The Reader Beat: City Council Notes from January 21, 2026

Following our notes taken during the City Council meeting held on Jan. 21 at 6:30 p.m.

I attended the city council meeting on January 21 at 6:30 p.m. Constituent Anthony McGowan brought the Boys II Men youth group, a mentorship group that empowers boys in the community, to observe city council. Other constituents voiced concerns about future ICE activity in Erie considering the violence and volume of ICE raids in Minneapolis, MN this month. "What is the City of Erie's current approach to interactions with federal law enforcement agencies, especially ICE?" Constituent Jennifer Kennedy asked. "How is our city protecting us?" In her report, Mayor Devlin announced that her administration is working on a plan for how to address ICE involvement. "This is something we will work together with our community, our police, and the administration to make sure we can all agree on the language as we put it forward," Devlin said. "We are working on it and we have to be in order to continue our Welcoming City status." The meeting addressed the following ordinances: 

• An ordinance amending articles of the U.C.C. Ordinance adopting the 2021 UCC and Chapter 11 and Appendix B of the 2021 International Building Code (IBC) for new construction along with the accessibility provisions contained in the 2021 Existing International Existing Building Code (IEBC), the 2021 International Plumbing Code (IPC), and/or the 2021 International Swimming Pool and Spa Code (ISPSC) as adopted by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania on Jan. 1, 2026 had its first reading and was not voted on. 
• An ordinance of the city council determining to incur lease rental debt; evidenced by the guaranteed revenue bond in the maximum principal amount of $370,884.00 to be authorized and issued by Erie City Water Authority in connection with the construction, alteration and improvements to the public water distribution facilities in and about this city, including but not limited to, the customer side galvanized service line replacement project – phase four and paying related costs, fees, and expenses; specifying the realistic useful life of the project; authorizing and directing appropriate officers of the city to take certain actions and to execute certain documents, including a guaranty agreement, between the city, as guarantor and the Erie City Water Authority, and the Pennsylvania Infrastructure Investment Authority; approving the form, maximum guaranteed amounts and sources of payment of the guaranty agreement, and creating a sinking fund in connection with such guaranty obligations and appointing a sinking fund depository had its first reading and was not voted on. 
• An ordinance amending the following sections of Article 112, Rules of Council to improve the efficiency and time involved in the legislative process for City Council had its first reading and was not voted on. 
• An ordinance appropriating $140,000 from the Business Development Revolving Loan Fund for utilization in the Flagship/Commodore Fund had its first reading and was not voted on.
• An ordinance appropriating $25,000 from Eriez Manufacturing for the expenditure thereof the Police Capital Improvement Fund Projects had its first reading and was not voted on. 
• An ordinance appropriating $15,000 from the Mercy Terrace Apartments) for the purchase of police, fire, and winter maintenance equipment had its first reading and was not voted on. 
• An ordinance appropriating $389,218.37 from unappropriated and unanticipated revenue for the Police Capital Improvement Fund Projects had its first reading and was not voted on. 
• An ordinance to repeal Ordinance 58-2025, which approved and/or authorized a ballot referendum on whether or not a commission needed to be formed to study and/or to recommend any changes to the City of Erie's existing form of government had its first reading and was not voted on.