Resident Says Renew LV Part of 'Agenda 21,' Director Says It Isn't

A Hellertown resident cautioned Hellertown Borough Council to be wary of the sustainable regional planning initiative Renew Lehigh Valley Monday, saying it is part of the United Nations' "Agenda 21" plan.

"Agenda 21 is a non-binding, voluntarily implemented action plan of the United Nations with regard to sustainable development," according to an encyclopedic entry on Wikipedia.org.

"Activists, some of whom have been associated with the Tea Party movement by the The New York Times and The Huffington Post, have said that Agenda 21 is a conspiracy by the United Nations to deprive individuals of property rights," the entry says. "Columnists in The Atlantic have linked opposition to Agenda 21 to the property rights movement in the United States."

Resident Linda Leewright—who was recently a Republican candidate for Hellertown Borough Council—urged council members to look more closely at Renew Lehigh Valley before committing support to it.

Renew LV Executive Director Joyce Marin was at the council meeting to discuss her organization and answer questions.

"Renew Lehigh Valley is committed to promoting smart growth and smart governance in order to revitalize our core communities, preserve open space, and establish an economically and environmentally sustainable foundation for our region’s future growth," according to information posted on the group's website.

Marin refuted Leewright's assertion that Renew Lehigh Valley is connected to Agenda 21, but declined to explain to a confused-looking council what Agenda 21 is, saying that she wasn't knowledgeable enough about it to explain it.

Photo: The Renew Lehigh Valley logo (source: Renew LV Facebook page)