READING, Pa. – The nominating committee of Reading City Council is wrestling with how to proceed with the Historical Architectural Review Board in the wake of the resignations of all of its members.
The nominating committee is responsible for making recommendations to council for appointments to boards, commissions and authorities for the city.
Last month, all six of the remaining nine-member HARB resigned.
On Monday afternoon, Councilmember Chris Miller, chair of the nominating committee, said that to his knowledge the city has never had an entire board resign.
“The historic districts were created by the people living in the neighborhood, so where do they come in in this process?” Miller questioned. “I’m just trying to understand, as nobody seems to know where this is supposed to start.”
All six members of the Reading Historical Architectural Review Board have resigned, leaving the nine-seat board empty.
“Maybe the (exit) interviews are the beginning part, but it seems like as things go on, there may be other people that need to be involved, including at the state level,” Miller said.
He said that some of the resignation letters received were similar and others did not really go into any details.
The committee decided to hold a special meeting on Monday, March 30, to hold exit interviews with the former HARB members.
The plan is to interview the members separately rather than as a group.
There is no requirement or obligation on the part of the former HARB members to participate in the exit interviews.
Miller said members of the community are concerned about what is going to happen with the historic districts.
Miller, who lives in the Centre Park Historic District, said the Centre Park is holding a community meeting in April and have requested that the city’s community development director attend to answer questions.