Park & Shop

Park and Shop Lots

Downtown Allentown boomed for about 100 years. During the prosperity years following World War II, the two car family emerged. Several business leaders of Allentown realized both the parking problem and the potential to enhance sales. Park and Shop was begun by Harvey Farr, Donald Miller and John Leh. The current small parking deck at 10th and Hamilton, above the current uptown police substation, was the first deck in the country. To make the parking lots, shown in the postcard above, houses were purchased and torn down. Although the gentlemen mentioned in this article profited from their influence, they always provided solutions for the betterment of the community. They seemed to be a benevolent oligarchy. As the viability of the Park And Shop enterprise declined along with the intercity shopping, The Allentown Parking Authority was conveniently formed by local politicians, and it purchased the lots using Municipal bonds; The process allowed the aforementioned gentleman to land on their feet, in a downward market.

Flash ahead thirty five years to another downward market, and we have one gentleman, J.B. Reilly, buying up center-city with municipal bonds backed by state taxes. Reilly has purchased far more property than ever owned by Park and Shop. He has purchased virtually the four square blocks surrounding the arena, a significant portion of the Neighborhood Improvement Zone(NIZ). Again the process was facilitated by our elected officials. Let us hope that the new monarchy will be as benevolent as the old oligarchy. reprinted from 2012

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

The Sunday Drive

My family wasn't much for recreation.  My father worked six days a week, from early morning until early evening.  We did go for a long car ride on Sundays.  Back then gasoline was cheap, and having no destination wasn't thought of as wasteful.  Children were more content to sit in the back seat and look out the window, now they want a video screen in the vehicle.



Even children's play then involved more imagination and interaction.  Howdy Doody was just a puppet on strings,who spend most of his time talking to an adult, Buffalo Bob, can you imagine?

 Sitting in that back seat in the mid fifties, I might well had



my "coonskin" hat with me.  Fess Parker was a genuine American hero.  It mattered little if he played both Davy Crockett and Daniel Boone, both were king of the wild frontier.  The ride probably lasted for two hours and then we would go to a restaurant to eat dinner.  Compared to now, there were very few restaurants.



My mother would cook all the other meals that week, and we probably ate out more than most.  Supermarkets were the new rage in food shopping, but the butcher, baker and candle stick maker were still going strong.  If my father headed west or south, chances are we ended up at Shankweiler's Hotel, famous for chicken and waffles.   They were at the intersection of Old 22 and Route 100.  The building still exists and currently is a bank.  The family also owned another hotel on Route 309.  Both locations also operated adjoining Drive-In movies.



If my father headed north or east,  we would end up at Walp's, which was on the corner of Union Blvd. and Airport Road.  Walp's was a much more urban place.   While Shankweiler's was an old country inn,  Walp's was built as a modern restaurant.  I enjoyed those rides, they were a learning experience.

reprinted from April 2014

A Morning Call Editorial

As a local pundit and former under-reported candidate myself,  I found Robert York's editorial on the upcoming mayoral election promising.  It's York's first editorial,  and the first one the paper has printed in many years.  I personally hope that he decides to make it a habit.

My first encounter with Mr. York occurred shortly after he assumed his new position at the Call.  I appealed to him directly,  after receiving resistance for my op-ed piece prior to the Wehr's Dam referendum.  Although, he initially welcomed our dialogue,  that hospitality ended abruptly, when he decided that some of my statements were disparaging towards his staff.  From my side of the conversations, I never purported to be a diplomat,  and consider my candor unique, even here in the blogosphere.

York's editorial stakes out what factors will be used by the paper in reporting the upcoming election.  As the song says, I'm so vain, I like to think that my complaints about the 2005 coverage factored in his decision to go public.

My relationship with York and/or The Morning Call hasn't improved.  He states in his piece that through print and digital that they reach more people than ever;  I don't know about that, but I do know that this blog is on the Call's reading list.

Your Trusted News Source

I couldn't help but to shake my head at the paper's promotion, selling cups and shirts so that we may celebrate our First Amendment rights with our trusted source for real news, The Morning Call.

This is the same paper that never questioned why it was the only parcel on the north side of Linden Street included in the NIZ.  This is the same paper which promoted each new building by J.B. Reilly as if it were some actual revitalization,  instead of an overly generous taxpayer funded, privately owned incentive program.  Reilly now even owns the newspaper building itself.  Now,  rather than an honest reckoning,  we get offered cups and shirts from the FREE SPEECH COLLECTION.

Recently, I posted about how my op-ed on Wehr's Dam was rejected, along with op-eds by other informed readers.

Those seeking free speech and/or real news will have to look further than The Morning Call.

New Graveside Tears At Fairview in Allentown

In August of 08, after about a year of blogging on conditions at Fairview, The Morning Call ran the story shown above. I did manage to organize a small meeting between the cemetery operators and the public later that fall. Yesterday I received the following comment, submitted to a posting from that period.

Patti from California has left a new comment on your post "New Graveside Tears":

My family is buried at Fairview and 2 weeks ago I visited and was appalled at the horrible conditions and total lack of maintenance throughout the cemetery. I have been trying to reach Loretta or David most of the summer and was told they had taken an extended trip out of the country. (business must be good) They seem to be back now - but still no way to actually talk to them.

My mother is 97 - plans to be buried there with her parents and my Dad. I could cry at the thought ....

I googled Fairview and was led to your blog. Loretta told me in May I could get our plot maintained if I invested in their endowment for $1000. After seeing the total lack of care there, I feel like I would be throwing the money away. What do other people think or do about this appalling condition?

I feel sorry for this family, Fairview may have been a well maintained place when the father was buried there many years ago. I believe the cemetery is in better condition than it was two years ago, but that's not saying very much. I will occasionally revisit this topic, to at least continue a small noise on behalf of these families.

reprinted from September of 2009

ADDENDUM: Over the years I have published numerous posts about Fairview Cemetery. Today and yesterday, I revisited the cemetery to cast light on a problem; Allentown's orphan cemeteries. Although Fairview isn't really an orphan, it shares the same issues as the West End Cemetery, in center city. Our esteemed mayor took it upon himself to purchase two unnecessary parcels, ostensibly to add to the park system. In addition to their cost, $1.5 million dollars, there will be upkeep expenses by an already underfunded park system. City hall should instead concentrate on these cemeteries, which have been problematic for decades.

reprinted from November of 2016

UPDATE SEPTEMBER 7, 2017: In the picture above I'm shown walking in the small Jewish section of Fairview. Over the last decade, in addition to advocating for the cemetery's upkeep, I've made frequent return visits to keep checking on conditions. Starting about five years ago, I noticed new burials toward the rear of the sprawling cemetery, near Harrison Street. It certainly appeared to me that these new burials were on old family plots, probably no longer visited by any descendants. I mentioned my concern to several people associated with other cemeteries. They seemed to share my suspicion, but did not want to get involved. The new burials have continued, and now appear bordering old family plots even closer to the front of the grounds, near Lehigh Street. The current owner claimed years ago that the plot plan for the cemetery was destroyed in a fire. Let this post serve as public notice of what may well be a new problem at a very old cemetery.

No Dutchmen Need Apply

Mildred and Milton are upset. They lived and worked their entire lives in Allentown. They both started working in sewing factories after high school and spend their working lives there. During the late 60's they owned their only car, and always lived in apartments. They never sought any help from the government, their culture taught them to make it do, use it up, wear it out and do without. When they heard about these new public housing apartments overlooking the Lehigh, they thought that would be a nice reward for a life of hard work. They were told it would take years,years they don't have, to get on the list. It's hard for them to understand how brand newcomers to the area, who don't  speak English, go to the head of the line. They don't know about the poverty pimps, the social organizations, funded by grants; The professional advocates who know what buttons to push, who make a career out of political correctness. Maybe we need a Pennsylvania Dutch American Organization.

 reprinted from 2007 and 2010

ADDENDUM: Needless to say ,the previous times I published this piece some readers were offended by its bluntness. Here we are in 2017, and Mayor Pawlowski isn't even seeking Mildred and Milton's vote.