What was once a thriving block of Hamilton Street will now be turned into a ghost down. Even now, although not the golden age shown above, the block between 7th and 8th does business. Still hosting three chain stores, the block had survived, despite one arrogant mayor after another. The Family Dollar Store is one of their most successful branches. Rainbow (jeans) and Rite Aid also anchor the block, along with successful independents. In a night of shame, one of the most shameful acts was Julio Guridy, interrupting the merchants so that Mayor Pawlowski could educate them. Pawlowski said that the arena could attract up to 1.5 million people a year, and that everyone will benefit, even relocated merchants. Considering that the hockey team only actually attracts 3,000 people to 40 home games, Pawlowski is off by about 1.4 million. In reality, the stores that remain on the south side of the street will now face an empty arena and much less foot traffic. The upscale restaurants, such as Sangria and Cosmopolitan, will suffer, because their patrons will avoid the nighttime traffic congestion. Lou Belletieri told Council that he operated a restaurant across from the Wilkes-Barre Arena, and did no business, what so ever, from it. Councilman Michael Donovan said that although he feels for the merchants, he owes the other 118,000 citizens The Pawlowski Palace of Sport.* He actually owed them the courage to say no to this ill conceived plan.*
*Palace of Sport is a borrowed term coined by a blog reader. Donovan was joined by five other councilmen in his yes vote.
reprinted from May 19, 2011
ADDENDUM SEPTEMBER 18, 2024:I drove down Hamilton Street on Monday afternoon at 2:15PM, from 12th to 4th. To say that it was dead is an understatement, maybe I passed three people. For a $Billion dollars worth of new buildings, and a 1000 new apartments, the emptiness almost defies logic. Only because it's usually so dead did I know that people weren't hiding in the buildings because of an escaped lion or killer from the prison. And they refer to this desolation as the revitalization of Allentown?
To top it all off, it appears the novelty of having a minor league hockey team has worn off. While games at the area were initially filled, if you go to a game today you’ll find more than half the seats empty.
ReplyDeleteNow maybe some of those seats are paid for by season ticket holders just not showing up, but it’s still a bad look. Even if that’s so, it’s not a good sign.
Like most entertainment, people showing up equals revenue, and you have to wonder how long the team stays if attendance continues to decrease.
So if you think downtown’s a ghost town now, imagine what would happen if those 40 nights of hockey leave town
Minor league sports teams are notoriously footloose. Re: Allentown Red Sox......
DeleteUnfortunately what has been done over the past 12 years to Hamilton Street can not be undone.
ReplyDeleteWhat would be a better future than the one envisioned by Mr Reilly ?
The reason that the NIZ and Reilly are immediately connected is that it is actually a real estate scheme, for his benefit. That said, you're correct in that it is where we are. On the up side, I do believe that the new entertainment venue he built on Hamilton (Archer) might make a difference, assuming that it is properly run. Of course Joe Clark did that years ago with his money, not ours like now :)
DeleteI think it’s time to move on from the City Center era. A few of their buildings are really nice but most of them look like they hardly even tried. You would think there would be a little more effort with all of the assistance they received.
ReplyDeleteSadly the new downtown was (and is) a scam. There is nothing that anyone needs downtown. There are very few reasons to go there. The busiest corner downtown is Linden and Seventh, between the CVS Drugstore and the 7-11 acting as the illegal drug store. The Lehigh Valley Health Network offices were a scam. There are no medical offices there. The Air Products offices that came and went were also a scam to tax executive salaries. People First will stay for a while. You are more hopeful than I about the change of focus to uptown. This may help the folks who bought the dilapidated buildings up there, perhaps making them eligible for specific improvement grants, but where are the sustainable tenants? Perhaps parts of Hamilton Street could be leased out as movie sets. It could look nice at street level, even if there aren’t people.
ReplyDeleteWhile Reilly builds with our diverted state taxes, the buildings in the 10 and 11 block across the street from his new apartments are being dressed up with our diverted city grants, to improve his tenant's view.
DeleteAs much as I love a hockey night in the City, I have to agree that the street level vitality is almost non-existent absent an event at PPL Center. Restaurants come and go continually and reduce their daytime hours and the residents of the new apartments must use cars to shop for day to day needs. I'm choosing to stay optimistic in hopes that the whole downtown thing will work. The condos at the the old Talon building and the possibility of residential uses at the PPL building might really create the demand for essential retail businesses downtown (i.e. pet shop, bakery, pharmacy, grocery store etc..). Who knows. An outing to Reading is all that is needed to realize how far Allentown has come and how nice the downtown is getting.
ReplyDeleteAppropriate to ask about the state NIZ audit, understood to take six months, thus out to about 1 Sep? Whither goest?
ReplyDeletePat Browne, now as State Revenue Director, is refusing to hand over the sought information. Jarrett Coleman is following through with contempt proceedings.
DeleteIf a true financial accounting of the NIZ scam ever becomes public it will embarrass all of those who participated, or looked the other way, as it still continues to fleece state tax payers.
DeleteAfter just its first 5 years, even the most rudimentary accounting and projections would conclude a guaranteed money pit was being created.
Whuups. Thanks, sir. I hope it doesn’t become a titanic struggle.
ReplyDeleteThe Central Business District on Hamilton Street (it is a misnomer to call it a neighborhood as does the NIZ) is surrounded by one of the poorest neighborhoods in Pennsylvania that has grown to now dominate the entire City. If the State was going to invest 500 million + it should have been spent reducing density, de-converting multi-family buildings built to house one single family and demolishing blight all to restore the quality of life in these residential neighborhoods.
ReplyDeleteAgree with you, 6:01, however I live in one of those "surrounding neighborhoods" and I know first hand if I make it nice, some $hit comes by to promptly ruin it!!! Plant flowers, they rip 'em out or transplant them to their house. My neighbor chains his outdoor concrete planters... years ago one went missing and was seen on the second floor balcony above the "Happy Dairy" store at 6th and Turner... these folks could be wealthy if they worked as hard as they steal... As far as deconverting goes, I see single houses with more cars than the rentals... Mother has a car, Father has a car and Junior and Juniorette have cars.
DeleteSeems like the party's over in Allentown. Flush it down the toilet.
ReplyDeleteThe new food market was nice. Always seemed busy. I wonder what happened there.
ReplyDelete