If the NIZ bestowed any benefit upon Allentown, it was that Sacred Heart Hospital was included. Stranded down at 4th and Chew, the small old hospital serves those residents with the least ability to pay. Now the giant, Lehigh Valley Health Network, will open a sports medicine facility at the arena complex. Sixty percent of the staff will be transferred from their current suburban location. Although the clinic will benefit the arena project, and a private developer, it's unclear to me that it serves the best interest of the greater community.
Mar 23, 2012
Take Your Medicine
If the NIZ bestowed any benefit upon Allentown, it was that Sacred Heart Hospital was included. Stranded down at 4th and Chew, the small old hospital serves those residents with the least ability to pay. Now the giant, Lehigh Valley Health Network, will open a sports medicine facility at the arena complex. Sixty percent of the staff will be transferred from their current suburban location. Although the clinic will benefit the arena project, and a private developer, it's unclear to me that it serves the best interest of the greater community.
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The interests being served, although not clearly evident, are certain to be the same few people who are not the tax paying citizens here in Lehigh county.
ReplyDelete"Sacred Heart Hospital was included... Valley Health Network, will open a sports medicine facility.."
ReplyDeleteThink in terms of the EITs. These are a couple of the highest payers and will bring in the most bang for the NIZ's repayments through the EITs .
On the other side of the coin, these employees EITs will take money away from the previous revenue streams for both Allentown and Salisbury.
No doubt at least some of the present employees who work at LVHN in Salisbury will be transferred out of the township to staff LVHN's new facility.
Exciting ice hockey featuring minor league heavyweights throwing haymakers on Hamilton Street at the to-be-spectacular $ 160.0 million dollar PALACE OF SPORT is ALWAYS in the interests of the greater community.
ReplyDeleteChairman Pawlowski knows this and this is exactly why HE is in charge of this City With No Limits and not you, Comrade Molovinsky.
Workers of the World --- Buy Phantoms Tickets Now!
Shaibu.
VIKTOR TIKHONOV
right now you drop your injured child, with his crutches, in front of the door in salisbury, with no one beeping the horn at you. although the doctor network will attempt to steer patients to hamilton street, many will resist.
ReplyDeleteExpanding on this EIT thing.
ReplyDeleteOne can't help but think Allentown all ready pre-calculated their EIT revenue loses from the NIZ and therefore increased it's EIT's 35% last year already in anticipation. So Allentown's going to come out of this OK.
However the municipalities outside of Allentown still don't know what theirs will be. Had they been given a heads up, they too could recalculated last year and increased their own EIT's to offset their revenue loses. That not being the case, I could see why they are upset.
As far as downplaying this whole EIT business saying surrounding municipalities will likely get their EITs back anyway. One has to ask, if that's the case, why were the EIT factored in the legislation in the 1st place?
LVCI -
ReplyDeleteAllentown raised its EIT under state law by claiming that the money would go toward pension reduction, and because of that it claimed that the City did not need approval from the voters to raise taxes (as required by the Charter).
If that additional money is not being used for pension reduction, then Allentown is in violation of both state law and its own Charter.
I'm sorry, Comrade Molovinsky.
ReplyDeleteBut it was last season that my son, former NHL 1st round draft pick Viktor, missed 20 games for the AHL's San Antonio Rampage thru injury ... he's been fit as a fiddle for SKA St. Petersburg this season.
Besides, if the Flyers sign Viktor and ship him to the Phantoms anytime in the future ...
... I have been reading all about Lehigh Valley Network's plans to open a new sports medicine center downtown.
So, in other words, if young Viktor is injured again, I would not have to take him to Salisbury.
Shaibu!
V. TIKHONOV
Anonymous said... 12:13 PM said, "money would go toward pension reduction"
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely it is, but prior to the .35%'s enactment the city was using part of the 1% EIT for pension related costs. Logically if the 1% EIT were to go down after the NIZ, it would become impossible to continue to do so w/o finding another way to increase revenues. Hence the .35%
Understand my point?
I certainly don't.
ReplyDeleteAnd it's neither my job nor my responsiblity to.
I just ain't "feeling" this $ 160.0 million dollar PALACE OF SPORT and, aside from shoving a gun in my face, there is no way to MAKE ME, either.
If my heavy-handed Local Government would not ram bullcrap it should not be involved in down my throat, they would not be having so much trouble "selling" all this.
The constant Propaganda sucks --- and I thought the Obama Administration was a joke!.
Was all this predicated on the assumption that for 160+ million dollars PP&L will maintain their presence in center city?
ReplyDeleteIn a sadistic way I'd like to see the look on the mayor's face if a corporation that has to answer to stock and bond holders, PPL, decides it's cheaper to move to the old SV Golf Course with a nice campus and safety for employees, thumbing their nose at the taxpayer hell Allentown has become.
ReplyDelete