I know a little about the Allentown Park System. Actually, compared to the mayor and current park director, I know a lot. I was raised on the south ridge above Lehigh Parkway, in Little Lehigh Manor. The park was my backyard and playground. Changes and neglect in that park are particularly painful to me.
Yesterday, Mayor Tuerk had news conference at Cedar Beach Pool about the New Jersey invaders overrunning our waterways. Although neither the TV station, newspaper or politically correct mayor put it that way, but that's the way it is. The mayor walks on eggshells. The invaders are New Jersey Hispanics, mostly from the Dominican Republic. The mayor claims that he is the first Latino mayor in Allentown, and their representative. He even started off his first term with a fact finding trip to the Dominican Republic. Apparently, he didn't learn enough there to deal with this current invasion of our parks. Yesterday, Tuerk actually said “We want to welcome everybody from places like Queens, The Bronx, Union City, from across the entire commonwealth..." He doesn't have the moxie to say, "stay where you live."
The first elephant in the room is that Allentown closed two major pools, Fountain and Jordan. The second elephant is the lack of gates at strategic places. Canal park only has one entrance and gating it off would be a cinch. Mayor Tuerk feels gates are unwelcoming, and it goes against his inclusionary compulsions, but that's tomorrow's post.
Shown above is the closed Jordan Pool. Fountain Park Pool is likewise closed. Mayor Tuerk said that kids should swim in pools, and not the creeks?!? Blogger Michael says that the city should have maintained its pools, rather than spending half a $mil expanding the skate park.
South Whitehall has had a major issue with this in recent months at Covered Bridge Park.
ReplyDeleteWhy can’t the kids just go swimming at the new basketball court they put in at Steven’s Park?
ReplyDeleteThe city doesn’t own the waterways and should not try to stop anyone from swimming navigating the waterways in Allentown. According to the “Public Ownership and Public Trust Doctrine:: Generally, in the US, the water in natural waterways like rivers and streams is considered a public resource, held in trust by the state government for the benefit of its citizens. This is often referred to as the public trust doctrine.
ReplyDeleteThe citizens should be challenging the legitimacy of the supposed legislation that attempts to block their access to this public trust property.
anon@6:59: But they are accessing it from a city park, which has posted signs against such activity. Let us know how your court case comes out :)
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