Has anybody noticed that after 3 years there are only 2 buisnesses in the Buisness incubator. Why is that? The building is about 2/3 unoccupied. I know people who tried to get a start up buisness in there and were unable to. They have a board that doesn't meet and is very slow to respond to anything. I thought the purpose of the KOZ incubator was to help NEW buisness get on it's feet. It looks like it's nothing more than a tax shelter for current buisnesses. Also, has anybody seen the Southern Union building lately? It is not completed and they only have 2 or 3 workers there 1 day per week working on the facade. This only started up 1 or 2 weeks ago, before that there was no activity there since the end of June.
Does anybody have any thoughts on the Irish Theme bar that is going into the parking garage being constructed on the former site of the Casey Hotel? There is another Irish theme bar opening around the corner on Spruce St. There are already 3 tax paying "Irish" bars in the downtown. How many more do they think we need. I know they had people from the Reading Market Place looking at that site. It is my understanding that they lost out to another Irish theme bar. Now they are trying to promote downtown living with the loft apartments. Wouldn't it make more sense to have a place such as the Reading Market Place there? People living in town would be within walking distance from the butcher, the baker, and the candlestick maker.
I also find it quite odd that during the may primary and it's preceding adds the conference center was a centerpiece of the Doherty campaign. It appeared in adds to show the growth he had achieved in the downtown. Six months later it's going belly up and he didn't have much of a comment on it. He played it off like he had nothing to do with it. How well do you think the new owners are going to do? They will get EVERY dime they can out of it and run. I don't blame them, they want their money. In 20+ years the hotels (one of which was a Hilton) could not make it at the Lackawanna Station. How can anybody think that another hotel will? When you build places like that, you need people to stay in them. How long could I have a grocery store and sell less than half of what I bought?
The fact in this town is. Anytime local government gets involved in buisness the ONLY ones that lose out are the tax payers. Examples. Lackawanna Station, The Hilton, The Casey Garage, The Globe Store.
What about the Connel Building in the 100blk of N. Washington ave. They bought it, threw the tennants out, and abandon it. The city never collected the back taxes, and the few tenants that they had paying left.
Let me give you folks a hint. Take a look back at the library 25 years. Check out the history on the Lackawanna Station project, the Casey garage sale, and the new project on the southern side of the 500 of Lackwanna ave. Mind you, the city took a financial bath on the first two. See if you can find any names common to all 3 of these projects. I could drop one here, but it might be better if you checked the history yourself.
Then take a look into the citys contributions to the developers of the townhouses popping up all over the city. I don't really have a problem with the townhouses, but they are built by the developers so the developers can profit BIG from them. The old mill on Bryn Mawr st. City picked up the tab on the demolition after the developer had purchesed the land for back taxes. Also, the home on the NE corner of Greenridge St. and Sanderson Ave. After the developer bought it, the city (city employees and city equipment, and tipping fees at the landfill) tore the building down. Does anybody think that if they bought a tax sale property, and wanted to put a new home there, the city would clear the land for them? I believe there was also money from CDBG involved in that, but I'm not sure.
Anybody that has the time, check it out. Make notes of names that appear in EACH and EVERY one of these projects. Also, pay special attention to the history of the older projects.
