Growth Industry In Allentown

Yesterday I went to the Social Security Office, across from the prison, to discuss my retirement options. I was given number 199. In addition to retirement, Social Security also dispenses money for disability. I would say from the gray hair, there were about three of us contemplating retirement, all the others were for disability. A few middle age men were carrying their fake canes. The canes aren't fake, it's the disabilities. I saw one such gentleman walk in from the parking lot, clearly the cane bore no weight, and was merely a prop. Most of the people waiting were quite young, in their twenties. Disability has been expanded to include mental conditions such as depression, anxiety, addictive personality and anger management. I will say many of them did look angry to me. It was hard finding a parking space. Business also looked good at the prison. If Johnny Manana's had gotten these crowds....

reprinted from Nov. 18, 2008 

ADDENDUM MAY 5, 2023:This was a very politically incorrect post when I wrote it fifteen years ago, and it remains so today. At the time, Johnny Manana's was a short lived restaurant in the new PPL Plaza building. Now, in our NIZ era, that building couldn't compete with the tax subsidized new buildings and went to foreclosure. Although there is a new owner from a tax sale, I don't think it's doing very well. We have become a poor town with a distressed school system, and quality of life issues.  I remain politically incorrect and continue blogging.

The World Of Mirth

Allentown at one time had two very productive railroad branch lines... The West End, and the Barber Quarry. The Barber Quarry, for the most part, ran along the Little Lehigh Creek. It serviced the Traylor Engineering plant on South 10th, and continued west until it turned north toward Union Terrace. It lastly serviced Wenz's tombstone at 20th and Hamilton Streets. Previously, it had crossed Hamilton Street and ended at the bottling company on Linden Street, which later became the park department garage until demolished. The West End, for the most part, ran along Sumner Avenue, turning south and looping past 17th and Liberty Streets. It proceeded east, ending at the current small shopping center at 12th and Liberty Streets.

The photograph above shows the World of Mirth train at 17th and Liberty. World of Mirth was the midway operator at the Allentown Fair during the 40's and 50's. In the background is Trexler Lumber Yard, which burnt down in the early 1970's. The B'nai B'rith Apartment houses now occupy the location.

photograph from the collection of Mark Rabenold

reprinted from November of 2010

City Council Endorsements

It would be my preference that Allentown was having a robust primary election, with half a dozen candidates on both tickets... That Allentown no longer exists. Once again there are no Republican candidates. 

I'm a conservative, who is recommending the candidates I perceive as the most traditional in terms of city policy. They are the candidates who commit to give the police department the most support.

Candida Affa has been a voice in Allentown for decades.  Of all the candidates, she has the most institutional knowledge of an older Allentown.

Tino Babayan is an advocate for youth in the city, especially in the Ward. This is his second attempt for a seat at the dais.

Santo Napoli is a stakeholder in the new Allentown. As a merchant on Hamilton Street, he has a realistic view of 2023 Allentown.

Although I would prefer that they were still serving strawberry pie in the Patio at Hess's, that Allentown isn't coming back.  I recommend the three candidates listed above for your consideration on May 16th.

Landlords For A Better Allentown

Santo Napoli operates a men's clothing store and is also a landlord.  As a candidate for City Council, he has some proposals for land lording.  He does not sell the shirt shown above, I sincerely doubt if there still exists another like it.

In 2000, then mayor Heydt proposed the current Rental Inspection Law.  A number of landlords, normally  loner types, met together a couple of times to discuss our reaction to the proposal.  Allentown's most controversial landlord at the time, and perhaps still, asked to address us. He told us that he very much favored Heydt's proposal. He figured after he crossed the T's and dotted the i's on inspection reports,  that his units would then have the same legitimacy as ours. Our take away was that you can stigmatize the good landlords, but you cannot legislate pride of ownership with the bad ones. 

Twenty-three years later a candidates for city council, despite the Rental Inspection Law, still campaigns for better landlords.

shown above a former landlord and current blogger, with his shirt from a small, short lived organization

When Alleys Aren't Alleys

The most intractable issue in the Allentown Parking Authority controversy is alley parking. Although the Authority itself offered a compromise on that issue, at least two members of council, Candida Affa and Daryl Hendricks, won't budge. They see the topic as a slippy slope. They find the 12 ft. proposal too unenforceable... one person may perceive the width as 11ft., and another 13ft.

As a lifelong resident, I know that all alleys are not created equal.  An alley in center city with houses actually fronting on it is a very different animal than the alleys farther west. 

Past 17th Street, there are no houses in the alleys. Past Ott Street, there's not even many garages in the alleys.  In the deep west end, many former alleys no longer exist.  While the city accommodated some owners by vacating certain ones, others were just appropriated. People put private driveway signs and gates up...others were absorbed into lawns.

Leaving the alley ordinance as is leaves the issue up to the discretion of the parking authority. That discretion, or lack thereof, is what brought this current controversy to the front burner in the first place.

Show above was a "private" alley with gate. Before the gate, it was a public alley.  Farther downtown the same alley has a street name and even houses. The gate has since been removed, and it's now a garage driveway.

A Friend In Code

There is a business on Allentown's western edge that has a mess piled up to its building for over a decade. This pile of debris is on the front side of the building, visible from two streets. 

Several years ago I defended a homeowner on the east side, who was being harassed by code. Her offense was complaining about another messy business, which was also friendly with a code inspector. The Pawlowski administration weaponized code over his several terms. As a former property manager, I was well familiar with complaints about unequal treatment from the code department. 

That department has gone through some major changes in personnel. With the new administration, I was hopeful that there would be more equitable treatment of property owners. Apparently that new day in code is slow to arrive.

Parking Authority Rehab

I wasn't at the meetings yesterday, but I have been wrestling with the Allentown Parking Authority for over twenty years. Yesterday their spokesman said...

... "It's not the parking authority's job to legislate, that city council's province. We have heard the customers, the consumers, the resident's complaints and we have tried to take the lead on legislation that would mitigate a lot of these issues if these archaic ordinances were changed,"

As a long term observer of the Parking Monster, I will take a wait and see attitude before any celebration. I'm suspicious of the Authority referring to archaic ordinances.  They themselves proposed the ordinances, and some, especially the 24 hour patrols, were only instituted rather recently.  Another question is the disclaimer that they will still respond to complaints 24/7.  

The only thing more reluctant to change than the monster, is the monster's keeper, city council...Its deliberation on the more minor issues is stretching on for a month.  Council, as a whole, will not bend on the alley parking issue.  I do believe that enforcement will be more equitable than before. Tuerk has made it an issue, and he would suffer political consequences if he deserts the cause. Nevertheless, don't suppose that the monster is napping.

We Got A Complaint

The Parking Authority's excuse for ticketing at a recent food bank was that they received a complaint.  Actually, they receive a lot of complaints, and many of them are from the same people, over and over. 

I applaud Mayor Tuerk for publicly questioning in whose best interests the Authority is operating?  

While he stated that he'll both appoint and/or dismiss people from the APA board to achieve reform, there are those who doubt his motivation about this, beyond lip service.  My hunch is that he is sincere, but there are rubs to the whole situation.  The parking decks created a huge debt service to meet. Parking bans in narrow center city alleys, especially those with houses, must be enforced.

The Authority at the April 12th council meeting seemed to put forth reasonable compromises to the problems. Assuming council can approve those proposals, despite some resistance by some council members themselves, a more citizen friendly Authority might emerge. I italicize the might, because change will require an attitude correction, which will remain to be seen.

Council will vote on the Authority proposals this evening