ALLENTOWN, Pa. — The city is looking for its first new controller in more than a decade.
City Council in a release said it is seeking applications through mid-June from anyone interested in succeeding the late Jeff Glazier.
The longtime local official died last week at 69.
“Jeff served Allentown with integrity, humility and deep care for the community, and his legacy of public service will not be forgotten.”Allentown City Council
“Council recognizes that this process comes during a time of mourning for many throughout the city,” the release states.
“Jeff served Allentown with integrity, humility and deep care for the community, and his legacy of public service will not be forgotten.”
The body’s rules say that because Glazier was a Democrat, members must appoint a Democrat to fill the controller's seat.
The release says applicants must submit a resume and statement outlining why he or she “would bring value to the city” as controller, a position that operates independently of the mayor and council to provide financial oversight.
The controller must be a registered voter who lives in the city throughout his or her term, according to city code.
Applications should be emailed to Deputy City Clerk Tawanna Whitehead at Tawanna.Whitehead@allentownpa.gov or mailed to her at City Hall, 435 Hamilton St., Allentown, according to council’s release.
Council plans to interview qualified candidates at an upcoming meeting to appoint an interim controller.
Whoever is appointed is due to be paid $76,000 annually after voters approved a referendum in November 2023 setting that position’s pay at 80% of the mayor’s salary.
The salary for the controller was set at just under $50,000 when voters approved Allentown’s home-rule charter in 1996 and remained at that rate for almost three decades.
The interim controller would serve for about a year and a half, as Allentown’s code stipulates an interim controller serves until the next municipal election.
The person elected controller would fill the rest of Glazier's term, which is due to end in 2028.
Glazier 'did it all'
Glazier, who graduated from Allen High School, served a dozen years on Allentown School Board. He twice was appointed to serve on Allentown City Council before being elected to a full term in 2015.
Glazier soon after was appointed controller by his fellow council members amid a federal investigation into corruption within Allentown City Hall.
"Jeff did it all as a public servant. He stepped up when he was needed. But he was more than that. He did all this stuff quietly that no one else knew about. He just had it in his soul, and I am going to miss that a lot.”Allentown Mayor Matt Tuerk
He replaced Mary Ellen Koval, who resigned in January 2016 before she and former Mayor Ed Pawlowski were convicted on charges related to pay-to-play contracting.
City officials last week were quick to laud Glazier’s integrity and commitment to re-establishing trust in local government in the wake of that scandal.
"Jeff did it all as a public servant," Mayor Matt Tuerk told LehighValleyNews.com last week. "He stepped up when he was needed.
“But he was more than that. He did all this stuff quietly that no one else knew about. He just had it in his soul, and I am going to miss that a lot.”
Glazier treated his role “with care and discipline, earning respect across city government for the seriousness with which he treated the public trust,” council members said last week in a joint statement.
“He carried himself with kindness and thoughtfulness in every setting, and he never lost sight of the people he was serving,” Council Vice President Cynthia Mota said, calling Glazier “a trusted colleague and a friend."
