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Saturday, August 13, 2011

$7 Hamburgers at Norco Courthouse?

LV Caterer's $5 Special
That's the rumor among Northampton County workers. They're talking about about the new cafeteria operator, scheduled to start on September 26.

Is the rumor true?

According to Executive John Stoffa, no. "They'll be between $9 and $10," he joked.

"I don't know how that rumor got out," he said on Friday, when he announced that a contract has been awarded to Lehigh Valley Caterers, a full service catering company located at 2260 Corriere Road in Easton.

Procurement officer Kathy Anderson, who served on the committee recommending LV Catering, stated that cost to County employees was one of its biggest concerns.

"We asked them to keep it at a reasonable cost, hopefully $5 and below for a special every day, breakfast sandwiches between $1 and $3.50, so we felt that these people were the best fit for the County, and that was one of our criteria - the pricing."

Other persons who served on this selection committee include Deputy Director of Administration Tom Harp, Court Administrator Jim Onembo, Council member Peg Ferraro, Public Works worker Garry Haas, Personnel Analyst Chris Moakley and Procurement Manager Terry Beidelman.

33 comments:

Zorn said...

breakfast? shouldn't the union pukes eat before they get to work?

Moochelle Obama said...

Hamburgers are bad for you. They should be $25 or eliminated altogether.

Anonymous said...

Prices aren't high enough? Maybe a Easton Food Bank fee on all the food? This way we can make workers lean, and feed the needy?

Anonymous said...

I hope they checked into this firm and I could be wrong but I think they stiffed a few food companies (local & national) on paying their bills.

Anonymous said...

Why have a food vendor n the courthouse at all? This huge tax-exempt land and building gobbling entity does nothing for the county seat, especially the neighborhood. Before they had food in the house the jurors and lawyers and workers would go to places like Lipari's and the restaurant on Walnut Ave. which is now Black and Blue. No one leaves the Wolf Building either and there are plenty of businesses downtown.

The county needs to be out of the food business and let the private sector, tax paying businesses provide jobs and tax revenue.

Bernie O'Hare said...

The food vendor at the courthouse will be a private vendor, so I'm having a little trouble following your argument.

Anonymous said...

And if employees leave to eat, then all the anti-government people would complain how they spend taxpayer money going out to eat and taking longer lunch breaks. Clearly eating is too much to ask for public servants and jurors.

Anonymous said...

I agree with Moochelle.

Hamburgers and other meat products should be $20+ in order to subsidise nuts, berries, fruits and veggies.

After all, no one hould have access to cheap, unhealthy food (see "hunger-obesity paradox".

Bernie O'Hare said...

"I could be wrong but I think they stiffed a few food companies"

If you could be wrong, you probably should not be making an allegation like that.

Anonymous said...

"And if employees leave to eat, then all the anti-government people would complain how they spend taxpayer money going out to eat and taking longer lunch breaks."


How typical of the attitude of government types. Pack a sandwich or figure out how to fit lunch into the allotted time without stealing time from taxpayers. That's how the real world works. Nobody is forcing you to goldbrick for the county.

Anonymous said...

I could be right, wink, wink!

Anonymous said...

Now that the other company left. The one that the Republicans asked Stoffa to hire after he threw out the blind woman's firm. The county should close the cafeteria altogether. They complain about space. It is a throwback. Go out to eat or bring your own. The local economy would love the business.

This is a another stupid idea.

Anonymous said...

They should have left the "blind Association" run the cafeteria like they did for years. They did a great job for the money.yea well.

Bernie O'Hare said...

Pat was a very nice person, and when her sister worked there, it was great. But things went downhill when she left and they then banned smoking in the courthouse. Pat spent as much time outside, smoking, as she did in the courthouse. And the quality really began to go downhill. There were numerous complaints, and many of us would no longer eat there.

Bernie O'Hare said...

"Now that the other company left. The one that the Republicans asked Stoffa to hire after he threw out the blind woman's firm."

This is an outright fabrication. Republicans did not ask Stoffa to hire Susan's Catering. hat's just nonsense for a bitter man who hates Stoffa bc he lost his flunkie job under Reibman.

Anonymous said...

Anon 12:54:

Thank you for proving me correct. Either gov't employees don't go out and spend enough in town, or they are the ones taking two hour lunches bilking the "taxpayer."

Drive by the courthouse and you'll see people eating packed lunches. Although I'm sure there's a new gov't employee criticism you can find when it's a public servant that is eating the packed lunch.

Why have we forgotten that government is a word for those things we choose to do together? It's not "us vs. them".

Anonymous said...

And taxpayer is in quotes because last time I checked, public servants are taxpayers, too. Not too many probably qualify for huge tax breaks, so clearly public servants are taxpaying citizens, too.

Except for politicians, of course. We all equally dislike like them. They should eat cake.

Anonymous said...

Someone correct me if I am wrong, but, if you eat in the Cafeteria, you don't leave a secure area. If you go out of the building to eat, you have to come back in through security and put up with the pat down, wand, xray machine etc... I would rather stay in the building than have to go through security more than once in the day. IMHO.

Anonymous said...

According to anon 7:36, employees already eat outside, so what's the fuss?

Anonymous said...

Employees who leave don't have to go through security, they just swipe their ID badges. Don't forget that the courthouse cafeteria is also for the public, particularly jurors who have limited time to have lunch during jury selection days or deliberations. There are not many dining options within walking distance of the courthouse.

Bernie O'Hare said...

Agreed. The courthouse cafeteria is perhaps one of the brightest rooms at the facility. It is a place to get away for a few minutes, but not too many. I think it helps build morale and is also a Godsend to the public, whose business often forces them to spend hours at a time, waiting for a jury. It is also good for the jurors.

The nearest restaurant, across the street, is a small pizza shop that is easily crowded and gets plenty of business from the courthouse. So do most local eateries, from Josies to Colonial.

It is not essential, but is a bright spot in what is often a dreary place.

The purpose of this post was to dispel the rumor that the new vendor would be charging $6 and $7 for hamburgers.

Anonymous said...

The blind association was kicked out by Stoffa to satisfy a Republican backed vendor. The cafeteria robs business form local restaurants. other areas have ended their restaurants.

Stoffa is the typical tax and spend lifetime bureaucrat.

Anonymous said...

Most dietitions say that lunch should be the main meal of the day. I agree. Sad though that people skip, or rush through it, having no time to sit and relax. This makes people gorge later in the day or at night, and pack on unwanted pounds.

I think its great that the county has a place to eat inside the building. Lunch should be one hour minimum, and a full 90 minutes would be great. Wow, that was a liberal comment!

Trish

Bernie O'Hare said...

Anon 2:51 is full of shot. His accusation was disproved years ago, but he continues to make it bc he is a better ex-Reibman flunkie who hates that Stoffa cut off his unemployment.

Anonymous said...

wow..
take away the lunches!! thats a tax payers dream.. bernie... you sure could use county employment, then you would lose a little wait... oh that's right, you are a county employee, you are up stoffas a--!! can't believe some of these blogs. unbelievable!!! and no i'm not a union puke, or a county employee, just some dumb ass that reads your blog!

Anonymous said...

I predict that the cafeteria operator will go out of business if they charge less than 7 or 8 dollars for lunch. The operator is required to have workmans comp insurance, insurance for the premises, liabilty insurance for food posioning. They have to buy the food, cook it and pay their workers. I seriously doubt any business can survive on that kind of income and make a profit.

Harry O' Bern said...

@Zorn -- must have been a good day for you when Officer Lasso died: one less member of a union.

Anonymous said...

Using an officer's death in an attempt to make a political point is simply evil.

5:18's family probably live in shame of he/she/it every day.

Bernie O'Hare said...

I'd have to agree with this point.

Anonymous said...

talk about waste at the courthouse???? Here's two:
1. turn off the lights at night. Every light is on and the exterior lit up like its daytime. The only lights should be on the 1861 columns and steeple which highlight th4e architectural significance and they should go off at midnight.
2. Stop building court rooms and force the judges to night court --- rather than leave at 1:00

Anonymous said...

12:21,

Please identify yourself and run for executive. You have my vote, despite your having more common sense than is usually permitted in public service.

Anonymous said...

The cafeteria is a throwback to a bygone era, much like John Stoffa. Rather than dumping Gracedale and the old folks dump the cafeteria.

if folks patronized the local eateries where everyone would benefit.

Stop subsidizing lunches so Stoffa hacks have a place to hang out all day.

Bernie O'Hare said...

Jurors, judges, witnesses, attorneys and the hard-working County worker will all be amazed to know they are now Stoffa hacks. Your hatred runs deep and is actually irrational.

The county does not subsidize the cafeteria. It actually makes a little money.