Realtor Appointed to Fill Vacancy on Borough Zoning Hearing Board

A local realtor was appointed by borough council Monday to fill a vacancy on the Hellertown Zoning Hearing Board.

The vacancy was created when board member Andrew Hughes resigned his seat last month upon his appointment to fill a vacant seat on borough council.

Ken Solt, who is a realtor with Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Fox & Roach’s Coopersburg office, told council that he and his family have lived in the borough for about two-and-a-half years, and they love it.

Solt said that his work as a realtor has given him “a pretty good idea of how zoning affects the community.”

In response to a question from councilman Gil Stauffer about whether his work in real estate could potentially influence his decision-making regarding rezoning, Solt said that he had given the matter consideration.

He said he intends to vote with the community’s best interests in mind, and that if he does encounter a conflict of interest, he will abstain from voting on a particular matter.

Council voted 6-0 to appoint Solt to fill the vacancy, and he will be sworn in at the zoning hearing board’s next meeting, which is Wednesday, Dec. 19 at 6:30 p.m. at Hellertown Borough Hall, 685 Main Street.

Councilman James Hill was absent.

The other two candidates to fill the vacancy were Larry O’Donnell and Matt Marcincin.

O’Donnell was absent from the meeting, but was previously interviewed as a candidate to fill the zoning hearing board seat Hughes held.

Marcincin told council he has lived in Hellertown “pretty much all my life” and works as a private landscaping contractor.

“I’m very intuitive with grades, water flow, that sort of thing, and I’d really like to do more for the community,” he said.

Although he wasn’t appointed to fill the zoning hearing board vacancy, council president Tom Rieger told Marcincin that if he wishes to serve the community, there will be other opportunities to do so in the future.