City of Scranton Council Responses | July 21, 2026

Council President Tom Schuster asked the following question(s):

• Mr. Schuster again asks for a status on city park gates and reason for individuals and vehicles continually in Weston Field after hours.
  • Parks Director Dana Force will be in attendance at Council’s July 21 caucus.
• May the city administration please update Council regarding plans and financing for the larger, lane pool at Nay Aug?
  • In October 2025, Council approved the submission of a grant application for more than $2 million in Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program (RACP) funding from the state for Phase 2 of the Nay Aug Park pool complex. In award announcements made Friday by our local state legislators, the City was not named as a grant recipient for that project. The city will apply for potential grants when they come available.
• He asked if the blight remediation crew, whose attention is to Land Bank, and SRA owned properties in the city, have been pulled to fill duties within DPW, such as trash pickup.
  • Parks Director Dana Force will be in attendance at Council’s July 21 caucus
• Mr. Schuster asked if the city has had complete and recent communications with the neighbors to the ongoing Lindy Creek and Keyser Valley flood protection projects.
  • The City shares relevant project information with affected residents as needed throughout the course of the project.

Council Vice President Patrick Flynn asked the following question(s):

• Mr. Flynn asked for an update and timeline on the 600 E Elm Street & S Webster Ave bridge project presently on hold in the area.
  • The city and engineers have obtained a DEP permit for the project and design has been completed. The city is anticipating additional state funding in order to put the project out to bid.
• Mr. Flynn asked if the city IT department may review and allow City Council members access to city Boards & Authorities detail on the Granicus platform.
  • Thank you for the question. This has been forwarded to the Law Department who administers the Boards & Authorities toolset to advise on the options for access to ensure it aligns with the current workflow of the department. There is no technical limitation to adding this access and IT will fulfill the request once approved

Council member Dr. Jessica Rothchild asked the following question(s):

• Please provide Council with any available schedule for the blight remediation crew attention to Land Bank, and SRA owned properties in the city.
  • Parks Director Dana Force will be in attendance at Council’s July 21 caucus.
• May the city please provide more detail and information related to the Pennsylvania Creative Industries Creative Districts Program as proposed by Lackawanna County Arts & Culture Department in Thursdays legislation?
  • A Creative District is a walkable, geographically defined area by a municipality that is characterized by a high concentration of cultural facilities, creative businesses and entrepreneurs, artists, and culture bearers.
    
    The Creative Districts Program supports communities in transforming walkable, culturally vibrant areas into centers of economic growth, local identity, and inclusive revitalization. By investing in creative assets, the program fosters entrepreneurship and small business development, retains and attracts talent and visitors, advances a community’s development and revitalization goals, and strengthens long-term planning.
    
    Selection in the Creative Districts Program may provide access to additional grant funding, technical assistance for planning and implementation, statewide promotion through branded tourism campaigns, and more.
• Dr. Rothchild asked if the city may provide plans moving forward to repaint any now faded crosswalks in school areas and also in other parts of the city?
  • DPW will be refreshing crosswalks beginning the first week in August starting with the School Zones.

Councilman Sean McAndrew asked the following question(s):

• Councilman McAndrew asked if the recently demolished building on N Main Avenue in West Scranton was an emergency bid?
  • Yes.
• Mr. McAndrew asked for an update on the stormwater project work being done in the Fawnwood section of the city.
  • Leeward is starting their curb work this week, and we anticipate it will take 3 weeks for curb and gutter work. Pave restoration will follow behind, including driveways. The work extended by the change order will begin in late September.
• Mr. McAndrew asked, along with Councilman Mark McAndrew, if the city permits department has had a recent audit accomplished? He asked this question due to the increasing number of reports from citizens regarding permit delay issues.
  • The Labor & Industry department audits code enforcement every five years and the report is sent to council president. Council receives monthly reports on Licensing, Permitting, Code Enforcement, and citations.

Councilman Mark McAndrew asked the following question(s):

• May the city Parks & Recreation please advise when or if the Mayor James Walsh sign will be placed back at the Nay Aug Pool Complex.
  • Parks Director Dana Force will be in attendance at Council’s July 21 caucus
• Mr. McAndrew asked if the city IT department may revisit and make the Granicus platform allow Search features for council members.
  • In way of an update Granicus has claimed that the only way to provide this search functionality would be to move Council’s meeting publishing from ECTV/YouTube to their platform in its entirety at considerable cost to the City. They are stating that the video must be published and transcribed by their platform to allow for search. This also did not account for previous minutes. IT has been researching alternative search options and will provide a pilot of the two tools identified to see which works best for Council. We will provide an update on this within the next 3 weeks.

City of Scranton Council Responses – July 21, 2026 | PDF

Last modified: July 22, 2026