Not that long ago, faith based volunteers from our All American City*, would congregate to bus south and help in impoverished towns. This past week, 250 volunteers came here to Allentown from North Carolina, how low and how quickly have we sunk. In 1953 Hamilton Street teemed with shoppers and the hit song was "Doggie In The Window". Now our Community Development is reduced to displaying art in empty storefront windows and abandoned pit bulls roam the city terrorizing residents. Our City is being governed by bureaucrats who are non-natives of the area, using resume building formula's which discard our history and traditions, even the iconic Park System is being revised. If this community was indeed progressing by any realistic criterion, I would relegate my regrets to the memory file and wish them well.
All American City: A designation given to those cities with a high quality of life.
photo from The Morning Call
"non-natives to the area, using resume building formula which discard our traditions and history"
ReplyDeleteBRILLIANTLY ACCURATE!
Too bad NO ONE will pay any attention to that thought.
For clarification's sake: the city economic development people had nothing to do with the art in the Hamilton windows. The artists had the idea and the drive and found an accommodating realtor. Sure beats looking at the empty gym.
ReplyDeleteWe'll know we're in real doo doo when they start sending volunteers up from NOLA
ReplyDeleteMr. Molovinsky:
ReplyDeleteFollowing posts are from Pamela Varkony's blog: They approach Allentown in a slightly different
perspective it would seem from Parks Director Weitzel and the
Trexler trustees. Please, would you mind just once more, telling us exactly how is the city is going to maintain and protect the new Cedar Beach wonderland.
monkey momma said...
I think everyone can agree we simply need more folks in law enforcement in Allentown. It's not rocket science, of course. We just need some more good guys in this town! (Or gals.) Where are the folks in the white hats???
I support aggressive management of all crimes, large and small. But, the APD are not in a position to tackle tinted windowns when we have constant dangerous criminal activity that needs immediate attention at all time. We simply need more officers and more law enforcement personnel to assist those officers. Would you want an officer to attend to loud mufflers or a robbery reported to be in progress? These are the choices the APD makes every day, many times a day.
If only General Trexler were still alive. I'm sure he'd support giving $2 million to APD to hire more officers instead of a deluxe playground on the outskirts of a failing city. What good are his parks if they are only islands of beauty in a sea of filth and crime?
June 30, 2009 6:26 PM
Anonymous said...
to anonymous 11:47...everyone is aware of the "broken windows theory" which is exactly what it's name implies, a "theory"...one by the way which made it's author, who was never a police officer or administrator, very wealthy. i am sure every officer on the force would love to stop every vehicle code they see, but this isn't some small 'burb where the officers have spare time to be proactive. if you listen to a scanner, these guys and girls are going from call to call for their entire shift. when there is down time, they are going after drug dealers and other crimes. what you ask for isn't practical in any sense of the word...a report for every car sent to code ??? !!! once again, listen to a scanner and you'll hear over and over again "i'll write this call later, what do you have now for me" and they are sent to another call. your ideas of policing will not and can not work in a city like Allentown until there is at least some sort of a resemblance of a properly staffed police force.
June 30, 2009 8:54 PM
What is disturbing is this is apparently how we are viewed from outside.
ReplyDeleteAre we seen as a missionary destination, as fertile ground for spiritual proselytizing, or as a project for a youth group from a well intentioned and well heeled church down south?
It would be interesting to see who "invited" this group to town.
There is such a disconnect between this event and the perception lauded upon us by the administration. No one seems to just recognize what reality is.
There are a lot of well intentioned people in the city. Many end up in zealous projects the impact of which is ultimately minimized simply due to a lack of collaboration and coordination.
We all need to get our stuff together. The same old stuff just keeps spewing forth.