Panto's Dog and Pony

Last Thursday Sal Panto took the media on an inspection walk. In fairness to Panto, he didn't invent the Mayor's Walk, actually he doesn't invent much. These walks always single out a very small percentage of properties for scrutiny, and scrutiny is expensive for the property owners. A code officer on Panto's publicity stunt estimated that half the properties viewed would be cited. Violations included peeling paint, cracks in the sidewalk, and weeds. Although, now a days, paint starts to peel  ten minutes after it's applied, the cost of application is $thousands of dollars. Sidewalks crack and weeds grow. Although there may be some credence to the Broken Window Theory, there is also the empty taxpayer wallet reality. In Allentown, former Mayor Heydt took walks every summer, but never succeeded in inspecting Quality Of Life into the city. Allentown's program now is amuck, with hundreds of tagged houses actually contributing to the blight. These walks never get out into the more expensive residential areas, where paint also peels and sidewalks crack.
photo:Ed Koskey Jr./The Morning Call/June 8, 2012

A Controversial Editorial

Today, my controversial point of view about keeping the hole on Hamilton Street, made the paper. Although I had expressed the attitude here several times, I wrote the piece in direct response to Bethlehem Mayor Callahan's editorial. He, like several writers before him, said that there was no choice but to proceed with the arena project, even if it was a flawed plan. Official Allentown didn't have much respect for the previous occupants of that parcel. During the WFMZ debate, a speaker from the City's point of view, referred to it as a cancer. Certainly, a level block is no worse than a cancer. Allentown survived when former Mayor Heydt tore down Hess's and left us with a hole. Eventually, a private developer built the PPL Plaza. At that time, private investors could not secure the financing for the minor league hockey team. The risk apparently did not justify private investment. Now, because the project is backed by our local and state income taxes, they want to build an arena which cost ten times more.  

 photo:Donna Fisher/The Morning Call/June 8, 2012

The Transformation of 7th Street

Peter Lewnes is managing to transform 7th Street for about $1 million, while Mayor Pawlowski will spend about $220 million for his transformation. At the end of the projects, 7th Street will be much more successful, in both the number of people attracted, and the total dollars those people spend. To be blunt, which is too easy for me, I think 7th Street would have as many new stores and shoppers without Lewnes' efforts. I think that the Hispanic business district was a natural progression of Allentown's demographic changes. However, considering it's the nature of government to meddle, Lewnes has given us an unusually tremendous return on our investment. He has attractively restored dozens of buildings, created appealing signs, and succeeded in significantly upgrading Allentown's gateway. Yesterday, I visited an independent pharmacy on the 500 Block, located in the former Coleman Electric building. Although not yet enhanced by Lewnes' artistic palette, the pharmacist had four assistants and a delivery driver. Another success on 7th Street.

Allentown WPA Association

I began my effort to preserve our WPA heritage back in September of 2008, posting on this blog about the iconic stairwells and walls at Fountain Park. Posts would follow about the lost treasures of Lehigh Parkway, including the Boat Landing, Island and Spring Pond. Within a year, our work brigade cleared the boat landing, buried for over forty years. Since last fall, our group has surveyed all the WPA projects within the park system, and identified the structures most in need of attention. Hopefully, the press and The City of Allentown will support this most worthwhile project.

Saving The Spring Pond

As a small boy growing up in the twin homes above Lehigh Parkway, I would go down the steep wooded ravine and cross the Robin Hood Bridge. The stone lined spring pond and miniature bridge was just the first in a series of wonderful WPA constructions to explore. Last year, when I organized the reclamation of the Boat Landing, my memory turned to the pond. Although overgrown with several inches of sod, I knew the treasure was still savable.

On May 23, Andrew Kleiner conducted a tour of Lehigh Parkway, there I met Mike Gilbert of the Park Department and pitched the idea of a partial restoration. On May 26th, I posted A Modest Proposal, which outlined my hopes for the pond. On July 24, Kleiner posted Lehigh Parkway:Molovinsky gets his wish. I had no idea my modest proposal was implemented.

Park Director Greg Weitzel has indicated to me that the pond features uncovered will be maintained. Any further clearing will be at the discretion of Mike Gilbert. In our conversation he also stated that there are virtually no funds available for the preservation of the WPA icons.







I will attempt to organize a group and contributions for this most worthy cause. Between the Spring Pond and The Boat Landing there was once a bridge to the island. Wouldn't it be nice if a small boy could go exploring.
reprinted from previous posts

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.