When I told you about the discriminatory gentrification going on in Allentown yesterday, I mentioned that the bus routing changes along Hamilton are actually the third strike against Hamilton's struggling, minority-owned businesses.First, parking meter rates were doubled in 2005. Second, a public parking lot near these businesses was made exclusive to Allentown Brew Works' [ABW] patrons. Now that buses don't stop between 7th and 10th, that section of Hamilton Street has become empty. Only a few can park there, and pedestrian traffic has been eliminated.My blog provoked this reaction.
I have been to ABW several times. I do not know of any parking lot that is exclusive for this establishment, aside from a tiny lot on the ABW property. There is a large public parking lot across the street; I have used it many times when doing business downtown, there was no indication that this lot is for ABW at all.Late yesterday, I spent some of that quality time in Allentown. I stopped at a business, En Vogue, located right next to this nonexistent parking lot.
Bernie, I really think you need to spend some quality time in Allentown to understand the great things that are happening there.
Jimmie and Evie, who own and operate En Vogue on 12 South 8th Street, tell me there was a public and metered parking lot for at least thirty cars located next to their shop. That was a convenience to customers shopping at En Vogue and other stores along Hamilton Street.
But after ABW opened, the meters were removed. The lot suddenly became a private lot for ABW management, chefs and VIPs. When Jimmie tried parking there, he was warned his car would be towed unless moved. I took a picture of this lot yesterday around 6 PM. As you can see, the lot is only about one third full. Couldn't ABW share a few spots with the public?
In addition to removing this public parking lot, Allentown also removed two metered parking places in front of ABW along Hamilton Street. You can see a picture of that open space on the right side of this blog.
When all is said and done, about thirty-two public parking places have been removed. This accommodates one publicly funded business in a KOZ at the expenses of thirty-eight hard-working, and mostly minority, merchants.
If this is not discriminatory gentrification, then what is it?
Before leaving Allentown, I also dropped in on Bibi Hazra, who operates the Loco Dollar Store. She has yet to hear a word from anyone in the city or at LANTA. It was the end of the day and she was running her register. Her gross sales yesterday amounted to $250. With a profit margin around 10%, that's not a good day for her.
58 comments:
Wake up, sleepy Allentown!
Allentown doesn't give a shit about you. Ohare's appeals to the better nature of Allentown officials isn't going to work. It's time for Allentown to form its own Yuppie Eradication Project, just like the one used in San Fransico a few years ago.
Here's how you can make those Yuppies pay as they dance the streets of Allentown or choke on a bacon bleu cheeseburger at the Brew Works.
1) Throw shit at Yuppies as they drive by, especially if they are on their cell phones or drinking a latte.
2) If you're sitting with friends near Yuppies, spread rumors about increasing crime in the neighborhood. Start talking about all the murders and mention all the druggies who were picked up the previous night. Be sure to ask the yuppies for spare change before you leave.
Geez, ya know, yer right. Good God, it's a conspiracy! They're trying anything they can to make Allentown a different city and they don't care who gets hurt -- and you know who "they" are -- the same folks who fly over the city in black helicopters making sure no one challenges their authority, the same ones who write the rules that say the peons have to move to Upper Mount Bethel if they want to survive, the same ones who, shudder, have "partners" across the Lehigh Valley, the same ones who wear black suits with funky sunglasses.
I bet they have Elvis, Princess Di and JFK renting rooms above the Allentown Brew Works. Yeah, that's the ticket. It's all just a giant conspiracy! To do what, though? OMiGosh, could it be to make downtown Allentown attractive to visitors, once again?! The shame, the shame. When will these power-mongers realize that Allentown is supposed to just plain die! It's not supposed to be healthy, it's not supposed to have businesses downtown anymore that bring in people from outside the immediate neighborhood. It's supposed to be the Valley whipping boy. Goddammit, Hess's is gone! Pronounce the remains and let's move on, fer God's sake.
Yer right, O'Hare, thank you for showing me the light. You've done a great service here, and I strongly encourage you to keep up the campaign. Lord knows, we don't want Allentown getting up off its knees and reclaiming its rightful place as the Queen City. Lord, what would The Morning Call write about, then?
Oh, wait! How about this for an idea? How about all the businesses that are supposedly suffering from this dastardly deed contact the city for the facade grants and other opportunities available for Hamilton Street businesses that want to make themselves better? How about they invest some of their own dollars and sweat into a little cleanliness, so that the people who work downtown aren't afraid of catching something when they walk through the front doors? (To be honest, I will never shop at the place where things are green because the things that are supposed to be that color, aren't.) How about they keep up with the times and present an attractive operation?
Oh no, it's much too easy to blame LANTA and Evil Ed for their woes.
Am I an elitist because I want Allentown to shine, once again? All right, guilty as charged. But I walk these blocks almost every damn day, and I know that the number of old and infirm are in the vast minority to those who are just plain fat and lazy (and I can be called guilty as charged, here, too).
You go, Mayor Ed. Don't listen to these crybabies. I know that within a few years, I'm gonna see a Starbucks on Hamilton Street.
Bernie, I'm actually a fan of your blog but you're so off base on this one I wonder what's been slipped into your cappuccino. Where is the personal responsibility from these business owners? What, pray tell, has the House of Chen or Tucker's or any of the other whiners done to make their business more attractive to downtown employees and other shoppers?
There are some neat businesses downtown that aren't hurting, and they don't necessarily cater to the elitist. How about the pizza place across the street from the community college? Great pizza, great sandwiches, always busy? Mish Mash seems to be surviving. Freeman's endures. Spooner's is great. The Loop did a great business until its owner stopped paying his bills. Solomon's is still worth the visit.
What do these businesses have in common? They work at it. They don't whine. And people come to them.
They are the past and they are the future, and it's time that Allentown stands up on its own hind legs and tells its critics to take a long walk -- not just a two-block walk to the bus terminal -- but a long one.
O'Hare, I respect your sensitivities but this is not a war against minorities. It is a war against the businesses that prey on the poor, not cater to them, and survive because of the simple fact that they have not had real competition for more than a decade.
Competition is back in downtown Allentown. Compete or die.
Guess Who.
I checked out the site you link with your name, and even I'm not that crazy. But I understand the humor.
Guess who,
I'd like to hear you say what you wrote on this blog to the faces of the people I saw on Friday night. They are hardworking merchants and they are mostly minorities. They know nothing about facade grants or how to squeeze a dime out of the city, and the city isn't exactly spreading the word to them.
I never once used the word "conspiracy" in any of my posts. I am simply writing about what has happened. And the reality is that these small businesses are being shoved out of the way.
After Friday's meeting, I stopped at the House of Chen for dinner, and the food was fantastic. And the way it is decorated inside is just beautiful. That must now be transformed to accommodate your yuppie tastes?
In an even playing field, I could understand it. But this is no even playing field. Businesses that the city likes are given outright grants and tax concessions. ABW has its very own private parking lot. Buses continue to run, but no longer stop, on Hamilton Street.
As I have repeatedly said, this may not have been intentional, but it certainly is the effect of what has happened.
As of today, neither the city nor Lanta has even responded to the concerns of these hurting businesses. I sent an email myself and have no reply. Pawlowski is falling all over himself for that fake Latino chain restaurant, but can't be bothered to help the people who are really affected. And there are thirty-eight of them.
This post was necessary because someone actually tried to deny that parking was taken away. The reality is that at least 32 spots that used to serve those merchants are now gone.
You speak of the "personal responsibility" of these small businesses. After accusing me of goofy conspiracy theories, you claim that it actually is a conspiracy against businesses that prey on the poor.
Now let me get this straight. House of Chen preys on the poor? The Loco Dollar Store? En Vogue? Park's sneaker shop?
Those businesses actually provide a service to the poor by supplying them with quality products at low prices. But this is a war against them? Really. That's quite interesting. Well, then I guess it is a conspiracy after all.
Now it's time for you to go and read what Hubert Humphrey said. "The moral test of government is how it treats those who are in the dawn of life, the children; those who are in the twilight of life, the aged; and those in the shadows of life, the sick, the needy and the handicapped."
By that standard, A-town is a big failure. It has let down its elderly and its poor, and all for a few latte-sipping bastards like you and me.
Do me a favor and please ask A-town to get off its ass and talk to some of these mercahnts.
Nice hearing from you.
guess who 11:52 wrote " How about the pizza place across the street from the community college? Great pizza, great sandwiches, always busy?" i interviewed the shop owner-manager and they are hurting. Another metered lot on S. 9th St. was also removed to accommodate the Butz building. will "guess who" and fellow apologists patronize hamilton street enough to compensate for all the displaced bus riders? could not the new subsidized yuppie spots such as BrewPub and the House of Chen co-exist? couldn't the big boys with the koz grants be satisfied with the 800 block, and leave the 700 block for the little people. btw, almost the entire hamilton st. facade grant went into one project, Cityline lofts and stores.(800 block)
The statements that En Vogue is making about the lot are very interesting considering they only opened a few months ago and that parking lot was closed and sold to the Brew Works owners a few years ago.
Bernie, I suggest you did a bit deeper before presenting individual testimony as fact.
"They know nothing about facade grants or how to squeeze a dime out of the city, and the city isn't exactly spreading the word to them."
What, they can't pick up a newspaper in the city they have their entire lives invested in?
Anon 8:48, 8:53
Actually, before opening En Vogue, the owner of that store was in the store right next to it. He's been in A-town, and at that location, for the past fifteen years, long before Allentown Brew Works. I didn't just speak to him, but spoke to the merchant next to him as well. The city took a public parking lot from a busy downtown shopping district and made it exclusive to one business.
As far as facade grants go, most of that money has been blown. Not every business is always looking at the city for handouts and block parties. I'm sure Fegley didn't come up with all that public dough from reading a newspaper ad.
What has happened is a social injustice. It is directed at mostly minority shop owners. And as appalling as this attempted displacement is the unwillingness of city and LANTA officials to even respond to these merchants. If Butz called with a little problem, the mayor would be at his door in a heartbeat. But the LOCO Dollar Store is dying thanks to decisions that come from the city and LANTA, and those officials are unwilling to do anything.
Good research, Bernie.
You are simply wrong that the meters were removed when the Brew Works opened. They were removed several years ago when the lot was sold.
The move is consistent with the Parking Authority's long term goal of shedding under utilized lots throughout the city to encourage economic development and get them on the tax rolls.
I would suggest telling the folks nearby about the large new lot in the unit block of N 8th (half a block away). It is much larger, well lit, and the automated fee machines are cheaper than the meters if I am not mistaken.
Finally, it really surprises, and disappoints me that the the people at En Vouge are taking the position that they are. I thought they opened hoping to be a part of the great things that are happening downtown. How could stopping these great things help them?
Hmmm, one of those minority businesses on Hamilton St that you so prize turned out to be a drug den.
Bring on the gentrification!
Beacuse one minority-owned business, located west of these three blocks, is involved in criminal activity, you advocate getting rid of them all? That's very bigoted.
Anon 10:03,
Every time someone tells me I'm wrong about something anbd I go to check it out, I discover that I'm not wrong at all. This post is a good example of that.
Obviously, the two parking spaces in fron of the ABW was removed to help that business, regardless when it occurred.
As for En Vogue, how dare they complain at losing 32 metered parking places right next to their shop. How dare they whine about their customers not being able to get to their store by bus.
Hey O'Hairless! I see a business opportunity for you!
You can probably snatch up the VIP Barbershop pretty cheap!
You could reopen it as:
BERNIE O'HAIRSTYLES!
Whaddaya think?!
How about NoHair and plenty of BO?
I'm sure Allentown would love to fund the transfer of my base of operations from Nazareth to Allentown. Maybe they'll even give me a facade grant and a little parking lot.
How can EnVogue be upset about a parking lot that was closed long before the business opened.
If it was such an issue, why did they open there?
Bernie, you are being used.
Anon 10:52,
That was a public parking lot until just before ABW opened. it was still a public parking lot when Jimmie and Evie opened up at En Vogue. Jimmie used to park there regularly, as did his customers.
In fact, I have a picture that shows the slots where the meters were just pulled out. Do I have to post that, too? Your facts are way off.
If anyone is being used, it is the 38 businesses along Hamilton who are now suffering.
Re: the parking lot now on the tax rolls.
Ok Bernie, in your normal spirit of even-handed debating/concessions, doncha think you can submit that getting something on the tax rolls is far desirable than have "us" (the public/"parking authority") own it?
When Anon 10:03 made that statement, I thought it was a point well made.
Sure, a business has a right to complain about this all they want, but that doesn't mean they have the public's interests at heart. Understandably, they have a profit motive driving them - and there's nothing wrong with that.
Being an Allentown resident for almost 30 years, I'm all for having these types of parcels changed into something taxable. Especially when there's a newer/better facility close at hand.
I don't visit downtown much (anymore) and maybe I need to do what you did. Go down there and see what's going on in the downtown. I used to work in downtown during late 70's early 80's.
I'm not in need of a tatoo and I don't have a taste for Indian goods or Chinese foods. And I don't drink beer all that often or lattes. I been selling on eBay a lot lately, so I have no use for Pawn shops. I wonder what I'll find that'll interest me? There used to be an interesting old stationery store around 10th & Hamilton. Guess they're gone by now. Radio Shack used to be next door to Hess's; that's gone. Go figure!
I used to frequently go to Symphony Hall before the Allentown Community Concert series abandoned that venue for Parkland High School. My lack of renewal in that association was my response to their decision.
Bernie:
The lot was closed since construction started on the BW property 2 years ago (or more).
The lot was used as a staging area during construction where dumpsters and other building materials were stored. This is the primary reason (on the buyers part) the lost was purchased.
Your pictures simply show meter poles that have been empty for years.
If anyone was parking there recently, which I doubt, it was allowed by a neighborly gesture from the owners, not some God given right awarded by the parking authority.
Anon 11:05,
Under your reasoning, we better get rid of that parking deck that A-town just spent millions to build. A thriving downtown needs places where people can park. For those not driving, it needs mass transportation. A-town has deprived En Vogue of both. It could probably survive losing one of these. It won't survive losing both.
I've been going downtown quite a bit lately, and have become friendly with some of these merchants. I really feel bad for them. They are good to their customers. I've seen it with my own eyes. And they are suffering.
Guess Who called them predators, but they are not the ones charging $35 for two beers and two appetizers. They know their customers by name, and have the pride I see in many small businesses.
A-town has made changes to draw better businesses to this area. That's fine. But don't drive the existing and viable businesses out in the process. You may not have much need for their services, but they are a service for people who live downtown.
The city, since these folks are distressed, really has an obligation to help. It has no greater obligation than it has for ABW or JM, but it should be responsive instead of letting these folks twist slowly in the wind.
As far as Symphony Hall is concerned, I agree completely with your decision in that regard.
anon 11:05, said at least the parking lot is back on the tax rolls; well surprise, IT IS NOT, the brewpub is a KOZ, which is the only reason they opened in the first place. scheduled to lapse in 2011, i have little doubt the KOZ status will be continued for many years to come.
Anon 11:12,
Until just a few months ago, both the public and employees at En Vogue were parking in that lot. Between three different merchants who identify themselves and one anon who does not, who do you think is entitled to more credibility?
Bernie:
If being anonymous harms the credibility of my statement here today that is fine, and fair.
I simply challenge you to look into the matter and you will find I am 100% correct.
I would also urge you not to so quickly accept everything these people say as fact so quickly. These merchants see you as an opportunity, there is no question about it.
I doubt they are as concerned about your personal credibility as you are about their situation.
Anon 11:32,
I understand and appreciate your point. Three different merchants yesterday all identified themselves and were quite clear.
Yesterday, I was anonymously told this parking lot does not exist. I discovered that it does. Today, I'm told that the public has not been using that lot for years, and that En Vogue was not even there until after it was closed to public use.
The meters were not removed until earlier this year. I've just called one of the merchants, who tells me he's been here for 15 years and ought to know what is going on in his own neighborhood. He was parking there himself until shorlty before ABW opened, except when it was gated off for construction.
I will believe merchants who identify themselves and who have that ring of truth over someone who posts anonymously. In order to believe you, I have to discount what three different merchants tell me and what I see with my own eyes.
In some cases, I might do that. This is not one of them. I'm not calling you a liar, but just think your facts are a bit off.
Bernie:
I think the fact that it was closed off for construction pretty much proves that it was under new ownership long before the new store opened. The parking that was afforded to them was essentially a freebee.
I'm sure the county assessment records can confirm this.
This being the case, I think we can move onto the next complaint. The parking lot on S 8th is a non-issue.
But that's not what you said now, is it? You claimed that En Vogue and the public were not using that lot when the fact is that they were until a few months ago. The truth, as told to me by three merchants, is that they all parked there until shortly before the ABW opened. The truth is that those meters were not removed until some time early this year. The truth is that this tract, even if it is owned by the ABW, is tax exempt and the city made more money from the meters. The truth is that 32 desperately needed parking spots were taken away from hamilton merchants.
That is what I said.
Besides, there is a huge brightly lit lot right across Hamilton on N 8th.
This is ridiculous.
Yes, it is ridiculous. Yesterday, the Parkling lot next to En Vogue did not exist. This morning, En Vogue and other merchants who claimed to use it until a few months ago were basically called liars. And now you're pointing to other lots farther away, ones I've been told have not been helpful at all. You take away parking, take away bus stops, refuse to let buses stop on three blocks and drive thirty-eight businesses under in the name of "progress." I agree. It's totally ridiculous.
Anon 1:11 -
I've been reading what you and Bernie have been debating here, and I was hoping you would reveal your secret identitity...
Bernie,
My only problem with your commendable effort on this matter is that I don't really think it has much to do with ethnicity, but rather economics.
I'm as white as it gets and I believe if I owned a pawn shop at 8th & Hamilton I would be similarly disregarded.
Lee Butz, and a few others, do not want poorer people hanging around outside because it's not what 'their' people want to associated with. It's the same reason suburban shopping malls came into being.
My feeling is, House of Chen and others should 'ramp-up' their appeal to downtown business-types who are a captive (because of their work location) potential customer.
No one else is going to go to the trouble of making downtown Allentown work. There are simply too many other alternatives available to receive the same products.
It really doesn't matter if there are 2-3 parking spaces, or bus service, outside anyone's Hamilton Street location. The greater Lehigh Valley is no longer interested. Sad, but true.
dear anon 3:45( being a retired asd teacher means nothing as an anon), ppl has its own attractive private dining room and service, the intown workers don't have time or inclination to shop beyond their lunch break. however, the three transfer stations provided many hundreds of people during the day and provided a critical mass of customers for the affected shops. historic allentown failed because they made the district too big; gentrified allentown will fail because they are making the district too big and have created a ghost town. let the yuppies have the 800 block, let them try and fill that, but let the taxpaying merchants continue on the 700 block, give them back their bus stops and customer base.
Bernie, what do you say we do dinner at house of Chen Friday night. I'll buy! We can go out and watch the dance party a few blocks down! (Sorry I won't pay for you to get your nails done, but I will pay for a Haircut at the VIP!
Michael,
No the retired ASD teacher thing means nothing to this discussion, it's just that Bernie has identified me by that moniker before.
I really don't believe there are 'many hundreds' of viable shoppers present due to the bus stops.
Fail because you are making the district too big? I doubt it.
I've been to several mid-to-large size cities all around the country. Those cities are thriving in an atmosphere where NO residential activity is in place for an 8-10 block radius.
Bottom line, NO downtown can be successful if it is the neighborhood (play area) of persons who 'seem' to be less than productive.
Sorry to burst your bubble.
I know the horse is approaching rigor mortis, but classifying this as a racial issue is disingenuous.
The city retains the power of Eminent Domain to gentrify the area via the 2005 SCOTUS decision in New London CT waterfront case.
This decision was solidly supported by the court's left wing and widely praised by Washington DC Mayor Anthony Williams (an African-American Democrat) who was president of The National League of Cities at the time. He was not alone.
Clarence Thomas, writing for the minority, lambasted the majority and protested that urban renewal has historically resulted in displacement of minorities, the elderly and the poor.
Having delivered much of what A-town has become via countless social engineering schemes, the same atom-splitters are now attempting to wow us on the economic front. That's usually bad news for regular folks and good news for the select few who contribute to political campaigns.
Perhaps some energy can be directed at passing laws that limit Eminent Domain. I thinks it's the elephant in the room that gives A-town's politicians the brass balls to wreck people's lives in their latest and greatest effort to clean up their last mess - which was likely thought to be good idea at the time.
Retired ASD,
I like and respect that moniker and hope you continue to use it. You deserve some respect for your profession.
People may post here anonymously or pseudonymously. I am more interested in the idea than the person. The only reason it became relevant earlier is because someone was anonymously contradicting factual allegations I heard from three different people, two of whom I identified on my post. Naturally, I tend to believe someone who identifies himself usually has a little more credibility than someone who does not.
Anon 5:55,
The abuse of eminent domain is just one way in which a municipality can displace its unwanted. And Pa. did tighten its eminent domain laws recently. No eminent domain was used here. No one had to use that tool.
Chris, I am supposed to attend some political gathering on Friday night, but will try to get out of it. I'd really like to go to H/C on Friday while others dance the streets.
retired asd, your not bursting my bubble. i know allentown, i've spent 30 years downtown and have an opinion about what is feasible and what is not. yes downtown is too large for the gentrification they seek. understand that yuppie bethlehem is only a fraction of allentown, 3blocks vs. 12. understand that many thousands of the unproductive(your term) live in the adjoining blocks, would you prohibit them from walking on hamilton st? would you displace them along with the current crop of merchants? would you put up an invisible dog fence and make them wear a collar? understand that to bernie this is a social justice issue(which it is) but it is also a poor business decision. only the subsidized our playing, there has not been one private taxpaying investor involved, while on the other hand the smart players i know have sold. never make the mistake of comparing one city to another, unless your a politician or bureaucrat
Bernie,
Thanks. I choose to be somewhat anonymous for this reason . . .
I have not only been an ASD teacher for many years, but have also been very visible through my private interests.
But who cares? Should not this dialogue be about the validity of the message and not the person?
There are too many kooks out there for me to chance easy identification. I don't need all the possible crap that comes with expressing an opinion that might differ from someone else's.
It's a message, a contribution, nothing more. If anyone finds it not worthy, fine.
Retired ASD Teacher,
It's the message that matters; not the messenger. I appreciate your contributions and understand why you and many others must remain anonymous.
The bloggers at Easton Undressed have code names they use. Terrance Hand, for example is House of Crayons. He does this bc he believes the message is more important than the person who delivers it.
I had a raging debate today and yesterday with plenty of anonymous people, and that's fine with me.
For all I know, they could have been city officials or LANTA administrators. Naturally, they would not want the entire city bound by what they say. And I want them to be completely free to tell me that I'm wrong.
The only time I don't like anonymity is when someone hides behind it to launch a personal attack. And like I said, we all attach more credibility to factual assertions when they are made by someone who identifies herself.
But if we are just discussing ideas, who cares? And ninety per cent of the comments are precisely that.
Needs more gentrification.
Explain.
Gentrification
This is a good read and provides nice background for those who may be unfamiliar with this term and the issues being discussed here (as I was).
"Often initiated by private capital, gentrification has been linked to reductions in crime rates, increased property values, increased tolerance of sexual minorities, and renewed community activism".
I've learned from this discussion that Atown's version of it is apparently being done with PUBLIC monies.
(I am not Anon 9:02)
Thanks for the link. I pretty much agree with your conclusion, too.
To say that what is happening in Allentown is only via public money is an outrageous lie. To say that it is mostly public money is an outrageous exaggeration.
Far more private money has gone into all the things you see happening on Hamilton. Local levels of government have simply chipped in their share to get things moving and show there support.
The PPL Plaza recently sold for $80 million in a 100% private deal. Show me one office building in the valley that commanded that kind of cash in the last 5 years, public or privately funded.
Anon 10:49,
Tone it down, dude. Stop calling people liars. Nobody has claimed that what is happening in Allentown is solely with public funds. The reality is that a lot of public money was poured into everything you like, from ABW to Butz to PPL plaza. Moreover, the tax concessions from the KOZ classification have exempted those businesses from basically all taxes excepting federal taxes. Not bad. It would be interesting to add up the amount of money from the city, county, state and feds. To make it even more interesting, add it on the saved tax money that an outfit like Butz or PPL can claim. I suspect you will see some heavy duty public involvement.
"The reality is that a lot of public money was poured into everything you like, from ABW to Butz to PPL plaza. Moreover, the tax concessions from the KOZ classification have exempted those businesses from basically all taxes excepting federal taxes."
Your statement implies that public money and KOZ status were granted to the PPL project. No public money went into the Plaza building. The only public benefit (granted it is a nice one, but temporary) was KOZ. The same thing applies to Butz.
If you are arguing that KOZ should not be granted in Allentown than the position you take is an anti-Allentown one, not a public policy one.
The state program exists, if Allentown does not leverage it, someone else will. The same could be said about the economic development loans for the Brew Works.
Anon 11:32,
There you go with the "anti-Allentown" accusations again. Give it a rest.
It seems like anyone who makes a point about anything in A-town that is not entirely positive is immediately derided. That's dishonest and leads you into unrealistic expectations.
My point, quite simply, is that heavy infusions of public money are helping propel A-town's gentrification. You claim PPL is privately bought, and I note the favorable KOZ classification. That's a public handout, and it's a big one. In fact, most of that block is in a KOZ zone. In fact, I think one of those check cashing stores is in the KOZ. Amazingly, it doesn't apply to the sneaker store for some reason.
My simple point is that public money is involved in a big way, even with the PPL and Butz buildings you claim as private.
As it happens, I am philosophically opposed to any KOZ. They are ineffective and poorly monitored. But I understand this is reality.
Queen City Allentown? Are you kidding me with all the murders and drug arrests? Get a grip on life and provide simple services to the public. larry@kisslinger.com
anon 11:32, liberty property trust was able to build and sell the plaza for two reasons, 1.- the koz, 2. the most blue chip tenant possible, ppl. (i don't think KOZ was really designed for companies like that, especially considering ppl was there anyway- i digress) although the ppl in plaza didn't create any new jobs, they emptied more office space than they created; this includes three former large buildings. the issue of this post is not the development in the 800 block, but the unnecessary damage being done to the 700 block by the lanta changes.
MM:
Wrong again. The new plaza is home to a subsidiary PPL Energy Plus which was considered locating its headquarters elsewhere.
It seems that pretty much every KOZ recipient was not intended to be one in your mind. The reality is anyone who legally qualifies was an intended beneficiary so go cry about it.
>anyone who legally qualifies was an intended beneficiary
This is way off topic, but if Bernie was to make a POST tackling the subject of PA gambling (and how it got legs), it would be more apparent that just because something is LEGAL, doesn't make it right/moral or something that the public demanded.
Money & influence talk; there's a certain segment of society (a rather large segment) that has neither. This whole post seems to expose how a privileged subculture goes about engineering its desires to the (unintended?) detriment of others.
anon 8:21, the ppl vacated gallery on the mall, the former vansciver furniture(now penn-dot) and the rialto office space, when they moved into the plaza, although penn dot took up the slack at 10th and hamilton, the gallery and most notably the rialto never recovered. i believe the original intention of the KOZ was to bring new jobs into center cities. Here in allentown we have adopted it even for housing, the new nic Z project. the worst corruption, was for the privately owned building in the 700 block, given the designation for purely speculative reasons, nothing was ever done there. its pathetic to be an apologist for an administration that cannot even deposit its tax checks in a timely fashion. Perhaps in addition to the new department of gentrification, you could head the dept. of denial, or is that a river?
Money & influence talk; there's a certain segment of society (a rather large segment) that has neither. This whole post seems to expose how a privileged subculture goes about engineering its desires to the (unintended?) detriment of others
Very well said. Ths comments here illustrate that this Allentown gentrification is definitely a case of the "haves" against the "have nots." What kil;ls me is they are getting bigger welfare handouts than the ones they like to deride in the "riff raff"
early in this dialogue, guess who 11:52 reported that some business's were doing fine, he mentioned Mish Mash as an example. Today, upon noticing the meeting flyer on her door, i inquired as to her opinion. She, as all merchants have been severely impacted by these bus stop changes. Bus riders, the working poor, conducted their shopping on Hamilton Street; not only are the merchants losing their customer base, the passengers have lost their shopping choices.
Bernie, You have my deepest respect as (by far) the best blogger in the Lehigh Valley, with real investigative instincts and a strong moral compass. Still, you've got this one wrong. I'm not referring to some parking lot and its disputed sales history. What you've got wrong is the frame itself: a city hellbent on driving out minority businesses to make way for white yuppies. If this were true, I would be pissed off too. But it's not.
The decision to close/move those LANTA stops was a bad one. Those business owners deserve to raise hell about it--I agree. But your mistake is to impute a sinister motive when sheer incompetence is the much better explanation. And your second mistake is to read a concerted strategy by LANTA and the city of Allentown to drive out minority-owned businesses. I find that highly implausible, and regardless you would need a lot more proof than anything you've provided to make that charge in a responsible way. What you've done is shove a bundle of facts into an ill-fitting David-and-Goliath narrative, and you're pretty seriously distorting the situation as a result.
My reaction to the silly comments of Che and others--and to the serious posts of Bernie--is to smile a little bit. If only Allentown had a gentrification problem! I've lived on 6th Street for four years now, and spend a great deal of time on Hamilton, at Spooners, the Brew Works, Hamilton Perk, etc. What's striking is how little gentrification has happened in downtown Allentown. The city would, in fact, benefit from some gentrification. Most of those merchants you claim to be speaking for, in fact, would benefit. So would the neighborhoods around Hamilton, and their residents too. This is true for a number of reasons, but I'll mention just one: For many years now most of the neighborhoods around Hamilton have had home values below the maintenacne threshold, meaning it made no economic sense to put in, for example, a new roof, since you couldn't recoup that cost in the home sale. This hurt everyone--poor tenants and all--and put these neighborhoods in a potential death spiral.
There's more than a little bit of the old Onion headline here: "Three-year resident decries gentrification." As anyone who works on low-income housing and economic revitalization knows, gentrification is a valuable but dangerous tool--good in moderate doses, but awful for low-income residents past a certain tipping point of unaffordability.
Anyone who thinks that downtown Allentown is anywhere near that point doesn't know much about Allentown or its challenges.
So it's all a little too much--and again I can't help but smile--to pit the Brew Works against Mish Mash, or to claim there's some kind of conspiracy on behalf of the big guys to snuff out Loco Dollar. Come on. The ABW is obviously a great thing for Hamilton, as is--and watch out for your own class bias in sneering at chain Mexican--Johnny Mananas. So is House of Chen. So is En Vogue. This is no zero-sum game: They all deserve the city's (and LANTA's support).
The Brew-Works-as-yuppie-den claims are especially silly, as that now-outdated rhetoric of kill-the-yuppies is (and I know as a San Franciscan) almost always spoken by precious, leftism-as-a-lifestyle-choice hipsters. But I forgive: Allentown needs those hipsters too! In fact so does the Brew Works.
The bottom line is that LANTA made a truly crappy decision, and it should be reversed--and the mayor should be pressured on this too.
But you've framed this one wrong.
(Full disclosure: My wife is about to begin work as the Allentown Redevelopment Authority's executive director.)
Jeff,
As you know, I have the deepest respect for you, and especially on this issue. I still remember your op-ed concerning your fear of gentrification in south side Bethlehem, which was a real eye-opener. You pointed to the right and wrong ways for gentrification to evolve. I certainly defer to your knowledge on this point, and accept pretty much every one of your points. And I appreciate hearing from you. I should have emailed you as soon as this problem hit me.
I am primarily concerned about suffering Hamilton St. merchants. Most are not high end stores; most are also minorities. Late Friday, during the Dancing in the Streets celebration, I visited a few of these shops for the third time in the past two weeks. Even on that day, their volume has really suffered. LOCO Dollar Store, for example, had only $85 in total revenue that day.
Correctly or incorrectly, they perceive this benign neglect as discrimination.
The only reasons I imply any sinister motive is because (1) both the mayor and LANTA have been so unresponsive; and (2) there has been something of a Marie Antoinette attitude in A-town concerning Hamilton St. merchants. How could it hurt to talk? In addition to presenting an 1,800 signature petition, merchants have called also Pawlowski and LANTA, and they have not responded. They've ignored calls and emails from me, too. I even tried Lee Butz. I acknowledge I have only circumstantial evidence that they have acted in concert to drive low-income merchants away.
I accept your conclusion that this is just a bad decision by LANTA, and that the mayor has been unresponsive. So how do we fix it? My goal is simply to have Allentown officials spend some of the time addressing longtime low-income merchants that they spend with the more affluent and upscale ventures. Perhaps A-town could pressure LANTA to do something. One of the merchants talked about a little trolley, which sounds like a nifty idea. Good idea or bad, lines of communication must be opened.
I note your cc to Damien so I'll cc him as well. He and I have exchanged some strong words about this. When this change was first announced, Damien actually claimed in a blog comment that this would only affect a few merchants who sell "overpriced junk food." In a published LTE, he called it "growing pains." There is an A-town segment so gung ho over Allentown renewal that they tend to minimize some of the real problems that are caused by it. They also mistakenly perceive criticism about the very real suffering as A-town bashing.
But it does not stop there. Steve Schmitt, the most enlightened LANTA board member and a friend, publicly huffed that these businesses were just looking for something to complain about.
These comments are not just untrue, but are also extremely insensitive to the very real plight of these suffering businesses. There are 38 of them. Many have saves and shown me the clippings of those remarks.
Like you say, these folks have every right to be angry. I'm not certain about the answer. I tend to believe that restoring one of those stops is necessary for the survival of these merchants. I'm no transportation expert
But before an answer can be found, Allentown and LANTA has an obligation to respond to these folks and show they care. So far they have not.
What do you suggest?
If it's all right with you, I'd like to post your insightful comment as a separate blog. I think it would be really helpful to an understanding of the situation. Of course, if you have anything more on this issue, I'll gladly post that as well. Thanks.
jeff, please ask your wife to attend the meeting thursday evening. she will find the details posted on almost every business on the 700 block of hamilton.
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