Brown's Brownfield Looks Dirty

Bethlehem Steel stockhouse now a visitor center

When Bethlehem stopped making steel in '93, it spiraled downhill. Things began to fall apart. Just as Mayor Don Cunningham took office, the company closed. In addition to the loss of 20,000 jobs, the Christmas City lost a big chunk of its tax base. South side Bethlehem became a ghost town. But Cunningham, who is often derided for his smile, kept hope alive and slowly began the arduous task of putting Bethlehem back on its feet. When he left office, he had managed to attract $1 billion in investment and the jobs were slowly coming back. Under John Callahan, the nation's largest brownfield - 1800 acres - had over $2 billion invested in it, and 5,500 jobs were created. Pennsylvania's most successful casino is located on a portion, while the rest of the south side seems just a little better, every time I visit. It's a remarkable achievement. Part of the reason for this is Tony Hanna, a visionary in his own right, who should be recognized and stand side by side with Artsquest's Jeff Parks and CACLV's Alan Jennings. But Cunningham and Callahan, who at one time were referred to as the Young Turks, deserve a large share of the credit, too. They are and should be rightfully proud of what they've done for their City.

 Bangor's brownfield, an old incinerator site and quarry dump, is much smaller. Just 79 acres. But it has been a complete flop. That point was driven home on Tuesday night's Executive debate between the two mayors, John Callahan from Bethlehem and John Brown from Bangor.

Callahan took Brown to task over his failure to develop the site, which is controlled by Bangor Borough and Bangor Authority. To be more specific, he blasted Brown for participating in a scheme to sell the site to a Jersey developer who spent a stint in prison for dumping toxic waste.

Brown responded that his economic development focus has been on storefronts. He assured the debate audience he was “very outspoken against” the sale to that “type of individual”.

But according to information supplied both by the Callahan camp and in my own research, Brown appears to have misspoken.

This site is no dream. For years, the Borough Authority had tried to redevelop it without success. Then came fast-talkin' Art Fletcher from Jersey, who said he'd buy it, fill it up with dirt and install solar panels. He even talked the Authority into fronting $75,000 for all kinds of tests.

People were suspicious, but Mayor Brown was not among them.

You see, Fletcher suddenly started dumping at the site, and residents were concerned it might even be radioactive waste.

And Bangor has this

At a Borough Council meeting in February 2011, environmental activist Anna Marie Caldara specifically raised Fletcher's reputation and concerns about just what was being dumped. Resident Len Mooney worried that dirt deemed unacceptable in Jersey was being dumped here. Truck traffic concerns were raised by Duane Miller, a former Northampton County Council member.

Brown was absent from that meeting.

As details about Fletcher began to emerge and he failed to make a down payment, the deal eventually died. There was no toxic waste, though Bangor Mayoral candidate Joe Capozzollo does glow in the dark.

There is no record that Brown ever took any position supporting or opposing this developer. In fact, according to The Express Times, he defended the Borough when citizens expressed their displeasur. He suggested they go to meetings that he himself missed. The Morning Call has a similar account.

Although Brown never supported this project, there's no evidence that he opposed it, as he insisted during the debate.

But that's a minor point. It's easy to get mixed up in front of a large crowd. The major point is that one mayor had the vision to see the potential of a gigantic 1400-acre brownfield.  But in Bangor, a much smaller one remains undeveloped under a mayor who missed meetings and spent his time chastising the public.