An old maxim of pork-barrel politics: it’s not pork once it arrives. To wit, not one mention of pork in this article.

To help celebrate the 10th birthday of Bethlehem’s Banana Factory this year, U.S. Rep. Charlie Dent showed up Friday with a $245,000 gift: a check to help build the planned SteelStax arts center in south Bethlehem.

The funding is part of a federal spending bill, passed by Congress in December, which also includes millions of dollars for other projects in south Bethlehem and throughout the Lehigh Valley.

Although the SteelStax project is still in the fundraising stage, the $245,000 that officials received Friday will help pay for ongoing expenses such as architects’ fees.

‘‘We’re moving forward on all fronts,’‘ said Jeff Parks, president of Banana Factory parent company ArtsQuest and a key SteelStax coordinator. Officials are working on designs while also going after state funding and talking with local donors, he said.