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Matthew Tuerk

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American politician (born 1975)

Matthew Tuerk
Tuerk in 2022
43rd Mayor of Allentown
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 3, 2022 (2022-01-03)
Preceded byRay O'Connell
Personal details
Born (1975-03-18) March 18, 1975 (age 49)
East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, U.S
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseKaren
Children2
Alma materCollege of Charleston
University of South Carolina

Matthew Tuerk (born March 18, 1975) is an American politician and economic development official serving as the mayor of Allentown, Pennsylvania since January 2022. Despite entering a crowded field with low name recognition, he was the first candidate to defeat an incumbent mayor in an Allentown primary since 1973, becoming the city's first Latino mayor.

Prior to being elected mayor, Tuerk worked at the Allentown Economic Development Corporation (AEDC) and the Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corporation (LVEDC).

Early life and education

Matthew Tuerk was born March 18, 1975, in East Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania. His grandmother was a Cuban immigrant who settled in East Stroudsburg in 1946. Tuerk was raised speaking English but was surrounded by Cuban traditions and food during his childhood. His family moved from East Stroudsburg to Boulder, Colorado in 1984.

Tuerk earned a BS degree in international business from the College of Charleston. He minored in Spanish and Latin American studies, during which time became particularly interested in Latino culture, learning to speak Spanish and traveling to Latin America.

He received an MBA with a concentration in international economic development from the Darla Moore School of Business at the University of South Carolina.

Career

Tuerk spent four years working for an outdoor advertising company in Panama, and later also spent time in Nicaragua. In 2004, Tuerk and his wife Karen returned to Pennsylvania, and moved to Allentown.

Tuerk became an assistant director of the Allentown Economic Development Corporation (AEDC) in 2008 and spent five years with the organization. During his time there, Tuerk helped establish the Urban Manufacturing Alliance, a coalition of cities dedicated to strengthening their manufacturing economies. He also co-founded Make Lehigh Valley, the region's first "hackerspace" located at AEDC's Bridgeworks Enterprise Center business incubator.

In 2013, Tuerk joined the Lehigh Valley Economic Development Corporation (LVEDC), where he worked for seven years. He began with the organization as its first director of research and innovation. Two years later, in 2015, he was named vice president of economic development and marketing. In 2019, he was appointed vice president of business attraction, retention and expansion. At LVEDC, he worked in a variety of functional areas, including administration, communications, economic development, entrepreneurial startup support, investor relations, marketing, and research. In October 2020, he resigned from LVEDC, and announced his candidacy for mayor of Allentown a week later.

Tuerk was the chairman the Lehigh-Northampton Airport Authority board of governors, the governing body of the Lehigh Valley International Airport. He was also a member of the board of associates executive committee at Muhlenberg College in Allentown. He served previously served on the board of trustees at Moravian Academy, treasurer of the Old Allentown Preservation Association, and as a member of the Allentown City Shade Tree Commission.

Allentown mayoral campaign

See also: 2021 Allentown mayoral election

On October 6, 2020, approximately a week after resigning his position with LVEDC, Tuerk announced his candidacy as a Democratic candidate for Mayor of Allentown in the 2021 Allentown mayoral election. He was the first candidate to enter the race in an election anticipated to have multiple candidates. Tuerk was relatively unknown to voters at the beginning of the primary election. A poll commissioned by a local developer projected Tuerk to win only 1% of the Democratic vote, and a separate poll by The Morning Call and Muhlenberg College in April 2021, just one month before the primary election, found only one in 10 residents were familiar with Tuerk. The Morning Call newspaper called the Democratic primary race "historically competitive", with Tuerk running against three primary candidates already holding office in the city, Mayor Ray O'Connell, City Council President Julio Juridy, and Councilwoman Ce-Ce Gerlach.

Tuerk raised campaign funds to allocate to improving his name recognition, and focused on meeting voters face-to-face or by phone, setting a goal of talking to 150 voters on weekdays, 250 on Saturdays, and at least 200 on Sundays. He also sought to connect with voters who requested mail-in ballots in what, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, was the first municipal primary to allow no-excuse voting by mail. Tuerk raised more money than any of his three primary candidates, and spent $92,000 out of the $209,000 spent between the four primary candidates combined heading into the final two weeks of the primary election.

In the May 2021 primary, Tuerk received 2,064 votes, defeating O'Connell and Guridy by less than two percentage points, and Gerlach by three points. The Morning Call reported that Tuerk performed well in all of the city's precincts, but especially well in precincts where voter turnout was relatively high. He won six of the nine precincts in which turnout exceeded 34%. Among all candidates, Tuerk received the most votes by mail, receiving 864 mail-in votes. The election marked the first time an incumbent mayor in Allentown lost a primary since James P. Ritter defeated Clifford Bartholomew in 1973.

In the November 2021 general election, Tuerk faced Republican opponent Tim Ramos. Tuerk won the general election with 8,206 votes and 64.13% of the vote, compared to 4,299 and 33.6% for Ramos.

First Allentown Mayoral Term

On January 3, 2022, Tuerk was sworn in as Allentown mayor, becoming the first Latino mayor in the city's history.

Tuerk's administration has been characterized by significant staff turnover, a relatively high number of homicides in the city, especially at after-hour clubs, pedestrian deaths, allegations of racism in his administration, ineffectual leadership and management, and a lack of transparency with Allentown City Council.

Staff turnover

Since being sworn in as mayor, Tuerk's administration has been characterized by high turnover among Allentown city senior staff and city employees in his tenure. Allentown's chief operating officer, Leonard Lightner, a position Tuerk created, resigned after just five months of serving in Tuerk's administration. Prior to his July 2022 resignation, Lightner had worked with the City of Allentown for 14 years.

In early 2022, Allentown's planning director, Irene Woodward, and Allentown's human resources director, Meloney Sallie-Dosonmu, resigned from the administration in early 2022. The city's Public Works Director left in February, 2022.

In October 2022, Tuerk fired Allentown parks and recreation director Karen El-Charr. El-Charr had been with the City of Allentown since 2018.

In January 2023, Allentown's city finance director, Seth O'Neil, resigned his position, and left the city.

In August 2023, Allentown human resources director Nadeem Shahzad, who replaced Salie-Sosnmu, who resigned in early 2022, resigned after just two months on the job.

City violence

Tuerk's tenure has been marked by homicides across Allentown, including a number of youth homicides, including 22-year-old Najeer Lane, who was gunned down in August 2022, and 15-year-old Treshawn Tracey, who was gunned down at Stevens Park in September 2022.

Allentown has also been plagued by violence at after hours clubs, including the January 22, 2023 shooting of Blessing Taveras, and the June 18, 2023 fatal stabbing of Kevin Tarafa.

In March 2023, three individuals were killed in a single night in two separate altercations.

On June 5, 2023, there was a broad daylight shooting in front of an AutoZone in Southside Allentown, resulting in the death of one individual.

As of June 2023, Allentown had 11 homicides year to date in 2023.

Despite the violence in Allentown, Tuerk refused to spend $1.5 million in funding that the Allentown City Council allocated for violence prevention, causing significant consternation and concern among anti-gun violence advocates.

On September 29, 2023, Allentown officially had its 16th homicide of the year, officially surpassing the total number of deaths from the previous year.

Allentown concluded 2023 with three separate shootings in a single night resulting in two additional homicides, including the death of a 1-year old and 44-year-old grandmother.  In total, 8 people were shot across three separate shootings in the city, marking one of the most violent nights in the city, and one of the most violent years in recent history. This took the total city homicides for 2023 to 18.

Allegations of Ineffectual Leadership, Mismanagement & Potential Lawsuits

On July 15, 2023, the Allentown NAACP sent a five-page letter to local media and the City of Allentown describing multiple instances of alleged discrimination and harassment within the city.  The letter put forth a number of claims against the city including claims that white police officers utilized racial slurs against their African-American colleagues, white supervisors verbally attacked employees of color, an employee was terminated for speaking out against racism and employees of color were subjected to higher dress standards than their white counterparts. There was some dispute as to which members of the NAACP's leadership board authorized the letter or approved it.

The letter was released nearly nine months to the date that NAACP leadership had met with Tuerk following the departure of two senior African-American cabinet officials in Allentown.  At the time Tuerk had promised progress with city hall's workplace culture and creating a more welcoming environment and according to the NAACP, Tuerk "assured us there were no racial issues."

The NAACP's letter alleges that Tuerk failed to respond to acts of discrimination and racism and his administration did not properly manage complaints about these acts from city employees.  As a result of these allegations, Allentown City Council meetings featured multiple city residents and employees demanding an investigation and urging council to hire an outside firm.

During this time former Human Resources Director Nadeem Shazad threatened to sue the city over allegations that he was forced to resign and improperly terminated from his position.

Shazad alleged that Tuerk forced him to resign and pushed him out of the city as a result of him providing information to the City Council regarding severance payments made to city employees who left.  Shazad stated that Tuerk "just wanted everything done his way, and was very upset that the council was getting too much information."  Shazad alleged that the City Council previously made requests for information about severance payments and Tuerk's administration ignored them.  Shazad stated that he was obligated by law to provide the council with this information and that put him at odds with Tuerk.

Shazad further alleged that after the NAACP's letter came out, he recommended the mayor hire an outside firm and conduct an investigation.  He claimed the mayor did not want to follow his advice, further contributing to his ouster. Shazad indicated that as many as eight city employees were ready to join him in a class action lawsuit against the city.

Allentown City Council meetings quickly grew contentious with members urging a thorough investigation and demanding that the city fully investigate these claims.  Karen Ocasio, a city employee in the Human Resources Department spoke to council indicating there were many employees experiencing problems and that issues were prevalent within the city.

Allentown City Councilman Ed Zucal and Councilwoman Ce-Ce Gerlach led the effort to approve an investigation into these allegations of racism and poor management, with council approving a request for proposal by a vote of 7–0 to authorize the city to hire an outside firm to fully investigate these allegations and prepare a report for the purposes of transparency for city residents.

Councilman Zucal told the press “City Council, but more importantly the residents of Allentown deserve the facts and the truth regarding what’s happening in City Hall. We need to clear the air that hangs heavy over our city."

He further stated "The citizens of Allentown deserve to know if there are chronic problems of mismanagement or incompetence that are affecting the ability to deliver city services. People deserve the facts."

Pedestrian Fatalities & Safe Streets Initiative

Mayor Tuerk has made safe streets and pedestrian safety initiatives a priority for the city, and vowed to end pedestrian related fatalities in the city. Through the support of federal representatives, the city received grant funding towards the development of a strategic plan. Despite this emphasis, the city has witnessed a number of road related fatalities and vehicular incidents and has yet to produce a city-wide plan or strategy to address these deaths. In Allentown, there were five pedestrian-involved accidents in 2022, alone, including the death of 25-year old paraprofessional Angela Yowakim, who was struck while walking to work. In 2023, Allentown continued to see pedestrian deaths. On August 22, 2023, 58-year-old Augustin Ibanez-Morales was killed in a hit and run incident.  On October 19, 2023, 85-year old Elian K. Makdsi was killed attempting to cross Union Boulevard. On December 10, 2023, 43-year old Luz Ruz Acosta and 44-year old Christopher Stocker were struck and killed by a vehicle.  

Allentown has also witnessed continued issues with auto accidents and pedestrian injuries, despite city efforts to improve road safety and reduce dangers for pedestrians.  On September 5, 2023, a 21-year-old man was killed when he crashed his scooter into a utility pole. In October 2023, a 45-year-old man was killed in a motorcycle crash in Allentown. On November 27, 2023, a 26-year old died on Basin Street when their vehicle left the road, resulting in their death.  On December 4, 2023, two people were injured in a roll-over crash on Basin Street. On December 19, a teenager was injured by a vehicle in the city.

2024 Budget Impasse and Proposed Tax Increases

On October 16, 2023, Mayor Tuerk presented his 2024 budget which called for a 6.9% property tax increase and increased city trash fees by $120 annually.  The budget called for 21 new positions in the city, even as city officials acknowledged that revenue growth in previous years had not been sufficient to balance city finances.  Tuerk claimed these new positions would help meet the needs of a growing city.  The budget was immediately met with skepticism and concern, with City Council Vice President Cnythia Mota, said she was concerned about the impact of the increases on city residents.  When it was clear that the City Council wouldn't his proposed budget, Tuerk made a last second attempt to lower the proposed increase to 4.57%.

However this proposal failed to win over council members.  On November 4, 2023, Allentown City Council voted 5–2 to reject the Mayor's proposed budget and pass a budget with no tax increase, citing concerns about rising costs and inflation.  The City Council also allocated the last of the American Rescue Plan funds, with money being allocated towards the renovation of public safety facilities and community organizations and nonprofits.  Allentown residents at the meeting complained that the City of Allentown had failed to provide funding for local non-profits and council members responded by allocating additional rescue plan funding to local community organizations.

On November 8, Mayor Tuerk vetoed the City Council's proposed budget, leaving the city without a budget for the upcoming year.  He then suggested a 2% tax increase.  In his veto, Tuerk threatened to cut popular city programs like the Lights in the Parkway, a traditional holiday lights display that attracts tens of thousands of visitors and Fourth of July fireworks, if tax increase was not passed.

Allentown City Councilman Ed Zucal, spoke out against the Mayor, calling those statements a "cheap political stunt" and those programs amounted "pennies on the dollar within the city's budget".  He alleged it was a scare tactic to attempt to coerce city council into rubber stamping his budget.

He vowed not to let the Mayor use residents as "pawns" and expressed dissatisfaction that the Mayor would threaten events which are popular among the city's children and families.  He suggested that the Mayor look at "cutting the excess in his own office" and that the City Council would not be intimidated into passing his tax increase.

On November 15, 2023, City Council met to attempt to override Mayor Tuerk's veto.  The effort failed with a 4–3 vote in favor of overriding his veto, meaning that the city remained without a budget.  Council members Ed Zucal and Ce-Ce Gerlach led the effort to override his veto.  

Allentown City Council Vice President Mota said the "community would suffer under any increase." This left the City of Allentown without a budget ahead of December 31, its legally required deadline, risking the city entering the new year without an operating budget.

With Mayor Tuerk failing to persuade Allentown City Council three times on his proposed budgets, the budget impasse seemed unbreakable.  After multiple failed budget proposals, Allentown Councilwoman Ce-Ce Gerlach stated "the ball is in the mayor's court.  The administration at this point, their task is really to take the feedback from Council, take the feedback from the public, and really present a budget that represents that and it seems like that budget will have a 0% tax increase."

With the deadline looming, Council met on December 12, 2023, to make a final attempt at passing a budget.

By a vote of 4-3 City Council voted down the Mayor's final proposal of a 2% increase.  The City Council opted to take $762,000 from the city's general fund revenue to fund the budgetary gap brought on by passing a budget without a tax increase.  Tuerk opted not to veto the council's proposed budget allowing it to take effect.  Tuerk warned residents would see higher tax increases in the future and expressed disapproval over council's decision to use general fund revenue to fund government operations, calling their actions short-sighted.

Vote of No Confidence

On November 21, 2023, in the midst of the city's budget impasse, Mayor Tuerk fired Karen Ocasio, a city employee who had filed multiple complaints regarding discrimination and was an early supporter of City Council's investigation into allegations of racism and mismanagement.

Following this firing, Allentown Councilman Ed Zucal responded to the firing calling it "an act of revenge" and "blatant retaliation and retribution."  Zucal alleged that Tuerk fired Ocasio over her support of the outside investigation and condemned the Mayor for stating that his administration welcomed the investigation, but was firing one of the first employees to speak out before the investigation had even begun.

Zucal immediately put forth the idea of a vote of no confidence in the mayor, to "signal the complete lack of faith that council now has in the mayor."  He stated that a vote of no confidence is a way of "expressing that an organization has lost all respect and confidence in its leader or its leadership."

Councilwoman Ce-Ce Gerlach, expressed concern that Ocasio's firing could put the city in financial trouble as the result of a lawsuit.

Nadeem Shazad, who had earlier expressed interest in suing the city over his alleged wrongful ouster, urged council to pass the vote of no-confidence.  Shazad alleged that Tuerk had directed him to fire Karen Ocasio, but he had refused, adding to tension between him and the administration.  In a letter to council in support of the vote of no confidence, Shazad stated "It has come to my attention that Mayor Tuerk terminated the employment of Karen Ocasio without cause, solely based on his belief that she was a troublemaker."

Shazad stated that Ocasio was one of many employees that accused Tuerk and his management teams of discrimination, retaliation, intimidation and unjust terminations.  Shazad indicated that he felt that both he and Ocasio had strong legal cases against the city.  In his writing in support of the vote of no confidence, Shazad said this step was important to show "that discrimination and unfair treatment will not be tolerated within our city government."

On December 6, 2023, Allentown City Council met to consider the vote of no confidence against Mayor Tuerk.  The vote of no confidence resolution made specific claims against Tuerk and his administration alleging the following as justification for the vote stating "Tuerk’s ineffective leadership has placed the government of the City of Allentown in a critically unfavorable light in the community."  

The resolution further stated that the mayor "has lacked leadership in key areas — handling personnel responsibilities and management; managing a budget within parameters established by a majority of council members, and failing community engagement that includes the entirety of community interests."

Councilman Ed Zucal in his advocacy for the vote of no confidence spoke about the number of great directors and city employees who had left since Tuerk had taken office and asked fellow members of council how many more employees must be fired or leave before they act.

Councilman Santo Napoli expressed concerns about creating gridlock and more division.  He worried that the vote could force residents to lose faith in the city.  Tuerk said that he was disappointed in the no-confidence vote, but that it didn't bother him and he had thick skin.  He stated that "the work you're doing up here is diminishing the respect of the body"

Former Human Resources Director Nadeem Shazad spoke to council indicating that he was worried that lawsuits against the city would result in tax increases and that the Mayor Tuerk "ruled through fear" and "lacked leadership" and "He lacks passion; he has no compassion; he has no strength to be a good manager."

Karen Ocasio who also addressed council stated Tuerk "kicked her while she was down", firing her days after her father had passed away. During the meeting, the Tuerk administration revealed that Ocasio and two other city employees were fired after the results of a previously unknown and unannounced outside investigation were provided to the city.

Tuerk claimed to be following the recommendation set forth in the investigation.  However, city residents and council members expressed concerns and questioned why the city took so long to reveal the investigation and why it took so long to follow the recommendations.

At the urging of city residents, the vote of no confidence was successful, with council voting 4–3 to express that the body had lost confidence in Mayor Matt Tuerk.  Matt Tuerk, became the second mayor of Allentown in less than 10 years to have a vote of no confidence issued against him.  The last time council issued a vote of confidence against a mayor was 2016, when former Mayor Pawlowski was under investigation for a pay to play scheme that resulted in his eventual sentencing and conviction of 15 years in prison.

Allentown Recompete Initiative

On December 21, 2023, Mayor Tuerk announced Allentown was among 22 finalists to potentially receive millions in federal funding for economically distressed areas. The city received $500,000 grant to help the city develop its proposal through the Biden Administration's Economic Development Administration's Recompete Program. The city announced that of the 22 finalists, just 4-8 will be selected to receive funding for a full project implementation. The city plans to use the funds to invest in the 1st and 6th wards of Allentown which feature some of the poorest census tracts. The Recompete Program is intended to help economically distressed areas create economic opportunity and connect residents to jobs. The city intends to the potential funding from the program to help address barriers such as transportation, childcare and training.

The application deadline is set for April 2024 with announcements set to be made late in 2024 as to whether the city is successful in receiving the full funding for the program which could potentially total in the tens of millions for the city.

Personal life

Tuerk's wife Karen is a lecturer in environmental science at Muhlenberg College and they have two daughters. He speaks four languages: English, Spanish, Portuguese, and French.

References

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