An Important Meeting

The bridge to the island shown above was removed by a park director forty years ago. Although I and several members of my group managed to unearth some of the buried Boat Landing, the portion shown in the lower right of the picture remains covered. Whether you feel that the remaining accomplishments of the WPA must be protected, or are concerned with the environmental consequences of park policy, please join us as we meet this evening. The park department is in a state of flux. In addition to the former director having moved on, several key personnel have retired. Added to the mix, the department has about one third less workers than several years ago. Existing citizen groups, such as Friends of the Parks, either have a political agenda, or appear to be compromised, in one way or another. Although never really interested with the traditional or environmental aspects of the parks, the Administration is currently completely preoccupied with it's center city development. The meeting will take place on the second floor of the Allentown Library this evening, Tuesday June 5, at 7:00.

The Worst of Both Worlds

Recently, I stood on the Ott Street Bridge and watched a mother try to help her two young daughters wrestle through the underbrush at Cedar Park to stream's edge. Although the no-mow zone is too narrow to serve as an effective riparian buffer, it does block view and access to the creek; The worst of both worlds. Whether you support the traditional park system as I do, or think the parks should be in their natural state, all we have now is inconvenience and ticks. Whether you value the view-shed as I do, or favor environmental criterion as Andrew Kleiner, all we have now is mismanagement. Tomorrow evening, Tuesday June 5, I will conduct a meeting* for those concerned with the state of our parks. Although the group was originally started to address the neglected WPA structures, we will expand our mission as a nonpolitical, concerned citizens group, for all park issues. Please join us.
*Meeting at the Allentown Library at 7:00p.m. second floor.

Teflon Don

The article in The Morning Call on May 23 announcing the pending appointment of Don Cunningham as director of LVEDC was pretty amazing. Written by local veteran newsman Scott Kraus, it said that Cunningham served two terms as mayor of Bethlehem. We, who do not think that Cunningham can walk on water, know that he resigned as mayor to take an appointment by Rendell in Harrisburg. He resigned in the same way that he is now resigning to take the Development job.
 In today's article*, Kraus again doesn't mention the Bethlehem resignation, and glosses over the current County Executive walk-a-way. Everyone should run for some office at least once, if only for a close up view of professional pols in action. When I sat next to Cunningham in 2005, I was amazed how Clintonesquely the folksy words rolled off his lips. He introduced his father as an ex-steel worker, and shucks, was just one of us. As Bethlehem Mayor for one and a half terms, he rode to Harrisburg on a series of press conferences about projects for the Bethlehem Steel property, none of which came to fruition. Coming back to run against Jane, 70% tax hike, Erwin, was a cakewalk. Now, after one and a half terms as County Executive, he's off to the proverbial Gracedale of Politics, LVEDC. He promises in today's article to make the agency bigger, hide your wallet.

*The prominent article in the Thursday May 31 hardcopy paper is difficult to find on the website. It can be found  under business articles, under the extended more articles click spot.

Abusing Cedar Park

It's hard to imagine that after $hundreds of thousands of dollars in park plans, $millions in park improvements, we end up inflicting this much abuse on our park. I understand that nature conspired against hope, with three days of continuous rain. But the operative word in MayFair is fair. Put a fair next to a lake in a floodplain, add three days of rain, dozens of trucks, and you produce massive damage. Take a park department down about one third it's staff from just a few years ago, and it will take the rest of the summer just to get the park back to normal. Normal is a relative term. By my standards, we will never return to normal. The new, highly successful destination playground places enormous demands on existing parking, especially with the Cedar Pool season about to begin. Had former park director Weitzel had his way with his proposed Destination Water Park, Cedar Park would be essentially an amusement park, instead of a city park. In terms of protecting one of Allentown's main assets, it's park system, the Pawlowski administration is useless. The organization, Friends of the Parks, is useless. Next Tuesday, June 5, I had scheduled a WPA meeting. We will expand our agenda to protect the park system in general. Please join us 7:00p.m. at the Allentown Library.

TeleCommunications Problems

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The Mayor's Tool Board

When Mayor Pawlowski chose Andrew Kleiner for Allentown's Environmental Advisory Council, the appointment had to be approved by City Council. I recall Peter Schweyer telling Kleiner that he should let Council know whenever he had any concern about an Allentown policy that adversely affected the environment. Before retiring and dedicating himself to the environment, Dan Poresky had created one of the most successful single store camera businesses in the country; He's a thorough guy. The Advisory members, besides being knowledgeable about the environment, were for the most part, Pawlowski supporters. Poresky recently had an editorial in The Morning Call where he outlined, point by point, the detrimental consequences of the newly approved Trash to Energy plant. He, and numerous environmentalists, spoke out against the project at council, the night it was approved. At a recent Council meeting, the Advisory Council formally stated their opposition to the project."It is the opinion of the EAC that this contract puts Allentown at unnecessary risk for financial losses and environmental damage to the city's air, water, and quality of life while discouraging the adoption of less expensive and environmentally healthier options for its waste." At a previous meeting, Council President Guridy ignored their individual opinions, at this meeting, he told them they were too late. At the next Council meeting, they should tender their resignations, unless they don't mind hanging on the Mayor's pegboard.

UPDATE:  The EAC currently only has three members(Kleiner, Poresky and Thomases), although they're designated for seven.