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The final Palmyra Borough Council meeting of 2024 was busy, with council approving a budget and millage rate increase, appointing a replacement mayor, and discussing council member Anthony Catalani’s recent DUI arrest.
At the start of the meeting, council president Beth Shearer announced some council members received an email the previous week about Catalani’s Oct. 19 DUI arrest in North Cornwall Township.
Shortly before 3 a.m. on Oct. 19, a South Lebanon Township officer observed an accident on Springwood Drive near the intersection of Cornwall Road and reported it to Lebanon County Department of Emergency Services. North Cornwall Township police were dispatched to the scene and made with Catalani, whose vehicle had veered off the roadway and hit a curb. This left the vehicle inoperable, according to the affidavit, which also said that Catalani didn’t attempt to call the police as he waited for a tow truck.
“While speaking with the defendant, your affiant detected a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from his breath and person,” the affidavit of probable cause states. “I observed his eyes to be bloodshot and glassy.”
The affidavit says Catalani admitted to police at the scene that he had consumed an alcoholic beverage. A blood test conducted at WellSpan Good Samaritan Hospital allegedly showed Catalani had a blood alcohol level of 0.141% — over the legal limit of 0.08%.
He is being charged with driving under the influence and disregarding traffic lanes.
This is Catalani’s second alcohol-related charge. He pleaded guilty to public drunkenness and similar misconduct following a May 2023 incident in Palmyra.
Shearer asked Catalani if he intended to resign from his borough council position following the arrest.
“In light of this being his second arrest for excessive drinking, this needs to be addressed,” Shearer said. “Anthony, your actions show a complete lack in judgment, and I would like to know if you plan on resigning from your position.”
Catalani said he would not be resigning and that fellow council members have repeatedly put him “on blast.”
“You put me on blast every time,” he said. “I’m going through a lot with the passing of my father’s anniversary and other things going on in my personal life and stress and frustration. I wasn’t driving on any main road or anything. I do apologize. It’s not right, still wrong.”
He apologized several times throughout the discussion but also noted that actions speak louder than words.
Catalani has one year remaining in his term and said he doesn’t know if he will run again.
Shearer and Catalani had a private conversation following the meeting, though no further details were shared.
On Dec. 26, councilman Marcus Riddell posted his response on Facebook, saying Shearer should have addressed the situation differently.
“Council President Shearer could have called for an executive session so that the matter could have been addressed in private,” he said. “If Council President Shearer was informed of the incident a week in advance and wanted to bring it up at a public meeting, [she] should have placed it on the agenda. Instead, she executed a surprise attack to catch her fellow councilman off guard and embarrass him.”
Riddell said Catalani is now being “tried and convicted of DUI in the court of public opinion.”
Court documents say Catalani’s preliminary hearing is scheduled for Jan. 23.
2025 budget approved
This year’s borough budget has been an ongoing discussion for several months, coming to a conclusion with a 5-2 approval. Council members Riddell and Catalani voted against it.
Council started with a deficit of over $800,000. With several cuts, they brought it down to about $600,000 in deficit.
Read More: Palmyra Borough Council proposes tax hike to meet $601,000 budget shortfall
The budget is available below and on the borough website.
Budget highlights include increasing the millage rate from 4.11 mills to 5.30 mills, an increase of 22.5%, to cover the shortfall.
For the average property owner with an assessed value of $182,082, this would be an additional $216.68 per year in real estate taxes, according to the document.
Sewer rates were increased from $98 per quarter to $109 per quarter for flat-rate residential dwelling units.
The total 2025 general fund revenue and expenditures are projected to be $4.9 million each.
The largest expenditure line items include funding for the police department at about $2.11 million, the administration department at about $631,000 and the public works department at about $542,000.
In other business, council:
- Voted unanimously to appoint former councilman Tom Miller to serve as Palmyra’s mayor through the remainder of Fred Carpenter’s term. Carpenter announced his upcoming retirement, effective Jan. 1, in November, citing health concerns. He recommended Miller for the job, who will be sworn into office in early January so he can serve as the tiebreaking vote, if needed, at the next council meeting.
- Voted 6-1 to remove the $2,300 mayor’s salary, starting with Miller’s term. Council member Matthew Andrews was the dissenting vote. During public comment, future mayor Miller said he was fine with the change.
Palmyra Borough Council will meet next at 325 S. Railroad St. on Jan. 14 at 7 p.m. Meetings are also streamed on the Palmyra Borough, Lebanon County Pennsylvania YouTube page.
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