Light Rail expands

Hi everyone,

As I've argued in the past, I am a big advocate for light rail in the Lehigh Valley. Based on the data currently available, I think light rail is vital to the long-term sustainability of the region, to controlling our taxes, our rate of development and to revitalizing our urban cores.

Well, it looks like light rail is expanding: A light rail system just opened in Phoenix, now the nation's fifth largest city. The system, which cost $1.4 billion, is twenty miles long and has been in the works since the 1980s. It also is a metropolitan system, as it crosses into neighboring cities. Phoenix also has an additional obstacle to contend with when it comes to light rail: in the summer, passengers must wait in an average of 106 degree weather. Phoenix had been the largest city in America without a public rail system, and other western cities have also opened a rail system recently.

I suspect that this is initiative will continue to gain steam across the country. Yes, gas prices are down (to a five year low), but that decline is largely a result of a collapse in demand due to the global recession. When we come out of this recession, gas prices will likely climb again and drivers will, once again, be squeezed at the pump. My biggest arguement for light rail (and, indeed, for urban living) is simply that I believe we are rapidly reaching the point where our current system of transportation (almost total reliance on automobiles) will be untenable, unaffordable and unsustainable. We have to look at alternative forms of transportation now if we want to plan for the future.

What is a Community Benefit District?

Hi everyone,

The Express-Times featured a story on the possibility of a Community Benefit District coming to Bethlehem and Easton. Perfect timing, then, to explain what exactly a CBD is.

A Community Benefit District (also known as a Business Improvement District, or BID) is basically a funding mechanism that allows for revitalization programs to support themselves. The CBD is governed by a board (made up of local business and property owners, not the government) that would collect funding based on a fee that would be assessed to all properties (excluding non-profits) within the district. The board would then use the money to hire staff and manage programs. Of course, the funding could be enhanced by government, business and non-profit contributions. The fee is mandatory - after a certain percentage of property owners within the district agreed to started the CBD, all properties would have to pay the fee (the amount varies). CBDs have been used across Pennsylvania - they are a great way of revitalizing downtowns, particularly after state-funding for a Main or Elm Street program has ended. Of course, since they involve assessing another fee. In the long-run, the benefits to the district (enhanced business, reduced crime, better physical appearance, higher property values, etc) are supposed to outweigh the assessment of the fee itself. However, the assessment of the fee (often seen by property owners as another tax) can be highly controversial. The process of determining how to spread the costs and the amount of the fee is determined by the community.

Really, at the end of the day, community engagement and input is the only way that any bid district will succeed. The community has to be committed to paying the fee, managing the board and determining the priorities and goals of the CBD - otherwise, it is doomed to failure.

Happy Holidays to all!

Alburtis Completes Calendar

Hi everyone,

I'm very happy to announce the completion of a project that we had been working on for months in Alburtis. Please see the information below for more!

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NEWS RELEASE

Alburtis completes calendar


Alburtis, PA (Dec 23) – Mike Schlossberg, Alburtis Business Revitalization Coordinator, announced today that the Alburtis Business Revitalization Program (ABRP) has completed a calendar that contains pictures of Alburtis. The calendar, which was developed by the ABRP and designed by the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce, is now for sale at Alburtis Borough Hall and First Star Bank of Alburtis. It can be purchased for $15.

“This calendar serves two purposes,” said Schlossberg. “First, it allows us to raise money so that we can continue our work in reinvigorating Alburtis’ historical downtown. Second, the pictures in this calendar showcase some of the most beautiful locations in the Borough. Alburtis is an absolutely gorgeous community and we want to help advertise those strengths.

For other questions on how to obtain a calendar, please contact Mike Schlossberg at 484-809-1796 or MikeS@lehighvalleychamber.org.

Well, at least its not just us

As the article I posted yesterday indicated, Main Streets are struggling in the current economic times. That being said, it isn't just us! Check out this article that appeared on CNN's website.

Malls are hurting too - in fact, vacancies increased 7% this year, the highest since 2001, and the future forecasts are no better.

That being said, it seemed that this was bound to happen, and that the long-term effects could be good for our urban areas. Quoting directly from the article:

"Our country has six times more retail space per capita than any other county," said Ellen Dunham-Jones, director of the architecture program at Georgia Institute of Technology.

"We're just cannibalizing our existing stores by building more stores even when sales aren't increasing," she said. "We were long due for a retail correction and we're going through it now."

So, it seems that there is a large amount of available retail and commercial space available already. Gee, I wonder where that space is largely concentrated....

How is Main Street doing?

I came across this USA Today story regarding Main Street and the recession. USA Today went to five different Main Streets to see how they were faring in the challenging economic times of the day. This first city was Pheonix, and the prospects appeared daunting - development has stopped, credit has dried up, the housing market has burst and consumer spending is in decline.

The recession will be felt on Main Street and in our downtowns for reasons similar to why it is being felt nation-wide. Financing is harder to obtain for urban projects, and this obviously will make it tougher for redevelopment to take place - this is particularly painful for larger projects that need more funding. Consumer spending is declining and consumers are saving more to make up for dwindling revenue and a loss in their retirement accounts

For more information, check out these articles:
http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008812100438
http://www.paloaltoonline.com/news/show_story.php?id=9871
http://www.courier-journal.com/article/20081207/BUSINESS/812070374/1003/ARCHIVES

Treevitalize update

Hi everyone - good news about Treevitalize. Revoting yesterday, the Lehigh County Commissioners revoted on Treevitalize yesterday, and this time the program passed 7-2. Thank you to the Commissioners who voted in favor of this important project!

Everybody loves Main Street!

In the course of looking for some information about a project I am working on, I got a random idea. I typed "Main Street" into Google to see what I would come up with. As you might expect, I got a lot of results related to Main Street programs. That makes sense. What surprised me, and what I got a big laugh out of, was the amount of businesses that have "Main Street" in their name even if it has absolutely nothing directly to do with a traditional downtown.

It makes sense, too, when you think about it. For example, how many times this year did you hear that a politician running for office wanted to make sure that government represented "Main Street, not Wall Street"? The image and symbolism of Main Street has a near sacred place in the American ethos. Main Street conjures up images of home, of the corner drug store, of a safe place and a simpler time.

Such an explanation would certainly help explain why so many businesses have Main Street in their name! They are trying to tap into the American soul. For example, there is the Main Street Casino (http://www.mainstreetcasino.com). I don't think any of my downtowns have one of those. There is also Main Street Homes (http://www.mainstreethomes.com), which, judging by the front picture displayed, is probably located far far away from Main Street. How about http://www.mainstreet.com? That's got financial advice. Alright. Then there is http://www.mainstreetlighting.com/, which at least has lighting that is appropriate to Main Street. My favorite, though, is (http://www.certainteed.com/CertainTeed/Pro/Builder/Siding/Prodindex/CertainTeed/MainStreet.htm). They sell siding. That's just ironic.

My point is that Main Street remains a popular and desired brand in America. This is one of the biggest strengths that our downtowns have - they represent a way of life that millions seek and desire. We have to learn to tap into that desire in order to get those people back.

How can we help?

Hi everyone,

Well, unless you are living underneath a rock, you know that the economy isn't doing so well at the moment and we appear to be entering a recession, the likes of which has not been seen since the Great Depression. Let me first just say that I don't believe that this will be an actual depression. A recession has varying definitions, but a good rule of thumb is to define a recession as the time from when business activity reaches it's peak to when business activity bottoms out. It usually lasts about a year. An alternative definition is when the GDP (gross domestic product) declines two quarters in a row. A depression, however, is best defined as a decline of the GDP by more than 10%. Most forecasts I have heard have not been that severe.

That being said, there is no question that we are currently in a recession. With public funds limited, the pressure is on Main & Elm Street programs like the BBRP to produce economic results, and I think that's fair. When it comes to economic development, I believe that the expendature in public funding, in the long-run, should result in an enhancement of the economy in whatever area the funding is targetted. Accordingly, if public funds are being used for this program, we must be able to make an improvement on the economy. Given the current economic climate, this need becomes more important than ever.

How, then, can we best improve the economy? This is a question that is being discussed in great detail by program coordinators and one which we must answer. Training, business enhancement programs, Facade Programs and promotional/marketing assistance are some of the things we are currently discussing, but there are absolutely more answers.

What are your thoughts?

More revitalization in Allentown

Congrats and best of luck to the newly formed Allentown Neighborhood Development Alliance. Good to see that more revitalization efforts are taking shape in Allentown, especially in an area that is as important and historic to the city as this one.

Treevitalize Program in Jeopardy

Well, this isn't the happiest blog entry I've had to make.

At their last meeting, Lehigh County Commissioners voted down the Treevitalize program. This involved voting no to accepting the funding for the program from the state, no to an intergovernmental agreement to run this program with Northampton County and no to the allocation of grant money via the Streetscape Amenities program. Even more unfortunately, the County also voted no to a $7,500 Master Plan grant that Macungie had applied for and been awarded. Commissioners voted 3-3 against accepting the funding for the program (Commissioners Jones, Eckhart and Leiner voted yes, Dougherty, Roman and Browning voted no and Hamm, McCarthy and Raber were absent). Commissioner Eckhart then voted no on the intergovernmental agreement and the allocation of the grant funding.

The rationalle for declining this free state money, according to a statement made by Commissioner Browning on Lehigh Valley Ramblings, is that "The funding priorities of the State need to be readjusted." Commissioner Browning notes that the state has made severe reductions in human services funding and expects the County to pick up the costs. I think we can all sympathize with his concerns - there is no question that Counties are suffering with recent state funding cuts.

That being said, I don't see how voting no to accepting funding to Quality of Life grant funding will force the state to adjust its funding stream. Will funding in other areas because Lehigh County voted down this grant? Of course not. Instead, it will just result in Lehigh and Northampton losing funding and other areas gaining it. Voting no to one source of funding will not increase it in others.

The failure to accept this funding affects every municipality in Lehigh and Northampton counties that were planning on applying for this grant. In Alburtis and Coopersburg, public meetings have been held on where to put these trees and what types of trees should be placed. In many municipalities, expenditures have already been made under the assumption that the costs would be reimbursed by the County. Should these municipalities now be left out in the cold?

Fortunately, since three Commissioners were absent, there will be a revote on this issue. The next Commissioner meeting will be December 10, 7:30pm at the Lehigh County Government Center (7 S. 17th Street in Allentown). If you are able, I encourage you to attend the meeting and let your thoughts be heard. I also encourage you to contact the Commissioners office at 610-782-3050 for the same reason.

This program is very important to enhancing the quality of life throughout the Lehigh Valley. I hope you will join me in ensuring that this decision does hurt the efforts of the many revitalization programs that are in progress as we speak.

Economic Statistics

Hi everyone,

I recently gave a presentation to the Hellertown-Lower Saucon Chamber of Commerce. For the presentation, I gathered some information about the current economy. It's depressing, but everyone should know the shape of our economy. Here is where we are at right now:

• Consumer confidence is the lowest it has been since the measure first started in 1985.
• The NYSE is at its lowest point in five years, while the S&P 500 is at it’s lowest in eleven years.
• Consumer spending has decreased and the planned increase in consumer spending is at it’s lowest since 2002. This isn't the case for everyone though...Walmart grew about 10% in the 3rd quarter of 2008.
• Home sales in the Northeast are down 10% from last year. In a rapidly growing area like the Lehigh Valley, this bound to hurt the local economy. While this trend won't damage cities as much (since they are already built-out), it is still bound to hurt to some extent, as urban economies depend, in part, on revenues generated from out-of-town shoppers and employees.
• Local governments are feeling the strain, with at least eight local municipalities facing likely tax hikes (in one case as high as 62%). Pennsylvania may have to raise taxes next year as well.