ARTICLE
A crowded Democratic primary field for the Allentown mayor’s race was that much more crowded with the 800-pound gorilla in the middle of the room – the ongoing FBI probe of pay-to-play politics in city hall. And hours after the city’s former top appointed official pleaded guilty in connection with the probe, Mayor Ed Pawlowski found himself seated with his fellow candidates addressing the federal investigation. “There’s a concept in law that everyone is presumed innocent until proven guilty,” the mayor told the crowd inside Miller Symphony Hall. “And I hope that concept hasn’t been suspended here in the city of Allentown” The Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday hosted a forum featuring six of the seven Democratic candidates for mayor. The forum will air on “Business Matters” on WFMZ 69News 7:30 p.m. March 27 and April 3. Francis X. Dougherty, Allentown’s former managing director, pleaded guilty in federal court Wednesday to wire fraud. He’s accused of rigging the contracting process at the behest of an elected official matching Pawlowski’s description. The mayor has not been charged in connection with the investigation. Dougherty becomes the seventh person and fourth city official to plead guilty. Moderator Tony Iannelli broached the topic of the FBI investigation during the second half of the forum in response to written questions from attendees. Specifically, he asked city council President Ray O’Connell if he would have done anything differently as president in light of the probe. O’Connell said the investigation will “take care of itself,” and he offered more of a comment on the relationship with the mayor rather than a suggestion that he would have done anything differently once the investigation came to light. “The mayor and I at the beginning were … on the same page,” O’Connell said. “But it’s like a marriage, it’s like a family. When you lose trust … and someone’s deceitful to you, you’ve lost everything.” Candidate and Lehigh County Commissioner David Jones said people need confidence their local government in an “honest broker,” considering the ongoing chaos in Washington D.C. and Harrisburg. And while he praised the mayor as the reason he’s involved in local politics, Jones shared his criticism. “What is sad is that the legacy of service and good work is now going to be tarnished. Not because of whatever the judicial system decides in terms of guilt or innocence,” Jones said. “It’s going to be tarnished by his decision to continue to want to stay in office because as long as he wants to stay in office, the cloud, the doubt, the uncertainty remains in place.” Pawlowski countered by asking, “What cloud,” citing millions in ongoing development and a city budget that came in under projections. “I don’t see any cloud that has stopped this city from progressing,” he said. Before the forum, the mayor maintained his innocence in the face of mounting pressure. "I still say I did nothing wrong," Pawlowski said. "And if I did anything or felt I wronged the city in any way, I wouldn't be running for office." He repeated that position during the forum, which brought both cheers and applaud from some and heckling from others. Siobhan “Sam” Bennett told the audience that officials can’t allow the probe define the city, while Charlie Thiel said they next mayor must be ready to lead the Allentown beyond the controversy. The investigation serves as a reminder of the corrosive nature of money and campaign contributions on politics, Joshua Siegel said. The more members of the community are involved in city government, the less likely something like this is bound to happen, he said. The candidates did manage to discuss a range of other issues in a quick-paced format that allowed for broad-brush answers that were generally short on detail. The candidates outside of Pawlowski seem to agree that city finances are not in as good a shape as officials portray. Thiel said he believes there will be some “financial surprises” in the city’s sustainability and five-year outlook for whoever comes into office next. The mayor noted a handful of times that Allentown hasn’t raised property taxes in over a decade, but O’Connell suggested the city should instead have been making periodic modest increases of a quarter or half mill to shore up its reserves. Siegel agreed that the next mayor will likely need to do some unpopular like raise property taxes, a move that must be made at the possible expense of “electability.” Pawlowski countered that O’Connell in his eight years on council has never suggested a tax increase. When you talk about budgets, it’s less about numbers and more about a community’s priorities, Jones said. So if the city wants to make itself better and invest in its youth, it will need to spend money, he said. The city’s five-year budget projections show 2 percent annual revenue increases, but that will only cover the “status quo,” Jones said. Bennett touted a positive relationship she said she has with Gov. Tom Wolf’s administration, which she maintains will be important in keeping the city’s Neighborhood Improvement Zone thriving. The unique tax zone has spurred more than $1 billion in downtown development. As for the NIZ, the candidates all agree about its transformative power for the city. But they also agree that city hall must spread that growth and investment to Allentown’s other business districts and subsequently their surrounding neighborhoods. Jones noted that a third of the city lives below the poverty line, creating an “undercurrent of instability” against whatever positive the NIZ generates. In response to Pawlowski noting the thousands of construction and permanent jobs created by the NIZ, Siegel pointed to the need for quality jobs, not just the quantity. Allentown needs to be part of an international economy that “taps into a growing global middle class,” he said. The candidates also touched upon the need to improve the city housing stock by bringing on more code inspectors, fostering greater community involvement in city government, promoting greater diversity in the city’s public safety departments and pushing home ownership. There are currently two Republican candidates for mayor. The municipal primary is slated for May 16. Read the original article here.
A crowded Democratic primary field for the Allentown mayor’s race was that much more crowded with the 800-pound gorilla in the middle of the room – the ongoing FBI probe of pay-to-play politics in city hall.
And hours after the city’s former top appointed official pleaded guilty in connection with the probe, Mayor Ed Pawlowski found himself seated with his fellow candidates addressing the federal investigation.
“There’s a concept in law that everyone is presumed innocent until proven guilty,” the mayor told the crowd inside Miller Symphony Hall. “And I hope that concept hasn’t been suspended here in the city of Allentown”
The Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday hosted a forum featuring six of the seven Democratic candidates for mayor. The forum will air on “Business Matters” on WFMZ 69News 7:30 p.m. March 27 and April 3.
Francis X. Dougherty, Allentown’s former managing director, pleaded guilty in federal court Wednesday to wire fraud. He’s accused of rigging the contracting process at the behest of an elected official matching Pawlowski’s description. The mayor has not been charged in connection with the investigation.
Dougherty becomes the seventh person and fourth city official to plead guilty.
Moderator Tony Iannelli broached the topic of the FBI investigation during the second half of the forum in response to written questions from attendees. Specifically, he asked city council President Ray O’Connell if he would have done anything differently as president in light of the probe.
O’Connell said the investigation will “take care of itself,” and he offered more of a comment on the relationship with the mayor rather than a suggestion that he would have done anything differently once the investigation came to light.
“The mayor and I at the beginning were … on the same page,” O’Connell said. “But it’s like a marriage, it’s like a family. When you lose trust … and someone’s deceitful to you, you’ve lost everything.”
Candidate and Lehigh County Commissioner David Jones said people need confidence their local government in an “honest broker,” considering the ongoing chaos in Washington D.C. and Harrisburg. And while he praised the mayor as the reason he’s involved in local politics, Jones shared his criticism.
“What is sad is that the legacy of service and good work is now going to be tarnished. Not because of whatever the judicial system decides in terms of guilt or innocence,” Jones said. “It’s going to be tarnished by his decision to continue to want to stay in office because as long as he wants to stay in office, the cloud, the doubt, the uncertainty remains in place.”
Pawlowski countered by asking, “What cloud,” citing millions in ongoing development and a city budget that came in under projections.
“I don’t see any cloud that has stopped this city from progressing,” he said.
Before the forum, the mayor maintained his innocence in the face of mounting pressure.
"I still say I did nothing wrong," Pawlowski said. "And if I did anything or felt I wronged the city in any way, I wouldn't be running for office."
He repeated that position during the forum, which brought both cheers and applaud from some and heckling from others.
Siobhan “Sam” Bennett told the audience that officials can’t allow the probe define the city, while Charlie Thiel said they next mayor must be ready to lead the Allentown beyond the controversy.
The investigation serves as a reminder of the corrosive nature of money and campaign contributions on politics, Joshua Siegel said. The more members of the community are involved in city government, the less likely something like this is bound to happen, he said.
The candidates did manage to discuss a range of other issues in a quick-paced format that allowed for broad-brush answers that were generally short on detail.
The candidates outside of Pawlowski seem to agree that city finances are not in as good a shape as officials portray.
Thiel said he believes there will be some “financial surprises” in the city’s sustainability and five-year outlook for whoever comes into office next. The mayor noted a handful of times that Allentown hasn’t raised property taxes in over a decade, but O’Connell suggested the city should instead have been making periodic modest increases of a quarter or half mill to shore up its reserves.
Siegel agreed that the next mayor will likely need to do some unpopular like raise property taxes, a move that must be made at the possible expense of “electability.”
Pawlowski countered that O’Connell in his eight years on council has never suggested a tax increase.
When you talk about budgets, it’s less about numbers and more about a community’s priorities, Jones said. So if the city wants to make itself better and invest in its youth, it will need to spend money, he said.
The city’s five-year budget projections show 2 percent annual revenue increases, but that will only cover the “status quo,” Jones said.
Bennett touted a positive relationship she said she has with Gov. Tom Wolf’s administration, which she maintains will be important in keeping the city’s Neighborhood Improvement Zone thriving. The unique tax zone has spurred more than $1 billion in downtown development.
As for the NIZ, the candidates all agree about its transformative power for the city. But they also agree that city hall must spread that growth and investment to Allentown’s other business districts and subsequently their surrounding neighborhoods.
Jones noted that a third of the city lives below the poverty line, creating an “undercurrent of instability” against whatever positive the NIZ generates.
In response to Pawlowski noting the thousands of construction and permanent jobs created by the NIZ, Siegel pointed to the need for quality jobs, not just the quantity. Allentown needs to be part of an international economy that “taps into a growing global middle class,” he said.
The candidates also touched upon the need to improve the city housing stock by bringing on more code inspectors, fostering greater community involvement in city government, promoting greater diversity in the city’s public safety departments and pushing home ownership.
There are currently two Republican candidates for mayor. The municipal primary is slated for May 16.