UPPER SAUCON TWP., Pa. -- Two candidates citing similar priorities will compete on the ballot for Lehigh County’s District 5 seat on the board of commissioners this November.
Democrat Sarah Fevig, a college financial aid administrator, and Republican Patrick Leonard, a former Upper Saucon Township supervisor, are voicing support for farmland preservation, fiscal prudence and a commitment to keep Cedarbrook nursing home as a county operation.
The pair also expressed a willingness to explore regionalizing local police and fire departments — a proposal floated by county executive candidate Josh Siegel.
Both have also recognized that county government is heading into potentially turbulent times with the Pennsylvania state budget four months late and the federal government cutting spending. While neither said they want to raise taxes, both Fevig and Leonard said it would be irresponsible to make a campaign pledge given the financial uncertainty.
“I think anyone that comes in here and says, ‘I will never raise your taxes,’ is coming from a place of either lying to you or really not understanding the situation,” Fevig said.
“At some point, you have to raise taxes,” Leonard said. “Nobody wants that, but you can’t continue to support everything if your costs continue to grow.”
Housing and collaboration
Fevig, an Upper Saucon resident and a judge of elections, said that addressing the Lehigh Valley’s housing crisis would be one of her top priorities. The cost of living has skyrocketed in recent years as more people have moved to the region, stretching the already thin housing market.
County government, she said, doesn’t have a direct role to play. Municipal governments create zoning laws following rules set by state lawmakers. But county commissioners should wield soft power to influence regional planners and township officials to promote smart growth, she said.
Fevig did not offer specific policies that the county should work toward, though she pointed at farmland preservation as an effective tool at limiting unwanted sprawl. Instead, she said county officials should encourage collaboration by pursuing grants and establishing incentives that can encourage needed change, she said.
“I think that’s really what the housing piece needs," she said. "It needs voices. It needs the Realtors. It needs nonprofits. It needs lots of different minds working together to really get to, ‘How do we solve this?’”
In contrast, Leonard was pessimistic about the county’s ability to resolve such a widespread problem. While the county may be able to support individual projects, it would take a statewide effort or at least a multi-county approach to improve the region’s cost of living.
“I don’t know how the county could afford what I think it would take to make affordable housing work at the county level,” Leonard said.
Fevig also expressed an interest in partnering with area students to explore solutions to potential county issues. The Lehigh Valley is home to nine colleges, she said, and it would be a missed opportunity to not take advantage of students’ problem-solving skills.
Fevig compared it to a class she participated in while working at Northampton Community College where students researched and proposed request-for-proposals on the college bookstore. A Lehigh County program, she said, would also get more young people involved in county government.
“If we can get them working and get them engaged and get them seeing the work that we’re doing now, we are building future leaders in this process,” she said.
Experience and emergency services
Leonard, an Army veteran who lives in the township and works as its deputy emergency management coordinator, focused on his experience in local government. He’s worked on preserving park space and following legal protocols at the township level and believes he can do the same for the county.
If elected, he said he would support investing more in the county’s emergency management office. The office needs to upgrade its equipment and the staff deserves a raise, he said. The county’s drone team, which performs reconnaissance for police and assists in searches, relies on an aging truck to haul gear, he said.
“It would be nice if the county could buy a new vehicle and it could be outfitted with newer technology, not stuff that’s been passed down,” he said.
Leonard also said he’d like to increase the cap on the county’s farmland preservation program. Currently, the county offers a maximum of $6,000 an acre to acquire conservation easements. He believes that figure should be higher. Farmers are leaving significant money on the table if they turn down developers’ overtures to preserve the land instead, Leonard said.
“In some cases, the farmers are older and the adult children don’t necessarily want to take over the operations. They’ll look at the (developer’s offer) and they’ll walk,” he said.
The District 5 seat represents Lower Milford, Salisbury, Upper Milford and Upper Saucon townships, Emmaus, Macungie and portions of Allentown. Incumbent Jeffrey Dutt, a Republican, is not seeking re-election.
This year’s contested county commissioner races will not influence control of the board in 2026.
Incumbents Antonio Pineda and Ron Beitler, both Republicans, and Geoff Brace, a Democrat, are running unopposed. The four at-large seats are all held by Democrats and are not up for re-election.
