Wildlands' Handmaiden Stymies Good Government

The Wildlands Conservancy has built-in staff in South Whitehall Township.  Foremost of course is Randy Cope.  The Wildlands installed him as park director in 2012, and he has since, through attrition, became Director of Public Works.

On the commission dais they have their handmaiden, Tori Morgan.  Randy and Tori have been responsible for allowing the Wildlands to subvert the wishes of the residents, and conspire against Wehr's Dam.

During the last meeting* Randy pushed for a grant and township funded project concerning the playground in Covered Bridge Park.  Randy of course doesn't seek grants or funds for Wehr's Dam, because he and his Wildlands want it demolished.  When two of the new commissioners questioned the necessity of this playground project, in this time of fiscal uncertainty, Morgan scolded him.

"To put him on the hot seat to make a decision that we as a board make is unfair."

Morgan knew that the new commissioners were somewhat docile when they chose her as president, after being on the commission way too long already.  Now she feels empowered to paper train them.

In reality the new commissioners were doing exactly what they were elected to do, question the administration plans on behalf of the tax payers.

meeting covered for WFMZ by Jeff Ward

photo of Wehr's Dam by Gregg Obst

Depot At Overlook Park

Old timers have noticed that the contractor's building on Hanover Avenue transformed into a community center for Overlook Park. But only the oldest, or train buffs, realized that the building was the freight depot and office for the Lehigh & New England Railroad. Lehigh & New England was formed in 1895, primarily as a coal carrier. The line ran from Allentown to Maybrook, New York.

In 1904 it was acquired by the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company. The line ceased operation in 1961. Among it's infrastructure were impressive bridges across both the Lehigh and Delaware Rivers, both of which were dismantled. Ironic that a remnant of our industrial era is being utilized by the successor of a public housing project.

reprinted from February of 2014

Watching Allentown's NIZ District

A recent article about Reilly's coming 520 Lofts building caught my attention.  It will be built on the north side of Linden Street, and require some reconfiguring by both the Allentown Parking Authority and Lanta.  Neither of those two entities wanted to comment to the reporter, until which time the project is approved by the Allentown Planning Commission.  I don't think they need worry about Reilly's plans passing muster. In truth no one, save for this blogger, has ever submitted any his plans to any scrutiny.

That free pass from scrutiny extends to the state, the city, the Morning Call, and even the NIZ board.  The Parking Authority has offered surface lots before for his projects.  Language in the recent article suggests that his residential projects can qualify for NIZ financing, while originally, they were supposed to be ineligible. Although Reilly claims that these apartments are demand driven, his recent Soviet era block on Walnut Street must have been incentive driven. It is devoid of everything, including people. It is the worst of all worlds. This past November the NIZ District map itself was altered.  I suspect that there is a correlation between the map changes and Reilly's acquisitions.

While scrutiny is limited solely to this blog,  I'm never the less reprimanded for it. Apologists label me a naysayer and hater of Allentown.  Public officials,  who are entrusted with monitoring the district, have told me they just know how dedicated Reilly is to Allentown.  I'm also dedicated... I'm dedicated to making sure that no person, organization or institution is beyond scrutiny.

Allentown's Covid-19 Pie

Allentown is preparing to hand out $400,000 of federal money to starve off evictions in the city. With a limit of $3,000 per tenant,  they might end up helping out 135 landlords.  I say landlords instead of tenants, because those tenants will probably be moving out anyway, just a month or two latter.

In trying times, which these certainly are, most landlords will work with good tenants.  However, with bad tenants,  a landlord's mistake in judgement quickly becomes known.  Usually tenants who seek assistance in normal times are bad bets.  I suspect that they will be bad bets now.

So while $400,000 won't be helping that many people, it does raise the question of how this federal  Covid19 aid is being put to use.  While the eviction aid sounds good on paper,  it has me shaking my head.

I can only hope that the other uses of the federal financial aid package make more sense.

Well, apparently they don't.

The other aspect of the $2.1 million dollar Covid aid package to Allentown is $500,000 to small businesses.  Who exactly at City Hall is qualified to decide who gets the grants?  Grants will be for $5,000, meaning 100 lucky businesses.  Supposedly it's first come, first serve.  Often in government that means best connected, best served.

With 400 to some landlords, and 500 to some businesses, that leaves $300,000 of our federal money unaccounted for.  Often in such programs the local government entity can keep an administrative fee.

Addendum: O'Hare's Ramblings reports another local proposal

Courting Mediocrity In Name Of Wokeness

Allentown School System tabled naming the new elementary school after General Hays, a nurse who became the first woman general in the army.  An incredibly accomplished person, Hays would have been the first woman an Allentown School is named after.  Hays had served in WW2, Korea and Vietnam.  However Hays, who graduated Allentown High in 1938, had a defect, she was white.

The local black leaders want someone who reflects the current diversity of the system.  Rev. Gregory Edwards and Phyllis Alexander both wrote the school board complaining about Hays.

Perhaps they should name the school after Philadelphia Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw.  She instructed the police force not to arrest for minor infractions, like theft and prostitution, during the virus crisis.  Large groups of young people were running amok in center city Philadelphia, scooping up everything their backpacks could hold. Meanwhile at City Hall, woke mayor Jim Kenney stayed silent about this decline in civilization. Only this weekend, after a merchant and citizen backlash, did Outlaw and Kenney finally reverse policy.

Philadelphia inner city kids were taught a bad lesson by their police commissioner and mayor. Likewise,  Allentown students are being neglected, not by a lack of computers, but of leadership by the school board. They had done well in choosing Hays, and should stick to their decision.  Character and accomplishment should be more important than complexion.

photo of Hays being awarded the Distinguished Service Medal by Westmoreland in 1971  

Supermarket Comes To Allentown

The concrete monolith still stands five stories above Lehigh Street at the Parkway Shopping Center. Currently it sports a clock and a sign for St. Luke's medical offices. It was built in 1953 as the modernistic sign tower for Food Fair supermarket, which then was a stand alone store. Behind it, on South 12th Street was the Black and Decker Factory. The shopping center would not be built to decades later, connecting the former supermarket to the bowling alley built in the 60's. Food Fair was started in the 1920's by Russian immigrant Samuel Friedland in Harrisburg. By 1957 he had 275 stores. 1953 was a rough year for the butcher, baker and candle stick maker; the huge supermarkets were too much competition, even for the bigger independent markets, such as Lehigh Street Superette; it was further east on Lehigh, now the site of a Turkey Hill Market. The sign tower also remains at the 15th and Allen Shopping center, which was another stand alone Food Fair. That parcel remains an independent supermarket. Food Fair would eventually absorb Penn Fruit, which had a market on N. 7th Street, then turn into Pantry Pride. When the Food Fair was built, there was as yet no 15th Street Bridge. Allentown only connected to the south side by the 8th Street Bridge and the Lehigh/Union Street hill. (stone arch bridge, near Regency Tower, was route to West End) Allentown was booming and Mack Trucks were rolling off the line, a block east off Lehigh Street, as fast as they could build them. The factories on S. 12th st. are now flea markets. Mack Headquarters is being sold to a real estate developer. Perhaps those concrete monoliths are the monuments to better times, by those of us who remember.

reprinted from June 2009