Bethlehem planning commissioners unanimously approved plans to turn a historic bank building in downtown Bethlehem into a 61-unit apartment building with space for a restaurant and an “experience center” on the ground floor.

Monocacy Builders, owned by prolific Bethlehem developer Plamen Ayvazov, bought the building at 46-52 W Broad St. earlier this year, after Wells Fargo closed its branch there in 2024. The facade of the existing building will remain intact under the new plans.

At a Thursday planning commission meeting, Ayvazov, architects and engineers representing the project presented plans to build a five-story addition on top of the stone building, adding 61 apartments. Developers also will construct an additional building on a vacant area next to the existing bank, which will become a restaurant, Ayvazov said.

There are no concrete plans for a tenant to occupy the first floor, which was once home to Wells Fargo, but Ayvazov said he hopes to come to an agreement with a tenant that would operate an “experience center.” He hopes to provide some kind of child-oriented entertainment space, which he said is lacking in downtown Bethlehem.

“Where that came from was, I was sitting on the Downtown Bethlehem Association Board, and a lot of the comments we get back from people visiting the city [are] there was not much to do in downtown, or there is nothing for kids,” Ayvazov said.

The top floor apartment addition will be constructed mostly with glass and metal framing. Ayvazov said he would use “bird-safe glass” on the apartments, which makes the windows more visible to birds who are prone to flying into them.

More than 3 million birds die every year from flying into buildings, according to Muhlenberg ornithology professor Daniel Klem, who testified at the meeting in support of bird-safe glass.

“This being a new construction project, I would encourage, if it all possible, the use of bird-safe glass, which is available from a small but growing number of manufacturers,” Klem said.

Ayvazov also said he is in talks with the Bethlehem Parking Authority to provide parking to prospective tenants at one of the public garages nearby.

Monocacy Builders also developed the Dream Boyd Theater, an apartment building next to the bank building that opened its doors earlier this year.

Reporter Lindsay Weber can be reached at Liweber@mcall.com.