The Allentown Parking Authority, at the Mayor's bequest, is playing a high stakes game of Monopoly using the real money of citizens. Make no mistake, it's our money. If you received one of the hundred thousand plus parking tickets last year, or pay to park on a lot, or had a parking meter swallow your quarters, it's your money. The Authority has declared the North Lot "excessive" and is preparing to sell it for townhouses. This lot provides safe, convenient parking for the adjoining Verizon Building workers, and is three quarters occupied. The large "Germania" lot, on south 7th Street is virtually unused. Perhaps no lot in the Authority's inventory is more used and important than the "North" lot, yet in spite of a petition from Verizon workers, the Authority persists in selling it to a partner in the Mayor's vision. Although completed townhouses would indeed provide an impressive backdrop for the Mayor's re-election, let us not forget that Verizon has been providing over 200 jobs for decades and the true mission of the Parking Authority.
UPDATE: The Board of Directors passed the sale proposal with no discussion today by a 3 to 1 vote. Linda Rosenfeld, Malcolm Gross and Larry Hilliard voted for, Michael Donovan voted against. (Candida Svirzovsky was absent)
reprinted from April of 2008
ADDENDUM JULY 13, 2023:Although the buyer did not complete the lot purchase on N. 7th St., many of the APA surface lots were sold off to connected developers, contributing to the current residential parking woes. This blogger has been on the Parking Authority's case for a long time.
Here is a Monopoly game in Allentown. A home in the West Park area is delinquent County and City Real Estate Taxes for 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, & 2022 totaling $8,414.74. There has not been any electricity for years. I doubt there is water: broken windows, trash in the backyard, dead tree in the backyard. The house was a kennel for dogs in the past, and people cycle in and out of the home, residing for varying lengths of time—some with children and some without. Currently, the front porch is the residence of what appears to be a homeless man with mental health issues. Complaining is pointless. There are gross code violations. Adjoining property values decline. Feral animals are rampant. Mice and cock roaches are a problem. The health department needs to do something. And MM (Major Matt) is useless. Many others have done less and suffered more when they cannot pay taxes. All action on the property needs to be vetted by the city solicitor. It does not make sense to me. Does it make sense to you?
ReplyDeleteanon@12:26: sounds like it has been going on years before Mayor Tuerk. Perhaps the property owner is being protected by someone in code? At any rate your comment is anonymous, without even the property address? Hope you're more forthright when complaining to city hall!
ReplyDeleteThat would go beyond being protected by Code.
DeleteIt’s my understanding that tax delinquencies aren’t able to go beyond a couple of years. If they don’t pay the property should go to the annual Upset Sale (for tax delinquent properties).
That said, Code should be all over the property.
I would urge 12:26 to do the following:
Call code, health and recycling. Have your neighbors call as well (it’s killing their property values).
Document the new calls you make (date and time) and all the steps you and your neighbors have taken previously. Then you all need to show up at a City Council meeting one night along with photos of everything you’ve described (broken windows, trash, mice, cockroaches, etc). Make copies for each of the seven council members (plus one for the clerk for the minutes) and make your case during the time for public comment at the beginning of the meeting. You’ll each only have a few minutes (3 minutes?) to speak so be concise and to the point. Stick to the facts and what you can document.
Ask council if this property is FIVE YEARS behind IN PAYING their taxes, how many other properties in the city also aren’t paying for that long (they won’t know). Ask them how long any of them would want to live next to a property like this.
They’ll say they’ll contact the appropriate departments and may even request the Mayor to look into it if he’s in attendance. But that’s not enough. Tell them politely that you and your neighbors will be back at the next meeting for an update on what steps the city is taking. Keep the pressure on them - politely but also publicly.
For as little as I think of council, my suspicion is you’ll find at least one or two advocates that will be genuinely interested in helping you solve the problem. But still keep the pressure up at the public meetings until the problem is resolved.
It is much harder for code, the mayor and others in City Hall to ignore the situation when a group of taxpayers show up en masse at a public meeting.
Unfortunately, sometimes city government needs to be shamed into action and doing the right thing.
Above comment is good advice. Also, band together, hire an attorney and file an action in mandamus against the City to petition the court to force them to enforce their own ordinances. You're living the difference between reactive and pro-active code enforcement, that is to say, self service vs. public service. Good luck
ReplyDeleteI find it hard to believe that this is ongoing with no action of the City's part. As a Councilmember I offer a solution if the writer is so inclined. Allow me the opportunity to look into this and I can assure you that I will diligently investigate and if the facts are as stipulated bring all power to bear on the property in question.
ReplyDeleteIf the writer wishes to remain anonymous, I would ask that they provide the address to Mr. Molovinsky who can then forward to me at my e-mail which is daryl.hendricks@allentownpa.gov.
I have served on Council for 10 years and am an employee of the City for 45 total and continuous years having been a police officer prior to my service on Council.
I can assure you that this issue, if in fact true, will not remain hidden or ignored.
Councilman Hendricks, thank you for being pro-active on this issue. When I receive anonymous comments I have no information or idea who they're from. Furthermore, I must then approve the comment before it is published. The commenter could send the offending property's address as an anonymous comment... I could then forward the address to Councilman Hendricks without publishing it.
ReplyDeleteI was interested in this article and checked online to confirm there are, in fact, delinquent multiple years of back taxes. Today I was driving down 17th Street and noticed the Rescue Mission clearing the landscape on this property. In any other case, the property would go up for sheriff sale, and perhaps someone who valued their home would convert it from an eyesore to a respectful residence.
ReplyDelete