Renaissance at 500 (Philadelphia, Scranton, Wilkes-Barre: cul-de-sac, upper-class, home)
Northeastern PennsylvaniaScranton, Wilkes-Barre, Pocono area
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WNEP seems to even have a slant towards being pro-Doherty, much like the Times-Tribune, because they give the mayor positive air time seemingly semi-weekly.
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"Pittsburgh: America's Most Livable City"
(set 23 days ago)
Location: Polish Hill, Pittsburgh, PA
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I just sat and watched the video on the Scranton Times-Tribune web site that accompanied the article about the project, and while I may not agree with many of Governor Ed Rendell's policies, he had me swooning like a high school schoolgirl when he started talking about the folly of urban sprawl. He stated that in the 1990s Pennsylvania was 48th in the nation in terms of job creation, 48th in the nation in terms of population growth, yet 6th in the nation in terms of loss of open space for new development. That means that virtually 100% of the homes, businesses, etc. built in recent years in our state were the result of needless and wasteful urban sprawl. He went on to recant growing up car-free in Philadelphia, where he walked to work, school, amenities, etc. He seemed to be addressing how continuously rising fuel prices were eventually going to encourage more suburbanites to invest in core cities, like Scranton, again, in order to be closer to services and conveniences.
The project may have been initiated under grossly negligent circumstances by giving the Piccolino family such a raw deal, but if moving a pizzeria means that 18 new housing units can be created downtown, then I'm all for it. After all, that might be 18 new families who decide to move to Scranton as opposed to building anew in the suburbs. That might be 18 new families who decide to move into the city from the suburbs. That will be 18 less vehicles congesting I-81, the North Scranton Expressway, or the Central Scranton Expressway at rush hour. That will be 18 more families patronizing existing city businesses and encouraging the development of new downtown businesses, all of which will boost the city's tax base and give it more funds available to invest in other neighborhoods. I'm not saying I'm a fan of either Doherty or Rendell, but they both have the same mindset that I do that urban sprawl has become an epidemic problem in Northeastern Pennsylvania; do we really want to become the next NoVA or North Jersey? I mean, have you seen the area between Leesburg, VA and Washington, DC lately---calling it South Abington on steroids is an understatement!
I just sat and watched the video on the Scranton Times-Tribune web site that accompanied the article about the project, and while I may not agree with many of Governor Ed Rendell's policies, he had me swooning like a high school schoolgirl when he started talking about the folly of urban sprawl. He stated that in the 1990s Pennsylvania was 48th in the nation in terms of job creation, 48th in the nation in terms of population growth, yet 6th in the nation in terms of loss of open space for new development. That means that virtually 100% of the homes, businesses, etc. built in recent years in our state were the result of needless and wasteful urban sprawl. He went on to recant growing up car-free in Philadelphia, where he walked to work, school, amenities, etc. He seemed to be addressing how continuously rising fuel prices were eventually going to encourage more suburbanites to invest in core cities, like Scranton, again, in order to be closer to services and conveniences.
The project may have been initiated under grossly negligent circumstances by giving the Piccolino family such a raw deal, but if moving a pizzeria means that 18 new housing units can be created downtown, then I'm all for it. After all, that might be 18 new families who decide to move to Scranton as opposed to building anew in the suburbs. That might be 18 new families who decide to move into the city from the suburbs. That will be 18 less vehicles congesting I-81, the North Scranton Expressway, or the Central Scranton Expressway at rush hour. That will be 18 more families patronizing existing city businesses and encouraging the development of new downtown businesses, all of which will boost the city's tax base and give it more funds available to invest in other neighborhoods. I'm not saying I'm a fan of either Doherty or Rendell, but they both have the same mindset that I do that urban sprawl has become an epidemic problem in Northeastern Pennsylvania; do we really want to become the next NoVA or North Jersey? I mean, have you seen the area between Leesburg, VA and Washington, DC lately---calling it South Abington on steroids is an understatement!
I hear what you are saying Paul. But some people like living in the suburbs and would never live in Scranton no matter what it may offer in the future. They like the quietness and seclusion with lots of land. They just prefer country living over city living.
Hey, people bought those pontiac aztec things, so there's a market for any taste. Variety is the spice of life, and some like their Scranton zesty. With limited downtown apartments, the real question is when will we hit the saturation point? When you have fifty units just sitting on the market, it might not be as attractive, and development will stop. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for what's going on in the downtown these days, but if a noticable payoff does not occur it may all be a waste; a big gamble, but one that I feel needed to be made.
As far as Buona Pizza, Piccolino should have made a deal. Granted, the intial offer made to him was said to be hard to swallow, but after a little media attention and public support, he should have found a way to make it work out to everyone's best interest. I would find it hard to believe that the developer behind this project was not open to hammering out a deal; Piccolino's actions did nothing more than delay the project, bring bad press, and now they will most likely take all of what he has instead of the piece they originally wanted.
I found it odd that the Scranton Times reported that Coney Island Lunch on Lackawanna was giving out free hotdogs and water at the event, when their name sake competition is part of the 500 project?
If the plan comes to fruitation and is on cost, time and is USED (ie: apartments rented, stores filled) I see it as a shot in the arm for downtown.
The "if" part is what makes me nervous. I still see the wage tax of 3.4% being a major stumbling block for the city...I strongly wish the powers that be would wake up and smell the coffee on this issue!
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"Pittsburgh: America's Most Livable City"
(set 23 days ago)
Location: Polish Hill, Pittsburgh, PA
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Quote:
Originally Posted by loveinbloom
If the plan comes to fruitation and is on cost, time and is USED (ie: apartments rented, stores filled) I see it as a shot in the arm for downtown.
The "if" part is what makes me nervous. I still see the wage tax of 3.4% being a major stumbling block for the city...I strongly wish the powers that be would wake up and smell the coffee on this issue!
Oh I agree wholeheartedly. Dan and I used to butt heads repeatedly on the "high property tax" issue when he first joined the forum, but we're both in full agreement about the wage tax being ludicrous and a hindrance to further redevelopment across the city. I can move to Scranton and stomach paying property taxes that are in-line with many of the suburbs, but the 3.4% wage tax is absolutely ridiculous. Surely there are other means to raising revenues that would involve shifting the burden off of the back of city residents and more evenly onto those who come into the city daily to work, worship, learn, dine, etc. and pay nothing currently for the municipal services they are provided. One could feasibly live one home over the Dunmore line near Petersburg yet spend 99.9% of their waking hours in Scranton while paying 0% to upkeep Scranton's services and infrastructure. Why?
Would a flat 1% city sales tax be something to investigate? I mean, even at the most "expensive" proposition you're talking about perhaps someone buying a car from Kelly Volkswagen for $20,000 and paying $200 in city sales tax. If a family of four dines at Brixx and has a bill of $75, you're talking about an extra $0.75 city sales tax. I don't think suburbanites are going to start shunning their favorite city restaurants and merchants to avoid paying a buck in city sales tax, even with our ailing economy. What about doing some more investigating into Janet Evans's proposed amusement tax? I'm not the typical "tax and spend liberal" type, but if I were mayor even drastically reducing administrative salaries, changing all city light bulbs to CFLs, upgrading city vehicles to more fuel-efficient models, purchasing more recycled products in bulk at a cheaper cost, etc., I still think new taxes such as these would be needed in order to generate enough revenue to offset the elimination of the wage tax.
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but true laugh!
