- Bethlehem's Historic Conservation Commission on Monday took another look at a mixed-use project
- The panel discussed finishing plans and details for 76 apartments and retail space at the former Boys & Girls Club
- The Marshal, as it will be called, is planned to offer studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom options
BETHLEHEM, Pa. — The former Boys & Girls Club at 117 E. Fourth St. in South Bethlehem is heading toward demolition to make way for a proposed mixed-use development with 76 apartments.
The project got the nod of approval from Bethlehem’s Historic Conservation Commission on Monday. The group discussed a prior proposal for the site, a new developer’s recent intended changes, a site demolition and whether all that was appropriate for the district.
Seventy-six apartments are planned for The Marshal, offering a mix of studio, one-bedroom, two-bedroom and three-bedroom options, according to recent city documents.
The center part of the project would stand up to about 80 feet high at its tallest point and offer living space alongside an adjacent 36-foot wing. Another 42-foot wing on the other side of the site would offer 1,800 square feet of “third-party retail space,” according to developers.
'Several significant revisions'
Historic Officer Jeffery Long said the newest project would include “several significant revisions” to the former proposal, including a difference in brick selection, an omission of a parking garage and more apartments, among other things.
Long said the replacement structure now would be fully detached instead of semi-detached as previously planned, with some slight dimensional variances.
The panel ultimately agreed to modify the original certificate of appropriateness, as there was no application for the newly presented changes, officials said.
“We tried to maintain the overall integrity of the first design."Kevin Serfass, of The Serfass Cos.
Kevin Serfass, a developer with The Serfass Cos. of Allentown, said his team was seeking approval of final project details and finishes.
“We tried to maintain the overall integrity of the first design,” Serfass said.
Michael Simonson, commission member and the city’s chief building inspector, said his view on the proposal is that it’s approaching the status of “almost a complete project.”
He said he’d authorize the building to be torn down even though he’d also like to confirm other details such as window types and brick color.
“If we’re going to be going back and forth over minor details such as windows and railings and stuff, I think that we come together on 90 percent of the other things,” Simonson said.
The other commissioners, besides Chairman Gary Lader, who abstained, agreed with Simonson and voted accordingly, 4-0.
On Nov. 15, 2021, a different developer, owner and applicant presented a proposal to replace the “non-contributing structure” at 117 E. 4th St. with a new multi-story, mixed-use development project.
That certificate of appropriateness was approved 5-1, with historic commissioner Seth Cornish citing that a seven-story building wouldn’t be appropriate around other nearby buildings less than three stories high.
City Council later approved the project as presented.
