EASTON, Pa. — Easton City Council welcomed three new legislators to its team on Friday evening.
Judge Brian Panella swore in newly elected officials Frank Graziano III, Julie Zando-Dennis and Susan Hartranft-Bittinger to their city council seats.
The trio will replace James Edinger, Roger Ruggles and Taiba Sultana.
Edinger and Ruggles were both presented with gifts and thanks for their service at the meeting; Sultana attended via phone call and was not present at the time.
Following the swearing-in ceremony, Panella commended the council members new and old for their dedication and work ethic.
After launching into council's reorganization meeting, each new member had an opportunity to speak.
Graziano thanked his wife and family for their support during the campaign.
He said that while knocking on doors can be intimidating, “the people in this city are very engaged and they want to be heard, [and] second, the people of Easton have a very deep pride in this city.”
“I've lived in the city my entire life, and I share that same love and pride for the city,” Graziano said.
“I'm extremely grateful for the opportunity to listen to the residents and advocate for them, which is a responsibility I do not take lightly.
"I'm looking forward to working with everyone on council, the administration and the residents, and I’m ready to get to work.”
'Committed to working with you all'
Hartranft-Bittinger also thanked her family for their support, and said she looks forward to advocating for the people of South Side.
“I've lived here my entire life, and live in South Side, and that's who I represent,” Hartranft-Bittinger said.
“I represent the entire city, don't get me wrong, but I take true pride in my South Side people, and I just want to thank everyone who voted for me, stood by me and decided they made the right choice, and I can't wait to work with these great people here.”
Zando-Dennis thanked her wife, Jennifer Dennis, for her support, as well as the residents of West Ward.
“I'm committed to working with you all to strengthen the community, support our families and ensure that all of our voices are heard," Zando-Dennis said.
"So please reach out. Do not hesitate to reach out. And I'm really looking forward to speaking with everyone.”
Councilman Frank Pintabone proceeded to jokingly suggest two motions: a seating switch so that the dais would not be split into a section of men and women, and a request for Graziano’s name to be changed to “Robert” or “Bob.”
Solicitor Joel Scheer informed Pintabone that under open meeting laws, he would have had to give at least 24 hours’ notice for such measures, to which Pintabone said “It’ll be on the agenda next meeting.”
'One city, one community'
Council members Ken Grown and Crystal Rose and Mayor Sal Panto Jr. each welcomed the new council members, as well.
Brown said the fresh faces were “the cream of the crop,” and shared a bit of wisdom he has picked up over his years of service.
“I don't believe that we're separated by the four segments of our city, but we are together one city, one community,” Brown said.
“Now I look forward to working with you on different items. I'm sure that we will talk offline and online, in the sunshine, out sunshine, to make this city a better city.
"Thank you for your time that you put in to become a council member, and I look forward working with you."
Rose thanked the new members for running and dealing with the myriad issues of campaigning, and for communicating concerns they heard while they were running for office.
“I'm really looking forward for all of us to work together," Rose said. "I think you're going to have a nice drama-free team here in Easton, maybe no more clickbait articles.
“Thanks for running and congratulations to all of you.”
Panto said he was pleased to welcome “a dynamic council.”
He said the group works well together as opposed to some other municipalities — namely, Phillipsburg, New Jersey — where “the mayor and the council don’t get along.”
“[Easton is] a great city, and there's a lot of great things going on, and we're not always going to agree,” Panto said.
“We're going to disagree a lot, but we don't want to be disagreeable, and I think that's the most important thing here: that we disagree, but we're not disagreeable.
"And I think everybody's entitled to their opinion. And I want to say thank you, and welcome aboard.”
Panto also designated Zando-Dennis to work on the Public Services committee, Hartranft-Bittinger on the Administration committee and Graziano on the Public Safety committee.
Pintabone appointed vice mayor
Pintabone also was appointed vice mayor for a two-year term, taking the place of Brown.
“I'm honored that the rest of council and the mayor see my dedication and my heart before the city and they chose to nominate me for the next two years as the vice mayor,” Pintabone said.
“So it's an honor that my council mates and the mayor believe in what I'm doing, what I'm trying to do, and what I've done to give me this honor, so I'm grateful.”
Pintabone said he will continue to work on workforce housing initiatives, the landlord/tenant program, and more. He assured the public that “I’m going to keep my foot on the pedal for the people of Easton.”
“I’m ready to go," he said. "Every year, I want to do better and accomplish more for the residents than I did the year before.
"I’m setting high bars for myself, an we’re working on it, and we’re going to get it done, and do the best I can for the resident of the city of Easton.”
