News Flash! Food Seen at Bethlehem Co-Op Boondoggle, and Tonight, a Meeting!

Jan. 5, 2026

— Jeff Ward, Lehigh Valley News Briefs

Alert the media! Food has been spotted at the Bethlehem Co-Op Boondoggle!

Yes, while taking a brisk walk a few days ago, I saw a can of Pringles newfangled potato chips, salt and vinegar flavor, inside the No-Op Co-Op. This time, I was able to document this mythical sight, a feat akin to photographing an Ivory-Billed Woodpecker.

The 250 E. Broad St. boondoggle has spent more than $3 million of public dollars and has set numerous failed opening dates, starting four years ago, but recently it promised: the next time we say we’re going to open, we are really going to mean it! Really! REALLY!

And wait, there’s more! Tonight, the Bethlehem Boondoggle’s MOVE Committee will meet. See this link for details. MOVE stands for membership/outreach/volunteers/education/events.

Shouldn’t that be MOVEE?

It will gather at 6:30 p.m. online “to talk of many things, of food, and chips, and produce racks, of cabbages, and wings.” Maybe. I’m using poetic license, allowed when discussing myths.

When in doubt, meet. I will not be able to attend this event, but I hope to listen in on the board meeting later this month.

Here’s something from a Boondoggle Blast last month:

“We haven’t announced a public opening date yet. We know past projections have shifted, and out of respect for our community we’re committed to sharing a date only when we are absolutely confident every partner, contractor, and funder is aligned. We’re in the final coordination stage now, and once everything is fully confirmed, we’ll be ready to make a public announcement.”

Sentence one: false. They have announced several opening dates. They didn’t open.

Sentence two: “past projections have shifted.” No, they were canceled. Nothing is ever shifted forward, but only indefinitely backward.

Sentence two again: “respect for our community?” Is this serious? Does Lucy respect Charlie Brown when she pulls back the football?

No matter what happens at 250 E. Broad St., the Bethlehem Co-Op will always be a boondoggle. If anybody in City Hall cares, and I doubt that, perhaps they will learn from this.

The next time an affluent, educated interest group comes seeking gifts, tell them they’re on their own. Bethlehem City Hall, state Sen. Lisa Boscola and former U.S. Rep. Susan Wild threw money at this mess, and now nobody is accountable.

For shame.