May 15, 2026
— Jeff Ward, Lehigh Valley News Briefs
The Bethlehem Co-Op Boondoggle will meet Monday.
Will it set an opening date? The 250 E. Broad St. space now has a refrigeration system but the boondoggle still needs:
— to be inspected by the City of Bethlehem.
— a Certificate of Occupancy.
— a general manager. It had one for about a year earlier, an example of how this place runs up operating costs without operating.
— a staff. It has one or two employees now. They work at a store that isn’t open. I’m available.
— installation of a point-of-sale (checkout) system.
Most of all, it needs more money and better terms on its debt. All of this comes from the boondoggle’s social media. The Boondoggle is very active as an online club but it has not sold even one baby carrot in 15 years.
Meanwhile, every day the Boondoggle is not open, it’s frittering away money on rent, utilities, interest and salaries, without making any sales.
With that track record, if and when it opens, what are the prospects?
If it doesn’t open, I hope a team of forensic accountants is called in, although the Boondoggle appears to be accountable to no government agency despite taking lots of government money.
One reader suggested the FBI might be needed. I like the imagery of black helicopters circling over Broad Street and armed commandos in black rappelling into the parking lot, but it is perhaps extreme. Perhaps.
Some quick background: This would-be food co-operative was founded in 2011. In 2021, it received a federal reimbursement grant of $2.9 million (courtesy of Susan Wild, former member of Congress). The No-Op Co-Op also took $100,000 from the state (courtesy of Lisa Boscola) and Bethlehem City Council directed another $105,000 of federal largesse to the money pit.
So the Boondoggle has spent at least $6 million (my estimate) and run up debt that reached $1.1 million last year. It owes back rent and constantly asks for more money.
This boondoggle started when somebody couldn’t find a pepper. That is now a $6 million pepper.
By the way, the Boondoggle has never opened and based on earlier statements, it probably won’t announce an opening date on Monday.
As for money, in a recent notice to “member-owners” the Boondoggle asked for more money, reiterated financial goals that often change and asked for loans. I’m not going to get into the numbers. I don’t trust them, so why bother?
The Happy Boondogglers of the Bethlehem Co-Op Boondoggle, which prefers to be known as the Bethlehem Co-Op Market and for several years before that wanted to be known as the Bethlehem Food Co-Op, will meet Monday, May 18, at 6:30 p.m. at the Fowler Center of Northampton Community College. The meeting will also be available online.
The meetings aren’t bad by local standards. The Boondogglers stick to the script and finish quickly.
I’ve been listening in virtually but I might miss Monday’s gathering. It depends a lot on the weather.
Until then,
Boondoggle On!
Lehigh Valley News Briefs 
This is just the tiny tip of the iceberg of the fraud and theft found in government give aways to people with zero accountability for their crimes. National news these days is reporting on hundreds of millions of dollars of blatant theft especially in the health industry. Seems the government was very lax as politicians didn’t want to acknowledge these thefts which would hinder their re-election.
LikeLike
Not to mention we never needed a government funded grocery store in Bethlehem with great competition among Giant/Weiss/ShopRite plus Wegman’s. Bethlehem was ahead of NYC as a Socialist Mecca. Current Mayor led the way as City Council President back when with first City Grant.
LikeLike
I view this as crony capitalism too. An organized relatively affluent group lobbied for money, and based on the $3.1 million at least in government aid, each of the 1,750 members would in theory get a benefit of $1,772 each from the taxpayers. That money has been burned. The members would also in theory get better deals than the rest of us, who involuntarily subsidized this boondoggle.
LikeLike