About Me

My photo
Nazareth, Pa., United States

Thursday, November 13, 2008

Molovinsky: Allentown Pushing Hamilton Street Merchants Out

In Allentown, many small businesses have security gates that merchants roll down over their storefronts when they close shop at the end of the day. Blogger Michael Molovinsky, in a nice piece of investigative journalism, tells us Allentown is now giving Hamilton Street merchants ninety days to replace solid gates with mesh, which will cost between two and seven thousand dollars. Ostensibly, this makes it easier to spot fires, but it also makes it easier for potential thieves to break windows and pry open locks.

What's really interesting is that this code is being selectively enforced against Hamilton Street merchants while those on 7th Street get a pass. Why? Is this Allentown's way of pushing those businesses out?

29 comments:

Anonymous said...

Yes, after the thieves pick the locks, they will depart to the tavern and enjoy a flagon of mead while they divide the gold pieces. That the businesses choose to keep gates at all is patently absurd. How many times has the brew works, with no gates, been broken into

michael molovinsky said...

anon 8;35, the stores sell consumer goods, gold jewelry and electronics in demand. how many times do thieves break into any restaurant, what would they steal? damn those asian paranoids! without gates, and few available police at night, burglary is a certainty. the merchants had the option to remove, rather than replace the gates, however, they more than you, know the reality of hamilton street. in this economy i don't think pawlowski is trying to push the merchants out, but he certainly has no scruples about pushing them around. he will claim his gentrification plan failed because of the downturn in the economy, the truth is he had no realistic concept of the marketplace.

Anonymous said...

Zzzzz

Anonymous said...

anon 235, couldn't disagree more - it's small businesses that will bring Allentown back, and the way the Administration treats them is important.

The Banker

Anonymous said...

Whatever you say, Bernie.

Bernie O'Hare said...

Banker, we all know who anon 2:35 and 3:48 is - Someone with a personal vendetta against Michael Molovinsky, me, Jim Martin, The Morning Call and anyone who does not bow down before him. This is one of his many tactics. I'd prefer that he restrict his anonymous commenting to his wife's blog.

Anonymous said...

Yep Bernie, I see it. The man just doesn't know when to quit and is incapable of self-control.

The Banker

Anonymous said...

Yep. I agree.

Anonymous said...

Yep. Me too.

Anonymous said...

Yep. So do I.

Anonymous said...

Yep.

The Banker

Bernie O'Hare said...

The comments posted at 9:13, 9:19, 9:21 & 9:21, were all posted by Bill Villa, who apparently has taken a break from discussing butt plugs on his wife's blog.

Anonymous said...

BO,take down your shameful "Troll Parade" blog.

Anonymous said...

BO, take down your shameful "Troll Parade" blog.

Anonymous said...

BO, take down your shameful "Troll Parade" blog.

Anonymous said...

BO, take down your shameful "Troll Parade" blog.

Bernie O'Hare said...

Mr. Villa,

That troll blog was started because of the harassment, threats and hijackings. Your criminal behavior started before that blog did. Taking that blog down would just mean that no one would be casting a public spotlight on your criminal activity.

In fact, I've just added a post to reflect your graduation from harassment to witness intimidation.

Anonymous said...

Bernie, a butt plug would stop you from talking :)

The Banker

Anonymous said...

The Troll Blog was started to quash Villa's Morning Call dissent.

Bernie O'Hare said...

"The Troll Blog was started to quash Villa's Morning Call dissent."

Wrong. It was started to cast a spotlight on criminal harassment. That began when other bloggers refused to join your wholesale and irrational condemnation of The Morning Call, LC District Attorney Jim Martin and everything and everyone who stood in your way.

You reveal your own sentiments towards free speech by your behavior. You will post incessant comments on a blog to drown out all messages but your own. Just now, you talk about sticking something in my mouth. You intimidate potential witnesses against you.

I don't think you're a bad person but your mental illness is making you increasingly erratic and I am concerned that you will eventually act on one of your threats. You need to stop. You keep digging a deeper and deeper hole.

Anonymous said...

Most gates on Hamilton st. are already mesh. Just because MM didn't get any information about 7th st. doesn't mean the same code does not exist. MM has a very clear agenda, some of his work is great, but some of it is clearly subjective. He rarely has all the facts, but pretends like he does.

Anonymous said...

"talk about sticking something in my mouth" -Bernie O'Hare O'Mcall

A butt plug goes somewhere else.

That a butt plug would "stop you from talking" infers that you talk out of your ass.

This is comedy.

Thank you, thank you very much ladies and gentlemen.

Please stick around for tonite's late show ;)

Anonymous said...

Bernie's and attorney (for now) Dave Najarian's "Troll Parade" blog was started to quash Villa's Morning Call dissent. Sadly, it hasn't worked.

Anonymous said...

Gotta love it when Villa laughs at his own jokes - gotta hate it that he doesn't realize how pathetic he is...and that's a damn shame.

Get help Mr. Villa.

The Banker

michael molovinsky said...

anon 11:04, i usually have much more information and facts than i present. many of the mesh gates on hamilton have already been changed from solid because of this recent decree. as for 7th st. and other area's, I withhold elaboration and examples to spare both property owners and fellow concerned citizens. although i endeavor to point out inequities in government, it is not my intention to bring consequences upon anyone to prove my points.

Anonymous said...

Bernie, you're nutz.

And a bully.

Plus, the writing style at 2:27pm is all you and everybody knows it ;)

The Banker

Bernie O'Hare said...

Villa,

You post anonymously and under all sorts of assumed names. You even go so far as to assume the identity of other people, and this blog thread is a demonstration. You do it over at your blog, too. I don't play that game.

That kind of dishonest behavior is an insult to your own readers. You deceive them into thinking others are making comments that actually come from you. But you don't have that much respect for the truth.

Don't assume others do what you do. I don't.

petelewnes said...

hi mike and bernie,

other than the pawn shop in the 600 block there are no stores on 7th street with metal grates on the windows...which i find totally bizarre (i'm saying that because there are alot on Hamilton). I never noticed really until your post but found it weird that none exist on 7th and so many exist on Hamilton. On a plus note...the number of broken storefront windows or breakins are not something I notice that much - when I first came onto 7, it was a regular occurence...my building included. I wonder if it's because alot of our merchants live above the stores?

Bernie O'Hare said...

Peter,

Thanks for your interesting observation. My post was intended to direct attention to a nice piece of investigative journalism by Michael Molovinsky and he is the best person to address your well-stated observation. If the break-in rate along 7th Street is low, that's a very good sign. It might be due in large part to people like you, who really do care about the city and spend a lot of time trying to make it better.