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MC News Wednesday, July 06, 2011 11:29 AM zzTPC.MC.EditMetro; Lehman, Pam; Mertz, Nicole Artsquest response to the July 4th traffic issues

From: BOUNCE_1862_66002_411@renetmailb03.blackbaudhost.com [mailto:BOUNCE_1862_66002_411@renetmailb03. blackbaudhost.com] On Behalf Of info@artsquest.org Sent: Wednesday, July 06, 2011 11:07 AM To: MC News Subject: July 4th traffic issues

Thank you to everyone who visited SteelStacks this past weekend to enjoy all of the Independence Day events and activities taking place on the campus. From the opening of the Levitt Pavilion on Saturday evening to the Allentown Symphony Orchestra performance and fireworks display on Monday, it was an amazing weekend celebrating our nation's 235th birthday. We are aware that there were some major traffic issues for our guests as they left SteelStacks following the fireworks show last night. While some delay is certainly expected, the wait times were much longer than they should have been. We apologize for that and want you to know that we have met with the City to improve the situation for next year's July 4th fireworks, which is one of the few times throughout the year that we anticipate that volume of cars to be on the SteelStacks campus. Unfortunately, several factors came together to contribute to the delays in exiting the campus last night including: - Additional cars that arrived and parked in non-SteelStacks parking lots including the Steel Ice Center lot during the fireworks show, which created unusual and heavy traffic congestion following the fireworks show; - The large volume of traffic in Bethlehem at one time - not just at SteelStacks but throughout the city; - The Fahy Bridge being was closed for 15 minutes following the fireworks show to allow for pedestrian traffic across the bridge. ArtsQuest is committed to making sure your experience at SteelStacks is a great one from beginning to end. This is the first time we have had any major issues with traffic on the campus including the inaugural Levitt Pavilion Marcia Ball concert this past Saturday night. We don't anticipate this kind of situation for several reasons going forward including:

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1. Off-site Parking/Transportation at Musikfest: During Musikfest, only limited member parking will be allowed onsite at the SteelStacks campus. There will be plenty of off-site parking with shuttle buses to SteelStacks during Musikfest. The off-site lots will be located off of Commerce Boulevard immediately off I-78. For those who would like to visit the north side of Musikfest, guests may either park at one of Bethlehem's two main parking garages or at the off-site lot at Martin Tower off Rte. 378 and be shuttled to the festival grounds. Reducing the total number of cars at SteelStacks will help to alleviate traffic congestion at the campus. More information about parking and transportation will be available on www.musikfest.org after July 15. 2. Enhanced barriers and turnaround locations to enhance traffic flow. This system is being finetuned in partnership with the City of Bethlehem to accommodate higher than normal traffic volume which, again, we expect to occur during the July 4th weekend next year and in the years to come. 3. Better coordination of traffic lights. This system is being fine-tuned with the City of Bethlehem. Again, we apologize for any inconvenience and thank you for visiting SteelStacks this past weekend. We appreciate your support and look forward to seeing you again at the ArtsQuest Center and the SteelStacks campus. Sincerely, The ArtsQuest Staff

Copyright 2011 - ArtsQuest- 25 West Third Street, Bethlehem, PA 18015 ArtsQuest is registered with the Pennsylvania Department of State, Bureau of Charitable Organizations. A copy of the official registration and financial information may be obtained from the Pennsylvania Department of State by calling toll free within Pennsylvania 1-800732-0999. Registration does not imply endorsement.

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