Misdirected Director?

The Managing Director has been in the position now for four months. I still cant help but pose the question: What exactly are we getting for $135k/yr? I see even less from the city administration than before his appointment. For that salary we should expect tangible results. All I see is more wasteful spending and tap dancing. The mayor now has even more of an excuse to attend “conferences” out of town now that Frank is running the city. 

Tuerk boasted at the confirmation hearing that the Managing Director was vacant for four years and he wanted to get it right. Still hasn't got it right. He even said for the past four years he considered many candidates and listened to many opinions but through it all Frank Kane was always in the back of his head. Yea okay.  If we had a competent mayor that would actually mean something.

Instead we have a flunky social media influencer for a mayor who is more absent than present. He only shows up when there is a chance for a short video to post of himself on the platforms.  

It is no secret - and so many at Lehigh County will probably easily confirm - that Frank was never around during his time as CED Director at Lehigh County. His poor performance and absence led to the new County Executive to not include him in his new cabinet. He was pushed to a basement in the county offices and hung around doing even less as part of a separation agreement. 

Then his savior, Matt Tuerk felt sorry for him not having a job and offered him his choice of positions in the city. Always know that Matt Tuerk will find new ways to waste taxpayer dollars and take in a poor performer into his administration.  

4 months in and where are any results?  

Audit of Mayor’s travels? Frank handed over a piece of paper with numbers in crayon with no receipts or documentation and it was good enough for council. Give up the numbers!!!  

Homeless Legislation? Let’s face it- NOTHING will ever be done to address the homeless crisis. If it is resolved, what will Lehigh Valley politicians run on and promise to solve? It is a can that will be kicked down the street forever and into the river with the other trash.

Spending? More employee promotions, larger contracts, and wasteful spending is a basic tenet of this administration. Just wait until the budget presentation. Or wait until my budget post. I'll spill the tea on whats to come. 

If there is no tax increase this next year, be sure Patel is cooking the books and misrepresenting the fiscal health of the city with a lot of help. Stormwater tax, new APD station, temp police rental, Fire Station, promotions, DROP, buyback, out of control overtime, new positions, to name a few.

Data Centers? Oh boy they are coming to Allentown.  The confusion that surrounded the Curative Amendment was created and exploited by the administrations legal department. Isn’t it funny that Reading, Hazle Township, Lancaster Township, Doylestown Township and Smithfield Township have all exercises a 180-day pause on data center development through a curative amendment, but Allentown played a deceptive shell game that confused everyone involved—-paving the way for data centers. 

Safer Streets? That is an even bigger joke. The streets have been less safe during these last 4 years and our APD are unable to enforce the city laws. Not because they don’t want to, the mayor will not allow them.  

Frank was hired to “ensure that City departments operate efficiently and that the policies of the Mayor and legislation adopted by City Council are implemented effectively.”  

What are the policies of the mayor? Are the departments working together or against each other? I hear city hall is extremely siloed and mistrust and discord are running rampant. From what I hear Frank has mostly been a charlatan most of his career. Not surprising, he has learned in record time how to put in a minimum effort and keep cashing checks while hobnobbing with the local elites. He and Matt are in a neck and neck competition to see who comes to the office later and who can stay out of city hall more. Although you can always find Frank at one of the Hamilton eateries during business hours for breakfast and lunch with mystery guests that aren’t city employees. I mean, yuck! At least he spends his money in Allentown. Matt spends your money in other states and global destinations.  

How does this mediocrity continue to flourish in Allentown? A lot of blame is correctly placed on the administration and the city directors, however the Council is also to blame. We have had very weak leadership on council for years. Individuals who have not listened to the people of Allentown.  

How many times has Councilwoman Mota sat at council and said she heard the cries of the community but then voted opposite? 

Remember the days of Hendricks shutting down public comments? How about the piss poor current President, Santo Napoli? He may be the worst of all. He is a servant to Matt Tuerk and will ensure Tuerk’s wasteful and misaligned agenda are pushed forward.  

Is Allentown destined go be a community where government mediocrity thrives, accountability is weak, and both the Tuerk administration and Council contribute to ongoing dysfunction? Sadly I feel this our new normal for at least the next 3 years and 5 months.  

A Felon more loved than a Tuerkey

There has been a lot of talk on social media about the return of former mayor Ed Pawlowski to Allentown. 

Many in the community are taking to his Facebook to welcome him back home. There is over 350 comments on the Morning Call facebook site alone. Most in favor or in support of the former mayor. Many asking for him to replace the current one. 

There are few people with the appeal (not sex appeal) required that could bring this kind of attention like Ed. Love him or hate him I am sure his release from prison has come through your ears.

His tenure was certainly riddled with problems, but he remains quite popular and loved by many people. I am sure the current occupant of the mayor’s office wishes he had the popularity that Mayor Ed has managed to find in Allentown. Wake up, Matt! You never will. 

Somehow, the mayor who went to jail is looking more competent, more present, and more connected to the community than the mayor currently sitting in City Hall. I mean where has Gold Tooth been? Sends the Jersey car salesman to every council meeting. "Ugh eh Ugh ugh well." Damn babbling brook. 

Did Ed travel the world, learning about climate warming and its effect on Allentown? No. Did Ed take secretaries with him on city funded trips? No.  

Im not endorsing Ed— this is just an indication of how low the bar has fallen.

Mayor + No Criminal Record = Better Leadership. Yet here we are, living in the exception that proves the rule.

Mayor Pawlowski — flaws, charges, and all — at least understood the community he served. He showed up. He talked to people. He held his cabinet accountable. He knew the city’s problems because he walked through them. 

He didn’t need a press release to tell him what residents were dealing with; he could hear it from the sidewalk. Not from his electric mustang or bicycle. Running through the streets on Facebook live talking at 7am when the average Allentownian doesn't get out of bed until noon isnt public relations.

Ed fought hard against the unions as well. He didn’t give these monster contracts without a fight. He didnt give into their demands just to be liked. He did the job right, (despite his pay to play shit that everyone will bring up). 

I dont remember a weekly flag raising either as a publicity stunt. Let Frank be the coordinator of the raising of the flags. Despite his lack of knowledge on somethings I would much rather watch him speak. 

I saw Ed out in the community listening to issues and assisting where he could so many times.

Meanwhile, the Tuerk administration runs on being absent, unclear and lacking statements, and the hope that no one notices they are incompetent and in over their heads.  

Just look at the actions taken in the last 4 years by this mayor and his cabinet. There are more failures than successes…. actually, what are the successes? I'll wait. Still waiting.

Still waiting....Ed Pawloski certainly wasn’t the greatest mayor that ever lived; no leader is perfect. My point is that the current mayor is so horrible that people are starting to say, “Well… at least Pawlowski cared. At least Allentown was his priority, not global travel destinations”

Allentown can survive scandals. It can’t survive neglect, mismanagement, weak leadership and out of control spending. I mean Pawlowski was still voted in as mayor despite having 949 charges against him. That is love by the community. 

Even though this will never happen. Ed would definitely crush Matt if the two faced off in an election. As the Morning Call and LehighValley.com both said: don’t count out Ed Pawlowski.

Bullshit excuses for Raises

I went back after a couple drinks and rewatched the special meeting this past week.  The CED introduced yet another upgrade to the Health Director with a salary increase from $110,426 to $117,267. The justification is that the Health Director is in a cabinet level position. Well, according to the Home Rule Charter, the Health Director is not considered cabinet, and the Council has not approved adding the Health Director to the cabinet. So, this raise shouldn’t be approved

They are also promoting the Opioid Prevention Manager – they seem to be doing a great job, we have Narcan vending machines.

Their salary will increase from $70,070 to $74,695. Justification for this promotion is to “better align with duties”. What does that even mean? Such a bullshit explanation. Show some results. There are people overdosing every day, yet is a vending machine your solution?

Civics Innovation Manager – although not on the agenda for promotion, yet. Councilman Binder asked recently about the mayor’s office Data Analyst to assist with some of the concerns from the CED committee meeting and Frank stated there is no data analyst in the mayor’s office. Newsflash Burgundy, the data analysis, is a duty of the Civics Innovations Manager. The most recent vacancy report shows the position was filled in March 2026. 

It is very well known that Ms. Boyer was promoted to the new Civics Innovation Manager. To my knowledge, there has not been a request to reorganize that job that was approved by the council. Similarly, there has not been a single CHATT since Ms. Balek-Cole left the position last year. It appears that the position duties have been converted to doing nothing but getting paid very well, a gold standard for Boyer.  The vacancy report also indicates that the city has a Communications Manager?? But do we?? There has been zero from this individual and no announcement from the administration regarding who they are.

The city keeps doing this thing where they hand out raises and change job titles and then act like it’s all fine because it “better aligns with their duties.”

Like… seriously? That phrase means nothing. It’s just a go‑to excuse whenever they want to give someone more money without explaining why. Or if Bina is there the response is "I do not have that answer."

The city paid for an expensive pay study — a big fancy report that’s supposed to show what jobs should really earn and which should be eliminated. But the second the study didn’t say “yes, give this person a raise,” it was tossed aside like it never existed. Crybabies.

So why even pay for the study? Just to pretend they care about fairness? Because they sure don’t use it.

Instead, they keep doing these “realignments” that magically bump people up pay grades. No posting the job. No letting anyone else apply. No proof that the work has changed. 

Just poof — new title, new salary. It really shows that the Tuerk administration thinks they are above following any rules. I blame this on the inexperienced mayor and incompetence in all levels of management.

Meanwhile, regular employees in the city are out here trying to stretch every dollar. When will Council start paying attention to the game that is being played with promotions? The administration presents promotions during the budget season and then brings more changes during the budget year and claim that they “found cost savings” or try to justify the change because it is “grant funded”. As if grant money doesn’t matter at all..I mean it is free money from the state and federal government, not taxpayers, right?   

Council has tried for years to force the administration to follow a process for promotions, new positions, and upgrades during normal budget approval. They are simply weak when it comes to follow-through and paying attention to their own concerns.  

The administration has said for four years “we can do that next year” and then the mayor asks for changes outside the budget and council allows it again.  

If these raises are so important, then show the proof! Show the numbers. Show the workload. Show literally anything besides the same four‑word excuse they keep repeating like a broken record. Show that there is a process and follow it with no exceptions or special considerations.

It looks like the city can’t say no to itself…it keeps saying yes to spending our money. #getthemallout

And honestly? I am tired of it.

Also, this week’s agenda shows a proposed police pension ordinance Bill 55. The bill allows officers to buyback prior police time as credits for their retirement.  For example, an officer who worked in the city of Tuerk for 3 years could buy that time.  So once the officer had 17 years of service completed, they could buy the prior three years and retire with 20 years of total service.   They will not be eligible to purchase post-employment healthcare unless they completed 20 full years serving Allentown alone.  Officers may buy up to five years.  Mayor O'Connell agreed to this bill in 2021, but the bill didn’t pass until 2024.

This bill is supposed to entice experienced officers to come to work for the city.  Yet it allows them to retire earlier.  Not sure where the benefit exactly is.  

Next on the agenda is the sick time legislation.  This is an overreach of authority in my opinion for the city government.  Pennsylvania has no statewide mandate for sick leave.   Some PA municipalities have decided to try and force employers to provide sick leave minimums for local employers.   Allentown is following their precedence and claiming it is a public health issue. 

Trying to put this authorization under the local health authority is a weak attempt to fill the gap.  The Allentown health department is stretching “public health” beyond its intended scope.  Employers will be forced to provide sick leave just because they have a business in Allentown.  Small businesses will most likely leave Allentown for places in the Valley with less regulation.  Tuerk just keeps trying to ruin Allentown.

Finally, I want to take a moment to look at the contracts that are being presented this week.   Am I the only one who notices that the city usual cast of vendors (Michael Baker, Telco, Johnson Controls, etc) continually have change orders that increase the cost of the contract? 

Example: The Bogarts Bridge project was originally $2,258,522.18 and now there is an increase of $156,084.66 to bring the new contract pricing to $2,414,605.84.  The justification is that they discovered wood that was damaged and wasn’t included in the original pricing.

Hmmm?  The question is – was there not a visual inspection of the bridge prior to the bid announcement to ensure a better scope of work was presented?  Is the city negligent in presenting a proper bid document? Do vendors know the city is unable to forecast the actual work required?  This happens repeatedly with the city contracts.  It does seem that the usual vendors bid low to secure the contract and then have a change order to add more money. I don’t blame the vendors; the city has been unable to write a proper bid document that minimizes the chance for contract cost inflation.

All I want for Christmas is a functioning Allentown city government.

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Cannot capitalize on anything

 

I went to an Iron Pigs game the other day.  I have to say, that place is the best thing within the city limits.   

For starters the parking lots were clean.  No litter.  Everywhere was well lite up and I felt safe despite not seeing even one police officer. Its even cheaper to park at the game then on Hamilton St. 

I didnt hear loud music blasting,  loud obnoxious mufflers nor did I see any stupid scooters or dirt bikes.  

The game appeared to be sold out, as many are.  But does the city actually benefit from this cash cow? 

I believe the players stay in a hotel in Bethlehem after games.  I am sure the visiting teams stay outside of the city as well. That is embarrassing.  They cant even get the players to stay after the game. I mean I am sure the Super 8 on Airport Rd would offer a great deal. 

So, how does the city have one of the top attendance minor league clubs in the United States, yet doesn't benefit?  That is insane.  No one eats dinner in the city before the game, and once the game is over look out route 22.  No one stays and spends money.

Remember when the Sands casino (now the Wind Creek) was deciding which city to build its casino? Allentown or Bethlehem. Could you imagine a casino right near the stadium?  That would have made for a fun night. Baseball, beer, and gambling. But we all know how that story ended.  The Sands wasnt dumb and went to Bethlehem.  Yet, despite their move, they still pay  the city like 3 or 4 million each year.

The city just cannot capitalize on anything. The NIZ zone does not count either. The fact Allentown is the 3rd biggest city in Pa, with a river running through it is amazing.  Yet the river does not draw anyone there except out-of-staters looking to party and litter the waters.  I cannot think of another major city that has a major body of water in it that isnt utilized to draw people and make money. 

Until our leaders learn how to start generating money for the city vs spending it, the city will never get better and taxes will continue to go up. I have a very nice post on the uncoming budget.  Lets just say, you won't be happy reading it if you live within the city. 

Lastly, after the game there were fireworks. I gotta say, they were awesome.  They werent real long, but I enjoyed them way more than the city's 4th of July fireworks.  

Bezos to the rescue

Jeff Bezos the founder of Amazon— you know the guy who literally makes more money in a minute than 90% of the world —has donated 4million dollars to Allentown. The money is supposed to be used to transform the empty lot at Franklin Park back into a park.

If not properly monitored by police which it wont be, the park will allow for several things.  

1. A new place for kids to fight after school.

2. New graffiti grounds.

3. New spot for a gang to call home. 

4. A good location to meet and sell drugs.

My question is will someone actually watch how the $4 million is spent? Will some be dumped into the general fund? Because Im sure that never happened before.  

Are there any strings attached to this money? It is very interesting to see the administration is welcoming this money from a company that has a culture shaped by a long trail of worker complaints, federal investigations, mistreatment of employees leading to a toxic culture , poor working conditions, and a pattern of repeated retaliation.  

Yet the administration is rolling out the red carpet for Bezos’s money — no hesitation, no scrutiny, no public conversation about what it means to partner with a company known for these issues.

Does this seem like an organization that matches the messaging of the Tuerk administration? Is it possible that Amazon leadership and the administration have more in common behind the polished and highly crafted persona of the mayor’s office and his cabinet?

It’s a question worth asking, the city residents and employees alike are vocal about feeling unheard, overworked, or overlooked.