Apparently official Allentown doesn't have much use for a multi-cultural celebration. If the City Administration promoted the Upward Bound Festival through it's public relations firm aka The Morning Call, I missed it. Alfonso Todd. promoter, did a remarkable job, especially considering the City had evicted him and four other minority owned businesses last week from their production facilities at 645 Hamilton Street. I started at the corner of 7th and Hamilton at the Latino's for Obama, and worked my way down pass about 20 vendors and organizations to the end of the block, where the Lehigh Valley Republican Party had a booth. I note that the Grower's Market, outgrowth of the Allentown Economic Development Corporation, is promoted by the newspaper every wednesday. The Development Corporation staff cost the taxpayers about half a million a year to bring us four vendors with a few heads of lettuce. Alfonso cost us nothing, and did more than the bureaucrats could in years. Thank you.
Thanks, MM, but I was more than happy to do it. The next event will be STOP THE VIOLENCE/START THE HEALING in September 2008 ! Watch for it !
ReplyDeleteAlfonso
Bravo, Alfonso. And don't ever let those MC bastards get you down. You'll be here and continuing to succeed long after they're toppled from the ivory tower and gone ...
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed upward bound and the growers market. Both are good for community building. I'd like to ignore the politicos and focus on the people.
ReplyDeletedear anon 3:20, i believe when a city promotes four heads of lettuce more than an attempt to celebrate diversity, someone should point it out. i'm proud to do it, michael molovinsky, politico
ReplyDeleteDidn't go, I should have - by the sound of it, my mistake. Keep it up Alfonso!
ReplyDeleteThe Banker
in fairness to anon 3:20, today i went to see the growers market. it was small, about 8 vendors, but inviting. there were two tables with vegetables, and two bake stands, plus live music. i would doubt the vendors sell enough to justify their effort. i also visited Johnny Manana's and had a non-alcohol drink. it's an attractive place. i left a tip.
ReplyDeleteMM,
ReplyDeleteGood thing you mentioned the tip or Bernie would start calling you Mayor!!!
The Banker
I didn't make the last Vision meeting due to fatigue. (Still tired from my Upward Bound A-town event on Saturday and for some reason I was confused and thought it was today) Anyway, I was glad to read that Mike Fegley said the obvious. (Look in Queen City Blog entitled A Safe Clean and Green Downtown District) Unsure what the Vision Meetings are hoping to accomplish, but even with goals, deadlines, and regulations, it still holds true ACTIONS speak louder than WORDS. I just had a multicultural event that had over 20 vendors/organizations and, although, it wasn't Musikfest, it proved to me that we, as citizens, can make a difference and make things happen even while others tend to be moving in slow motion. I know the Vision Meetings have good intentions but we need leaders, like myself, who are willing to put themselves out there and, if needed, circumvent politics, the status quo, and even the City and just DO SOMETHING to make things happen. We need more events to bring people back downtown. We need more information placed into ALL of the Allentown communities to educate residents about up and coming meetings and the NEED to get involved and participate ! We need to cultivate and initiate the young and older creative and artistic minds in Allentown and help them achieve viable businesses and movements that will create interest and cause those who live outside of A-town to come and see what's happening in A-town. We need to face the facts that Allentown is an urban, gritty, multicultural and diverse City that has leaders that need to stop trying to build a time machine and create a landscape that resembles Hess' days of old. They need to market Allentown as it is and PEOPLE will come. Many WANT the urban, gritty, multi-cultural scene; especially the young, creative minds who are now more entrepenurial than ever. This may NOT be the plan many want to hear or envision, but unless Allentown makes some quick changes, all I can say is "Will the last person leaving please turn off the lights ?"
ReplyDeleteAlfonso
alfonso, reality and allentown are like oil and water, they don't mix
ReplyDeleteI really wish I had been there. I thought it was on Sunday, not Saturday, and learned I was wrong when I rec'd a call from a friend who happened to be there.
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