Morning Call Features Two Letters On Wehr Dam

The Wildlands Conservancy has noble goals. In Whitehall Township on the Jordan Creek, the group recently removed several small nuisance dams that were of little historic and aesthetic value. Wehr's Dam, however, is of high historic and aesthetic value and is at the center of a park in a tranquil setting in South Whitehall Township. The Jordan Creek flowing over Wehr's Dam and then under Wehr's Covered Bridge is an often-photographed location that has appeared on calendars and in literature touting our wonderful lifestyle. To remove Wehr's Dam is unconscionable. The Wildlands Conservancy should switch from Plan A (dam removal) to Plan B (remediation). Plan B is to pump the silt from the upstream side of the dam and build a fish ladder, which possibly could be incorporated as part of the original mill race. Fish are not stupid. Given the opportunity, they will find their way up the fish ladder. Residents of South Whitehall and the Lehigh Valley should get involved with this issue and make sure you get what you want. Perhaps the decision should be decided by a voter referendum rather than by a small group of people.
Dale Heffelfinger
Whitehall Township

 South Whitehall Township is usually good at communicating with its residents. Notices regularly arrive, announcing new township policy and initiatives. As an advocate for keeping Wehr's Dam and not allowing the Wildlands Conservancy to demolish it, I'm shocked at how few township residents know that the dam is in jeopardy. If township officials would notify the residents of their deliberation allowing the dam's destruction, they would quickly find out how near and dear this historic icon is to the people of South Whitehall. The commissioners and township have a duty to disseminate this information.
Michael Molovinsky
South Whitehall Township

The Morning Call featured Wehr Dam today in their letter section.  They coupled two letters with a photograph of the dam by Harry Fisher.  

State House of Cowards

Pennsylvania is a State House of cowards. Rather than pass the Tobash Amendment, which would address the state's biggest problem, the underfunded pensions, they will instead sell off the liquor system for a quick one year fix. Simply put, the Tobash Amendment honors all existing pension agreements, but changes the formula to a 401 contribution style for new employees. Your cowards in Harrisburg would rather offend one union, the liquor store employees, than all the public unions. Your cowards in Harrisburg will find a few extra dollars for the public schools after their sellout, and once again be greeted as returning heroes at home. Your elected cowards, and their local partisan supporters, will once again put their talking points for November's election ahead of real solutions for Pennsylvania.

UPDATE: The Republican controlled State Assembly is seemingly cobbling together a budget more cowardly than I predicted, adapting neither of the options mentioned above. Watch them even find a few extra dollars to bring back to their local school districts, but much less than really needed.

Park Follies and Misappropriations

Over the years this blog and myself have established credibility and expertise on Allentown's traditional park system and the WPA. I must report what I consider to be a major shenanigan by the mayor. $1.3 million dollars was taken to purchase two heavy industrial areas, to supposedly add to the park system. This $million plus dollars was taken from the water/sewage lease, which is being used as the mayor's discretionary fund, instead of the dedicated pension relief,  promised at the time. $950,000.00 was used to buy the parcel at Union and Basin Streets, near the city sewage plant. This is one of the oldest industrial areas in the city, and certainly not needed for more park land. Allentown has not been able to maintain the existing park land, or the features within it. The Fountain Park Pool has been abandoned, and the WPA structures are crumbling. The other just purchased parcel is the old fertilizer plant location,  along Martin Luther King Dr., west of the crumbling Schreibers Bridge. We have an administration with no memory or knowledge of Allentown's past. Anybody who knew what went on at the fertilizer/rendering plant, would not want their grandchildren playing there. The city's rationale for these purchases is to expand the biking paths and connect the parks. That's the folly, and now the misappropriations. Allentown has supposedly allocated money to engineer the repair of the leaning WPA wall in Lehigh Parkway. I know why the wall leans. Years ago, the stone shoulder between the park entrance and wall was blacktoped. As cars and city trucks drive around the curve, pressure is exerted against the wall. That strip of asphalt needs to be removed, and the stone buffer restored. The problem with the engineering study is that it's the third time it has been appropriated. In the last two budgets money was actually budgeted to repair the wall, now the process begins again. What happen to the previous appropriations? Must molovinsky on allentown now also establish expertise in forensic accounting?

The Train of Lehigh Parkway

With the 15th Street Bridge closed, as people detour over the  Schreibers stone arch bridge,  few will be aware of the industrial past surrounding them. The Barber Quarry railroad branch line crossed the road, just south of the bridge. On the left was the Union Carbine's Linde plant, the concrete loading dock is still visible. Although the last train ran in the early 1980's, the wooden railroad trestle is still there, to the west and south of the bridge. The area is now used as part of the disc golf course. The photograph was taken by Dave Latshaw in 1976, and is part of the Mark Rabenold Collection.

reprinted from April 2013

UPDATE: Although the 15th Street Bridge reopened this past winter, long overdue repairs to Schreibers Bridge have not yet begun.

The Sabaean Mandeans Of Iraq

I'm glad that the plight of Christians in Iraq is starting to attract main stream media attention, but there is another persecuted group you may not hear about. The Mandeans predate Christianity, do not believe in Christ, and are believed to have been followers of John the Baptist. Accepting no converts, their numbers have always been small. Apparently, they migrated to the swamps south of current Baghdad after the Roman destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD. Their writings are in Aramaic, the language of the Bible in the time of Jesus. Their rules and ethics are similar to Jewish tradition. Baptism is their central ritual; they call the water Jordan.

reprinted from March of 2013

Peanuts For The People

While the NIZ Tax Incentive will provide almost a $Billion dollars in paid for real estate for a few men, the potential neighborhood workers will get only peanuts, as made official on Friday. This blogger maintained, early on, that there would be no jobs of substance, beyond selling peanuts at the arena. The banking and health care jobs, associated with the new office buildings, are far too sophisticated for any training programs or local unemployed. Friday's job fair, the first of two, attracted hundreds of locals, never the less. The potential employer, the arena, was upfront about the offerings. All but a few dozen will be part time with no benefits and most will pay $8 to $10 per hour, including the food service, event staff, operations and even supervisor jobs. Our experience is that they're good jobs for young people just getting started and good second jobs for adults looking to supplement their first job," said Jacque Holowaty, PPL Center assistant general manager. So, while they're only offering peanuts, as I said last year, we have created a new task force and bureaucracy, to delude the desperate.

Molovinsky On State Store Privatization

Local State Representative Justin Simmons has recommended selling the State Stores to meet this year's budget shortfall. Although perhaps privatizing liquor sales 95 years ago wasn't the best idea, it now is a steady revenue flow for Pennsylvania. Over the last two decades the state's retail venues have been modernized, and match or exceed private retailers elsewhere in selection. At this point in time, to sell a dependable, inflation proof, producing asset for a very short term gain, makes no business sense, what-so-ever. Although Simmons is straight party line, and wrong on this topic, at least he takes a stand. That is much more than can be said for my opponent, Julie Harhart, who only offers smiles, handshakes and birthday cards. Think independently.

photograph from Pennlive