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Car restoration showroom slated for former Allentown slaughterhouse

A long-vacant former Allentown slaughterhouse soon could be getting a much-needed face lift.

ACR Development has proposed a classic car restoration facility for the Klein Building, a property at the foot of the Hamilton Street Bridge adjacent to the America on Wheels museum.

The proposal, approved unanimously Tuesday by the Allentown Commercial and Industrial Development Authority, calls for a $2 million renovation that would transform the 12,000-square foot Klein Building into a showplace for automotive restoration.

Building renovations, which would be done in phases, would include a first-floor showroom and 12 apartments on the upper floors. An addition would be built in the back to allow for more space to work on cars.

Developers plan to keep the entire historic facade intact, as well as the original architectural concept.

The work at Front and Hamilton streets would be a collaboration between America on Wheels and RB Collection, a Trexlertown business run by brothers Al and Alex Ruozzi. RB Collection restores and services classic, vintage and exotic cars.

“We are excited to take our 23 years of knowledge and passion for classic cars and generate a thematic approach to Allentown’s waterfront redevelopment that will become the ‘Automobile Corner of America’ right here in the Valley,” Alex Ruozzi said in a news release.

Scott Unger, the development authority’s executive director, said the proposal fits perfectly with the Lehigh Riverfront Master Plan, an overview completed in early 2013 that made recommendations for how to revitalize the city’s waterfront. The gritty land along the Lehigh River was once largely industrial and is considered valuable, but it has been difficult for the city to redevelop.

“It’s hard to contemplate a use that would be more in spirit and in step with the waterfront master plan than what they’re suggesting,” Unger said of the proposal.

The Klein Building was last operated by A&B Meats and has been owned by ACIDA since 1996. It was one of several properties given to the authority as a gift from local philanthropist Ray Holland. The authority sank $3 million into cleaning up the site, including its underground tank of lard. Originally, twine was manufactured in the building.

Despite ACIDA’s lengthy ownership, a concerted effort was not made until now to find a buyer for the highly visible building, Unger said.

The property is not in the Neighborhood Improvement Zone, Allentown’s one-of-a-kind designation that allows developers to tap state and local taxes. But it is close to several proposed waterfront developments, including a $325 million residential, office and commercial complex slated for the former Lehigh Structural Steel property, and a brew pub proposed for the former Neuweiler Brewery.

ACR Development was the only bidder.

ACIDA member Michael Miller reviewed the financial projections presented by the developers, and recommended the project to the board.

“One of the things we’ve talked about is diversification,” he said. “We’ve seen lots of offices, restaurants. This was something different. It’s a very complimentary addition to what’s going on.”

According to their proposal, developers hope to complete construction of an addition to the property this year. A second phase could be complete by 2017.

Originally posted at: http://www.mcall.com

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Classic Car, Highway Patrol, Las Vegas, Police Error

Darcy’s line of up cycled fashion will be featured at the San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles this summer, in an exhibit titled “Recycled, Up Cycled, Re-Purposed Clothing, a Slow Fashion Movement”. To prepare for the publicity of this event, Darcy organized a fashion shoot that would feature her clothing line. While the majority of the shots were planned for a nearby open space reserve, Darcy included her family owned Jaguar Sedan in the photo line up.

This 1963 Jaguar Mark II Sedan (MKII) was purchased new by Darcy’s grandfather. It has been in the same family for 52 years, passing through three generations. In addition, it may be the only MKII to have lived its entire life in two California garages! Darcy and her husband Michael are the current owners of the vehicle.

This particular model was introduced in October 1959, and continued in production until 1967. It was the replacement model for the 2.4 and 3.4 liter saloon, also known as the Mark I Sedan (MKI).

For most of this car’s life, it lived in the detached garage next to Darcy’s grandparent’s 4 story Italian Renaissance home in Napa, California. The car was even precious to them as they took it out only on Sunday’s to attend church or social luncheon activities. When her grandparents passed, the estate was passed on to Darcy’s uncle, who lived in San Francisco. He maintained the Napa estate, occasionally taking the sedan out for a for a drive to town, until his death in 2005. At this time the car had been driven approximately 114 thousand miles in 42 years.

After Darcy’ uncle passed, she and her husband inherited the vehicle and started its restoration in May, 2005. Delong’s Automotive in Campbell was chosen for the initial work, which included rebuilding the transmission, replacing the power steering with rack and pinion style, complete brake job, new exhaust system, conversion to alternator, and rebuilt cooling system.

The next phase included the interior and exterior work. In December of 2006, the wood was removed and taken to Madera Wood Concepts in Goleta, California, where it was re-veneered and stained. In April 2007, the car was entrusted to Images Auto Body, in Campbell, where it was painted English Cream and the interior was finished. Craig’s upholstery, also in Campbell, did the upholstery work. Additional details included new stainless steel wheels and white walled tires. Restoration work was completed on October 5, 2007.

Today the car lives in Michael and Darcy’s detached garage, under a car covering, doubly protected. Michael powers the vehicle up once a week to keep the battery charged, and has entered it in one car show since its restoration, the Stanford Concourse, where it won best in class. It occasionally comes out of the garage to impress the neighbors, but for the most part, this beautiful vehicle remains hidden from the public.

Darcy was particularly thrilled to have an outfit for her model that complimented the Jaguar perfectly, not to mention her model Krysta. “We added the hat and gloves to give the audience the impression that she was the car’s personal chauffeur.” Indeed, the car comes to life (again) as a luxury vehicle through the lens of Darcy’s photographer, Katherine Romano, and illustrates to the world that restoration is a beautiful art on all fronts.

Se more at: http://www.hagerty.com

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Highway Patrol Error Results In Hellish Roadside Experience For Classic Car Owner

A string of errors on the part of troopers with the Nevada Highway Patrol resulted in a humiliating and frightening experience last year for a couple from Washington cruising down the highway in their classic 1962 Chevy Impala.

Now, the couple, Robin and Beverly Bruins, have filed suit against the troopers and the Nevada Highway Patrol.

Trouble started for the Bruins when they were pulled over by a trooper after he initiated a “routine records check” on the car. When the check did not return a match, the trooper pulled the couple over, Las Vegas’ KLAS reported.

When the trooper ran the registration number which the couple gave him, he didn’t include a “plus” sign. The vehicle showed up as an expired registration for a 2011 Harley Davidson, as a dismissal of charges document explains.

That mistake was compounded when the trooper relayed the Impala’s VIN to a dispatcher who then mis-keyed one of the digits.

When the entry bounced back as a stolen vehicle from California, troopers then proceeded to badger Robin, forcing him to take off his shirt and kneel on the ground before ultimately arresting him.

Dash camera footage recorded the entire dramatic scene.

“Driver! Remove your keys from the ignition and put them on the roof now!” a trooper commands.

Robin complied and says he made a joke to his wife but then turned around to find himself staring at drawn guns.

“And I turned and looked back and saw three gun barrels pointed at me. And, obviously it hit me. Whoa! What’s going on here. To this day I have never experienced anything like looking down the barrel of guns like that,” he told KLAS.

Robin was ordered out of the vehicle. And standing between the police cruisers and his car, he was ordered to take off his shirt.

“Go ahead, lift your shirt up,” the officer commanded. When Robin began taking off the shirt from his waist, the officer barked, “With the top of your collar!”

“And it wasn’t until I had taken my shirt off and told to get on my knees and handcuffed and I said, ‘What’s going on? Do you think this car is stolen or something?’ And he said, ‘exactly right. And their car is going back to its rightful owner,’” Robin told KLAS.

After Robin was taken into custody, the troopers zeroed in on Beverly who was still in the passenger side of the vehicle. They commanded her to get out, but she was on crutches and struggled doing so.

As she went to reach for the crutches, a trooper is heard yelling, “Keep — we said keep your hands in the air and walk backward towards us!”

She was then handcuffed as troopers checked her background.

After Beverly’s record came back clean, the troopers un-cuffed her and asked her if she wanted to say goodbye to her husband. She asked why she would need to say goodbye, and the trooper said “well, he’s going to jail.”

“So I went over to see Rob and he’s in the back seat with no shirt on on, hands behind his back and tears are running down his face,” Beverly told KLAS.

The Bruins contend that Robin never should have been arrested, and that troopers were almost certain he was not driving a stolen car when they detained him.

Evidence of that was also captured on the dashcam recording.

“I tend to believe him,” a trooper is heard saying. “I mean I’m gonna run him before I make a determination… the guy comes back with possession… or a history of something like that. If he’s lying to me, that’s a different story. But, as of right now, I mean, he seems to be legit.”

Nevertheless, Robin was shuffled off the Clark County Detention Center, where he spent most of the night in a cell with dozens of other inmates.

Robin also told KLAS that while he was in jail, he asked workers there, “Well I’m past the time for my medications, can I take those now?” he said.

“No, you can’t have anything you brought with you,” Robin says he was told.

“I just think they should have used, that they should have used a character judgment. We live our lives so that we don’t get into situations like this,” Beverly told KLAS.

“To be treated like the both of us were, I mean, at gunpoint and then handcuffed and then humiliated by making you take your shirt off and get on your knees on the side of the freeway. I mean, why should that have to happen to anybody?”

See more at: yahoo.com