A new handicap lift is coming to the Tamaqua Bungalow Pool thanks to the efforts of siblings William and Karri Garber. The announcement was made at Tuesday's meeting of Tamaqua Borough Council.

Approximately $12,000 from Tamaqua's 2014 Community Block Development Grant funds, originally designated for street repairs, will be reallocated to purchase the pool lift.The purchase was prompted by a request from the Garbers, who alerted the borough that the current lift only has a capacity of 250 pounds.At a previous meeting, the Garbers explained that many times, individuals with disabilities do have to deal with weight gain, as their mobility may be limited.They encouraged the borough to expand the availability of the pool to more individuals. The new lift will range from 500-1,000 pounds.The Garbers said that swimming is one of the only exercises that is recommended to them and the lift is very important to their family.Borough manager Kevin Steigerwalt said the borough has already identified a lift and will be working to get it purchased and installed as soon as possible, hopefully before the end of this year's swim season.In other business, council approved a request from Ashley McArdle and Jeanette Major to hold a motorcycle event and other fundraising activities on Saturday, July 25, at Freddie's Pub, located at the Five Points in Tamaqua.The fundraiser will benefit two little girls who were struck by a car earlier this month. Mauch Chunk Street will be closed to parking for the duration of the event from Broad to Pine Street.Council reviewed two private home sales referred to them by the county, one for the purchase of 312 Penn St. and one for the purchase of 301 Biddle St., both to be purchased by the same individuals.Council referred the items to the code enforcement officer for review. Council also received a repository sale request for 421 W. Broad St., a property that is currently on the Borough's demolition list. Council also referred this item to code enforcement.If the sales are approved, the new owners will become responsible for any code violations attached to the properties.Council heard from representatives from County Waste, the borough's new trash and recycling hauler as of July 1. Residents will all be provided with new recycling barrels.The company will be delivering the barrels door to door to all garbage customers. These barrels will replace the bins that are currently being used.There are two sizes available, and one size will be distributed to everyone initially, however, customers may call the company and ask to be provided with the smaller sized bin.The company has also proposed reducing the number of days that garbage is collected from four days to three days, eliminating the Monday haul. Council will review the proposal.Council briefly discussed the annual allocation of $8,500 to the Tamaqua Chamber of Commerce. Initially, the allocation was required as part of a matching grant to fund the Downtown Main Street Manager program, however, it has continued to help offset other costs incurred by the Chamber.Recently the Chamber has undergone staffing changes and no longer has a full-time employee. Council elected to continue providing the funds.