Northampton County Executive Lamont McClure announced some changes last night that could make it easier for employees and visitors to find a place to park a the courthouse. He is moving the Public Defender's office from its current location on the first floor back to the basement. This will make it possible to move the Voter Registration office from the Milides Building, across the street from the courthouse, to the first floor of the courthouse. The Milides Building itself, which is always in danger of collapsing into the Lehigh River and is plagued by periodic mold outbreaks and constant electrical problems, will be demolished. "Milides will be gone by the end of the year," he predicts. The cliff adjoining that property will be shored up stabilized. The property will be converted into a parking lot that could include as many as 150 badly needed spaces.
Peg Ferraro wondered why the Voter Registration office could not be moved to the Human Services Building. That is a more centralized location, but the elections office has to be located "at the county seat." There can be branches in other locations.
Northampton County purchased the Milides Building in 2007 for $1.5 million.
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Friday, June 08, 2018
20 comments:
You own views are appreciated, especially if they differ from mine. But remember, commenting is a privilege, not a right. I will delete personal attacks or off-topic remarks at my discretion. Comments that play into the tribalism that has consumed this nation will be declined. So will comments alleging voter fraud unless backed up by concrete evidence. If you attack someone personally, I expect you to identify yourself. I will delete criticisms of my comment policy, vulgarities, cut-and-paste jobs from other sources and any suggestion of violence towards anyone. I will also delete sweeping generalizations about mainstream parties or ideologies, i.e. identity politics. My decisions on these matters are made on a case by case basis, and may be affected by my mood that day, my access to the blog at the time the comment was made or other information that isn’t readily apparent.
Adds to the political nature of the office. In a separate location, the office appeared to be more independent. The courthouse is a lousy fit. What does Rumsey think about the move? Much less convenient for registration, filing petitions, and training judges of elections.
ReplyDeleteState law mandates that voter reg be in the county seat, and in most counties, it is an office in the courthouse. Training can occur in a room set up specifically for training. It is located on the first floor and is quite convenient.the elections commission must by state law have minority representation. I have not spoken to Dee Rumsey about this bc I myself did not know of these plans until last night. I am sure it will be a pain to move and that parking for her and her staff will be more difficult. But the Milides Building is a money pit on top,of a cliff, plagued by problems. I believe this is a good call, and one that should have been made before.
ReplyDeleteWho is the asshole that bought a building without having it inspected?
ReplyDeleteSmart purchase! 1.5 million plus all the money thrown into the pit. Who was the forward thinking imbecile who thought this was a good idea?
ReplyDeleteAdjusted for inflation, that's nearly $12,000 per parking space. That's some stellar financial stewardship.
ReplyDeleteThe big problem with parking is all of the "reserved" spaces in the deck for political hacks and flunkies in the deck rather than for the public. This needs to be addressed. Aside from the Judges, Sheriff and DA, physically able employees should share parking with the public. Maybe you can publish a list of who has reserved spots.
ReplyDeleteWhy no story on Dally ? (You friends with him too).
ReplyDelete"Why no story on Dally ? "
ReplyDeleteYou seem to think I have some obligation to weigh in on every topic covered by the newspapers. I don't and only write stories that can complement what I see in the dailies or that provide something original. The Dally story is very interesting and unfortunate for him, but I have no knowledge of it beyond what I read in the Riley Yates story. Judge Dally and I are cordial, but he has never spoken to me about this matter. You seem to want to see Judge Dally embarrassed. He gave up two lucrative bank board positions to stay on the bench. He has a great dealof personal integrity while you are anonymous and can't even stick to a topic.
In response to some questions, the "imbecile" who bought Milides was John Stoffa. He needed a spot for some offices, and got three appraisals. Employees were already parking in the lot all the time, and had no idea that there was a subsidence problem or that the parking lot was built on fill. The sale was opposed at the time by Ann McHale and Ron Angle. McHale thought it was too much money while Angle, who knows a little bit about real estate, thought it was a bad idea. I would have supported the purchase.
ReplyDelete"Adjusted for inflation, that's nearly $12,000 per parking space. That's some stellar financial stewardship."
ReplyDeleteYou have not included demolition costs or the cost of building a parking lot. It is actually more. But you also have not included the offices - archives, controller, elections - housed there. In hindsight, this may have been a bad idea.
I think this is a good idea. The building is a wreck. I just wonder if there may be some way to have a separate entrance for the offices so that you don't have to get searched on your way in to register or change your registration to vote.
ReplyDeleteHaters gonna hate, and Ron Angle was Trump before Trump was Trump. But Angle was correct again on this one.
ReplyDelete9:30 I personally think the workers in the election office are unsafe.they get lots of visitors who need their voter reg card for a concealed carry permit. While the vast majority are decent people, there are some nuts. We are an increasingly violent society and it is not that long ago that someone shot up a meeting in Ross Tp, killing three people. Frankly, I think state law should be changed to prohibit guns in ALL public buildings, not just courthouses. In any event, I worry about the safety of people there.
ReplyDeleteStoffa was known as the biggest blockhead county executive. He was stubborn and never let the facts get in the way of his decisions. This was a stupid purchase and many tried to tell him but he always did what he wanted anyway. Besides, he always had a thing for wanting expensive parking spots remember his parking deck fiasco.
ReplyDeleteJohn was a deficated publicbservant while you are an anonymous troll. If you want to see a blockhead, look in a mirror.
ReplyDeleteLove that last comment, Bernie! Yes, Stoffa-haters have to crawl out from beneath their rocks whenever his name is mentioned on your blog. However, one could argue that due diligence was NOT applied to this county purchase. The Milides Building was problematic from day one. It sits on bedrock outcropping, causing poor drainage and water seepage into the building. When it was built, they did not account for proper drainage. The county bought it "as is". Good location and parking spaces there were needed. Not sure if the county included projected mold remediation costs and reconstruction into the purchase price. The basement had to be completely gutted and treated for mold. Even offices on the east side of the first floor had to have carpeting and sheetrock removed due to mold. The rest of the building was salvageable, and generally has served its purpose. But the rest of the building was never utilized. Seems like a decent idea that went bad. Time to move on.
ReplyDeleteI voted twice for John. He was pretty good, on balance. But this deal was a bad one. I hate when Angle is right.
ReplyDeleteUh..... I think you mean dedicated..... Ooops, Freudian slip, or spell check victim? :)
ReplyDelete"Stoffa-haters have to crawl out from beneath their rocks"
ReplyDeleteAs do his backside kissers whenever he receives legitimate criticism.
Wise move. They should build a multi parking deck and use them for permit spots for all of the employees and then demolish the existing parking deck and build a new Jail.
ReplyDelete