Tamaqua Borough Council held its second public hearing concerning the 2014 Community Development Block Grant program on Tuesday night before council's regular meeting. Members discussed the breakdown of the funding, divided into administration costs and proposed projects.

During the regular meeting, council approved a resolution concerning the CDBG funding of $106,521. The proposed projects include $19,173 in administration costs, $26,206 for the demolition of two to three properties, and $61,144 for renovations to the women's bath house at the Bungalow Park. The properties selected for demolition came under discussion later in the meeting, when council members were asked to vote on demolishing the two properties assigned to the top of a list of blighted properties. The list was compiled by the borough's code enforcement officers.Council voted to accept a demolition bid of $15,630 for a single home at 67 Hunter St. Steigerwalt said there could be additional costs after the demolition, after the ground has settled, to reconstruct the sidewalk in the area. Council then rejected a bid in the amount of $49,222 to demolish an attached dwelling at 252 Cottage Ave.Steigerwalt cited the fact that the property is on a steep slope and would require repairs to the remaining structureafter the demolition as contributing to the high cost. Council President Micah Gursky voted against the rejection."It's not going to get any cheaper to demolish this property and it is going to continue to deteriorate," he said.Councilman Dave Mace, who made the motion to reject the bid, noted the borough could possibly demolish two other properties for the same cost.In other business, council accepted the resignation of Randy Gormley from the Tamaqua Board of Health; named Dave Christ to the Tamaqua Water Authority, for a five-year term effective Jan. 1, 2015; approved a request for the sixth-grade class at St. Jerome's Regional School to use the Bungalow Park for a rocket launch project; and agreed to look into whether the borough's liability insurance covers Eastern Schuylkill Recreation Commission activities.