The “Downtown Browne” Show…

browne-portrait Technology has benefitted many industries, created many others, and turned the world in to a global marketplace. But no one group or segment of society has reaped more reward from the ability to sit in front of a keyboard to reach out and touch thousands of people, than the political establishment.

The old expression “stump speech” comes from the fact that for a candidate or politician to be heard while addressing their constituents, they’d have to stand on a tree stump to get up above the crowd. Despite all the emphasis on “going green”, there’s not a stump in sight across today’s political landscape. There is however, Facebook, Twitter, and Flipcams.

State Senator Pat Browne, whose 16th District includes parts of Lehigh, Northampton and Monroe Counties, is taking full advantage of these innovations by creating a series of video programs called “The Browne Report”. The latest edition focuses on downtown Allentown and the good things happening there. Included in the 27 minute video are…

** Lee Butz & the Butz Building

** Rev. Bob Stevens & Zion’s Church

** Cosmopolitan Restaurant

** Tamara Weller, Ex. Dir. of Allentown Parking Authority

** APD Chief Roger MacLean & Hamilton Street’s own guardian, Officer Rick Mongolitz

** Ann Vaughn of East Penn Properties

In case you don’t have time to watch the entire program, I’ll share my favorite quote, which I’m somewhat paraphrasing,  from Ann Vaughn who credits Mayor Pawlowski for all his energy and all the money he’s put in to downtown. Or to put it another way… all the money the taxpayers have put in to downtown.

To close on a positive note: I’m not sure if a video about downtown Allentown will bring in any new investors or customers, but I give Pat Browne credit for trying.

Blogger’s Note: This URL does work and will open when you click on it, but it was not suitable for embed.

http://nova.pasenategop.com/browne/2011/0111.wmv

4 thoughts on “The “Downtown Browne” Show…”

  1. Gregg S. Heilman

    I have lived in the same neighborhood in Allentown since 1948. We could watch the Mack Workers walk home every night across Fountain Park. Now Mack is gone, GE is gone, Bethlehem Steel is gone, Black and Decker is gone and soon the business on South 10 TH Street O”bama was taken to visit.

    In the last ten years we had four individuals murdered within three blocks of our home. I heard the shots of one murdered man and watched another man run past our home and drop a gun out of his waist band as police chased him. The day we buried my mother at her service at 10 TH and Maple her life long church, ST Matthews, there were shell casing on the sidewalk of the church.

    Our home has been broken into twice in the last 5 years, there are 2 empty homes in our block, we never had empty homes.

    Every car we have owned as been broken into in front of our home. Last Memorial Day someone burned a car they stole out front of our home at 11:30 P.M. Had I not heard the noise our own cars and home might have burned up with this car.

    I could give you volumes of examples of how our town is in the worse condition of my life of 62 years as a citizen of Allentown. But I have to limit my entry here.

    I know several other long time citizens and NONE of the them NONE believes we are in good shape.

  2. Gregg S. Heilman

    My wife and I remember the first time we met State Senator Pat Browne, 16th District. It was one evening when he was early in his career he was going door to door in our neighborhood.

    Then we weren’t the only voters in a block of our home and it was safe for a politician to go door to door.

    This was just after the victory by Washington at Trenton.

    We voted for him and then he was caught with the DUI. He brought some of his fellow politicians to tour the Valley. However he did not drive and he did whatever the law required of him. We still vote for him. But he needs to take another walking tour of the area at night and one during the day.

    Now we are the only voters in the entire block and only a thug would be out there going to someones door after dark.

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