Mayor Leighton mad about CNN story (Scranton, Wilkes-Barre: credit, hotel, house)

[FightinPhils]

So Tom Leighton and others are upset about CNN's portrayal of Wilkes-Barre as an old coal mining town with a depressed economy. I'd like to know what Leighton is smoking. Wilkes-Barre IS a an old coal-mining town with a depressed economy. Why do politicians around here like to pretend that we're in some thriving rebuilt paradise? Leighton says there's been revitalization and rebuilding? Having a movie theater does not put a city on the cutting-edge...nor does a huge building that has sat mostly empty surrounding the theater despite being a tax-free KOZ. A couple of new bars likewise does not turn a city into Beverly Hills all of a sudden.

Also, if Wilkes-Barre's economy was thriving as Leighton says, all of these projects would not need taxpayer money from the state and the feds to become a reality. If the city was thriving, there would be lots of PRIVATE development outside of KOZ's (and they can't even fill the KOZ's).

Earth to Tom Leighton: W-B is a depressed old coal town.
Wilkes-Barre Takes Issue with Network News Portrayal (http://www.wnep.com/Global/story.asp?S=8108715 - broken link)

[weluvpa]

Follow the yellow brick potholed road, follow the yellow brick potholed road
Follow, follow, follow, follow, follow the yellow-brick potholed road
Follow the yellow-brick, follow the yellow-brick
Follow the yellow-brick potholed road

You're off to see the Mayor, the Wonderful Mayor of Oz
You'll find he is a Whiz of a Mayor if ever a Wiz there was
If ever, oh ever, a Wiz there was the Mayor of Oz is one because
Because, because, because, because, because
Because of the wonderful things he thinks does
You're off the see the Mayor, the Wonderful Mayor of Oz






When all NEPA is a hopeless jumble
And the street tops crumble all around
Rt 81 opens a magic lane
When all the taxs darken up the highway
There's a KOZ highway to be found
Leading from your tax pain
To a place behind the gun
Just a step beyond the pain

Somewhere over the debt way up high
There's a city that I've heard of once in a lullaby
Somewhere over the debt taxs are true
And the dreams that you dare to dream
Really don't come true

Some day I'll wish upon a star
And wake up where the taxs are far behind me
Where troubles crumble like the street tops
Away above the gov't props
That's where you'll find me

Somewhere over the debt KOZ birds fly
Birds fly over the debt
Why then, oh why can't I?
If happy little KOZ birds fly beyond the debt
Why oh why can't I?



I just don't understand why these two songs keep coming into my head when I think of Leighton and Doherty.

[FightinPhils]

Wait until SWB gets a hold of this thread and talks about sauntering around the tree lined streets and boutiques....

[to570717]

So if I went to you house that you are trying to rehab and putting all of your time and effort into. You are trying hard to make it nice, you are doing what you can with limited budget ect. I go there look at it and said what a ****ty place....you would be a bit offended or at least try and defend it?

MrKrabs, do you think your attitiude is any better than SWB's? Sure it is polar opposite but WTF!!!

[FightinPhils]

Originally Posted by to570717

So if I went to you house that you are trying to rehab and putting all of your time and effort into. You are trying hard to make it nice, you are doing what you can with limited budget ect. I go there look at it and said what a ****ty place....you would be a bit offended or at least try and defend it?

MrKrabs, do you think your attitiude is any better than SWB's? Sure it is polar opposite but WTF!!!

They didn't say it was a "sh***y place," they stated the truth, that Wilkes-Barre is an old coal town with a depressed economy. Tell me what is untrue about that statement?

And the politicians "limited budget" doesn't come from their pockets.....they use taxpayers money to foot the bill for these failed projects to make themselves look good for political gain (then there's always the cronies and campaign contributors that get the contracts for these building projects and the obligatory kickbacks). Were you born yesterday? It makes me mad everytime a politician takes credit for some project that was taxpayer funded. They didn't open their own wallets for the money....they dipped into the wallets of the taxpayers. Then the politicians get the photo-ops in the paper and the sheep voters fall for the smoke and mirrors show.

Like I said, if a city was thriving, they wouldn't need state and federal money to foot the bill for these projects....in a thriving area, there is PRIVATE DEVELOPMENT that is free of government handouts....a foreign term around here. When is the last time a business located here that didn't get corporate welfare from the government?

When are these politicians going to realize that THEY are the problem? The rampant corruption and cronyism and pay-to-play politics is exactly what is holding this area down. If Leighton wants to know why people think his city is depressed, he needs to look in the mirror. The same goes for the rest of them around here: Doherty, Kanjorski, Mellow, etc etc etc.

[FightinPhils]

Originally Posted by to570717

MrKrabs, do you think your attitiude is any better than SWB's? Sure it is polar opposite but WTF!!!

You do realize that I was joking around with my comment on SWB...

Your panties are really in a bunch down there in Florida today...

[W-B proud]

I agree with Mr.Krabs. This area is a rust belt area. We've been losing jobs and population around here for 50, 60 years now? You can't just build a movie theater, and turn around and say " hey! look at us, our city is thriving." It doesn't work that way. Our officials are trying to be positive, and are working hard to change it (some more then others), but we need alot of good paying jobs around here. We need alot of population growth (and not just drug dealers, and welfare recipients) well educated investors willing to take a chance on NEPA. And yes! most of all we must end the cronyism and corruption! Luzerne County is the laughing stock of the entire state. Almost everyday more bad news comes out about Skrepnek. This idiot has done NOTHING! POSITIVE for us. He is completely incompetent, doesn't know what he's doing. and uses his position of power to hire all his buddies (who also have no place being in a position of power) Exibit #1: Sam Hyder. These so called leaders are only out for themselves, and can care less about they're community. I'll tell you what, I'd vote for SWB in a heart beat. He is a person that loves this area and genuinely wants this area to succeed. That's exactly what this area needs. We don't need a dumb, self serving, ex-football player running the largest county in the region! He doesn't care about us and our region, he cares about how he can pilage more money for him and his buddies. AT OUR EXPENCE!!!

[CHS89]

I'd be upset about it too. He's trying to make his town better, whether successfully or not, and then ABC news (link never mentions CNN) craps all over what he's tryign to accomplish.

And yes, the job of a mayor --any mayor-- is to sell their city to others, as well as the residents. It all starts with the residents, though. If the residents elected him, it appears that they're buying into his plan, whatever it is. It is kind of insulting that a news crew can come in for a day to cover one thing, not knowing anything about the place or anything else, and just dismiss it with out of context images and no background info.

I dont' know much about Wilkes Barre or what's going on there, but it seems to me that Leighton has every right to be upset. It's his perogative. He's disagreed with an apparently uninformed opinion that went national and casts his city in a bad light. Why is the pride he appears to be taking in his hometown so troubling to you? Isnt' that his job--to make his city better, or at least portray it in a good light? I'd be more dismayed if he wasn't upset by it.

[SteelCityRising]

To570717, I appreciate the defensive words on my behalf, but even I could tell that MrKrabs was doing some innocent ribbing. He and I agree on 75% of the issues that come onto the table (even though I'm pretty sure he and debate a bit on the Times-Tribune's web site). He's unhappy with the political climate of his city, but he expresses himself with less anger than a few others always seem to have. When you want your opinions to be given credence, your best chance of changing people's minds is to be relaxed, confident, and patient---not flipping out and foaming at the mouth all the time as some members on this forum are prone to do. I'll admit that when certain issues arise, such as people discrediting what I have to say due to my age or people making nasty remarks about my personal and/or romantic life I too can fly off the handle, but I always feel guilty afterwards about letting my temper get the better of me. Then again as a 21-year-old Italian, testosterone is expected to be at "peak" levels.

I can see why Mayor Leighton was unhappy with this report. Wouldn't you be offended if you were a mayor trying to rebuild a Baghdad-like city and have it set light years back by an unflattering economic story from a major media outlet? Wilkes-Barre certainly isn't Boulder, Ithaca, Minneapolis, or even Scranton for that matter, but it's a much nicer place than it was even five or ten years ago. I'm confident that once the new riverfront commons, Hotel Sterling, camera surveillance system, intermodal transportation center, etc. are all completed over the next 2-4 years that the city's image will continue to improve. Remember in the 1990s when Scranton/Wilkes-Barre was dubbed as runner-up for "Armpit of America?" I do. I also remember the callous remarks made by my fellow residents who more or less shrugged it off as being "not far at all from the truth." If you honestly hate living here that much, then GET OUT!

The lack of creativity in this area never ceases to amaze me. Everyone looks merely at what is or pines over what was instead of imagining what could be. There's nothing wrong with being a "dreamer." Most of my ideas aren't extremely radical. Making several blocks of Lackawanna Avenue a pedestrian plaza similar to what you see in those photos of Ithaca I included in the other thread was possible. Giving people affordable living options downtown isn't rocket science when just about every other American city is noticing a resurgent downtown population. I'll also admit that while I find flaws in much of Doherty's reasoning and his poor execution of a checkbook registry on the city's behalf, I DO agree with him 100% about the dramatic impact planting 1,000 new shade trees throughout SouthSide is going to have to elevate property values, strengthen civic pride, and make the neighborhood feel more liveable. I've seen aggressive urban forestry campaigns help to herald a nearly 180-degree turnaround in other residential neighborhoods of other cities of Scranton's size. Why can't the same happen here? Dan always complains that "Scranton isn't Ithaca, Boulder, Charlottesville, etc. and never will be." That may be true in a physical sense, but benchmarking one city's progress against another's in order to bounce ideas back and forth is certainly NOT a bad idea. Why is it that everyone seems to believe that what's good for one city automatically can NOT be good for another?

[W-B proud]

Wilkes Barre and Scranton and many other cities in the rust-belt are dealing with the same issues. Our area hit it's peak 100 years ago, and has been shrinking ever since. The coal industry is long gone, and many other industries have also left. I know beggers can't be choosers, but opening industrial parks, and filling them with low paying warehouse jobs isn't gonna have young professionals and college grads. flocking to our area any time soon! We need to convince high tech companies, pharm. companies, financial companies ect. to take a chance on us. It seems like we're finally turning a corner though...The population decline has stalled for the time being, and has even grown a little bit!, our cities are re-investing in themselves, and our downtown's are starting to make a come back, young local enterpenuers like Scott Sanfillipo are opening up nationally recognized companies like Solid Cactus, and Pepper Jam .com (we need about 100 more of these). These are all positives, and a good start, but it's gonna take much, much more to undue 100 years of decline. We need to get national firms to notice us as the next "up and coming place to be", and do buisness. And convince our college grads. to stay here and invest in NEPA, and open up successful buisnesses like Solid Cactus. No one has all the answers, if they did we'd be living in a busy, thriving region by now, but at least we are starting to scratch the surface, and make some progess.