A Bradford resident appeared before Bradford City Council on Tuesday, raising concerns over problems with his Elm Street home –– again.
But at the meeting, a city official said a red stain that appears on the concrete of 44 Elm St. is not the city’s issue.
Dr. Albert Sohnen, who has lived in the Office of Economic and Community Development-purchased house for several months, contends that the problem with the cement continues.
He passed out photographs to city council. “No one can tell me what that stain is other than it is not an environmental hazard,” Sohnen said. “But yet, it’s always there.”
He said the concrete has been powerwashed, but the stain remains. And the stain also remains after rain and when the concrete dries, he said.
“And I don’t think what I’m asking is unreasonable,” Sohnen said, adding that the issue needs corrected.
Mayor Tom Riel, who recently visited the property, called the issue an oddity. But he said he doesn’t believe the stain is seeping up from the concrete.
OECD executive director Sara Andrews also chimed in during the meeting.
“We had a concrete supplier look at it. The concrete is 2 years old and that was never like that,” Andrews said.
The cement had never been red before, she said. Four contractors looked at the concrete and no problem had been found, Andrews said.
Riel said he felt bad for Sohnen, not knowing if someone spilled something in that spot of the concrete. He said he doesn’t have an explanation and wondered if the stain is topical in nature.
Sohnen also said that water puddles on the concrete, though Riel said the concrete is installed correctly, sloping toward the garage and the street.
Also, council approved a short-term loan for $300,000 for the construction of three homes on Elm Street and Congress Place in the city’s Second Ward Neighborhood Revitalization Project Area. The loan will have a two-year period at 2.35 percent.
In the past, the OECD has constructed and rehabilitated more than 50 homes in Colonial Heights, Onofrio Street, the Project Pride Neighborhood and in the Second Ward Neighborhood Revitalization Area.
In other business, council:
• Approved a subdivision of lands located on Holley Avenue owned by the city and on Glenwood Avenue owned by the Bradford City Water Authority and the Bradford Flood Control Authority to adjoining lands owned by John Kohler.
Those areas will be used for a warehouse expansion for Graham Packaging. The lots are 0.86, 0.49 and 0.4 acres and 77.89 feet and by 50 feet. This project will substantially increase the city’s tax base, Riel said.
• Authorized the city solicitor to prepare documents needed for the 2018 tax anticipation, borrowing a minimum $750,000, and authorized the transfer of $400,000 from the capital reserve to the general fund to cover 2017 year-end expenses and payroll.
• Approved a $13,775.48 payment to Sutphen Towers Inc. for repairs to tower one fire department vehicle.
• Re-appointed Debbie Lunden and appointed Fred Proper to the Bradford Redevelopment Authority. Lunden’s term will expire Oct. 30, 2022, and Proper’s term will expire Oct. 30, 2021.
• Approved free parking for the Christmas season from Nov. 24 to Dec. 29 in the business districts in the city.
