Where its downtowns have led, rest of Lehigh Valley must follow
Every year when I attend Musikfest I’m blown away by the magnitude of the incredible event. The amount of people that pack downtown Bethlehem is truly amazing. That’s right, I said downtown. To me that’s one of the best parts of this festival: It’s downtown. The very place we thought we might lose during the suburban flight of the ’70s and ’80s is jam packed with thousands of happy people thanks to Jeff Parks’ vision, which has continued to grow under the leadership of Kassie Hilgert.
It strikes me as I watch major acts rock out in front of hordes of fans that this is the same spot where many hardworking men and women toiled. They came, lunch pail in hand, in an effort to get that house for the family, a dependable car or college for children. They were playing by the rules, thankful for a chance to work hard and get ahead.
And just like in the Bethlehem Steel days, people drive from far away to be in that south Bethlehem site, though for very different reasons: One to find family-raising employment, one to find family-memory entertainment.
Today, many American cities desperately need reinvention. In so many cases, they are cash strapped and left with a tired, residential housing stock. School districts run short on cash as the need for services continues to grow. Police departments, emergency rooms and other public services are being stretched to the maximum.
Thankfully, our Lehigh Valley cities are comparably better off, but that can and will change quickly if we’re not careful.
Reinvention is supremely important in the 21st century. As I’ve often said, there’s no coasting. You’re either pushing full steam ahead or someone will pass you by. And there are few regions in this country that have radically changed themselves like we have in the Lehigh Valley.
Allentown’s business district is a miracle compared with what it looked like 15-20 years ago. Companies were leaving and there was minimal hope for a turnaround. But turn around it has. Business leaders such as J.B. Reilly and
political leaders such as state Sen. Pat Browne as well as Mayor Ray O’Connell continue the relentless economic vitality.
When the company that put Bethlehem on the map ceased to operate, things looked hopeless. But in unrelenting fashion, Bethlehem’s leadership under Mayors Don Cunningham, John Callahan and now Bob Donchez wouldn’t quit and reinvented it into one the finest cities of its size in this country.
Then there is Sal Panto Jr.’s Easton. It makes me smile every time I attend an event at the State Theatre and see parking lots filled with cars and people packing Easton’s incredible array of restaurants for a pre-event meal. Some gave up hope but not all Eastonians, not Shelley Brown of the State Theatre, not the many business leaders who kept on pressing on. It paid off.
This is our Lehigh Valley and it’s a great comeback story. But we have much work to do. We must somehow, some way, breathe economic vitality into the residential collars of our downtowns. We must some way, somehow, ensure that downtown residents believe the American Dream is their dream too, and it’s reachable.
We need the faith community to welcome people to their houses of worship. The political community to dream big and drive change. The business community to create and support employment opportunities. And our incredible health networks to pursue and challenge all of us to become healthier.
But most of all, we need families. Families willing to pay a price to build a better tomorrow. God-fearing, hardworking, neighbor-loving people who want to own their future, a generation willing to sweat and toil until it feels like they can’t go on.
But I’m confident they will. Just like in this Valley’s hardworking, blue collar past, there’s no quitting, because there’s just too much to lose.
This won’t be easy. Those more fortunate will need to be ready and willing to reach out and lift others, while those in need will grab on tight and never let go until they reach their American Dream.
One thing is for sure, we’ll only succeed if we’re in this together.
Tony Iannelli is president and CEO of the Greater Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce. He can be reached at tonyi@lehighvalleychamber.org.