A long-vacant former Friendly’s restaurant soon will become a financial institution in Palmer Township.
Fulton Bank customers recently received letters stating they could begin using the bank’s newest branch at William Penn Plaza, 3011-3099 William Penn Highway, on Jan. 26.
At 3 p.m. Jan. 23, existing branches at 4001 William Penn Highway and at the 25th Street Shopping Center, 25th Street, will be closing permanently.
A Fulton representative who answered the phone Monday at the existing William Penn Highway branch said those two branches will then merge into the new 3011-3099 William Penn Highway site.
The property is located in the township’s General Commercial Zoning District within the William Penn Highway Overlay District.
Fulton Bank representatives are expected to go before township supervisors Monday evening to discuss their development agreement and easement declaration for the project.
In April, Fulton gained special exception approval from the township’s Zoning Hearing Board for the project’s three drive-thru lanes to be built on the site.
Plans show no changes to the existing building’s footprint. All work to repurpose the building will involve façade, interior and exterior upgrades.
To accommodate the drive-thru, Fulton plans to install more curbing, a concrete pad and bollards, as well as perform some repaving and re-striping work.
There are sufficient parking spaces on the property already for the bank’s use, sufficient space to provide stacking areas for vehicles in the drive-thru, and safe vehicle maneuvering throughout the property, plans state.
James Raudenbush, the township’s zoning administrator and code enforcement officer, previously told lehighvalleylive.com he doesn’t expect anything unique about the Palmer Township project compared to other Fulton Bank branches.
Friendly’s closed in Palmer Township in September 2022. A location along Catasauqua Road in Hanover Township, Lehigh County, later shuttered.
William Penn Plaza is anchored by Weis Markets and Planet Fitness. There are smaller tenants, such as GameStop; Domino’s Pizza; a nail salon, barber shop, and Phoenix Physical Therapy.
A site map by Colliers International, the shopping center’s leasing agent, shows room for at least three more tenants with spaces ranging from 1,050 to 2,550 square feet.
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