I wrote on the protected budget for 2027 a few weeks ago. WFMZ just did a story if you didnt read it.
Ms. Affa stated she is worried about a double digit tax increase. No shit. Keep spending on things the city doesnt have the money for and that is what will happen.
She stated she was concerned with the not needed police station at a cost of 37 million. Try more like 40-50 atleast until it is done.
Also the new firestation and health bureau will cost atleast 65 million. Again something which isnt needed since Central fire just got a brand new roof put on it for 500k.
The police station is atleast a 2.5 to 4million dollar a year loan. Thats roughly and 8 percent tax increase. Every 4% tax increase generates approx 1.5 million. Keep that stat in mind.
Then there is the concern of the storm water fee. Yea 6.75 million dollar concern. No where to get that money from. The city better hope they dont have to pay that back. Eeeek. Taxes will be insane.
Bozo the clown Frank Kane comes up with this.
"We don't think that it's fair to give nonprofits a free pass and to balance that on the backs of the taxpayers," said Kane.
Maybe if he stayed awake or not on his cell phone at a council meeting he would see all the money the city gives away to non-profits. Of course the tax payers shouldnt have to pay their share.
Candy Kane proceeds to say its to early to tell if there will be a tax increase next year. Frank the city is looking at atleast a 12-17% tax increase right now. You know it and I know it.
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Quit giving yourselves raises. Also, if the mayor wouldn't travel every month, their would be some money to appropriately use.
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"City Council is committed to continuing to deliver the vital city services our residents expect and count on while collaborating with the financial auditor to identify the best solutions to minimize the financial impact to our residents."
Blah blah blah Shut up. You literally help your buddy Matt with whatever agenda he has. You vote to spend money on raises, projects, and whatever else the mayor wants.
To sum up. There has to be so much budget cutting from within each department to not have a double digit tax increase. You also have the Police contract coming up. They want their cut of the pie.
Time will tell but mark my words, there will be a tax increase, unless of course you dont want your streets plowed this winter. Pardon me, they dont get plowed anyways. Actually, or you dont want the potholes fixed. Damnit Abe, you are losing it. Those dont get fixed either.
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41 comments:
Matt is building a resume for himself with these unaffordable and unnecessary expenditures as these grandiose projects will play a starring role on his list of achievements. One can assume his plan is to be safely ensconced some distance from the city, in a new position before the bills start rolling in. It's sort of deja vu all over again for Allentown taxpayers. Ed's plans for a political rise out of the city was his claim that "I never raised taxes" . Of course that was technically accurate but only a half truth. He created new "fees" and sold off city property to fill budget gaps. Selling the water works was his greatest sin as it was a revenue generator. When ed was perp walked out of office he left the city worse off than when he arrived. Matt's tenure will present an even greater hardship to city taxpayers. Unfortunately too few in the city are bothering to notice or care. What's new?
ABE the mayor and affa look like there at home in there clown attire as the carnival will be in town soon.
No longer own properties in Allentown (thankfully). Now, honestly folks. What’s the solution to fixing that incompetent city administration? I mean, fixing it relatively soon.
Electing new people as decision makers will take a minimum of 3-5 years, followed by an additional 1-2 years “grace period” usually afforded to persons new to the position. In my opinion, Allentown residents should be hoping for a big group of retirements and resignations beginning right away. Things COULD be speeded up a bit by the Morning Call finally taking a stance against some of the jokers and policies in place, but don’t hold your breath.
The clown faces are disgusting, you child.
I sincerely believe former FBI agent Scott Curtis should run for mayor of Allentown. He would then be in position to hire a committee headed by Senator Jarrett Coleman to, for starters, evaluate the benefits of the NIZ to all present and former citizens of Allentown. We may then be able to hear voluntary or court ordered presentations by J.B. Reilly and Pat Browne on the NIZ benefits to the 129 acres of Allentown's Inner City.
Hasshan Batts could be made availble to explain the advantages to the remaining +11,000 acres within the city brought on by NIZ as well his reasons for vacating his own Allentown residence along with his distaste for the City police force. Residents of his Promise Neighborhoods would surely volunteer commentary on their luxury of "Life in the Hood".
Residents under age 25 could share the joys of freewheeling in the city on skateboards and bikes which are not restricted by motor vehicle laws governing cars, trucks and motorcycles. After all, don't Red Light Districts just connotate the availability of Hookers?
Confiscation of available Pot in the city would fill all of the Potholes and then be covered over with a glaze of asphalt.
Also, with Pawlowski back in town, who the hell needs Tuerk?
I'm grateful that some form of media is exposing to the public just how bad Allentown City government is. Given the serious ineptitude of the staff and elected officials, the clown faces are very appropriate
Rumor has it that the Finance Director extraordinaire has managed to balance the budget with a ZERO percent tax increase this year. If that doesn’t prove that Frank Kane is a revolutionary in government I don’t know what does. He has lit a fire under Bina and balanced the budget.
What the hell Abe? You are losing your mind. This blog has really lost its impact and seems more like a bullied kid whining and calling names. This is being mean just to be mean. What exactly does this post even say?
Yeah they’ll balance the budget and then do all of the mid year transfers and position reclasses that they’ve been doing for the past few years. Bina is finally adept at cooking the books.
Clowns faces are 💯 accurate. Describe them perfectly
ok Frank
I truly hope Patel and Frank balanced the budget. It would show council and the mayors administration actually listen to viewers on this blog. I believe thats the purpose of this blog. To get those in charge to do the right thing and serve the people correctly
You are so right Frank. This blog is low life trash
I can't fathom this continuing applause for Ed Pawlowski... his administration, as well as himself, was a total disaster, period!!! I'm reminded every water bill, school tax bill and city tax bill. PS: increases soon coming to our county tax. Monkey see, monkey do!!!
There are many people who want Ed back and it is simply telling of how shitty this mayor is that the voters would rather have a felon than the current loser in city hall.
I agree. I used to read this blog but it is really losing touch with reality.
If you want any more proof that the NIZ is a farce, I just read that the Allentown Art Museum is looking for its new location to be added to the NIZ, so it can take advantage of (I mean) “…benefit from some of the state taxes that go into the NIZ”, according to the Art Museum Director.
In addition, he estimates that the new museum will bring in about 100,000 visitors a year, although the article mentions that the museum currently only attracts 60,000/year.
I might be mistaken, but wasn’t the purpose of the NIZ to bring NEW businesses to the city? I was already thinking the 5 block move was a bad decision, but now state taxpayers (also known as “us”) are expected to foot the bill for that bad decision?
I would hope that the state would have better uses for the tax dollars that would be diverted, like funding improvements to our failing public schools; medical insurance for kids; attacking the root causes of homelessness; etc. instead, it sounds like those dollars will instead be going to the elites at the art museum and saving their fat cats donors some dough.
Also, I fully expect JB Reilly to purchase the old art museum building and then waddle up to the trough again to get him some more NIZ funding there. God knows, we really need some more bland and unattractive apartment and commercial buildings downtown.
I saw that they are trying to expand the NIZ to include the former APD station property , future Allentown Art Museum. It will be approved. JB Reilly the scumbag of all Allentown has politicians on his payroll and he has made billions off of stealing properties and using tax breaks.
Matt will place the approval in the express lane to approval.
100,000 visitors? Only if everyone going through the doors goes in and out 100 times each.
Remember the DaVinci Center claims? Yeah, and they are failing at their new location.
The clown faces are an exact replica of those peoples minds the all seeing knowing nothing that they really are between there ears.
ok Franks
wasn’t the museum recently made “free forever for everyone”?
Matt is a failure in all he does. That resume will have his name and an itemized inventory of incompetence .
Bring in the KloWns.
did you hear what i said? presenting a balanced budget is easy. maintaining one? not so much.
Frank Kane was already brought in to join Matt Tuerk and his cabinet.
County taxes going up 17%, PPL increases its rate every time I turn on a light, UGI raised rates, auto and home insurance, mortgage, food and gas prices all going ⬆️ .
If Tuerk raises city taxes, I am moving out of Allentown. It is ridiculous to work your entire life and have to pay for gross mismanagement of this city by our elected officials.
We need to stop electing the same fools in Allentown!
Tuerk refuses to cut his workforce and start looking at the fraud and waste he has in the city.
Why do we even have a mayor?! Get rid of him and replace with a city manager that answers to council.
All r KloWnZ just to divert attention from theft of services not even mentioning theft of monies city, county, state, and federal!)$?
Abe was roca and batts ngo mentoring programs involved in the shooting on 25th and Livingston involved with church on the run across the street? Than again it could have been the county buy back to give back guns.
Rising taxes, utilities and insurance are killing Americans. My fixed rate mortgage payment goes up every year. I'm all for a reduced level of government in Allentown to help stave off yet more tax increases. ASD?? Please just disband ASD and give every child a check to attend private, parochial, charter or other suburban public system. Disbanding the dysfunctional ASD and issuing checks to the students could easily result in a much needed school tax reduction for city property owners.
someone said "The clown faces are disgusting, you child."
Uh no, the clown faces are not disgusting. The people whom they are lampooning are disgusting. The clown faces are accurate. This blog is going strong and super irritating to the clowns who have thin skin and inflated self-worth.
If accurate, I am glad to hear that there will be no tax increase this year. I don’t know how they did it—canceling wasteful Fire and Police Station, workforce layoffs and reductions, misrepresentation of actual budget needs - but I am glad they figured it out. I am tired of these rising costs.
Heard the police just cut like 20 budgeted positions??? Why? To help balance the budget? Something fishy going on here??
They are probably realizing most of the APD sits in parking lots collecting pay most of their shift and doesn’t actually do much law enforcement. They are just trimming fat.
You and I flush things down the toilet on the regular than they could ever and I mean ever aspire to amount to in there life time, I am sure our friend ABE flushes the same regular shit down the toilet too! Our shit as well as parts don't smell like dick either.
Allentown is not raising taxes. Patel said it herself yesterday
I stand by my comment, Abe. It would be a terrible thing for a court to place the burden of federally-mandated stormwater runoff management on the backs of the average taxpayer while giving nonprofits a free ride. The westchester case has pretty limited scope and we feel good about our fee. Of course we are exploring options and there are some levers we have to make sure nonprofits pay their fair share.
You know it’s strange. I just got here. I am not party to whatever problems you have had with the city. No matter what we do, you have a problem with it. There is no right answer that i can ever provide because you have locked yourself into a corner of rage where your only option is to be eternally aggrieved with the city, and by extension with me, at all times. Who am I to judge? Maybe you really were mistreated in some way. There is no way for me to know.
The problem with being eternally and irreparably aggrieved is that people start to dismiss your thoughts because they know you are never going to be happy. I think people would take you more seriously if you gave credit when it is due.
The truth is that we are making good, responsible choices in this budget that will result in a reasonable and sustainable spending plan for this community. We will provide high quality city services at a price that our taxpayers can afford. I hope that when the time comes and we present a fair and responsible budget you will say “hey… this budget makes sense. maybe it’s ok for Frank to eat lunch during business hours.”
Nobody says you have to stop hating the city or me, but you can recognize when we do the things we promise and when we deliver responsible budgets.
The bottom line is that we are going to deliver among the least eventful and most responsible budget seasons that the City of Allentown has ever seen. Because we have a great working relationship between the administration and city council as well as with other stakeholders.
When you put me in a clown suit or an Oompa Loompa outfit, I am not offended because I know that it has nothing to do with me… you are really putting your wounded inner child in a clown suit.
I would submit that very little of this blog is a commentary on Allentown City government but rather it’s a comment on whatever your grievances are with the city.
By the way, I appreciate Scott’s comments. The only person who signs his name around here. We don’t agree on much, but maybe we agree on having the integrity to sign your name to things.
If youZ had half the brain youZ make claimZ of youZ wouldn't keep kicking the can down the road!)$? Catering to thoZe mentally ill with claimZ of normalcy and knowing all while stuffing pocketZ of a few definitely doesn't make for a balanced budget!)$? One can't and won't balance a budget with only anticipated anul income as a fact!)$?
REpublican redd
Now go back to wence itZ rock itZ crawled from beneath from the bottom of itZ cistern!)$?!!!!
Frank @12:27: You really need to read more, especially Bernie O’hare’s blog. Then again, maybe you do read it and used his wisdom as a playbook instead of a critique. Recently, he cited a lawyerly dictum, something like, if you don’t have the law on your side, argue the facts. If you don’t have the facts on your side, argue the law. If you don’t have either, attack your opponent. Take some time and review it on his site. ABE publishes valid information not often found elsewhere, and its framing is “colorful.” I’ve had a limited exposure to professional journalism in my career. Some years ago, an authoritative journalist told me I had to “sex it up,” regarding the facts involved. I declined. In light of that, be glad ABE has you in a clown suit.
It's not surprising that someone who has never before worked in local government would comment on a blog that Allentown is making "good choices and sustainable spending" or that Allentown is "providing high-quality services at a price tax payers can afford" These ridiculous statements further damage your reputation. Our own elected City Council member, Ms. Affa, just publicly expressed a concern (as reported here) about a looming double-digit tax increase! Optics count and every time our Mayor flaunts "sustainable spending" by using our over-priced vehicle for his personal use or takes junkets to California, these ridiculous sustainable spending claims are publicly refuted. Thanks to Abe, tax-payers are now aware of these junkets. "Very little of this blog is commentary on Allentown City government". Ha! Abe is keeping his loyal readers up to speed on what is really going on in City Hall, anonymous City employees are providing valuable insight and it obviously drives you nuts. Go ahead and use your arm-chair psycho-babble to impugn the moderator and call him a hater, but it's painfully obvious that you can't look away from the blog and you are overly sensitive to the content and reader input. Your huge ego is exposed when you feel you must enter comments and try to discredit the blog as you did yet again. You might be best served to ignore the blog, as your rebuttals only make it seem all the more mainstream.
Integrity? We must remain anonymous to speak truth to the very power that will strip us of our employment and livelihood. Mcpronouns lacks the integrity to accept any type of criticism and not seek retribution.
Doesn’t Frank Kane have a wife or maybe girlfriend to focus on? It is sad to see that he is so focused on this dumb little blog.
Maybe the content hits him where it hurts?
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