The day will remain the same, but not the week, when Lehighton Borough Council conducts its meetings as of next year.

On a 5-2 vote, borough council on Monday agreed to meet on the first Monday of the month in 2019. Councilman Darryl Arner and council President Grant Hunsicker were opposed.

Borough Manager Nicole Beckett indicated that in speaking with council members, the dates that would work were either the first Monday or third Thursday of the month.

Before the vote, Hunsicker asked why the matter was even under consideration.

Councilwoman Autumn Abelovsky said it was because both council and Lehighton Area School Board meet at 7 p.m. on the fourth Monday of each month.

“What does that have to do with us?” Hunsicker asked. “Are they (the school board) going to change their meeting to accommodate us?”

Abelovsky explained that before she was a seated member on council, she was always “torn” when deciding which meeting to come to.

Hunsicker said that everything would have to be switched around to accommodate that change.

However, Beckett said that administratively speaking, Monday would work better.

Starting next year, council will meet at 7 p.m. on the first Monday of the month.

Last month, Abelovsky suggested that council look to switch the day it meets so that more people could attend both council and the school board’s meetings.

Abelovsky said at that time a previous request in which the school board was asked to change the time and day of its meeting came up empty.

She also suggested then that since there are members who sit on different committees, perhaps council could appoint a liaison who could attend the school board meeting and relay the information back to council.

In January 2016, while not a seated member of council, Abelovsky, as a resident, asked council to consider changing the date for its regular monthly meeting so that it doesn’t fall on the same night the school board meets.

Abelovsky had told council that parents and residents shouldn’t have to choose which of those meetings they should attend because there are important issues that come up at both meetings.