventh Ward.
Back and forth: “No one is gilding our back pocket with money,” Sorace said. “In fact, there are other questions about the organizations and how those monies are being spent and that will be a requirement for the ARPA reporting.” Byrd responded that she did not say anyone was pocketing money. “But that is what is implied,” Sorace responded. “I did not imply that,” Byrd replied. “I’m telling you it’s what it looks like …. I’m saying make your actions clear and be transparent so that the community does not think like that.”
Other business: Council gave staff permission to apply for a $250,000 grant from the state’s Greenways, Trails and Recreation Program to use toward the construction of a Beaver Street pocket park.
