Pawlowski's Poor Priorities

The former Barber Quarry rail spur is no secret. The line ran along the Little Lehigh, under both the 8th Street and 15th Street Bridges, ending up near the present day Hamilton Family Diner. I have posted about it often; The Train of Lehigh Parkway, also The Train of Union Terrace and The Junkyard Train. It has played a role in several City plans. It's former railbed would be incorporated into the Trail Network Plan, and the AEDC received a grant to perhaps reinstate the rail line. Both these projects have been covered here at molovinsky on allentown. Today we are told that construction of the 15th Street Bridge replacement will be delayed because of arsenic found by the former railbed. Arsenic, and other pesticides were previously used to make railroad ties. This also is no secret. We are a city which can work with the state government to fast track development for political and private benefit, but are content to have the entire southside isolated. When construction finally does begin, it was suppose to start last November, the bridge will be closed in both directions for over a year. Schreiber's Bridge, the 184 year old stone structure a quarter mile west, has been taking a pounding.*  In 1957 the 15th Street Bridge opened, finally providing a good connection between South Allentown and the remainder of the city. Because Pennsylvania was considering it's replacement, Community Development Director Pawlowski, under Afflerbach, didn't have it's metal beam structure painted. Because Mayor Pawlowski has been consumed with Transforming Allentown, no haste has been applied to the bridge project. While the politicians and press lament about the Hole at 8th and Hamilton, I'm concerned about the quality of life issues; That bridge is one of them.

*This blog has noted the on going damage to Schreiber's Bridge from heavy use with just one lane of 15th Street Bridge currently closed.  This blogger personally informed Mayor Pawlowski of the damage. 

The Bricks of Allentown

When Mildred Gehman* portrayed the house on the southeast corner of 12th and Walnut Streets in 1950, it was already about 60 years old. Another 60 years have passed, and the house still looks the same today. The bricks of Allentown hold up well. Yesterday, as I passed the corner of Madison and Chew Streets, I noticed three buildings in a row wearing a new orange tag, Unfit for Human Habitation. I have seen many clusters of these orange tags. They are generally handed out to one unfortunate owner or another, by one inspector. Recently, I received a phone call from such a hapless owner. His two buildings were tagged for some superficial reason, such as peeling paint. Everybody knows who has painted, or paid to have his house painted, that the stuff starts peeling off in short order, since the lead and other emulsions have been removed. Back to hapless owner. Because his buildings were tagged, the tenants were forced to move. In addition to the disruption in the tenants lives, the owner was denied the income stream to meet his debt service. Upon completion of the work on the list, the inspector then created a new list upon re-inspection. The re-inspections required scheduling specific inspectors, such as plumbing and electric, and dragged out the time frame. The primary inspector then inflicted a third list on the owner. Over a year has passed, his two buildings remain vacant, and the owner is out over $Thirty thousand dollars. Buildings on 12th Street, just north of Chew, have been tagged so long that the orange is fading on the notices. The city can mistreat rental operators because the public has little to no sympathy for that class of ownership. Several years ago, Allentown passed a Point Of Sale inspection law, which requires inspections of all private houses for sale. Welcome to the bureaucracy. To post a comment pertaining to a specific property, owner or inspector, you must must use your name.

 *Mildred Gehman,1908-2006, starting teaching at the Baum Art School in 1946. At that time, Baum was on the southwest corner of 12th and Walnut Streets, across the street from the house shown above.

17 Minutes of Repetition

Pawlowski's interview on WFMZ is 17 minutes of repetition. He says over and over again that the city's proposal addresses all the concerns that the townships had in regard to the EIT. When the interviewer directly asks Pawlowski if he made any mistakes in implementing the plan, he glosses over the question, and again repeats himself about the EIT concessions. His premise that this was the most evaluated plan in the valley's history is completely erroneous. Although the legislation may have existed from 2009, nobody, including the legislators, knew anything about it. All news reports on the topic have been after the fact. Pawlowski considers those dog and pony show presentations about the arena, after the demolition began, to be public input. I do not believe he swayed any township officials with the interview. Watch it here.