In The Jungle, The Mighty Jungle

This coming November 3th, Allentown will have the opportunity to restore the Lion to the sleepy City Council. Without Hershman, the new Council will provide no checks and balances, what-so-ever, to the Administration's version of government.

Lou Hershman is a one man thorn bush. Rest assure that if any counter balance can be cajoled out of this essentially one party town, Lou is the man to do it. Regardless of one's political persuasion, there can be no down side to electing Lou.

Which executive in our little world doesn't need at least some scrutiny, at least to answer an occasional question.

Loose Ends At Boat Landing

I once again need help to finish up the Boat Landing project. The goal is to simply remove the remaining dirt at the bottom of the steps and provide both the citizens and the City a finished project. Although the original landing extended both to the left and right of the area we will finish up, the abbreviated area in front of the steps provides a pleasant vista on the water and captures the feeling of the structure. Please join me at noon, this Friday, Oct. 23. Thank You.

Main Street Program

This past Saturday, long time Allentonians could only shake their heads reading the news. Because of budget cuts in Harrisburg, plans

"to launch a Main Street Program on Hamilton Street that would duplicate the rejuvenation of neighborhood businesses along Seventh Street"

have been postponed. Of course, in the bizarro world of Allentown 2009, it's sad that the Administration hopes Hamilton Street can do as well as Seventh Street; sadder still, is that our "leaders" don't know what they did or what happen. There are all levels of business in retail. Someone once noted that there are more quarters in the world than dollars. Hamilton Street, up to few years ago had viable businesses in the 700 Block of Hamilton Street. The Lanta transfer stops provided an continuous customer base for merchants, although not upscale, they provided the goods those passengers wanted. The Family Dollar Store was one of their most successful outlets in the country. Rainbow Jeans had a half dozen clerks. Pawlowski, encouraged by a few others, decided that the bus people had to go, to provide the atmosphere for the gentrification they envisioned. In response to protests organized in part by this blog at the time, Pawlowski claimed the decision was Lanta's alone. In reality, Lanta was induced to do this by the Allentown Parking Authority, controlled by the Administration. Almost overnight sales plummeted forty percent on Hamilton Street. Rite Aid Drug Store closed their Hamilton Street store. (they since reopened because of a building problem on 7th Street.)

Meanwhile, about eight years ago, a viable Hispanic business district started developing in 500, 600, and 700 block of Seventh Street. This occurred because rents were more reasonable and parking more available than on Hamilton Street. Although Allentown started a Main Street Program there a couple years ago, it was not responsible for the revitalization that occurred. The program has dressed up some facades and given some grants, but clearly the dynamic in place is the growing Hispanic Community cultivating their own merchants.

Allentown can make Hamilton Street all that it can be, in this era, by simply returning the buses. I know that they would prefer a different answer, but they will not find it in another Main Street Program.


The image shown is part of a watercolor by Karoline Schaub-Peeler

Losing Our Parks

Anybody who owns farmland knows that if you don't plant it, you must still mow it once a year, or lose it to saplings and trees. The effort to clear the land by our forefathers was enormous, but necessary to feed our growing country. In the 1920's, General Trexler and others of foresight had sections of the Little Lehigh and Cedar Creek cleared to make our magnificant parks. About 20 years ago, people of good intentions, started sponsoring trees in our park system as a memorial to loved ones. The sponsoring of trees for one reason or another became an accepted practice in the park system, encroaching on the open space used for passive recreation. It's these open spaces which made it a park, we do have state gameland which is still wooded.

The location for the Destination Playground was chosen because it was the only area of Cedar Beach which has not been planted with these new trees. The former open space on the corner of Hamilton and Ott was planted in rows like an orchard. The Park Director emphasized that no trees would be cut for the playground; as if the trees are more important than the open space.

Today 550 new trees are to be planted in Lehigh Parkway. Those doing the planting think that they're doing a good thing, adding to the park. Soon there will be no park, instead only the sort of woods that had to be cleared 80 years ago to make one.

photo: from the Morning Call, northern Lehigh County, by Monica Cabrera

Road Warrior Spills Beans

Craig Friebolin has a bone to pick with the Allentown Parking Authority. It was my pleasure to publicize his plans to crash one of their board meetings. His ears should pick up as he reads this post. Today Dan Hartzell, the Morning Call's Road Warrior, inadvertently tossed Craig a cookie, and it's my pleasure to point out the treat. Allentown doesn't mind being a little sloppy with testimony to City Council. In 2000 Council readily accepted that a majority of residents wanted a historic district, in spite of the fact that the majority was in the audience protesting. In 2005 Council accepted testimony from the Director of the Authority, then Linda Kauffman, that the majority of merchants supported a doubling of the meter fees and fines. I conducted my own survey, and discovered that in reality the merchants were never polled and were opposed. Although I presented City Council with names and addresses at the time, they chose to go with Kauffman's version.(new rates were to finance new parking deck at City Hall)

Today, in the Road Warrior Column, we learn that a majority of residents requested and approved the various residential permit zones imposed in the late 1980's. Although such testimony may have well been presented to and accepted by City Council, I know it isn't true. I managed numerous buildings in those zones at the time, and never was polled. If you live in such as zone, find it burdensome, ask your neighbors if they were polled.

WFMZ Stairs to NoWhere

STAIRS TO NOWHERE