WITH THE eyes of an outsider scrutinizing one of our region’s most imperiled treasures, Jon Haeber glommed onto two fundamental facts:

• The old Central Railroad of New Jersey Train Station sitting at the corner of Market Street and oblivion in Wilkes-Barre boasts stunning interior d�cor.

• The 143-year-old way station has become an apt example of how corruption holds the area back; good-old-boys wheel and deal behind closed doors, with “the public good” always the last chip on their gambling tables.

The California native stumbled on the station by accident during a regional hunt for compelling old edifices. Photographing and researching architectural gems is a passion he picked up in high school.

For a guy who conducted the bulk of his research via the Internet, Haeber hit the rail spike on the head when he posted his version of the station’s storied history on his website “Bearings.”

He noted the station had been owned by “convicted (and admitted felon) Thom Greco,” that it was purchased from Greco by the Luzerne County Redevelopment Authority when it was run by Executive Director and convicted bribe-taker Allen Bellas, and that the sale occurred during the tenure of convicted former Luzerne County Commissioner Greg Skrepenak, who accepted (extorted?) free large-screen TVs from Greco.

It’s irrelevant that the three pleaded guilty to charges unrelated directly to the station (duly noted by Haeber). The reality that they all found the world of bribery and kickbacks palatable speaks volumes.

When I talked to Haeber, he cited one aspect about the station that puzzled him as soon as he saw the interior: How can such a marvel go unused for so long? In California, “a place like that would be quickly redeveloped,” he said.

Of course it would. In most advanced civilizations, an edifice so structurally sound, exquisitely appointed and centrally located would have lured a savvy investor with a sense of and penchant for history. In fact, it initially did, as Haeber recounted, when the late Marvin Roth rehabilitated the space into a restaurant and train-themed hotel.

But this is Luzerne County, where we raze standout properties like the long-lost train station in Hazleton, or paste featureless facades in front of the distinct beauty of our own past, as with the building now housing Boscov’s in downtown Wilkes-Barre.

That we have lacked the historic sense and communal will to save such places is bad enough; that any effort to save them would have potentially faced the sapping, stifling atmosphere of corruption that permeates our governments is worse.

And that so many people caught in the multi-year FBI probe (including Skrepenak and Greco) have insisted they didn’t know they were doing anything wrong is a pox upon us all.

Wilkes-Barre’s train station is a rare chance to reverse this tragic travesty, though every day it remains untouched is another day disaster can strike as the homeless squat in its elegantly paneled rooms and stray cats turn its sturdy floors into an enormous litter box.

The county’s decision to use $1 million to peel away external additions and get the building back to its original footprint is a good, if much belated, start.

As Haeber’s narrative notes, the station still stands as testimony to many turning points in our area’s impressive history, from agriculture to industry, from oppressed and uneducated to true middle class, from King Coal to a diffuse economy.

Restoring it could mark one more turning point: From “culture of corruption” to a county reborn.

About the Author

Mark Guydish covers education for the Times Leader. Reach him at (570) 970-7161 or mguydish@timesleader.com.

A West Hazleton native, I worked as a service technician repairing electronic mailing and shipping systems, a bike shop owner and an Emergency Medical Technician (among other jobs) before landing a reporter job at the Times Leader Hazleton Bureau in 1995. I started by covering primarily politics in Hazleton City and outlying municipalities, eventually became "social issues" team leader in the Wilkes-Barre office with the accent on education, and headed the Hazleton Bureau for a spell before returning to full-time reporting, my preferred position. I'm an avid cyclist and rode across the country in 1990, a trip of more than 5,000 miles from New Jersey to Seattle and down the coast to San Francisco. Years in the Boy Scouts made me a life long backpacker and camper, and I've yet to find a better way to enjoy the quiet lure of winter snow than cross country skiing.

Mark also writes a regular blog for timesleader.com.

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