A closed-door committee set up to study potential parking on two city-owned parcels in Easton is instead recommending a $16 million, 70-unit apartment building for the North Third Street lot.
Mayor Sal Panto Jr. told The Morning Call on Tuesday that the committee wouldn’t be recommending a deck for that lot across from Third Street Alliance because it is an odd shape.
The apartment building proposed by Peron Development of Bethlehem would be five floors with 37 one-bedroom units and 33 two-bedroom units. It would also include first-floor retail, a community space and wellness center.
The project was presented for the first time to Easton City Council on Wednesday night. It’s still in the early stages and needs to go through the planning approval process.
Former Bethlehem Mayor John Callahan, who now works for Peron, said the project would be similar to the luxury Five10Flats in Bethlehem — named for its location at 510 E. Third St., across from Northampton Community College.
That $20 million building includes open-concept kitchens, large walk-in closets, 9-foot ceilings and a fitness center and community room among other amenities, Callahan said.
“What we are bringing to Easton has been tested and is true, and it works,” said Paul Swartz, of USA Architects which has offices in Easton and Somerville, N.J.
The Easton project would fill a long-empty space on North Third Street, city officials said.
The parcel was once occupied by the 800-seat Boyd Theater, Panto said. The theater was torn down many years ago to make way for a 70-space parking lot.
The city owns that lot and would sell it to Perone Development for $1.1 million, city officials said.
“I have seen Five10Flats and it’s something we would love to have for downtown Easton,” Panto said.
The project would help the city reach its goal of increasing its population and help Easton’s daytime economy by “putting more feet on the street,” he added.
The building would also bring significant economic benefits, city officials said.
It is in a Local Economic Revitalization Tax Assistance zone.
The LERTA program gives property owners a break on real estate taxes associated with improvements or new construction on a site. The taxes on the new assessments are phased in 10 percent a year over a decade.
It would take between 15 to 18 months to construct, Callahan said.
Easton Finance Director Mark Lysynecky estimated the project would bring in $200,000 per year in property taxes for the city once the LERTA certification expires.
It would bring in about $70,000 per year in earned income tax based on 103 residents making $50,000 a year, Lysynecky said.
The one-time infusion of $1.1 million would go into the city’s fund for capital projects and an open space fund, said City Administrator Luis Campos.
The parking committee will eventually present proposals for a new deck at North Fourth Street across from the new police station and a deck to replace the Pine Street Parking Garage.
Residents of the new building would park in the garage proposed for North Fourth Street, Callahan said.
The parking committee, comprised of eight members selected by Panto, has had at least a dozen closed-door meetings since October to vet proposals the city received, drawing the ire of some residents who say the meetings possibly violate the Sunshine Law and excluded the public.
City officials said the meetings have been held behind closed doors because they include sensitive negotiations.
Resident Laini Abraham asked council on Wednesday night to cease activity on the three proposals because the public has not been included in the process.
The request kicked off a heated exchange between Panto and Abraham.
“This is where transparency takes place,” Panto said of Wednesday’s City Council meeting.
“You’re a conspiracy theorist. You think everything is a conspiracy,” he said to Abraham.
The parking committee came about in October when the city hired Walker Consultants of Wayne to study the city’s parking needs.
The Pine Street garage has become too expensive to repair and will need to be torn down, but the city requires more parking before that can happen, city officials have said.
Panto told The Morning Call that Walker Consultants will present its finished study at council’s April 10 meeting.
There will be public hearings on all the proposals and council will not vote on any recommendations from the parking committee until after the study is received, Panto said.
