ALLENTOWN, Pa. — A proposed new apartment building in Allentown hit a snag Monday as the city’s Historical Architectural Review Board recommended against a developer’s plan to knock down a building next to the property.
But a second similar proposal from Blackstone Structures drew wide support from the board.
- Blackstone Structures is proposing a large apartment complex at 826 W. Turner St.
- The developer wants to knock down a building on the neighboring lot as part of the project
- Blackstone Structures is seeking to knock down General Harry Trexler's home of 30 years for a similar project on Hamilton Street
Blackstone Structures is seeking to demolish a three-story home at 828-830 W. Turner St. to make more space for The Swans.
Developer Gary Newman said current plans for The Swans at 826 W. Turner St. show a seven-story building with 142 market-rate apartments, though he cautioned details likely will change throughout the approval process.
The property was home to a five-level parking garage until 2009 and has sat vacant since.
The proposed development would “be a catalyst for the improvement of the neighborhood as a whole,” as the project includes plans for upgrades to streetscapes and lighting in the area.Blackstone Structures' demolition proposal to the Allentown Historic Architectural Review Board
The proposed development would “be a catalyst for the improvement of the neighborhood as a whole,” as the project includes plans for upgrades to streetscapes and lighting in the area, Blackstone Structures said in its demolition proposal to the Allentown HARB.
'Cost of reconstruction eclipse the market value'
Developers looking to work in Allentown’s historic districts must pursue alternatives to demolition, including preserving, rehabilitating or restoring the building.
Blackstone Structures was seeking approval from the Allentown Historical Architectural Review Board for the demolition because the 828-830 W. Turner St. property is in the Old Allentown Historic District.
The property at 826 W. Turner is not in the historic district.
The building’s age and its “lack of any modernized mechanical systems” means it cannot be renovated, while the cost of structural modifications and repairs makes the project “financially infeasible,” the developer said in its application.
“The costs of reconstruction eclipse the market value of the completed building,” Blackstone told the HARB.
The three-story home at 826 W. Turner St. likely was built more than 120 years ago and parts are “structurally unsound,” engineer Richard Christie said in a recent report about the property.
Board members on Monday recommended Allentown City Council deny a demolition permit for Blackstone Structures’ plans, saying the developer did not prove other potential remedies for the property would cause a financial hardship.
The board’s denial “will put severe financial strain on the project." ... The “best use for this lot is for a market-rate multifamily project.”Blackstone Structures' application
Newman said he hopes council members see the value in adding new housing units in the city despite the historic nature of the current building.
The board’s denial “will put severe financial strain on the project,” Blackstone Structures said in its application, adding the “best use for this lot is for a market-rate multifamily project.”
City Council is expected to consider Blackstone Structures’ demolition request at its May 17 meeting. Council could approve it over the HARB recommendation.
Gen. Trexler’s home to become apartments?
Blackstone Structures also is working through the city’s approval process for a similar project on Hamilton Street.
The developer is proposing a five-story building at 926-928 W. Hamilton St. with retail uses on the first floor and market-rate housing on the top four floors.
The project also would include an “adaptive re-use” of the four-story building at 930 W. Hamilton St., according to HARB.
HARB on Monday recommended zoning officials approve Blackstone’s demolition plans for the property at 926 W. Hamilton St., where Kruper Bros. Appliances operated for more than 50 years until it closed in 2019.
“Numerous insensitive alterations during the building’s use as a commercial structure have left the property devoid of any architectural significance."<br/>Allentown Historic Architectural Review Board report
The structure at 926-928 W. Hamilton St. first was built as a single-family home in the mid-to-late 1800s and was bought by one of Allentown’s most prominent figures in 1884, according to the HARB’s report on the property.
Gen. Harry Trexler lived in the building for about 30 years until 1914, making it a historic site potentially worth saving, but it later was converted for commercial uses and reconfigured several times, the report says.
“Numerous insensitive alterations during the building’s use as a commercial structure have left the property devoid of any architectural significance,” the report says.
“The alterations are of a scale and nature that make restoration infeasible, and the building’s altered state holds no architectural value and has little integrity.”
Board members agreed Monday that “there is nothing left” of historic value before signaling their support for the building’s demolition.
They urged Newman and Blackstone Structures to create a public display commemorating the property as Trexler’s home for 30 years.
The developer’s request to raze a building at 926-928 W. Hamilton St. next will be considered by the Allentown Zoning Hearing Board because the property lies within the Historic Building Demolition Overlay District.
