BETHLEHEM, Pa. – The Bethlehem Historical Architectural Review Board once again reviewed plans for a seven-story apartment complex proposed next to the new Walnut Street garage on Wednesday night at City Hall.
The board had one big problem with the applicant’s plans for Ironside Lofts, however, and it was the building’s size.
“It’s a beautiful building, [but] I think it’s too massive,” said HARB member Diana Hodgson.
Wednesday’s meeting represented the second presentation of plans offered by Larken Associates and designed by Minno & Wasko Architects and Planners.
Adjacent to a new parking garage on West Walnut Street, the facility will feature luxury one- and two-bedroom units, a garage and ground-floor retail fronting on Walnut Street. The building will utilize parking within the new garage.
In August, the applicant presented plans for 60 one-bedroom and 48 two-bedroom units, for a total of 108 units. The one-bedroom units ranged in size from 780 to 900 square feet, with the two-bedroom apartments offering 1,000 to 1,300 square feet.
The building is predominantly a masonry brick-veneer structure and retail on the first floor.
Project architect Stuart Johnson said the board’s previous recommendations to remove height and levels have been considered. Renderings have been altered to include 105 units, with 67 one-bedroom and 38 two-bedroom units, resulting in a reduction of 13 beds.
Another major change based on the board’s feedback, Johnson said, is that the seventh floor is designed to step back 7 feet from the footprint of the other floors on the Walnut Street side, which has always had a setback at the rear of the building, but now steps back the front façade 7 feet at the seventh floor.
The setbacks and material changes can affect the perception of the building’s size, the architect said. The changes are a result of comments from the August meeting, yet provide for a project that’s “financially feasible and buildable,” Johnson explained.
A smaller building would not only be inefficient financially, but it would also be visually unappealing given the completed nature of the current garage structure. Located in the heart of the city’s northside, the lot features 517 spots and 3,000 square feet of retail space.
“If we built a three-story building, it would be out of context and scale with a blank, unactivated wall of an adjacent parking lot,” Johnson said.
On Wednesday, the board again discussed reducing the building’s size and mostly took issue with the westernmost part of the plan. HARB member Joe McGavin agreed with the assertion of the building’s beauty but said he thinks it sets a precedent for height.
“I think the building is too tall, but I wish the garage as shorter, but the development process was bastardized to begin with,” McGavin said.
View looking east from West Walnut Street.
Larken Associates/Minno & Wasko Architects and Planners
HARB previously rejected both plans for the garage as inconsistent with the historic district’s character. Still, only Bethlehem City Council has the authority to issue legally binding decisions on such issues. Council seemingly ignored their comments when it voted to approve the plan for the smaller garage, the HARB representatives previously said.
During public comment, Bruce Haines, managing partner of Historic Hotel Bethlehem, spoke to these points and said that the building should not be taller than five stories.
“We’re the ‘#1 Main Street’ in America. We’re just doing the wrong thing,” Haines said. “This is just unacceptable.”
View looking east from West Walnut Street.
Larken Associates/Minno & Wasko Architects and Planners
Ultimately, the board asked the applicant to return at HARB’s Jan. 7 meeting and asked them to modify the design of the western portion of the building, at which point the board will vote.