Allentown has a new team for its hockey arena but it won't be taking to the ice.  A nine-member authority tasked with overseeing the hockey arena district was approved Wednesday night by city council.

The nine are expected to make sure the hundreds of millions of dollars of expected tax  revenue is handled properly.

The construction carnage continues as Allentown's hockey arena is one concrete block closer to reality.

Since the city is expecting the arena to become a mammoth money maker, city officials are now thinking ahead.

"What these guys are going to do is supervise the overall financing and spending of the state tax revenue that will be generated in the NIZ zone," said Allentown City Councilman Mike Schlossberg. 

Wednesday night, Allentown City Council approved a group of nine tasked with overseeing the one-of-a-kind 130-acre Neighborhood Improvement Zone which includes the new hockey arena.

"Complication is this is such a new funding mechanism," Schlossberg said.

The nine-member council nominated  by Allentown Mayor Ed Pawlowski, state Senator Pat Browne and state Representative Jennifer Mann, runs the gamut of those with community, financial, and development expertise.

From issuing loans, to driving development, the authority is charged with managing a zone expected to generate hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenue.

One concern for City Councilwoman Jeanette Eichenwald is to prevent members from potentially profiting from the zone.

"There is always indirect financial gain when there is redevelopment and you own a business or property," Eichenwald said.

However, authority member Jennifer Mann promises there will be specific language within the authority to prevent conflict of interest.

"We need to make sure the public has every confidence this is an open and transparent process," Mann stated.

A maximum five-year limit is expected to be set within the authority. This so-called Allentown Hockey Arena Authority is expected to meet for the first time in March.

The nine members of the Allentown Hockey Arena Authority are: Seymour Traub, Alan Jennings, Nelson A. Diaz, Jennifer L. Mann, Gregory N. Dudkin, William H. Grube, Donald W. Snyder, Pedro L. Torres, Jr., and Diane Scott.