The Morning Call's feature story on the potential over supply of hotel rooms is nothing new to my regular readers. This blog has often said that the new arena hotel will reduce the Holiday Inn to a flop house, and be another nail in the coffin of the Americus, shown here in better days. According to
the article, the Holiday is operating at about 38% occupancy. To think that the arena will sprout enough activity to support two hotels, much less three, is a pipe dream only possible with taxpayer dollars. I believe that if the Americus is to have a future, it will be as apartments. I also believe that ownership will be wrestled away from the current owner, before NIZ financing would be bestowed upon a favored developer for that conversion. Last, but not least, a revelation about my recent editorial in the paper. It was modified by the Morning Call staff to spare a City Council member my frank evaluation. I have inserted the unedited version with the previous post announcing the editorial.
ReplyDeleteMike,
Allowing the Americus Hotel to become apartments would be very costly to the school district/taxpayers unless it was age restricted. Doubt we would have that kind of forethought in our planning department.
Scott Armstrong
Unfortunately, Allentown has made it abundantly clear that the NIZ and the arena plans have absolutely nothing to do with helping out the businesses that already exist on Hamilton. This project is only about stroking the egos of politicians and their buddies. Too bad they're too short sighted to see the damage this is doing to our beleaguered town.
ReplyDeleteIn this "Field of Dreams" project, they truly must believe that "if you build it, they will come". In addition to the hotels you mention, there is also a fourth hotel mentioned in the article to be built in 2020.
ReplyDeleteThis collassal waste of money is a train wreck waiting to happen.
Also, what specifically got cut from your MC editorial? Was it just the part you have highlighted in your post regarding Schlossberg?
@7:13, i agree that the prospect of a second "new" hotel shows how unrealistic their expectations are.
ReplyDeleteyes, it was the highlighted portion, which was the meat of the sentence. it also tied schlossberg into the premise of the piece. considering that it was a Your View piece, which was supposed to present my view on the subject, the editorial staff gifted schlossberg with that deletion.
This is not an isolated incident, but one that has been occurring for years. For some reason, the Call decided that reporting the news was no longer enough; they had to start actively supporting (or protecting) their favored politicians.
ReplyDeleteAs such, they are complicit in the decline of the city.
Last Sundays BarkFest held by Friends of Allentowns Parks was a resounding flop.
ReplyDeletePlagued by heat rain disinterest and poor planing -- almost nobody and their dog attended. It closed up hours early.
The Morning Call ran a story and posted a video proclaiming it a smashing success.
What gives here?
@11:39, i will be doing a post in the near future about the dog park and misplaced priorities.
ReplyDeleteHeroic Comrade MATT ASSAD has truly lost his nerve, as evidenced by the headline in today's edition of Pravda, er, ah, The Morning Call.
ReplyDeleteThis past weekend, heroic Comrade Assad WAS fighting the good fight with headline above the all-important fold that stated "BOND DOCUMENTS PROMISE INVESTORS BRIGHT FUTURE" ... but now his resolve to stand firm and vigorously promote the $ 179.5 million dollar PALACE OF SPORT is just not what is was.
I hold YOU personally accountable for this travesty of heroic Chairman Pawlowski's historic Transformation of the City With No Spending Limits.
You really do need to stop dissenting so effectively as important Government Bureaucrats are not meant to be made to look like such fools.
Can't you go ahead and jail yourself, or something, for the Greater Good of the Community?
Hurry, before somebody remembers this Free Money For Minor League Hockey Team Owners Project has ballooned to nearly three times as much as it was originally pitched to the public back in 2009.
Shaibu!
VIKTOR TIKHONOV
I love the fact more people will attend a dog park meeting than they will a city council or school board meeting. Yes it is priorities. Many of those in Allentown seem to always seek out what they believe the easier and softer way. I If they only knew the cost in the long run.
ReplyDeleteFrom the MC article, I also would have thought the event was a grand success.
ReplyDeleteI was surprised, however, at the number of people in the photos who were identified as out-of-towners.
Apparently, they're more than happy to have Allentown taxpayers pay for the construction and upkeep of a park for their dogs.
Funny, I think I remember someone bringing up the fact that the City is currently not properly maintaining the parks already in its inventory.
In that regard, building another high-maintenance park seems foolish.
attending council meetings is an exercize in futility.
ReplyDeleteI was at the underwhelming Bark Fest. There were not many more people there than at a council meeting?
ReplyDeleteHey,perhaps if they allowed dogs at council sessions.............
Dear MM In my opinion you are
ReplyDeleteright on target with your prediction about the Americus. So far the city has made it hard for AA to get help but he's like the little ant that could I think I can I think I can. And he continues to plug away.But as soon as the property starts to come into its own the vultures will be circling for sure!Ihope he stays strong as an encouragement to us all not to allow ourselves to be strong armed!
Concerning hotel rooms, most minor league attendance is relatively local (as is most major sports except for NFL) and fans rarely need rooms.
ReplyDeletewhat does a Moody’s rating of Baa2 mean?
ReplyDeleteOnline that rating seems to be associated with being a down grade from "a" ratings.
Something inside me hopes the Americus becomes a 'welfare hotel.' Then Chairman Ed and his minions can watch their former favorite citizens as they harass the hockey patrons who will be filling the bars and restaurants. Oy!
ReplyDeleteMaybe the Americus would serve Allentown better as a senior living facility than as a hotel or apartments.
ReplyDeleteCanary has it right, The americus should be retrofitted as another gross towers. Just so happens Penrose Properties is a major player in that market.Beside niz, federal housing grants are available for such conversions.Besides the bank building on 7th Penrose has several succesful conversions in strawberry mansion section of philly and throughout SE penna. Time will tell.
ReplyDelete