Allentown has a new official sister city in the Dominican Republic. WDIY’s Sarit Laschinsky has more.
The city held a press conference last week to celebrate the approval and establishment of a sister city relationship between Allentown and Santo Domingo Este.
According to a news release, the resolution was unanimously approved by the city council and administration on Jan. 18.
It allows for lines of communication between the two municipalities to develop a mutually-beneficial “strategic long-term partnership.”
The formalization of the relationship came after an introductory meeting in September at Santo Domingo Este’s City Hall between mayor Manuel Jiménez, Allentown Mayor Matt Tuerk and City Council Vice President Cynthia Mota.
Tuerk, Mota and Jiménez were again in attendance at the celebratory conference on Friday.
The release notes that sister, or friendship, city relationships are formally created when mayors from two communities sign an Agreement or Memorandum of Understanding, establishing a partnership.
Allentown has one other official sister city – Tiberias, Israel – through the nonpartisan nonprofit Sister Cities International. This program is a facilitator in joining together numerous cities to adopt and implement programs for the exchange of ideas and visitations of people.
Recently, Allentown has also pursued pathways to establish relationships with Playa del Carmen, Mexico, Vinci, Italy, and Saarbrücken, Germany.
Santo Domingo Este is the provincial capital of the Santo Domingo province in the Dominican Republic.
According to the 2020 U.S. Census, more than 54% of Allentown’s population identifies as Latino or Hispanic. Of those individuals, around 18,000 are Dominicans.
Allentown will celebrate Dominican Heritage Day on Feb. 26, with a flag raising ceremony at 2 p.m. at city hall.
(Original air-date: 2/7/23)
