Brown MIA For #NoJailatGracedale

Kelly Schreier 

Jenna Hausman and Christine Woodmansee are Nazareth area residents who moved there because they want a safe community in which to raise their children. When they heard that Northampton County was secretly considering a new jail at the Gracedale campus, they mobilized. Two Republican moms started an online petition at Change.org, formed the Facebook group #NoJailatGracedale and then cascaded into a NorCo Council meeting. A dozen residents told Council that "the cloak is off" when Council members pretended they had no idea what is going on. They forced County Executive John Brown, who likes to play his cards close to his vest, to finally rule out a jail at Gracedale. Then on Sunday, in a public meeting at Tuskes Park, they coaxed Brown to pledge there would be no new jail, not just at Gracedale, but on any county-owned park land. They warned him they'd be at Council's meeting again last night.

They came.

Brown was MIA.

Brown is at nearly every Council meeting, so this was a bit odd.


Nazareth area resident Christine Woodmansee provided more petitions to Council. Her husband Ryan said they came two weeks ago to get answers.

"We didn't have many," admitted Council President John Cusick.

"That was apparent," responded Woodmansee. He said that he reviewd the presentation that Corrections Director Dan Keen gave in September 2016, and said it was "disheartening" to see the innuendo about building at Gracedale. "Before, a lot of people weren't paying attention," he admitted. But that's changed. "We'll be here at every meeting. If I can't see a meeting, I'll be watching on the web." He also admonished Council for failing to pay closer attention on something so sensitive as a jail next to a residential community.

Attorney Kelly Schreier echoed Woodmansee's remarks about the September 2016 meeting, when Council knew much more than it knows now. "Some of the comments are quite disheartening," she said. She was appalled at the suggestion that the county hire a lawyer to go up against Upper Nazareth. She also ridiculed Keen; suggestions that the community would benefit from 1,000 people using local restaurants. "One thousand cars going up and down a two-lane street just to visit the Dunkin' Donuts?" she scoffed. "I'm strongly opposed to that."

She was also bothered that Council seemed to know less about the jail two weeks ago than they did last year, when Keen gave his presentation.

The previous day, Brown had presented what he called an executive summary (it was actually a graph) of seven different options for the jail. The graph fails to indicate the sites considered, other than West Easton and the current jail location. My impression is that Brown now favors remaining in place.

But how serious is he? While Brown was speaking to Council yesterday, the State House had just voted to adopt the Administrative Code (HB 118) for next year. That and the Fiscal Code are dark holes where unpopular legislation is hidden. It's where the NIZ was buried a few years ago.

The legislation passed yesterday allows is for an alternative bidding process to be used to either rehab an old jail or build a new one. (Article XXIV-B).

The legislation concerning jail facilities only applies to third class counties with a population between 280,000 and 298,000 as of the 2010 census. That means it can only apply to Northampton or Erie County.

This legislation was reported out of committee and voted on the same day. I doubt that most legislators read it. I am informed that State Rep. Joe Emrick, who opposes a jail at Gracedale, voted No precisely because he thought this could be used for a jail at Gracedale. (I have not confirmed this with Emrick).

A similar bill was adopted by the Pa. Senate on July 27 by a 37-13 vote. State Senator Lisa Boscola voted for it. I am told she is the person who actually proposed this legislation, and at Brown's request, but this is unconfirmed.

"It just seems that comes at a pretty convenient time for something like this," said resident James Cunningham.

Cusick knew nothing about this new law, but Ken Kraft did. "It is basically a law that allows for the P3 to build a jail in a greenfield or an existing jail," he explained. "It was put into the state senate in July and passed by the urging of the county executive, and it came out of committee yesterday on the house floor and it passed. It applies to counties that have exactly the amount of people that we have. The only other county it applies to is Erie. ... So now you can use a P3 to build a prison, which is a public private partnership where they come and build it, similar to our bridge deal."

Cunningham responded that it sounds like a "custom fit for Northampton County, especially applying to a jail over 100 years old."

Peg Ferraro was unable to attend the Tuskes Park gathering on Sunday because of a prior commitment. But she said last night that she has long opposed the use of Gracedale as a jail, gun range or anything other than the cornfields that are there now. "I will fight to the end to make sure no jail is up at Gracedale," she vowed.

Cusick told Eagles Landing resident Julian Kryemadhi that a full report from prison architect DLR will be available by Monday, and Bob Werner called it a "very general statement." Hayden Phillips said the terminology used is unfamiliar to him, so everyone is waiting for a full report.

"It seems like we did have a change of heart," said Kryemadhi, and he thanked those who attended a citizen meeting at Tuskes Park on Sunday. He added that, based on a savings of $6 million per year, the County should be able to self-finance any renovations.

Updated: NC GOP Party Boss Lee Snover's Message For #NoJailatGracedale

Updated 2:15 pm  Since this story first published , I was informed there are two Lee Snovers. There is Gloria Lee Snover, who chairs the NorCo GOP. There is also Lee Snover, who claims to be from the mountains. 

I have always believed that Lee Snover and Gloria Lee Snover were one and the same person. Some people establish several Facebook accounts. John Brown,for example, has three of them. I have followed both Gloria Lee and Lee on Facebook for some time and have found that the opinions expressed by both are nearly identical I also note that, in the past, Lee Snover has not answered a question asking whether he or she is the NorCo GOP Chair. It never dawned on me that they might be two separate people

After publishing this story, Michael Snover (Gloria Lee's husband) posted an angry comment claiming that Gloria Lee and Lee are two different people. He ought to know. He demanded I take down my story. I called Gloria Lee Snover, who did not answer me. I also called Michael, who explained that Lee Snover is actually a male named Layton Snover  My information from Intelius is that a Lee Snover from Bath works at the Pritchard Company, which is where Gloria Lee Snover is employed at her parents'company. 

Though I am persuaded that my post below is erroneous, I decline to take it down. I believe the proper way to deal with this is to allow my error to stand, in all its glory, and simply admit that I erred, which I did. 

I apologize to Gloria Lee Snover, Lee Snover, Layton Snover, Michael Snover and all the Snovers of the universe for my error. I am entitled to my own opinions, but not my own facts. I believed Gloria Lee and Lee were one and the same person, and had reason to think that was the case. But I was wrong, and believe the best way to correct my mistake is by clearly noting my error in the story below.   

Lee Snover, whom I now call General Lee Snover, is the Chair of the Northampton County Republican party. She has a message for Nazareth area residents opposed to a jail at Gracedale.

"I think this fear of building near grace dale is illogical. The current prison is near schools, etc. we’ve had very few escapes. Nimby reins in ignorant minds. Think of the extra commerce this could bring to Nazareth. I live very close and it doesn’t bother me to consider this. Especially if the land is otherwise paid for.

"That said we could invest far less money in working with repeat offenders and drop the number of inmates considerably. Especially with regards to prostitution and drugs. We do not do nearly enough to help these folks upon ending their sentences to get to the route problems."

She claims to live "very close to Gracedale," but that is complete horseshit. She lives in a secluded area of Bethlehem Township, about seven miles away.

She calls  #NoJailatGracedale NIMBYs and "ignorant minds." Of course they are NIMBYs. We are all NIMBYs when it comes to certain things. None of us would want a venomous snake pit in our back yard. None of us would want to live next to a rapist, murderer or child molester. It is perfectly reasonable for any residential community to oppose a jail and all it brings to the area.

I am astonished that General Lee would insult #NoJailatGracedale in this fashion. Her job is to get Republicans elected, not Democrats. But she appears to be doing the latter.

Brown: New Jail Belongs at Courthouse Campus

Northampton County Executive John Brown has attempted to spin a possible jail at Gracedale as "fake news" or politically inspired. In doing so, he ignores a presentation that his own Corrections Director gave to Council last September. At that time, Gracedale was presented as the best option. He ignores his own remarks to Council in June, in which he ruled out a jail at the current Easton site and said he wanted to build on a greenfield. He ignores remarks by his own prison advisory board chair in July, in which Gracedale was cited as a "great location for a new jail."

Brown discovered at a Council meeting two weeks ago that opposition to a jail is very real and has nothing to do with Lamont McClure's campaign for Executive. It has everything to do with Nazareth area residents, most of whom happen to be Republicans. Though Council feigned ignorance, Ryan Woodmansee tartly told them to knock it off. "The cloak is off,"  he said. Taken by surprise, Brown talked in circles instead of just plainly answering their concerns. The best thing he could have said is that there would be no jail at Gracedale. But he refused to say that, just as he refused to say it earlier in the week during his budget address.

These residents are mobilized, have started on online petition, formed Facebook group #NoJailatGracedale,  and conducted a refreshing Q and A on Sunday with both Executive and Council candidates.

In the meantime, Brown has belatedly realized that his intransigence could cost him this election. So late last week, on Facebook, he made this announcement: "Unequivocally, as long as I am County Executive there will never be a jail built at Gracedale!"

Today, at Council's Finance Committee, he said that the $78,000 study (one he could have obtained at no charge from the Department of Corrections) should be in his hands on Friday or Monday. But he had a one-page summary containing seven options considered by DLR.  (These are listed below) and the savings that could be realized from the $115 per day per bed it currently costs the county to house prisoners.  He said the option recommended (#7) is to build a new jail on campus

"Right now, it's pointing to remaining here in Easton on this campus, doing a new facility on this footprint."

Brown was unable to explain the options in any great detail, and said that would come with the full report. He indicated on Sunday that the savings in incarceration costs could be $6 million per year.

One of the criteria considered is community support. Amazingly, the worst rating for community support is "fair." Obviously,community support for a jail at Gracedale is abysmal. I question how this study determined community support. I doubt there were any surveys.

I also question whether the sudden push to build in place is the result of engineering work or a desire to get re-elected. 

Seven Options

1) Keep West Easton and build 768 bed facility at a new undisclosed site. - $86.42 per day per bed.
2) Keep West Easton and build 768 bed facility at a new undisclosed site. - $88.78 per day per bed.. 

3) Work release downtown and build 768 bed facility at a new undisclosed site. - $88.78 per day per bed.. 

4) Acquire West Easton for both work release and detention with 912 beds - $81.89 per day per bed

5) Consolidate detention and work release with 960 beds at a new site - $78.98 per day per bed

6) Split detention of 912 beds keeping some downtown and some in a 512-bed facility at West Easton - $95.31 per day per bed.

7) Build a new detention center downtown and acquire West  Easton for 912 beds total at a cost of $80.37 per bed per day.  

#NoJailatGracedale - 1, John Brown - 0

Jenna Hausman and Christine Woodmansee

You've probably heard that one person can never take on the government and win. Two can. Jenna Hausman and Christine Woodmansee are residents of Eagles Landing, and moved there because they want a safe community in which to raise their children. They live in nice homes that they hope to see go up in value over the years. But when they heard that Northampton County is again secretly considering a new jail at the Gracedale campus, they proved that democracy is no spectator sport. Two Republican moms started on online petition at Change.org, a site usually reserved for liberal issues. They formed the Facebook group #NoJailatGracedale and then cascaded into a County Council meeting, where a dozen residents told Council that "the cloak is off" when Council members pretended they had no idea what is going on. They forced a County Executive who likes to play his cards close to his vest to finally rule out a jail at Gracedale. And yesterday, while kids played soccer and fall baseball at Tuskes Park, about 90 Nazareth area residents forced that County Executive to rule out a new jail, not just at Gracedale, but on any county-owned park land.

The Eagles have Landed. #NoJailatGracedale - 1, County Executive John Brown - 0.

It was a rare yet refreshing display of democracy. Perhaps not as big a deal as the Magna Carta, but it'll do. In addition to all the Nazareth area residents, politicians galore where there. I saw Nazareth officials, Upper Nazareth officials and State Rep. Joe Emrick.

NorCo Exec John Brown, aware that his unwillingness to provide straight answers to straight questions could cost him an election, tried to assure everyone that he's their man and has been completely upfront. His challenger, Lamont McClure, slammed Brown over his penchant for secrecy.

Brown did himself no favors.

Fake News

He was rambling, unresponsive and consistently went over the time allotted to him. "I don't play word games," he said at one point, but that's precisely what he did. You can see it for yourself both here and here. Though there is overwhelming evidence that he fully intended to build a new jail on a greenfield and at Gracedale, he dismissed it as fake news.

"[T]his whole issue about putting a jail at Gracedale is completely fictitious and has been promulgated by - uh - you're caught up in political gamesmanship. That's all it is, quite honestly. ... By inflaming something like this, my opponent does not have much of a record to stand on, so if you don't have your own record, you attack someone else."

Lamont McClure, however, had an effective retort.

"How do we know this isn't made up news, an alternative fact? How do we know that? We know that because we have prison advisory board meeting minute notes. And in those prison advisory meeting notes, the Chairman of the advisory board said Gracedale would be the best location of a prison. And what else do we know? We know that Mr. Brown, our current County Executive, gave his budget message a week or two ago and was asked whether he'd rule out the county property at Gracedale for a prison. He would not. A few days later, at the County Council meeting, he was asked to rule it out. He would not."

Transparency

Challenged on his lack of transparency, Brown insisted, "The whole thing about lack of transparency is nonsense. I am a transparent person. No one came and asked me about this ... ."

"I did," interrupted Julian Kryemadhi.

His comment asking Brown for an update on Facebook was deleted.

His $72,000 study for a master plan, which was awarded to architectural form DLR as a no-bid contract, is by itself a demonstration of a lack of transparency. Hayden Phillips pointed out that he's tried several times to adopt ordinances that would give Council more power to review these contracts, but has been rebuffed repeatedly. When he was on Council, Lamont McClure joined Phillips in attempting to give Council more oversight over county contracts, but Brown vetoed their ordinance.

McClure also provided a disturbing example of Brown's lack of transparency. "He [Brown] once had a press conference where he posted armed guards at the door of the press conference so certain people couldn't come to the press conference," noted McClure. "One of the people specifically identified was a sitting member of county council." Under the Home Rule Charter, Council is considered the governing body, but Brown excluded a member with armed guards. "That is the definition of the lack of transparency," said McClure.

Brown Admits He Could Have Sought Free Study

In response to questions from a woman in the audience, Brown admitted that he will spend $72,000 in taxpayer funds for a report he could have received at no cost from the National Institute of Corrections. "If the study could be done for free by a government agency, why did you give the contract to a private company and pay $72,000?" she asked.

"Those are the decisions you get to make as County Executive, quite honestly," Brown answered. "It wasn't answering the question I needed to have answered in an expedited fashion." Brown acknowledged he never even contacted the National Institute of Corrections.

DLR Report

Brown claimed that the DLR report is coming soon. He spoke to them on Friday and said that DLR will give the County a way to save $6 million per year in spending at the jail, and without moving to a greenfield. He promised to make that report available as soon as he gets it.

No Jail at Gracedale Pledge

Brown initially refused to pledge there would be no jail at Gracedale. "I can't stand here and pledge ... . It's ridiculous to make those pledges because you don't know. I could get back in office and change my mind and flip on it." But as the meeting wore on, Brown reversed course in response to questions from Julain Kryemadhi. "A pledge is - fine - I'll sign that. That's not an issue."

Brown Gets Support

Though the audience was largely suspicious or downright critical of Brown, he got support from Nazareth resident Mary Barket, who described him in glowing terms. What she failed to disclose is that Brown paid her at least $4,000 last year to work on his failed campaign for state auditor general. Whether she is working his Exec race is unknown, but I'll know soon when Brown files his second Friday pre-election report.

What about Council candidates?

In addition to the Executive race, five County Council seats are up in the next election. As you might have guessed, the candidates who came to Tuskes Park are all opposed to building a new jail at Gracedale or anywhere else, for that matter. These included Republicans Hayden Phillips (incumbent) and Ron Angle. They also included Democrats Ron Heckman, Lori Vargo Heffner, Bill McGee and Tara Zrinski.

Republican Peg Ferraro had a prior commitment in Walnutport, but sent a note indicating she opposes any kind of jail at Gracedale. Republicans Glenn Geissinger and Seth Vaughn, both of whom are seeking election, failed to appear. Also missing was Democratic Council candidate Pete Melan.

Reminder: No Jail at Gracedale Group to Meet Sunday

Werner Opposes Jail at Gracedale

Northampton County Council member Bob Werner represents all the citizens of Northampton County, but is elected by those living in the Easton area. So he could support a jail at Gracedale and lose no sleep over it at election time. But he told me earlier this week that he is opposed to relocated the jail there, would vote against it and had given me permission to say so.

Werner joins a growing list of Council members who are No votes. They include Peg Ferraro and Hayden Phillips.   

I have also heard from a zoning expert familiar with Upper Nazareth Township's zoning ordinance, and this person tells me that any attempt by Northampton County to build a jail at Gracedale would be dead on arrival and that I'm an idiot for even entertaining the notion that the County could argue that it must be permitted because the ordinance is exclusionary. He said there are at least five different areas where a jail would be permitted.   

NorCo New Jail Plans Are 90% Complete

According to a bill forwarded to Corrections Director Dan Keen, a new Northampton County Detention Center Master Plan was 90% complete as of August 31. The bill,which comes from architectural firm DLR also shows that the County has been billed $65,241 as of September 11, 2017.

Obviously, the actual design of a new jail will be much more costly. But the fact that a master plan for a new jail is being prepared is an indication that Northampton County Executive John Brown knows exactly what he intends to do.

Just last week, Brown downplayed this contract with DLR. He said the contract was for programming, i.e. whether the county was providing drug therapy or job training. "How efficient or inefficient are we in the current facility?" is what he said was the question being answered.

That appears to be untrue. What DLR is preparing is a "MP" or master plan.

This was clearly being kept under wraps until after the election.

Northampton County New Jail Master Plan Bill by BernieOHare on Scribd

Jail Expert: NorCo Wasted $78,000 For Jail Study That NIC Does Without Charge

Over the weekend, I spoke with a former county government official who built three different jails in his career. One of them houses over 1,000 inmates. He is PONI (US DOJ Planning of New Institutions) I and II certified so he is no armchair quarterback. I am declining to name him because, although he really does not mind, he still is in an employer - employee relationship. What he tellsme is that Executive John Brown has spent $78,000 of your money for a study that could be done by the National Institute of Corrections at no fee. He also said that the last people you put in charge of the planning process are jail wardens who look to pad their resumes or various outside interests looking at a new jail as the golden calf. Below is his assessment of Northampton County and the way it is pursuing a new jail.

Let's talk about Northampton County and "what" they are doing to plan a new jail. We could use a simple acronym -FUBAR - to describe activity to date. They are throwing away (in the best case scenario) $78,000, by bringing in a "expert" architect firm. That foolish or potentially corrupt decision is going to cost them (the taxpayers, ultimately) millions in capital costs and untold amounts in operating costs should a jail be built. They could accomplish a verified study at no cost by asking the National Institute of Corrections (NIC is a division of the US Dept. Of Justice) for technical assistance.

The programs they offer are extremely helpful and well structured for local government officials (it's one of the efforts the Feds do well, surprisingly). The first thing they stress is being all inclusive in a planning or review process. By all inclusive, they strongly recommend that top levels of government are involved. That means the County Executive or his designee, the President Judge, the District Attorney, Chairman of a Prison Board, Probation Dept., Public Defender, and of course the Corrections Dept. And Finance Dept. You form a committee of all the "Users."

You never put the Warden in charge. That's a foolish move that spells disaster from the outset. I might add that you also do not put an unqualified County Director of Administration in charge with the Warden reporting to her. Massive amounts of money and operational screw ups will result. You also stress transparency. It makes residents much more comfortable in understanding the process. Invite the press to your meetings and brief them on a regular basis.

It is a truism that "no one wants a prison in their backyard". Your committee explores all aspects of corrections from inmate reduction programs, transportation issues, alternatives to incarceration, remote arraignment, Public Safety interface, Mental Health custody, and most importantly, community safety. (That list is not all inclusive. New Institution Planning involves a massive amount of work). You plagiarize other successful efforts in other communities. Design of a potential facility comes later as well as location/locations of facilities. You "Construction Manage" your efforts and independently "value engineer" your final product. The architect is not your friend...... They are in it for the money.

The potential costs I have read of in the press and your reporting are two to three times higher than the norm for building a facility of the size Northampton County most probably may need. Ergo, my observation of "corrupt" . Prison/ Jail planning can be a sham operation that "feathers" many nests. Having all those "Users" involved in an "Open" process makes corruption difficult and in the final analysis leads to more cost conservative decisions.

Northampton County Jail is a federal lawsuit waiting to happen. ... But solutions are doable (including not building a mega jail) if handled correctly without bankrupting the citizenry. Stop the present process now, regroup and ask the NIC for help and involve all segments of government in the process and close all the present "back door" deals. Yes, this process takes time and effort. ... But you only get one chance every 150 years to get it right.

I reviewed the National Institute of Corrections webpage, and sure enough, there is an application form for requesting technical assistance. The Pa Comm'n on Crime and Delinquency also has a grants process. These and other opportunities should have been explored before wasting limited taxpayer dollars on on architect that we are paying to persuade us to hire again for the design.

This is what happens when a county executive with no county experience hires a Director of Administration with no county experience or education and she brings in a Corrections Director who has never been involved in the planning process for anew jail. 

#NoJailatGracedale Forum on Sunday, Oct 15, 1 pm

A grassroots effort by Nazareth area residents, calling themselves, #NoJailatGracedale, will be hosting a Q&A with NorCo Executive and Council candidates on Sunday, October 15, 1 pm, at Tuskes Park. That is located next to Eagles Landing. Lamont McClure and John Brown, the two Exec candidates, are expected. So are Council candidates Hayden Phillips, Ron Heckman and Ron Angle.

No Jail at Gracedale? Think Again

On Thursday night, 12 Eagles' Landing residents told NorCo Council that they are opposed to a new jail at Gracedale. They presented a petition signed by over 1,000 people. Many elected officials acted as though this was the first time they ever heard this idea. While no one on Council lied, their behavior was far from transparent. This can be demonstrated by comparing what was said Thursday night with the video of a meeting on September 15, 2016, when Corrections Director Dan Keen pitched the idea of a new jail. Council members were far more open in that meeting. Executive John Brown, who was running for state auditor general last year, was absent.   

Keen told Council that he had already visited over 100 locations. He wants a new jail, with 40-60 acres, on a greenfield. Locally, he told Council that "[w]e have a couple of areas of interest that we looked at ... potential sites. ...There is still some legwork ...to move it forward." Keen told Council he'd like to get started on a new jail next year and be done by 2020.

On Thursday night, Council President John Cusick told Upper Nazareth resident Bob McMahon, "I have no plan in front of me and this body has received no plan. ... I'm not familiar to what you're referring."

While there is no formal plan for a new jail at Gracedale, Cusick is quite familiar with the idea of a new jail at Gracedale. Last year, when Keen made his sales pitch, Cusick suggested it as the best of three bad options.

"There's here [Easton], which we seem to think does not make sense. There's Gracedale, where there's a lot of land, but we'll certainly run into a lot of local opposition and zoning. But if we have the will to do it, it could be done there. There is enough acreage. And then the third option is someplace else. Finding 40 acres where there's public water - certainly you would need public water, public sewer - those options are limited. So again I come back to this issue where we're going to need outside legal and or land development consulting to move this process forward. ... It's going to take time, effort and political will to move this thing ahead."

On Thursday night, Council member Hayden Phillips eventually said he would oppose a new jail at Gracedale. He is seeking re-election. His wife, who was in the audience, made sure she handed his card to every speaker. He implored them to call him several times.

Last year, when the new jail was pitched, he was less concerned about its location.  "The mechanics of where we are going to do it and everything, my take right now is that I'm letting the administration handle that," is what he said last year.. ... "I don't want to necessarily manage that, micromanage that."

Until he discovered it could cost him an election.

Bob Werner, ordinarily one of Council's most loquacious members, was curiously silent on Thursday night. He failed to clarify Cusick when the Council President attempted to create the impression that no one is even thinking about Gracedale.

Nobody did.

One year ago, Werner wanted to know how the plan would be marketed to Upper Nazareth residents.  "When you try to sell this to the community that you want to put it in - I have to be watch how I word this - If you market this to the community that you want to put it in, the 60 acres, and you approach those people that are on the boards that need to hear this, what is the benefit that you could say to those people on a new facility such as you're talking about?. What would you be able to offer them and say, 'This is not what you think it is.'?" 

One year ago, Werner knew very well that Gracedale was the site being considered. He actually participated with Administrator Cathy Allen in a meeting about it.

"Mr. Werner, I think you were in the one meeting we had met - and I don't think - yes, we're going to have hurdles, but some of the people we need to be in our corner will be in our corner," Allen said a year ago.

"There are people we have met with in the past that have changed," agreed Werner. "Positions have changed."

Neither Werner nor Allen said a word about this meeting on Thursday night.

One Council member is untroubled by public opposition to Gracedale as a site for the new jail. It's Ken Kraft. He is a District Council rep, not an at-large rep, and his district is Bethlehem. He does not have to worry about Nazareth votes.

Kraft is also a business agent for the painters' union, and sometimes treats his position on Council as a way to get work "What does the administration need from County Council to get this started, to get the zoning and the variances and things?" he asked a year ago."We could build it in a year for you," he pledged. He called Gracedale "the perfect place for it and we just did the sewer line and infrastructure and all the things we needed to do over the years to get there."

Werner responded, "That's true."

Kraft said nothing to Upper Nazareth residents who complained, but later threw a lifeline to Executive John Brown by changing the subject to the need for a morgue.

Brown may need a morgue for his political career unless he becomes more frank, and in a hurry, with Nazareth area residents.