What Happened to Gracedale Former Administrator Jennifer Stewart?

Jennifer Stewart was Gracedale's Administrator between for nearly six years between 2019 and 2024, She had been employed at the nursing home in various capacities since 2005. In late 2024, former NorCo Exec Lamont McClure removed her from her position as Administrator to Admissions Coordinator. He told County Council that he did this "because there hasn't been a county contribution [to the nursing home] from the general fund for many years. ... One of the things that we think is necessary in order to continue to be viable as a county-owned and operated institution is to continue not to have county contributions coming from the general fund..... Jennifer Stewart is an expert at getting the census up."

What he failed to tell County Council at that time was that there was a simmering crisis in which monies that had been set aside for retention bonuses were spent instead on other Gracedale expenditures. What he also failed to tell Council was that Gracedale actually did get a county contribution of $9.9 million in 2024, a point highlighted by the annual independent audit. 

It appears that Jennifer Stewart, an unusual and special kind of person who actually cares about the residents, was scapegoated and sent to Admissions. 

She only remained at Gracedale a year, and currently is Administrator at Bethlehem North Nursing and Rehab Center, a four-star facility. 

NorCo Still Has No Fiscal Affairs Director

At March 5's Northampton County Council meeting, Executive Tara Zrinski revealed that she's still unable to find a Fiscal Affairs Director. She told Council member Lori Vargo Heffner that it's difficult to "drag someone away from a high-earning fiscal job to a not-so-high-paying job that will probably give them a headache every time they come up here. ... It's gonna' take a special person."

Lehigh Valley Planning Comm'n Presents Annual Report

The Lehigh Valley Planning Commission's  (LVPC) Annual Report, published on February 28, was presented to Northampton County Council last week. According to the study, the Lehigh Valley faces a 9,000-unit housing shortage, a strained transportation and utility infrastructure, and a rapidly changing development landscape with new industrial uses (can you say data center?). Population is increasing, but job growth is even greater.

Job growth is predicted to increase by 25% by 2040, which Healthcare and Social Assistance jobs leading the pack. 

Although there is an affordable housing crisis, plans for nearly 6,000 residential units were reviewed in 2025, of which more than half - 3,450 - were for apartments. 

In addition to housing units, LVPC also reviewed plans to develop 1.3 million sq ft of nonresidential use, of which 7.2 million sq ft is for industrial use. 

Council member Jason Boulette asked Executive Director Becky Bradley about Plan Slate Belt multi-municipal plan, where three townships dropped out. She explained that a "really divisive" development planned in Upper Mount Bethel (Lou Pektor's subdivision) "created some issues of trust in the communities up there." She added that one of the developments that pulled out (Lower Mount Bethel?) is currently writing legislation to support a data center. 

Council member Jeff Warren said he'd be inviting Bradley back to discuss her views on data centers. She's already discussed them in a piece for the Morning Call in which she cautions that Pa. is a right-to-develop state, meaning every community must plan for every lawful use. She added that the Lehigh Valley already has several small data centers, which a large one planned in Upper Macungie. Rather than painting them as villains, she noted that many of them "are looking to develop geothermal, closed loop and onsite energy generation systems to not only reduce their costs of operation but, reduce impacts. The industry itself is rapidly evolving too. So before anyone declares the downfall of mankind or stirs up any more gossip bordering on hysteria, take a deep breath and proceed with logic."

The Jill Mancini Case

When Lamont McClure ran against John Brown for NorCo Executive, one of his many complaints was the way Brown stepped all over the due process rights of one particular county employee when Brown first took office. He made that point in several campaign addresses and even hosted that staffer at one of his fundraisers. That employee, Jill Mancini, was a full-time assistant county solicitor. She was summarily fired in a Christmas phone call by the Brown administration. No Loudermill hearing. No due process of any sort. Mancinci sued the county and a federal jury concluded that her due process rights were, in fact, violated.  She was awarded $94,000. Her attorney was awarded $186,000. That finding was upheld on appeal to the Third Circuit as well. 

After McClure defeated Brown and took over as county executive, you'd think he'd work out an award with Mancini that would be to everyone's satisfaction. Instead, her claim for reinstatement and back pay has dragged on throughout his eight years as Executive. After years of going back and forth between the Personnel Appeals Board, Common Pleas Court and Commonwealth Court, President Judge Craig Dally ruled in 2024 that Mancini be reinstated, that she be awarded back pay and all fringe benefits between 2014, the date of her termination, and 2018, when she found alternative employment. He scheduled a hearing for damages.

Instead of resolving the matter, McClure appealed to the Commonwealth Court. His appeal was quashed as a tad premature. 

So once again, there will be a hearing this month in which Judge Dally will decide precisely how much the county owes Mancini.

No matter how you slice this, it's going to cost the county money. Instead of wasting time and money on appeals, this matter needs to be concluded. 

It is yet another financial dagger in the heart of Executive Tara Zrinski. 

Pa. 07 Congressional Race - Only Four Democrats File Nomination Petitions

Although six Democrats had announced their candidacy as their party's nominee in the Pa. 7th Congressional District, only four have filed nomination petitions. Robert Brooks, Ryan Crosswell, Lamont McClure and Carol Obando-Derstine filed nomination petitions in Harrisburg yesterday. Candidates Lew Shupe and Aiden Gonzales failed to file and hence are ineligible as Democrats. 

Why NorCo Area Agency on Aging is Losing a $373,464 Revenue Stream

When Governor Josh Shapiro signed the 2025-6 state budget in November, his office announced that it was investing $10 million more in services for older adults. So when NorCo Executive Tara Zrinski announced last week that the county's Area Agency on Aging is actually facing a $400,000 budget cut, I was a bit confused. After making inquiries with Zrinski and others, I can tell you what is happening and why.

What is Being Cut? The Area Agency on Aging (AAA) currently conducts something known as a "desk review" to determine if someone is eligible for long-term care services, be it a nursing home or in-These are performed under something known as the Aging Well contract.  This review is done without meeting the applicant in person. Instead, medical records and other paperwork are reviewed and an assessment is made. 

AAA conducted 1,440 desk reviews in 2025 at $259.35 a pop, which resulted in $373,464 in revenue in 2025. 

This program is being eliminated.  After April 1, AAA can no longer perform or bill for them. So that revenue stream after March. It's not quite $400,000 but is substantial. 

Why Are Desk Reviews Being Cut? This is the decision of Pennsylvania's Office of Long-Term Living, which oversees long-term care services, which can be a nursing home or in-home care. 

The state believes that direct interaction with an applicant and the use of standardized tools are more reliable measures for determining what king of long-term care is needed.

Desk reviews were expanded as a result of COVID and backlogs in eligibility determinations. Now that the pandemic is over, administrative shortcuts are being removed.

The goal is to make eligibility determinations based on direct clinical assessments, which align more closely with federal Medicaid.

Elimination of a funding stream for the AAA and county is an unintended consequence of this change, but it will improve the health and safety of applicants. 

Unfortunately, the permanent loss of a revenue stream that probably would come close to $400,000 in 2026 and will be nonexistent in 2027, is yet another blow to county finances. Just a few weeks ago, the county contributed $7 million to Gracedale so it could balance its books in 2025. Its reliance on agency nursing is increasing because it must in order to meet the state minimum standards for nursing care, and that will cost the county more money. It's safe to say we are looking at a tax hike next year. 

Zrinski Discusses County Response to Hampton Hotel Fire and a $400,000 Budget Cut to Area Agency on Aging

On February 20, around 30 people were displaced by a fire at Hotel Hampton in downtown Easton. This was the permanent home of many of those who were victimized by the conflagration. A Wilson Borough firefighter was injured and had to be hospitalized. Northampton County Executive discussed what actions the county took to help during her presentation to county council last week. 

Zrinski stated that officials were able to identify those who lost their homes and provide emergency shelter and services. She added that she was also able to get help from the state but has had difficulty obtaining a long-term housing solution. She thanked Easton City Council member Frank Pintabone for persuading Easton's Methodist Church to provide 30 days of temporary shelter. Some of those displaced lost everything, including birth certificates and social security cards. Human services agencies have worked on getting duplicates. 

She also noted a pop-up block party where local businesses and residents provided food, clothing and emotional support. "It's really nice to see everybody coming together to help and support our community," she said. "We realize we have great neighbors. And if you live in Easton, you know your neighbors are pretty awesome."

Nobody lost their life in the blaze except for one cat, whose nine lives expired. 

Zrinski also addressed several other topics.

Area Agency on Aging. - "We also received noticed that the area agency on aging budget will be cut by almost $400,000, requiring us to figure out how to remediate the shortfall. We're good now through June 30th, and we're making progress on a strategy that will continue to provide senior centers and meals for our seniors, but we might have some challenges ahead."

Digitalization. -  The county is continuing the task of digitalizing records to obviate the need for paper. Zrinski is trying to free up as much space as she can to see if it's possible to avoid an additional building. 

Corrections. - Recruitment and professional development remain high priorities. Potential corrections officers are being interviewed, and new recruits are currently shadowing veteran officers to gain hands on experience. The department is proposing a new written exam for corrections, recruitment, that will cover comprehension, language skills, math, and report writing with the goal of selecting candidates who are well prepared for the demands of the jail.

Corrections is also planning a reentry fair to support short-term inmates, those with sentences of approximately 30 to 60 days by connecting them with community resources to ease their transition back into the community, with a date in April still to be finalized. 

In February 2026, Corrections placed 16 inmates directly into inpatient treatment facilities. This resulted in 209 bed days saved at the jail.The estimated daily savings of these 16 inmates is $39,613.86 daily. Zrinski observed that inpatient tratment better addresses the needs of those individuals.

So that also allows them to better address the needs of those individuals as well.

ICE DETAINERS. - Director DeeAnn Lawrence personally reviewed and attended a 7 a.m. ICE arrival to take into custody 3 released inmates with detainers in order to observe the current process and ensure it is handled appropriately and transparently.

Sheriffs. - recently conducted a physical agility test at Lafayette University. The Sheriff is currently reviewing the weapons screening process. Boomer, a black lab trained to detect explosive devices, will be retiring soon. 

Public Works. - designing a parking plan for county visitors and employees to minimize inconvenience once construction of a new parking deck begins.