Block (grant) party
Should state funds be used for new field at Blair County Ballpark?By William Kibler, bkibler@altoonamirror.com
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Fact Box
Minor league assists
Starting in 1986, the legislature authorized borrowing $3.45 billion for the Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program to fund regional economic, cultural, civic and historical improvement projects that display significant potential for improving economic growth and the creation of jobs, according to a state Web site. Of that total, $93.364 million has been given to minor league baseball stadiums, according to Susan Hooper, Office of the Budget:
Current stadium name/teamAmountYear
PNC Field/Scranton-Wilkes Barre Yankees$11 million1988
Jerry Uht Park/Erie Seawolves$8.905 million1993
Johnstown Point Stadium/[formerly Johnstown Johnnies]$1.3 million1993
Blair County Ballpark/Altoona Curve$10.8 million1997
Bowman Field restoration/Williamsport Crosscutters$750,0001998
PNC Field/Scranton-Wilkes Barre Yankees$1 million1999
FirstEnergy Stadium/Reading Phillies $400,0002000
Sovereign Bank Stadium/York Revolution$12 million2002
Johnstown Point Stadium II/(formerly Johnstown Johnnies)$2 million2003
Clipper Magazine Stadium/Lancaster Barnstormers$10 million2003
FirstEnergy Stadium II/Reading Phillies$550,0002003
PNC Field II/Scranton-Wilkes Barre Yankees$500,0002003
Pullman Park/Butler BlueSox$1.859 million2004
Medlar Field at Lubrano Park/State College Spikes$3 million2004
Johnstown Point Stadium III/[formerly Johnstown Johnnies]$1.5 million2004
Coca-Cola Park/Lehigh Valley IronPigs$12 million2004
Medlar Field at Lubrano Park II/State College Spikes$9 million2004
Sovereign Bank Stadium II/York Revolution$1.5 million2006
Coca-Cola Park II/Lehigh Valley IronPigs$2 million2006
Clipper Magazine Stadium II/Lancaster Barnstormers$2 million2006
Blair County Ballpark/Altoona Curve$1.3 million2008
Also, the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources granted $500,000 in 2008 for construction of a plaza, restrooms, parking, walkways, utilities and landscaping at Commerce Bank Park in Harrisburg, home of the Harrisburg Senators.
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» Blair County Ballpark renovationsAltoona Curve fans driven batty last year by fair-weather ''rainouts'' because of drainage problems at Blair County Ballpark should have a sunny outlook as spring training begins because the state recently served up a $1.3 million grant for a new field.
Critics have slammed that use of taxpayer money for the benefit of private enterprise, especially with the national economy in a slump and the state playing budget catch-up.
''There is no respect for the taxpayers' money at any time, but it's even more glaring in the face of deficit spending,'' wrote Michael Boston in a Mirror letter to the editor last fall. ''No sports franchise should get public money for any reason ...''
Nate Benefield of the Commonwealth Foundation calls it ''corporate welfare,'' while Eric Epstein of RockTheCapital.org asks rhetorically, ''maybe they [state officials] can spare some change to fix the bridges, pave the roads and cover the potholes.''
Even the lawmakers who pitched the project to the governor, the county commissioners who helped set up a pathway for the money and loyal Curve fans have misgivings about it.
''In an ideal world, given the amount of money professional sports generates, [teams] could afford to provide their own facilities,'' said State Sen. John Eichelberger Jr., R-Blair, who worked with State Rep. Rick Geist, R-Altoona, to persuade Gov. Ed Rendell to release the grant.
The Pennsylvania Constitution doesn't list funding ballparks as a government function, added Commissioner Donna Gority.
The money ''probably could be used for other things,'' said season ticket holder Eileen Snyder.
Commissioner Terry Tomassetti's traditional, conservative political values made him skeptical about the wisdom of the grant, but the reality is, the Curve are Blair County's most important attraction, he said.
"There is philosophy, and there is reality,'' he said.
Lots of places have good schools and a good labor force, but the Curve are critical in helping ''differentiate'' us from them, he said.
Because the Curve are one of the keys to attracting business development, and because a decent field is critical to the Curve continuing to play here, the grant represents ''food on the plate'' and ''economic security,'' both more important than his political philosophy, Tomassetti said.
Some might say it's pork barrel politics, but ''as long as [state] lawmakers appropriate money like this, Blair County should try to get [its] fair share,'' Gority said.
How it got here
The money came through the state Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program.
''We all have to play in the same game,'' Geist said, explaining that his district's interest comes before his own conservative leanings.
The county couldn't afford to pay for a new field, and, without one, the team might have left at the end of its 10-year lease this spring.
''That's what they were telling us they were going to do if we didn't take care of this,'' Tomassetti said.
Then-Curve principal owner Chuck Greenberg thinks the county was responsible for the field replacement, just as a landlord would be to fix a leaky roof for his tenant.
"The tenant doesn't pay," he said. "Especially when there's a lease."
County solicitor Nathan Karn disagrees. He says the team was responsible, and that if it had left after the lease period with the field unfixed, it would have opened itself to a breach-of-contract lawsuit.
That point is debatable, said Ralph Albarano, a principal of Lakemont Partnership, which leases the entire Lakemont Park complex, including the stadium, from the county - which ultimately owns the ground and buildings.
In a convoluted arrangement that allowed the county to receive $10.8 million from the state to build the stadium in 1997, Albarano's group leases the ballpark back to the county, which in turn leases it to the ball club.
The lease states that the ball club ''will maintain the stadium facility in good order and repair, subject to normal wear and tear.''
Last year, the field was 10 years old, three years past what Greenberg said was a normal life span.
So, was the replacement project the equivalent of normal maintenance?
''It's obviously a very gray area,'' Albarano said. ''It was smart on everybody's behalf to take advantage of the money.''
The state couldn't use that grant money anyway to help cover its big general-fund deficit, Eichelberger and Geist said.
RACP funds come mainly from borrowing through bonds, Eichelberger said, adding that bond guidelines don't permit the funds to go for operations or even capital projects whose life span is longer than the term of the loans.
The state borrowed the money used in the grant about 14 months ago, before the economic downturn, Geist said.
If the county hadn't gotten the grant, it might have had to borrow the money, said Marty Marasco, executive director of the Altoona Blair County Development Corporation.
Or the team might have had to raise ticket and concession prices beyond what many local people could afford, Albarano said.
An investment
in the area
Geist doesn't recall any negative phone calls to his office about the grant.
He does, however, recall people a decade ago complaining about the initial $10.8 million grant for construction - people who later came to the stadium and loved it, he said.
''It's our county's biggest block party,'' Geist said. ''Unbelievably special.''
It creates a sense of pride and generates lots of revenue for the region, Gority added.
While the economic meltdown gives grant critics leverage, it also gives grant advocates similar leverage: It's a ''shovel-ready'' project that's probably not much different than many others in the recently passed national stimulus bill, said Benefield, who's no fan of the grant.
It's hard to say generally whether public financing of stadiums is warranted, according to Mark Rosentraub, a professor at Cleveland State University. One can argue that if a team is doing well, it ought to pay a ''user fee,'' he said.
Conversely, he said, if a facility anchors a major redevelopment strategy and there are private sector commitments, an investment of public dollars may be justified.
The ultimate criterion is ''does it pay'' for the public sector to invest, Rosentraub said.
''[The figure] $1.3 million is not a lot of money in the scheme of things,'' said Charlie Johnson, a sports development consultant from Chicago.
The public sector typically pays for capital projects, he said. And the state is the government of choice, especially in the Northeast, where states generate more applicable revenue than municipalities, he said.
Ballparks and
state money
Blair County is one of many counties that received state funding for minor league facilities through RACP.
Since 1988, the program has allocated $93 million in 21 installments for construction or improvements for 14 minor league baseball stadiums, according to a list supplied by Susan Hooper, spokeswoman for the state Office of the Budget.
Government funding of sports stadiums is common nationally, said Casey Wells, executive director of the Convention Center Authority in Erie County, which received $8.9 million from RACP in 1993 to build Jerry Uht Park for the Erie Seawolves.
The stadium sits amid a cluster of downtown attractions, including a civic center, and draws about 250,000 people a year, helping to generate private initiatives like restaurants, taverns and stores, and helping to make downtown ''unique, different and exciting,'' Wells said.
''People want to be where something is going on,'' said Mike Haggerty, owner since 1973 of Plymouth Tavern near the Erie ballpark.
The construction of the ballpark ''seemed to be the tipping point'' for a shift in that area from demolition to growth, he said.
Similarly, the presence of Blair County Ballpark here has been ''very positive,'' said Greg Sheehan, owner of the franchise for the Holiday Inn Express on Plank Road.
The ballpark generates customers for the motel - both fans and people doing business with the Curve, he said.
By contrast, Albarano said the Curve haven't benefited his amusement park, despite its adjacent location and his optimism at the start.
The park and team vie for customers ''that only have so much expendable income,'' Albarano said.
But the team has been a boon overall to the area, he said.
Still, most researchers - ''unless funded by an organization that specifically benefits from new construction'' - have found that ballparks tend to produce limited economic benefit, wrote Bob Trumpbour, Penn State Altoona professor and author of ''The New Cathedrals, Politics and Media in the History of Stadium Construction,'' in an e-mail.
Proponents of ballpark construction often claim a ''multiplier'' effect, by which money that the team spends cycles through to fund other purchases, which in turn fund others that support the local economy.
''Unfortunately, some pro-ballpark advocates have juiced up the ''multiplier effect'' to absurd levels,'' he wrote.
By contrast, scholars cite the ''substitution'' effect, ''based on the notion that the typical family has only so many dollars that can be allocated to entertainment expenses, and that if money is spent in a ballpark, it may not be spent somewhere else,'' Trumpbour wrote in the e-mail.
''Take away the team,'' said John Fizel, economics professor at Penn State Erie. ''What would you do instead?''
Other factors that limit economic benefit from stadiums: Commercial activity for a sporting event takes place during a ''compressed five to eight-hour period on a limited number of dates,'' and many athletes spend much of their salaries in a distant place they consider home, Trumpbour wrote in his book.
Local opinions
Season ticket holder Ed Leipold and most of his friends favored the grant, because of everything the team ''brings to the table,'' he said.
That includes the opportunity for nonprofit groups to earn money by working the concessions at the ballpark, said Rob Egan, the new general manager.
Leipold wondered why anyone would complain about the field-replacement grant when the federal government is giving away more than $700 billion.
''At least we can see where the money went [here],'' he said.
The larger community will get the money back, so he doesn't have a problem with the grant, said Roger Ebersole of Osterburg, called by the Mirror at random.
The state has gone this far, so it needs to continue, even if it's not the ideal time, said Lynne Edwards of Lakemont, also called at random. ''Too late to turn back,'' she said.
The grant probably shouldn't have happened, with the way the economy is, and so much else needing done, said Rae Ann Peters of Altoona, also called at random.
The local match
The governor OK'd the grant informally in October by authorizing an application, and the state approved the application from the Blair County Industrial Development Authority in late December, said Marasco.
The authority met its 50 percent local match by citing $1.3 million (of about $9 million) in federal funding allocated for the Park Avenue widening project, Marasco said. The money for the project can serve as the match because the avenue handles traffic for the park.
Greenberg does not concede he'd have taken the team elsewhere if the state hadn't paid for a new field.
''We never thought that way,'' he said. ''We just never crossed that bridge," adding he never explored the consequences of an expiring lease and a field that was no longer playable.
Arguing that the team deserved to benefit from the grant, he pointed out that it had invested about $4 million voluntarily for capital projects through the years, building a picnic area, a party deck, outfield bleachers, video board and a new scoreboard.
The field-replacement project turned out to be more extensive than it should have been, because the original drainage system included too little sand, pipes too close to the surface and other faults, Greenberg said.
Fields have a limited life span because they compact and sediment sifts through the grass roots to clog drainage outlets, he said.
The grant wasn't related to Greenberg's sale of the team in November to original owner Bob Lozinak, he said. Greenberg felt confident of the grant as early as the summer, months before the sale possibility arose, he said.
Still, the state's commitment to fix the field probably made the team more attractive to buy, said Marasco.
The grant question is prickly, and season-ticket holder Kassy Olewiler isn't sure the ballfield was the right use for it, especially in the current economic crisis.
"But I'm really glad they did it," she said.
Mirror Staff Writer William Kibler is at 949-7038.
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bonfire911
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02-23-09 1:13 PM
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First question I have is....MAJORITY OF WHO SAYS YES??? If the writer means majority of people mentioned in the article then that adds up to about 6. How misleading, read through the entire article and there is no majority mentioned. And now Donna Gority is referencing the Constitution....HAA...Where was that document when the Boscov's bailout came up Donna??? She also recommends contacting the legislature if we don't like it, yet when I called her about the Boscov bailout she wanted to argue the point with me as if this was the first time a constituent contacted her with their wishes. And then despite a majority asking her to vote NO...she voted yes on the bailout. PLEASE folks, pay attention in the voting booth next time..Do you really want to re elect these politicians that care nothing about their constituency??
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OooohNoooo
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02-23-09 12:38 PM
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Jim Dandy... As bad as the Curve is, the Spike are worse... No wonder the Pirates are as bad as they are... Nice park though... It pays to work with Penn State..
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orwell
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02-23-09 8:17 AM
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This really is a case of dollars trumping principles. No doubt Tomasetti and Eichelberger know this is pork and corporate welfare, but they are playing the game by the rules set up by the two major parties. It's a corrupt system, and I see only one way it will change short of a revolution: register and vote Libertarian, forcing Republicans and Democrats out of office. itsmee, the entire Lakemont Park is owned by the County and leased to Albarano. He in turn leases the ballpark site back to the County. Blair County built the ballpark and leases it to the Curve. If a minor league field needs replaced every 7-10 years, the lease should have been written so that the Curve pays the cost of replacing the field. If it wasn't (which seems to be the case), the County apparently had inadequate knowledge and poor legal representation during negotiations.
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OooohNoooo
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02-22-09 7:59 PM
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So where, exactly, does the money that the Curve brings in go? Average ticket price of around $8 x avergage attendance of 4000 - 4500? They don't pay their staff much... They choose to give them fancy titles instead while making them work outrageous hours.. So they can't pay for a new rug for the field...PLEASE! The concession stand folks are volunteers... They have the stones to charge me $7 for a beer and then have some of my tax dollars re-turf the field... So where is the money going? Someone please tell me
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jimdandy
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02-22-09 5:54 PM
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Don't forget Curve fans, The State College Spikes are now around! So now the baseball fan base for the Curve may no longer exist as much north-northeast of Altoona. If I'm not mistaken, the Spikes are also a Pirate affiliate. Plus, they are already advertising on WTAJ-TV. State College is a much better area for attracting sports fans. Look out Altoona Curve, here come the Spikes!
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gordon65
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02-22-09 3:41 PM
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isthatreallyreal1...you need to say no that second & third burger for your family if you're speding $100 at a Curve game!!!! At an average of $8 a ticket(less for kids)$6 a burger x4 equals $56 (buy the kiddies a hot dog & it's less). If everyone is spending $100 for a family of 4 at the Curve they wouldn't need the grant to fix the field!!!!
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KlausVR
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02-22-09 2:32 PM
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"Tommaseti said "No pork here". he's right, but a lot of lies." As I have said all along ... "pork", at ANY public funding level, is in the perspective of the beholder ... or beneficiary.
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Aces20
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02-22-09 12:49 PM
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Right on, JP !! :)
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lambs1
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02-22-09 12:43 PM
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"SPREADING the Wealth"!!!
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RobFan530
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02-22-09 12:42 PM
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JohnnyP-- It has been my opinion for quite sometime now that the Mirror doesn't want to 'step on any toes'. It seems that the writers are not free to really say (or ask controversial questions) because the article will get cut. I was really surprised the other day when Cory Giger was allowed to write such an article pertaining to dogs. Much like the mainstream media, they take sides and want to be 'in bed' with the one that will benefit them the most. This is just what I observe.
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itsmee
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02-22-09 12:16 PM
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I don't understand what type of arrangement you have to have to lease something to someone who already owns it. How can the county own the ballpark then lease it from Albrano?
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JohnnyP
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02-22-09 11:52 AM
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Pardon me for questioning the quality of Journalism, but what "majority" says "yes"? This article is blatant deception at best. Mr. Kibler, do you ever think about what you write, or do you just type and arrange quotes that help create the desired opinion. If rent is being paid for the various Leases, where is this rent money? I am a landlord, and yes I pay for maintenance. But that repair money comes from the rent money I collect. You explained the leasing arrangements, without mentioning lease amounts. How can any thinking person even attempt an opinion without that basic information? This was not journalism...it was a puff piece. Don't forget to pick up your check at the Ballpark...
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gandulf
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02-22-09 11:43 AM
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There is no regard to the Pennsylvania Constitution or the U.S. Constitution. The liberals, and the RINO's like Specter, consider them as nothing more than historical documents. The funding is just another glaring example of checkbook politics running unchecked. It is quite a shame to read what Tomasseti said. I really thought he had more conviction than this.
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gandulf
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02-22-09 11:37 AM
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Once again, we are witnessing the sacrificing of conservative principles in exchange for 'pork' at another level. When are the conservative voters (true conservatives) going to wake up and vote with conviction of principles? The politicians who spend the money of the people do so with immunity and the constituency permit it. The Curve is good for Altoona, no question. But the Curve should not flourish at the expense of the taxpayer.
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brutis
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02-22-09 11:35 AM
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Tommaseti said "No pork here". he's right, but a lot of lies.
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lambs1
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02-22-09 10:48 AM
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We were sleeping when they took that vote Aces! Is'nt that how they do it now?
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Aces20
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02-22-09 10:07 AM
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I'd also like to see the breakdown of the actual work and expenses that the company receiving the "grant" to rebuild the playing surface to see if it matches the $1.3 million dollars. Why hasn't any government official offered that up for public viewing or why hasn't the local media asked to see that?
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Aces20
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02-22-09 10:06 AM
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I'd also like to see the breakdown of the actual work and expenses that the company receiving the "grant" to rebuild the playing surface to see if it matches the $1.3 million dollars. Why hasn't any government official offered that up for public viewing or why hasn't the local media asked to see that?
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Aces20
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02-22-09 10:00 AM
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I'll bet this topic gets some heavy play on the Talk Block tomorrow on WRTA.
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Aces20
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02-22-09 9:59 AM
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"But the team has been a boon overall to the area, he (Albarano) said." First ... I'd like to see data and proof to support that statement. I have a very hard time seeing how an "attraction" that mainly employs seasonal, part-time, employees that earn relatively low hourly wages for maybe 60 days out of a year can even be considered a "boon" for this area.
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Aces20
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02-22-09 9:52 AM
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GREAT point, Lambs1 """""""""""
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Wilbert
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02-22-09 9:48 AM
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Well, i have a family of six, plus me and my wife. we live near the ballpark, go there frequently and can promise that you can do it for well under 100. well under fifty even if you don't drink beer. as for the penn alto, that area is still where you go for hookers and drugs, has been that way since i was kid. my job at the department of corrections allows me to meet dozens of altoona kids so i know first hand.
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lambs1
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02-22-09 9:47 AM
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Through out the years I have read in the AM about homes in the Frankstown area and by the mall being flooded everytime we get even a small downpour of rain. Could be wrong but I remember reading it was due to developement contruction for all the new malls and plazas we so greatly needed. I don't recall the state jumping in so quickly to fix their drainage problems.....but then that was just someones home...
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Aces20
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02-22-09 9:41 AM
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They did, Lambs1? When was that vote taken?
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Aces20
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02-22-09 9:40 AM
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I guess Sports Subsidies, along with Farm Subsidies and Corporate Subsidies are A.O.K. for Republican officials now. However, I'm sure when individuals receive "subsidies" like in the way of Welfare and other means ... that's just wrong. Just more selective hypocracy ...
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