O’Connell to seek reelection in 2021

Allentown mayor expected to be challenged by a large field in Democratic primary

Allentown Mayor Ray O’Connell will seek reelection in 2021, he announced Friday.

“The city has moved forward the past few years, but I feel there’s more work to do with various things like spurring more economicdevelopment,addressing quality of life issues, upgrading our professional services to the residents and supporting our first responders,” O’Connell said. “I have a great cabinet, and I want to work with them to accomplish more.”

The 71-year-old former Allentown teacher and school district administrator waselected to City Council in 2009. He served as city council president fromJanuary 2015 to January 2018.

O’Connell oversaw council during a period of city turmoil, including a federal investigation into the contracting practices of then-Mayor Ed Pawlowski. The relationship between council and the mayor became increasingly hostile, and in January 2016, the board passed a vote of no confidence against Pawlowski.

City Council appointed O’Connell interim mayor in March 2018 after Pawlowski was convicted on 47 pay-toplay corruption charges that involved trading city contracts for campaign donations.

In 2019, O’Connell easily defeated four Democratic primary opponents and then beat Republican TimRamosina contest to serve out the final two years of Pawlowski’s fourth term.

During his 2019 campaign, O’Connell vowed not to seek reelection. But within two months of his victory, he said a future bid was back on the table.

“Do I need this job? No. Do I want this job? You’re damn sure I want this job,” O’Connell concluded in his 2020 State of the City address in January before a packed roomat the East Side Youth Center social hall. “I love Allentown. I wear Allentownonmysleeve. I bleed Allentown.”

O’Connell said he made the earlier promise while his wife was being treated for cancer, which is now in remission. O’Connell says his outlook on the coming years has changed along with the improvedcircumstances.

After the State of the City address, other prospective 2021 candidates including developer Nat Hyman blasted O’Connell for going back on his word. Fast-forward 11 months, and Hyman announced Thursday that he would offer his “fullthroated support” to O’Connell so that City Councilwoman Ce-Ce Gerlach won’t win the Democraticnomination. Gerlach launched her mayoral bid in November.

O’Connell said Friday that he appreciated Hyman’s support but distanced himself from Hyman’s criticisms of Gerlach and other candidates.

“I am not a politician who badmouths people. I would rather lose an election the right way than win an election the wrong way,” he said. “I will be very respectful and civil to my opponents.”

The field for the Democratic nomination is expected to get crowded. Gerlach’s fellow firstyear progressive city Councilman Joshua Siegel has also announced a mayoral bid, as has longtime regional economic development official Matthew Tuerk. City Council Vice President Julio Guridy recently participated in a mayoral candidate forum but has not made a decision about running.

Former Allentown police chief andcity Councilman Roger MacLean has also expressed interest in seeking the Democratic nomination, and Allentown Community & Economic Development Director Leonard Lightner has said he’s considering a bid.

Ramos will again try to become the city’s first Republican executive since 2001. It’s unclear whether he will face competition in the GOPprimary; Luiz Garcia, anAllentown detective who ran in 2017, has said he will not mount a challenge in 2021.

O’Connell madethepolitically unpopular decision in late 2018 to raise property taxes 27% — Pawlowski had kept the tax rate flat the previous 13 years. The move reassured credit rating agencies concerned about the city’s dwindling cash reserves, and budget surpluses in 2018 and 2019 provided further fiscal stability, at least in the short term.

Lastweek,CityCouncilpassed O’Connell’s second consecutive tax-free budget, which draws $1.1 million from reserves the administration previously worked to rebuild.

As a council member in 2013, O’Connell voted for a 50-year lease of the city’s water and sewer systems to the Lehigh County Authority, a change the city used to bolster its pension systems. He’s spent much of his mayoral tenure dealing with some of the adverse consequences of the deal. After LCA announced it planned to raise city customers’ rates in April 2018, O’Connell described the plans as “unconscionable,” and sued the authority.

Earlier this year, Allentown and LCA reached a settlement that ended multiple legal disputes related to the lease. Both sides said the agreement would create long-term rate stability, though city residents would see quarterly increases at first. It also would hold LCAresponsible for more administrative costs and a bigger share of needed system improvements.

Allentown’s next mayor will face considerable challenges, starting with the city’s finances. The coronavirus pandemic’s long-term economic ramifications are unclear, but City Controller Jeff Glazier recently projected 2021 revenue to fall short $2 million, or 1.5%, short of the administration’s estimate.

The city’s latest five-year plan projects annual deficits of $2.2 million to $3.2 million through 2025, depleting cash reserves in the absence of tax hikes or spending cuts.

An independent audit completed last year offered a more pessimistic outlook, predicting annual deficits of more than $10 million in the years ahead if the city doesn’t find new revenue sources and mitigate the growth of health care and pension costs.