Weed Wall Hiding Cedar Creek

If you want to see the creek in Cedar Park, the window is fast closing.   The weed wall, as encouraged by the Wildlands Conservancy, is already 5 ft. tall.  Although only the beginning of June,  with two small exceptions,  the creek is only visible from the bridge crossings.

One of the exceptions is a creek side bench by the park office, at 30th and Parkway Blvd.  Although I did lobby the park department to install a second bench at that spot, so far there has been no response.
The other exception is about six feet of open bank by the small wood bridge, just west of the Rose Garden.

Although I still yearn for the traditional park system designed for Allentown by Harry Trexler's landscape architect,  those days seem to be over.  Years ago, when the Wildlands Conservancy prevailed upon a former park director to stop mowing by the creeks,  the little work reduction corresponded with less park employees. Worse yet for park beauty, it also coincided with more park budget going for recreation.  So while we now cannot see or enjoy the creeks, we have a prison style outside workout station in Jordan Park, and a new skate park coming on board.

Although I recognize these new realities, I will give the park department or city hall administration no relief from my advocating for the traditional park values, which graced the picture postcards of Allentown's past. 

above reprinted from June of 2019

ADDENDUM JULY 26, 2024:In previous years the traditional park format got a break in early spring. The weed wall was temporarily cut down to prevent the invasive species from taking firm root, such as Poison Hemlock. I would complain that in the process the ducklings were turned into paste. Well, the ducklings fared better this year, there has been no cutting. The solution for both the ducklings and park goers is to mow the grass to the creek's edge, as planned by General Trexler's landscape architect. The ducks will find safe places to build nests.

Picnic Pavilion Blues

For the last decade the picnic pavilions below Cedar Crest College have been in a state of benign neglect. The park department stubbornly wants to replace these older pavilions with their lightning-friendly metal expensive replacements. 

Common sense would say why not just reshingle the older ones, and give them a fresh coat of paint. They have served the city well for eighty years, and still are eager to serve. However, the metal replacements have been put into the schedule years ago, and the bureaucratic way is to let the older ones decay until they're replaced with the scheduled new ones. 

Somehow I suspect that the replacements, when they finally do appear, will not last a fraction as long.

Students of the blog know that years ago I was very critical of Pawlowski and his succession of park directors, which were all of the same mold (Penn State recreation program) and hired by the same city manager. Had the FBI's menu been longer, they might have looked into some of those decisions and contracts.

I actually have a rapport with the current park director, and have not yet totally burned all the bridges with the new mayor. However, it is my avocation to champion for the traditional park system and the WPA. To that end, I will not compromise the mission with polite cordiality here on the blog.

above reprinted from June of 2022

ADDENDUM APRIL 19, 2023: Since the above post was written less than a year ago, there's yet another new park director, but I'm hoping to maintain a channel to that office.  However, as always, my mission remains the parks, not polite cordiality.

While I'm still advocating that the current picnic pavilions be saved, another important park feature has just been discarded.  Before the expensive (10k each) PlayWorld novelty exercise  kiosks were installed, the park had old school exercise stations. A classmate of mine from the mid 1960's would finish his daily walk with pull-ups.  While these time proven exercise stations were in good condition, this park system apparently still prefers gimmicks from catalogs.

Last, but not least, this year's duckling forecast...  You may have noticed very few ducks on the Rose Garden side of the park, but there are a few pairs. Unfortunately, their propagation chances again look slim. The park department did not mow the creek bank on the first cutting, and the poison hemlock is already thriving. If they cut down it before the ducks hatch, as they have for the last four years, once again no ducklings will survive to swim the ponds. The window for the bank cutting has closed, and they must now wait until after the ducklings are hatched and on their own.

ADDENDUM JULY 25, 2024:Another year has passed with benign neglect for the pavilions. On a similar note, vines completely cover the brick front on the barn by the park office, eating heartily into the mortar. Vines are also being allowed to grow on the office itself, which was a farmhouse back long before any of our days. I remain ignored by the mayor, the new park director, and the Parknership seems to be following their lead.

Inclusivity Can Be All Wet

Prior to the current administration, the parking lot along Cedar Creek behind the swimming pool was closed off when flooding was anticipated.  The new administration felt that gates sent a  message of unwelcomeness, and they were ordered removed from various locations throughout the park system.  These gates had been installed over the years to prevent damage from flooding, or to allow for proper snow removal during winter storms. 

When I first learned of their removal last year, I was offended by the waste of infrastructure.  Now I realize that it is actually a public safety issue.

This blog in the past has been critical of the Tuerk Administration's wokeness and obsession with being inclusive.  While I have become less critical about the mayor's agenda,  I will not hesitate to speak out when appropriate. 

The flooded car shown above belonged to a couple who decided to take a long stroll in the rain. Unfortunately the creek rose faster than their return walk, but at least they didn't feel unwelcome.

reprinted from July of 2023 

ADDENDUM JULY 24, 2024:Allentown's parks are being trashed from both in and out of towners. As the city struggles with solutions to this deluge, one suggestion was to erect gates at the parks which could be closed off. Not mentioned in the debate, or the subsequent articles about it in the Morning Call, was that there were gates which were removed. We learn now that new gates will cost $five thousand each. I have been advocating for the parks for the last fifty years, and reporting on such since this blog's creation in 2007.

Carry In/Carry Out Doesn't Work For Allentown

The current national park philosophy, adopted by Allentown, is Carry In/Carry Out.  In our environmentally woke time, the belief is that people will take their trash with them, after they guzzled their sports drink.  Allentown accordingly removed most of the trash containers from the parks, instead installing larger capacity containers, which only have to be emptied once a week.  While previously one man and a pickup truck removed the bags, now a dump truck, two men and crane are used to extract the 8ft. long bags from a pit below the containers. 

It all sounds wonderful, until you drive through downtown Allentown any Monday morning...It looks like there was a parade every weekend.  The litter in Allentown is astounding...Many throw their trash down even if there is a container within several feet.  Parents throw down their trash in front of their children.

Rather than less trash containers in our parks, we should have installed more.  There is nothing Allentown  can learn from national park bureaucrats.  Our traditional park system was second to none.

above reprinted from August of 2021

ADDENDUM JUNE 7, 2022: Early on Monday mornings, a park employee fills large containers gathering all the trash tossed down on both sides of Cedar Park over the weekend.  Although the department did add some containers back since the above post was written last year, littering is a reality in the new Allentown. As the department adds new events and recreational features to our parks, this problem will only increase.

ADDENDUM JULY 26, 2023: Mayor Tuerk, in keeping with both your inclusionary and bi-lingual policies, please don't be bashful about Do Not Litter signs in both English and Spanish, No Bote Basura.

ADDENDUM JULY 23, 2024:Mandy Tolino, the park director, is beginning to see the light, or should I say the litter. She announced that the parks will have more trash containers and that seasonal No Litter signs would be installed in both English and Spanish. Add even a few more containers for good measure, and leave those signs up all year.

Molovinsky July Weigh-In

It appears that many of our elected officials were more concerned with their re-election calculations than acuity in the Oval Office. While the debate may have spilled the beans publicly about Biden, we must assume that many in Congress knew about his condition before we did, but decided that he was the ticket to ride anyway. Now with Biden's withdrawal, they will become Bravehearts.

Our elected are congratulating themselves because Rt. 611 is supposed to finally open in a couple weeks. Its prolonged closure was an assault on the residents, businesses and taxpayers victimized by the inefficiency of every agency and official involved.

 

Visitors to the airport see a larger than life portrait of Hasshan Batts and might wonder what the promise is? Shootings in Allentown have become so commonplace that they are now back-page news. It's time for Mayor Tuerk to concentrate on DUI and public safety, instead of DEI and the next election. The time to save quality of life is running out.

As I lobbied to be on the Parknership board of directors, I have been restrained in my posts about the parks...that's over! The parks, which were an oasis for generations, are being degraded. I doubt that there is anyone involved with forming the new non-profit that knows more about the parks than I do. Every current problem within the last several years I had predicted. Whether they include me or continue to ignore me, this blog will again start addressing the problems and possible solutions for our iconic park system.

Affordable For Whom?

Allentown's new affordable housing project, announced with fanfare by State Representative Nick Miller, will be given over $16 Million of taxpayer dollars for 38 units. For what the taxpayers our spending, almost $421,000 a unit, we could buy each prospective tenant an ocean condo.  Depending on who ends up living there, buying them an ocean condo in another state might improve the quality of life for those of us remaining here. 

As you can tell, I don't think much of affordable housing. It is a solution to a problem which really doesn't exist. In the first place, if Allentown wasn't comparatively affordable, there would not be so many lower income people here.  In the second place, if they are here and not seeking gainful employment, it would be better for Allentown if they collected their government check somewhere else. Between the Housing Authority, Section 8 vouchers and assorted landlords, the affordable obligation is met. Thirty eight more units, especially with most being one bedroom, won't put a dent in the heart of the bleeding liberals.

Those readers who think that this post lacks compassion might exercise their outrage by picking up litter in center city.