ALLENTOWN, Pa. — The long-ago home of Allentown magnate Gen. Harry Trexler is set to be knocked down after city officials agreed the building no longer holds any historical value.
Blackstone Structures is proposing a mixed-use complex with apartments and retail that would span two properties in the 900 block of West Hamilton Street.
- A developer earned Allentown zoning officials’ approval Monday to demolish Gen. Harry C. Trexler’s home of 30 years
- The building was adapted for commercial uses more than 100 years ago and has no historical value, officials said
- The demolition will make room for a mixed-use development that’s set to include dozens of apartments
Allentown Zoning Hearing Board on Monday night signed off on the developer’s plans to demolish the building at 926 W. Hamilton St. —where Trexler lived more than 100 years ago — as part of that project.
The structure was built in the mid- to late-1800s and was home to one of Allentown’s most prominent early figures for several decades until 1914.
“That HARB report really convinced me that it’s got to go."Allentown Zoning Hearing Board member Robert Knauer on Gen. Harry Trexler's former home
It was adapted for commercial uses shortly after Trexler moved out; Kruper Bros. Appliances operated there for more than 75 years before closing in 2019, according to a report by Allentown's Historic Architectural Review Board.
‘It’s got to go’
Trexler’s 30-year stay in the building gave it “significant” historic value, but “numerous insensitive alterations” since then “have resulted in a building that lacks its original architectural style and has little integrity,” HARB’s report states.
HARB members said in early May that “there is nothing left” of the building’s historic value.
Allentown zoning officials agreed Monday, unanimously approving the developer’s request to demolish the building.
“That HARB report really convinced me that it’s got to go,” zoning board member Robert Knauer said.
Though Allentown technically is losing a historic building at 926 W. Hamilton St., board members Scott Unger and Alan Salinger said they felt Blackstone Structures’ plans would ensure its neighboring building is preserved well into the future.
First tenants next year?
Zoning Board members recommended Blackstone Structures create a public display to commemorate the property as Trexler’s former home.
Newman told zoning officials he plans to work with the Harry C. Trexler Trust on a plaque or statue.
Newman told LehighValleyNews.com he expects demolition on the building to start in early fall and wrap up before the end of the year.
He said he hopes to get building permits for the project at next month’s Allentown City Planning Commission.
Barring major delays in the approval process and construction, the building’s first tenants could move in by the end of 2024, Newman said.
HARB’s report on the property shows the new mixed-use complex would feature 70 apartments.
