Schlossberg and Hyman

Nat Hyman's offer to purchase the State Hospital parcel was interesting,  but Mike Schlossberg's comments on the offer are more newsworthy.   Schlossberg accuses Hyman of indulging in a publicity stunt to booster his mayoral ambitions,  which may not even exist.

What intrigues me about Schlossberg's comments is the uncharacteristic aggressiveness he displayed,  a trait not normally associated with him.  He was much kinder about Pawlowski, despite the former mayor's conviction on 46 counts of corruption.

The company which currently has an option on the state hospital property appears to be much smaller than Hyman's real estate ventures. I surmise that Schlossberg's attitude might be intended as a political boost for O'Connell, or some other candidate interested in the mayorship.

I did reach out for comment from Schlossberg after office hours last night.  If he does respond and clarify,  I will post an update.

photo screen grab from WFMZ

Reillyville Downgraded

The bonds which financed the construction of Reillyville, aka Allentown's NIZ, have been downgraded for the second time, into the lower b grade.  The bonds only pertain to Reilly's City Center Real Estate Company. Lets face it,  if the NIZ was ever more than a project custom designed for Reilly, is questionable.  Moody's lowered the rating because they believe that the cash flow depends on too few tenants. Reilly contends that with ADP coming aboard, the revenue stream is secure.  All state taxes, including income, generated by the tenants are used for Reilly's debt service.  In addition,  his pot was sweetened by allowing the cigarette taxes to be used from distributors he purchased.  Reilly even owns the Morning Call building.  Critical analysis of the district is pretty much limited to this blog.

The rich diversity of Allentown's former architecture is being replaced by the ugly new towers as shown above. The walls are the windows, and the windows are the walls in these new cookie cutter monstrosities.

Don't worry about the Reillys, they're set for generations to come.  If you're wondering where all the millennials are in the supposedly fully occupied Strata Lofts,  question the Morning Call....They print that occupancy myth as a fact.

photo:Morning Call

Allentown's Involuntary Conversion

In real estate, an involuntary conversion is when your property is taken by no plan of your own. The merchants of Hamilton Street are facing an involuntary conversion.

molovinsky on allentown has learned that the city is buying up the square block between 7th and 8th, Hamilton and Linden Streets, for the hockey arena. The subsidized Farr building, a Pawlowski pet project, will be spared. Although offers they can't refuse are based on the fair market value of the real estate, their livelihood and right of free choice are being violated. These businesses are not only their income, but security for their family's future. Many years ago, the city zoning made me close a photo studio in the area of Raub School. I was told that if I wanted to be insured the right to operate, I should have located in the business district. There once was a covenant between Allentown and merchants. If the merchants invested their time and money, the city would provide a district which secured their investment. Several years ago the merchants were upset that the bus transfer stops were removed; Little did they realize that they would be next. If the Pawlowski Arena for Sports and Culture doesn't work out, we will have lost the business district for naught.

Apparently, some of these offers were made as an option to buy, with an undisclosed buyer. A local prominent realtor, is acting as a straw buyer , for either a speculator or the city. Threats of eventual eminent domain. with a lower price, have supposedly been made to encourage signatures.

reprinted from April 2011

ADDENDUM NOVEMBER 11, 2019: The post above is from 2011. During that period I wrote dozens of posts, and even an op ed for the paper defending the former merchants. I accompanied them to meetings with the city, and spoke on their behalf to city council. Today we have an underused arena, and Hamilton Street is no longer a shopping venue. We have a dozen new privately owned, publicly financed sterile office buildings.  We took a millionaire and turned him into a billionaire, courtesy of our diverted state taxes.

Barbarians Sack Allentown

As Mayor Pawlowski stood last week across Hamilton Street from the former buildings, now reduced to rubble, I thought of the barbarians sacking Rome. The Knerr Building, constructed in 1892 at 707 Hamilton Street, had withstood many changes in the last 120 years. Built for John Knerr to sell groceries and confections, it's four floors served various businesses over the century. Although this past New Year's eve, the Mayor spoke of Allentown's 250th anniversary, it's a history for which he has limited knowledge and less appreciation. As a student of Allentown's architecture and past, I was offended to hear him and the other mayors boast about the 40 temporary demolition jobs. The wrecking contractor was astute enough to remove the monumental and historic Knerr facade ornamentation, before knocking the building down. He will sell it in some other city, where history is respected and valued.

photo of mayors/The Morning Call/Donna Fisher

photo of facade from former Knerr Building/ molovinsky

reprinted from February of 2012

ADDENDUM: The above post is reprinted from 2012. Although I accept the arena and NIZ as the new reality, there are uninformed progressives who believe  the demolition of that square block of Allentown was of no consequence. I know better; We lost some significant architecture and much history. One must wonder if the new structures will last 120 years.

Treasures Lost On Hamilton Street

                                                   click photograph to enlarge

The merchants who built Hamilton Street counted on architecture to attract shoppers into their emporiums. Large neon signs wouldn't appear for another fifty years. The soffit and fascia shown above, halfway between 7th and 8th on Hamilton, is one of the most elaborate facades in Allentown. One thing you can say about Allentown City Hall, they never let culture, art, or history get into the way of their plans. As successful cities come to value and profit from their history more and more, Allentown keeps using the standard catalog of proven failures. I know from other projects on Hamilton Street that Pawlowski isn't big on history. The Cityline Building in the 800 Block was permitted to stucco over beautiful brickwork. Sad that the puppies, who are directors at the Art Museum and Historical Society, remain silent on the planned destruction. It's hard to describe the magnificence of the skylight shown below, also in the targeted block. It's very large in three sections, in pristine condition. Should be quite a snack for Pawlowski's bulldozer.
The bulldozer prevailed, and the former architectural treasures of our mercantile history were not preserved, save for this blog's archives. Above is reprinted from May 2011

ADDENDUM:   This past weekend, a member of Old Allentown Preservation Association, and an active local Democrat, bragged on facebook about how he had recycled an old second floor office door from the demolished buildings in the arena zone. In truth, Old Allentown also turned a self serving, callous eye to the destruction noted in the above post. Although I'm glad the door was recycled, allow this post to note the irony and hypocrisy of the Association.

reprinted from January of 2015


UPDATE NOVEMBER 16, 2017: Although there's always some group bestowing some award on any new development, the Allentown NIZ is certainly no architectural destination.  Although I've taken hundreds of photographs in Allentown, including the ones shown here,  I have yet to buy film for any new building in the NIZ.

An American Prism

American women are rightly beaming from this past election. We have seen dozens of pictures of the new congresswomen together, including Susan Wild, from our new 7th District.

We, as Americans, all have our own prisms.  The prisms, among other variables, are gender, race and ethnicity. Americans of Jewish and Arab backgrounds will see the middle east through different prisms. .

Among the new women in congress is Rashida Tlaib, from Detroit, Michigan. Tlaib has received national publicity for her statement about impeaching Donald Trump.  That statement doesn't faze me... it is a sentiment shared by many women, and men. Ms. Tlaib believes in a one state solution for Palestine... That means no Israel.  That statement does bother me, greatly.

It is my hope that Ms. Wild, in her enthusiasm for the blue women's wave,  realizes that Israel should be an issue which sharply separates her from the Michigan representative.  Rashida Tlaib is of Palestinian descent, and her focused support for a Palestinian state, alongside of Israel, would be fully understood.  However, I hope that Susan Wild appreciates that an advocate for Israel's dismantling can be no partner.

Closing The Monument Building

One morning in early July of 2008, code enforcement descended upon the Monument Building like a swat team. Every officer, in every department in the city entered the building at the same time, and spread out looking for every possible violation. Under the previous owner, the same conditions, with the same tenants, were lauded as a rebirth. Whatever motivated Pawlowski to pull the plug on the new owner, the tenants were lightweights, of no consequence. At that time myself and few other malcontents, like Lou Hershman, would gather very early in the morning for coffee at Jerry's Cafe, located on the first floor. The building had begun its life as the 1st National Bank. After being closed for many years, it reopened as Corporate Center. The new buyer renamed it Monument Building. 

645 Hamilton Street was torn down, to be replaced by J.B. Reilly's Two City Center. Let me tell you the story of the little people, who were disposed of along the way.

The previous April,  Pawlowski wrote "I want to thank Valley Latino TV Show and Magazine for keeping the Latino community informed. Your dedicated effort shows commitment..congratulations... I wish you great success!" Along with the magazine and television studio, a graphic art designer, a festival promoter, and a security company were displaced.  The Morning Call, reporting on the violation report from the City of Allentown, described the building as unsafe. It was the same building, with the same tenants, in the same condition, as before. Unlike the city inspectors, or the paper's reporter, I was there every day for coffee at Jerry's Cafe. Jerry's was not one of the upstart businesses blessed with a grant. He had to pay for everything, and everything had to be inspected, inside out. His plans had to be approved, his electric and plumbing had to be approved, his grill and hood system had to be approved. City inspectors in and out of the building during this process included no less than plumbing, electrical and health. Although violation report issued to the building after the raid listed extension cords, it failed to note that those cords were attached to a movable lighting grid for the Latino Television production studio, and were cords by design. Although the city citation report cited unlicensed businesses, it omitted the fact that the lower level was occupied by Sassi, which performs drug testing for the Lehigh County, and the city's action caused Melendez Reality and Madison Mortgage, among others,  to vacate.

I don't know if Pawlowski will teach government in prison, but Molovinsky University will teach how Pawlowski abused Allentown.

photocredit:molovinsky

Let It Go About Pawlowski

Yesterday, two people on the opposite end of the political spectrum both wrote,"Let it go" in regard to the news that Pawlowski wants to teach a class on government in prison. Both people, for their own different reasons, wants to move on pass Pawlowski. The reason I don't let it go, isn't because of the charges for which he was convicted. Those charges will be even scrutinized more by his appeal.

What concerns me about Pawlowski is all the things which were not part of the trial. I'm referring to the political bullying that he employed on regular basis. I'm referring to the unnecessary positions he created, the ordinances passed, and the purchases made. I believe that there were a substantial number of people who breathed a huge sigh of relief that their inaction with Pawlowski was not included in the trial.

Although, I have no intention of turning my contention into an obsession, I do push back when people say, let it go. He is still very much part of Allentown government, and to pretend otherwise, is a  mistake.   Pawlowski shouldn't be teaching a course,  but there should be a course about him.*

*There actually is, and you're taking here,  online.