Nat Hyman filed a legal action against the city in regard to the homeless encampment by one of his buildings. I do not find his action inappropriate. The city then asked Hyman if he would take in some of the homeless....That request I do find inappropriate. They would not have asked Reilly to put up the homeless in a Strata building.
Years ago, Pawlowski took a local developer off the hook, purchasing two parcels we did not need for parks. One on Basin St., and the other the old fertilizer plant on Martin Luther King. We didn't need them then and we don't need them now.
Although I'm a self-proclaimed park expert, I must admit I have not been to the Jordan Meadows parkway along the Jordan Creek. I will refrain from opining if the park was advisable, but since we created it, we must maintain it. Comments on yesterday's post on the homeless maintain that the city has adopted a too woke attitude tolerating homelessness. Rather than rehash that discussion, let's say that all sections of the city deserve the same treatment. Would that encampment be tolerated in the Rose Garden?
above reprinted from April 8, 2025
AUGUST 6, 2025: SPECIAL EDITION **AN OUTSIDER RUMOR CLAIMS THAT THE CITY WILL MOVE THE HOMELESS ENCAMPMENT BY AUGUST 25TH, TO AN AS OF YET UNDETERMINED LOCATION.**(IT WON'T BE THE ROSE GARDENS :) )
UPDATE 2:15PM: Homeless camp posted that they must vacate by August 25th because they're in a flood plain.
UPDATE 2:25PM: Hyman has informed MOLOVINSKY ON ALLENTOWN that he will NOT withdraw the lawsuit unless
1. They will not allow the homeless to return
2. They will clean up all the mess left behind
3. They create a landscape equal to other parks
4. There will be ongoing policing of that area
Using the homeless as a political tool, by the current administration, is about as low as you can go.
ReplyDeleteMr. Nemeth
DeleteWith all due respect, there is every reason to believe Allentown will see even lower political shenanigans in the coming few years.
Thank you Nat Hyman for standing up for the citizens of Allentown!
ReplyDeleteIf the rumor is true, I am happy that the situation is being resolved for Mr. Hyman. While it’s sad that it took a lawsuit for City Hall to protect a property owner, he was totally correct to file his lawsuit and shame the city into action.
ReplyDeleteBut as usual, the real problem continues to lie with the misguided policies of Allentown City Hall.
Merely moving the homeless to another location is not a solution. It simply moves the problem to another neighborhood or onto another person’s property.
Homelessness should not be tolerated or accepted in the city. Period. Full stop.
The homeless should not be allowed to set up camp in parks, and certainly not allowed to linger in our neighborhoods. Continuing to allow this is not good for the city or safe for the homeless.
Should we help the homeless? Absolutely! Most of the homeless have underlying issues (addiction, mental health issues, etc.), and the standard should be getting the homeless the help that they need - QUICKLY! This help should be at licensed (and state regulated) facilities located outside of residential areas in the city.
Moving the homeless to continue to live on their own is not compassion, it’s cruelty. For City Hall to continue to accept or normalize their condition is not a solution, it’s neglect.
The key words in this special edition post is OUTSIDER RUMOR. The "tip" has enough credibility that I decided to publish it, even though it's news to Hyman himself. In this business sometimes the egg gets on your face.
ReplyDeleteMM:
DeleteAnon 7:29 here again. I certainly understand that what you’re reporting is a rumor. That said, it’s also in City Hall’s best interest to quickly resolve the issue.
The case is an easy loser for the city, and the court case would only bring to light that the city is failing to protect property owners in the city. It’s not the only area that the current administration is failing its property owners (and neighborhoods), and for a mayor facing re-election in November that can’t be helpful.
If the rumor about moving the homeless from Mr Hyman’s area ends up not being true, the egg will end up on the Mayor’s face, not yours.
anon@7:29: I disagree. Cities across the country have been throwing money and expertise at this problem forever, to no avail. I would move the encampment to Union and Basin Street, which the city should have never purchased for a future park. There I would make services and referrals available from the health department to those "homeless" willing to take advantage of such.
ReplyDeleteThe Jordan Creek Greenway is a new park recently developed . Yet Tuerk felt it was appropriate to use this new park as a full out homeless city! If Mr. Hyman had not stood up to Tuerk, he would have left them there forever.
ReplyDeletePlus this area has been in the FEMA delineated floodplain all along, so the City DID NOT take "proactive steps to protect the health and safety of individuals in this high risk area". In fact, the City should be thanking Hyman, should there have been an event like they had in southern Lehigh County on July 14 [6" of rain in 2 hours] there could easily have been fatalities from flooding and Allentown could have been liable for allowing the encampments in the floodplain on City-owned property.
DeleteTuerk recently reminded the public that he was a proud member of the Allentown Environmental Advisory Council. One would think he knows where the flood plains in the city are located.
DeleteA “good source” in City Hall was telling people in the know that Mayor Matt had a solid plan to address homelessness back in May. Anything more complex than a flag raising or a junket to a Caribbean country seems too complex for the current administration.
ReplyDeleteSo National Night Out was a nonstarter in Allentown’s many neighborhoods that once had Neighborhood Associations, Crime Watches and Block Watches.
ReplyDeleteThe once All American City is devolving into something unrecognizable.
A rumor that Mayor Matt had a plan to deal with the homeless situation has been circulating since Spring.
ReplyDeleteHas the current administration dealt with any of Allentown’s issues effectively?
I live on meadow street. I used to enjoy walking around the neighborhood . Since Matt put all of the homeless here it is like a third world city. My wife and I are scared to leave the house. We are grateful that Mr. Hyman is taking care of the neighborhood. His buildings have been a wonderful addition and he is standing up to this horrible administration.
ReplyDeleteIf Mayor Matt is smart he will move them out and not try to fight Hyman. If he fights Hyman, he will lose…badly
ReplyDeleteLet’s remove the personalities of those involved and look at the problem. Allentown City has no universal plan to deal with the homeless. Years of a hands off attitude and a dismissal of “these people are living the way they want to” has left the city with a problem that the city council doesn’t have the tools to solve. We accepted the anonymous donation that created the warming station at the Allentown YMCA, but that goal was just to get them off Hamilton Street and away from the patrons of the new downtown restaurants. (Due to this and some mismanagement we now have a non-functional YMCA, but a satellite exercise Y.) It seems that this is too big for Allentown City Government to handle and should be managed by Lehigh County. This may mean having a central location where the homeless can be identified and have access to mental health, social services, and veterans services that they are eligible for. Cedarbrook may be the location, or some space designed to house people. Mr. Hyman isn’t responsible for their care. These people need help. We treat feral cats better than this.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure why they don't utilize the warming station anymore. They cannot open those bathrooms for park patrons because of the changes made to the warming station, so it sits empty and decaying. Waste of money.
DeleteThe former First Lady of Allentown, Lisa Pawlowski, solved homelessness in the Queen City. Alas, her success has not been followed up on.
DeleteThe homeless, with few exceptions, won’t live where they don’t have access to a downtown.
DeleteLehigh Counties senior citizens may not appreciate living with a population of people who have serious substance abuse and mental health issues.
Could Lehigh County muster the resources to serve the homeless population at Cederbrook?
Unlikely.
Regardless of the outcome of the next election Lehigh County looks like it’s in for some tough sledding.
Anon @10:50AM
DeleteHow are those “new downtown restaurants on Hamilton Street” doing since the Y was reorganized to address homelessness?
I didnt see the mayor ask for any money to help the homeless in his $132 million bond proposal hes introduing tonight at council. Why?
ReplyDeleteWell does the money for the MLK trail count?
For more info on tonights proposal.
https://allentowntruth.blogspot.com/?m=1
Abe@12:06: links in comments do not work on blogger without special HTML code. However, I have included Allentown Truth on the sidebar blog link feature. Feel free to likewise list Molovinsky on Allentown.
ReplyDeleteHyman won!!! Thank you Mr. Hyman for fighting the good fight!
ReplyDeleteMatt finally wised up and gave in to Mr. Hyman and saved the taxpayers a lot of legal fees in losing to him.
ReplyDeleteHyman for Mayor!
ReplyDeleteMoral of the story…don’t fuck with Nat!
ReplyDeleteMOLOVINSKY on ALLENTOWN is an essential service!
ReplyDeleteThank you for all you do to keep us informed. You are appreciated.
anon@4:48: they were scoops, when I spoke with Hyman this morning he didn't know about the city's plan. MSM still hasn't caught up Hyman's conditions to drop the lawsuit. Of course the big story is the city now realizing that creeks lie in floodplains :)
DeleteCedar Beach Park is under utilized. It gets my vote for a homeless encampment.
ReplyDeleteMr. Hyman should include a demand to have a special flag raising for a flag with his company logo on it.
ReplyDeleteAnon @6:14
DeleteI have every confidence that the Mayor could handle the logistics involved in said Hyman Co. flag raising.
Just read the update.
ReplyDeleteLooks like another Molovinsky on Allentown scoop of the local news outlets, and now only on a semi-weekly basis!