1953 In Allentown

In 1953 you could escape the crowds on Hamilton Street by walking down beyond the third department store, Zollinger Harned, to the 500 Block. The malls in Whitehall were still two decades away, and Hamilton Street was where the Lehigh Valley shopped. Although the photograph above shows a trolley and a bus, the last trolly would run in June of that year. South side Allentown was bustling with Mack Truck and General Electric. The first supermarket, FoodFair, opened that year on Lehigh Street, now the Parkway Shopping center. In addition to the three department stores, downtown Allentown boasted three five and dimes and five movie theaters. Ike was our President, and Brighton Diefenderfer was our mayor. In the scene above, Man In The Dark is playing at the Colonial Theater. In that 3D movie, a criminal gets a second chance if he submits to an operation to excise the criminal portion of his brain. In 2018, could we give our elected officials that option?

reprinted from May of 2012

2nd and Hamilton

Up to the mid 1960's,  before Allentown started tinkering with urban redevelopment, lower Hamilton Street still teemed with businesses. The City had grown from the river west,  and lower Hamilton Street was a vibrant area.  Two train stations and several rail lines crossed the busy thoroughfare.  Front, Ridge and Second were major streets in the first half of the twentieth century.  My grandparents settled on the 600 block of 2nd Street in 1895, along with other Jewish immigrants from Russia and Lithuania.  As a boy, I worked at my father's meat market on Union Street.  I would have lunch at a diner, just out of view in the photo above.  The diner was across from the A&P,  set back from the people shown on the corner.  A&P featured bags of ground to order 8 O'Clock coffee, the Starbucks of it's day.
please click on photo
photocredit:Ed Miller, 1953
reprinted from October 2015

Christmas No Good For Parkway Santa

This Christmas wasn't so good for the Parkway's Santa,  Michael Adams.   Adams was evicted from the Log and Stone House in Lehigh Parkway.   He had an understanding with Pawlowski that in exchange for upgrading and maintaining the structure,  he could live there rent free.  This fall, out of nowhere,  Pawlowski's henchmen appeared with an eviction notice for back payment of rent.   Although their arrangement was never put into writing, facts on the ground support Adam's case.  He lived there for ten years without paying rent. Among many improvements to the property,  he installed a new roof, a new heating system, and new electrical wiring.

While visitors drove past the house this Christmas,  lit up as part of Lights In The Parkway,  little did they know the true scrooge story behind this year's display.  Hopefully,  there will be some justice for the Parkway's Santa.

O'Connell's Bad Bet

Ray O'Connell made a bet last fall that seems to have turned out bad for both him and the city.  As a highly promoted write-in candidate in the mayoral election,  he effectively blocked Nat Hyman from being elected mayor.   Pawlowski's win insured that Allentown will essentially be rudderless at least  well into 2018.  While O'Connell didn't believe that he would win the election,  he did think that Pawlowski would likely resign in a plea deal,  rather than face trial.  It appears as if Mayor Ed is willing to take his chances in the courtroom.  Furthermore, O'Connell believed that if Pawlowski went to court,  when convicted the then acting mayor, Daryl Hendricks,  would step aside after 30 days and that council would appoint him (O'Connell) mayor.

Last night it was Hendricks who stepped aside,  allowing Roger MacLean to become council president and mayor,  if Pawlowski happens to be convicted.  I do not believe that Pawlowski's conviction is a certainty. In many ways Allentown has already lost.  Pawlowski has formed a political block from a segment of the minority population, that proved this past November that it doesn't consider ethics a priority.

ADDENDUM: If MacLean happens to become mayor,  either by Pawlowski's resignation or conviction,  he is well qualified to lead Allentown out from under the cloud of Pawlowski's indictment.

The Cloud Above Allentown's Good News

Often when I read articles praising Allentown's revitalization I wonder on what planet the author lives? But I can understand how the out of town cub reporters can misinterpret the construction boom occurring in center city. After all, who could imagine an incentive program like Reilly's NIZ? Recently, Allentown was featured in an article noting its increase in home ownership. Once again,  I'm afraid that there is a gap between the article's conclusions and the local reality.

The housing bubble burst in 2008 because far too many unqualified buyers were being approved for mortgages. In today's center city housing market there is another time bomb, seller's assist. People are buying homes with absolutely no skin in the game. There is a school of thought where urbanists think that homeownership provides the marginally qualified with roots. I'm not sure if that philosophy really helps a city in the longterm, but we seem to be inadvertently embarking down that path.

The Winter Of My Discontent

With the forecast of another snowstorm coming Wednesday evening, my memory turns to the winter of 1993-94. I was living on a long corner on Union Street, in Hamilton Park. By this time in 1994, the path from my front door to the sidewalk was like a snow tunnel, with walls over three feet high. The busy intersection had a crossing guard, and it was important that I kept the corner clear, constantly digging through the plow curl from two directions.  The reason I remember that winter wasn't because of my house, but at the time I maintained buildings in center city. My days consisted mostly of salting, chopping and shoveling, one property after another, from one snowstorm after another. Driving my station wagon, filled with 50lb. salt bags, up the alleys was like a kiddie ride at Dorney Park, the ruts would steer the car, no hands were necessary. This post and the previous one are somewhat unusual for me. I have for the most part maintained a privacy wall between my business and my blogging. Tomorrow evening, The Tenant Association of Allentown will complain to City Council about slumlords; I thought that in the interest of balance I would give a glimpse into conscientious landlording. Although the meeting might be cancelled once again because of the snow, Allentown's many good landlords will still be out shoveling the sidewalks.

photocredit:The Morning Call/Dumping snow off the former Linden Street Bridge into the Jordan Creek

reprinted from February of 2014

Allentown's Pending Cold Winter

2018 promises to be a cold winter in Allentown. The city is being governed by a mayor facing over fifty charges of corruption. He was elected by plurality in a three way election, mostly by Allentown's newer Hispanic population. If he is forced to resign because of a plea or conviction, Ray O'Connell expects to be selected mayor by city council.

The photograph shown above is from 1958. It was taken in Little Lehigh Manor, the 1940's era housing development located above Lehigh Parkway's south ridge. I had the pleasure of growing up in that neighborhood. In yesterday's post the hill favored by the kids of that neighborhood was featured. Other popular sledding hills in Allentown were behind Cedar Crest College, and Ott Street, between Livingston and Greenleaf Streets. Years ago a bridge crossed the creek by the park office at 30th and Parkway Blvd., with a parking area for sledders by the Cedar Crest hill.  The Ott Street hill was closed to cars by the city, as an accommodation for sledders.

None of these hills are now accessible to a kid with a sled. The current mayor has no memory of those times, and might be too preoccupied to care much about sledding this winter.

photo courtesy of S. Williams.