Tigger, Twiggar & Taggart Bounce Thru Conflicts of Interest at LVPC

"Bouncing is what Tiggers, Twiggers and Taggarts do best!"

On Wednesday, I ranted about Northampton County Council's decision to reappoint Glenn Taggart, VP of Taggart Associates, to the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission. County exec Stoffa assured council Taggart's "got nothing going on," and only councilman Ron Angle remained unconvinced. But last night's meeting of the LVPC, confirms Angle had it right all along.

Taggart had to abstain from four different matters in which he had a personal interest. Nothing going on?

What's even more amazing is the conduct of another Northampton County rep on the LVPC, Andrew Twiggar. Guess what? Twiggar is a principal with Dunn Twiggar Company, LLC, an outfit pimping a new development along Allentown's Lehigh River called "The Waterfront." No longshoremen or ex-prize fighters here. Not in this Allentown Shangri-La. The plan is to replace 150 manufacturing jobs at the Lehigh Structural Steel property with 560 condos lying smack dab in the middle of the flood plain.

Jam 'em in there, bippy! Jersey commuters, come on down!

An island for whitey in an Allentown sea of black and brown. De facto segregation. Brilliant! And those manufacturing jobs? Poof! They'll be replaced with jobs for cocktail waitresses, chambermaids and busboys who can't cut it at Bethlehem's casino. They'll be servants as the rest of us whip around in our fancy Rollerblades and cool shades.

Now don't get me wrong. There are many positive positive aspects to this proposed redevelopment, and Our West End Neighborhood features some lovely pictures. But we'll never know whether the LVPC judged this project on its merits or because it was presented and promoted by one of its own - an insider.

Last night, Twiggar, with his Northampton County name tag boldly emblazoned on his jacket, wowed LVPC members as he bounced through a 45 minute slide show.

"Worraworraworraworraworra".

I doubt he showed any flood pics. According to Angle, no developer gets that royal treatment. And surprise, surprise! The LVPC just loves the idea. Concerns about jamming all those condos in a floodplain were summarily dismissed. "This is Allentown." I understand LVPC Boss Mike Kaiser rushed from the meeting to buy a little captain's hat for the proposed marina.

Twiggar, like Taggart, piously abstained from the vote. But he failed to "publicly announce and disclose the nature of his interest as a public record in a written memorandum filed with the person responsible for recording the minutes of the meeting," which is required under our state ethics act. I've yet to see a local public official ever do that. Let's face it. As an insider, he had an undeniable advantage.

Tiggers, Twiggars and Taggarts have a good thing going. They'll grab a property lying in a floodplain, draw up a fancy plan with hockey rinks, theatres and other baloney, and jam every square inch with condos. Then they'll look for a developer with deep pockets and, of course, some public bucks. And they'll use their inside connections on this and that commission to ease those pesky zoning and planning requirements. They use exotic terms like "project manager," but they're just front men who bounce really well from public to private sectors.

Not long ago, a developer without a front man vainly tried to promote an affordable housing development in South Bethlehem. He only had Habitat for Humanity on his side, and the planning commission shot him down. They were concerned this developer might later sell to someone else. The chair of this planning commission? Why, it's Andrew Twiggar! He should know.

When I first wrote about this on Wednesday, one commenter had this reaction. "I get it now, attack productive businesses, politicians, candidates or people who actually have 'real' jobs and contribute to society on a daily basis. Good -- bad -- indifferent. " Actually, these insiders contribute to nothing but their own pockets. "Tiggers don't like honey." But Twiggars and Taggarts do. And if someone even drops a hint about their real motives, they hire a lawyer to intimidate you. Since Taggart has already threatened to sue me for remarks I never made, I might as well make it worth the effort.

John Stoffa should ask the Tiggers, Twiggars and Taggarts to bounce out of the LVPC. He loves to say, "There's nothing wrong with government, but sometimes, the wrong people are in government." This is a classic example.

Should Glenn Taggart Sit on the LVPC?

If you're a title searcher like me, you learn to like lawyer letters. They contain checks. But this one, from Jim Broughal's Bethelehem law firm, was a little different. Broughal's firm, which specializes in representing developers and engineers, is trying to shut me up.

[W]e have been made aware of statements published on your blog, which are defamatory towards Taggart Associates and to Donna Taggart in particular. These statements, which allude to self-dealing and corruption by Taggart Associates, are patently false in nature. The publication of these false statements on your blog demonstrates a ... [blah, blah, blah].

Please consider this letter a warning that if you do not stop publishing these false allegations, Taggart Associates will have no option but to proceed with a claim against you for libel and slander.


Libel? Slander, too? Uh oh.

I immediately checked to see what terrible things I had written about Taggart, a Bethlehem outfit that specializes in "in project funding, transportation management, economic development and environmental planning." I found nothing. Nada. Zip.

But then I checked through my comments, and fellow blogger BillyBytes did make three comments mentioning Taggart, along with a host of others. Nothing about them is really defamatory. In fact, I barely understand them. So I fired off a response to the suits. "I've searched through my blog, and I've never written a word about Taggart. So bring it on, bippy. Sue to your heart's content."

That was the end of it. Until last Thursday, when I saw that Glenn Taggart was nominated by Northampton County Executive John Stoffa for reappointment to the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission. He's Donna's husband, and he also works for Taggart Asscoiates.

Councilman Ron Angle asked why a fox like Taggart would be in the LVPC henhouse. Stoffa replied, "He's got nothing going on. He adds expertise." Angle was not so sure. "He might have nothing now, but what about tomorrow? And he might have associates coming before the LVPC."

Angle was the sole councilman to vote against Taggart.

As it turns out, Taggart has plenty going on, and this is bound to cast some doubt upon his ability to handle matters objectively, free from the influence of developers like Ashley and the casino. Don't take my word for it. Let Donna tell you herself.

Greater Easton Development Partnership, Inc. - Recently re-structured and re-energized the former Easton Economic Development Corporation into the Greater Easton Development Partnership, Inc. to provide the City of Easton with an active non-profit economic development corporation. This new entity is the sponsoring organization for the new Easton Main Street Initiative to stimulate revitalization of Easton’s Central Business District. Also serves as Program Coordinator of the Easton Main Street Initiative.

Slate Belt - Facilitated development in the Slate Belt area of the Lehigh Valley, PA, highlights which include the formation of a Council of Government; construction of a 40,000 sq.ft. Shell building in partnership with the Northampton County IDA, the Green Knight Economic Development Corp., and J.G. Petrucci Co.; and installation of infrastructure to a 60-acre industrial park in Portland.

Route 512 Improvement Project - Local project manager for the Route 512 Improvement Project responsible for securing the local financing match of $5 million for a $12 million project. In this role, Mrs. Taggart served as the interface between PennDOT, the local municipalities and existing companies and potential prospects for the Lehigh Valley Industrial Park.

Hotel Bethlehem - Spearheaded a $13 million historic renovation of a bankrupt downtown Bethlehem hotel to carry a national flag.

Broad and Main - Facilitated the development of a key downtown Bethlehem property that had been vacant for over 20 years, into a mixed-use retail/office building. This project included the construction of an adjacent 700-car intermodal facility that also serves as a LANTA hub.

Bethlehem Technology Center - Participated as one of the non-profit economic development partners and overall managing partner for the development of a $4 million post-incubator technology building in south Bethlehem.

Petrilla Fuel Oil/ Union Station - Oversaw the successful purchase and environmental remediation of a 10-acre site at a major gateway entrance to south Bethlehem resulting in the attraction of a national chain restaurant and the development of an abandoned train station into a satellite office for St. Luke’s Hospital.

Main Street Commons - Coordinated the financing package for a $12 million renovation project of a former department store in the heart of the north side business district of the City of Bethlehem into a mixed use retail/office complex bringing hundreds of jobs to the downtown. This project included the construction of a contiguous 60-car parking deck.

Ashley Development - Currently advises major local developer, Ashley Development, regarding creative financing strategies for urban redevelopment projects. Acts as liaison between corporation and state entities involved in financing processes.

Las Vegas Sands Corporation – Serves as Community Outreach Liaison for casino operator recently licensed in Pennsylvania. Responsible for coordination of local corporate training programs, community events and public involvement.