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Tag: Hyman

House approves bill to demolish Allentown State Hospital

The Allentown State Hospital on Hanover Avenue in Allentown. (Photo by Christopher Holland) –

The Pennsylvania House of Representatives has voted 200-1 to move forward with the demolition of the Allentown State Hospital on Hanover Avenue in Allentown and hold a competitive-bid sale of the property after the work is complete.

A Republican Berks County representative was the lone no vote.

The bill now returns to the State Senate to concur with what were described as “minor technical word changes” in the house version.

The bill, which was sponsored by State Sen. Pat Browne (R- Lehigh County), had already been approved by the state senate in a 49-0 vote and it’s expected that the changes will be quickly approved by the senate at be sent to Gov. Tom Wolf for signature.

“We’ve been working very closely with the state Department of General Services on this and fully expect Governor Wolf to sign it,” said State Rep. Mike Schlossberg (D-Allentown), who voted in favor of the bill.

Schlossberg said he was not sure what the timetable would be on moving forward with the project once it receives the expected governor’s signature, but he said the goal is to move forward as quickly as possible so the nearly 200-acre property can be sold to a qualified developer that will find the best reuse for the property and get it back on the tax rolls.

The buildings had been sitting mostly vacant for the past 10 years.

While the demolition appears now to be a done deal, it has not been without controversy.

A petition was signed by several thousand area residents seeking to stop the demolition of the buildings on the property, especially the 107-year-old main hospital building, which was recently featured in the M. Night Shyamalan movie “Glass.”

The movie generated extra attention to the fate of what many consider to be historic buildings.

Also, an Allentown Developer, Nate Hyman, had filed a lawsuit, which he later withdrew, that tried to stop the demolition. He said he had the redevelopment experience to renovate and retain the structures.

But the bill that has just been approved countered the arguments Hyman had made in his lawsuit and he previously told Lehigh Valley Business that it was unlikely he would continue his fight.

Part of the bill puts a guiding hand over the future of the property.

A committee would be established to review bids. On the committee would be Browne and Schlossberg, the secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of General Services and a representative of the city of Allentown.

That committee would take bids, but consider them based on what is best for the community and not just the highest dollar amount.

State rep: Allentown State Hospital demolition is ‘right thing to do’

The Allentown State Hospital on Hanover Avenue in Allentown. (Photo by Christopher Holland) –

As plans to demolish the Allentown State Hospital on Hanover Avenue in East Allentown get back on track, Allentown’s Democratic state Rep. Mike Schlossberg is saying it’s the right thing to do.

“We need to move forward with demolition,” he said.

State Sen. Pat Browne (R-Allentown) introduced legislation June 3 that would call for a competitive-bid sale of the nearly 200-acre property, but only after demolition of all structures on the property, except for a state-owned air monitoring station.

Original demolition plans were put on hold last month after an Allentown developer, Nat Hyman, filed a lawsuit against the project. He withdrew a preliminary injunction against the state after it agreed to put the demolition on hold and give him 30 days’ notice if it restarted demolition plans.

Schlossberg said part of the bill does address the issues brought forth in the lawsuit and is aimed at getting the demolition back on track and the property sold.

Hyman had relied on a local ordinance in his original lawsuit, but the legislation introduced by Browne directly states that it would supersede any local ordinances, taking the wind out of Hyman’s legal challenge.

The bill also would terminate negotiations with TCA Properties of Doylestown, which had been awarded a contract to purchase the property at a negotiated rate after the demolition was complete.

Schlossberg said since the state announced that it would be demolishing the property, a number of new parties have come forward and he expects there will be interest in buying the land once the buildings are gone.

He noted that prior to that notice the property had sat vacant with little to no interest for a long time.

“For nine years people would tour the property and say, ‘Nope. We can’t do this in a way that is economically responsible.’ It’s time to move on,” he said.

Hyman, who has redeveloped a number of properties in Allentown, has said he can successfully rehabilitate the vacant properties and he disagrees with those who say it can’t be done.

Hyman said he was unsure if there was anything he could or would do to continue his fight if Browne’s bill becomes law.

“I will be talking to my lawyer,” he said. “This is very disappointing.”

Besides Hyman’s interest there had been other public outcry over the demolition of the 107-year-old hospital on the property.

The property and its main building got a great deal of attention after the release earlier this year of the M. Night Shyamalan movie “Glass,” which was filmed on the property in 2017.

That shined a spotlight on some of the structure’s historic architecture, and a number of petitions were circulated in the Lehigh Valley calling for its preservation. Those petitions gathered several thousand signatures.

But Schlossberg said the important part of the proposed legislation was that it puts a guiding hand over the future of the property.

Under the legislation, a committee would be established to review bids. On the committee would be Browne and Schlossberg, the state secretary of General Services and a representative of the city of Allentown.

The committee would take bids, but consider them based on what is best for the community and not just the highest dollar bid.

Browne did not return calls for comment.

Plans to demolish Allentown State Hospital may be back on

The Allentown State Hospital on Hanover Avenue in Allentown. (Photo by Christopher Holland) –

Plans to demolish the Allentown State Hospital on Hanover Avenue in East Allentown appear back on track.

State Sen. Pat Browne (R-Allentown) has introduced legislation that would call for a competitive-bid sale of the nearly 200-acre property, but only after demolition of all structures on the property, except for a state-owned air monitoring station.

Original demolition plans were put on hold last month after an Allentown developer, Nat Hyman, filed a lawsuit against the project. He withdrew a preliminary injunction against the state after it agreed to put the demolition on hold and give him 30 days’ notice if it restarted demolition plans.

Hyman called the legislation “clearly directed at my lawsuit.”

He has repeatedly expressed interest in buying the property and redeveloping it with its historic buildings intact and called the latest legislation a setback for his efforts.

“The only thing I really wanted to do is have them not demolish it,” he said. “I don’t care who buys it.”

The bill also terminates negotiations with TCA Properties of Doylestown, which had been awarded a contract to purchase the property at a negotiated rate after the demolition was complete.

Hyman had relied on a local ordinance in his original lawsuit, but the legislation introduced by Browne directly states that it would supersede any local ordinances, taking the wind out of Hyman’s lawsuit.

Hyman said he was unsure if there was anything he could do to continue his fight if Browne’s bill becomes law.

“I will be talking to my lawyer,” he said. “This is very disappointing.”

In addition to Hyman’s interest in the property and his subsequent lawsuit, there had been some public outcry over the demolition of the 107-year-old hospital on the property.

The property and its main building got attention after the release earlier this year of the M. Night Shyamalan movie “Glass,” which was filmed on the property in 2017.

Under the legislation, a committee would be established to review bids. On the committee would be Browne and state Rep. Mike Schlossberg (D-Allentown), who has supported the property’s demolition. The other two members would be the state secretary of General Services and a representative of the city of Allentown.

The committee would take bids, but consider them based on what is best for the community.

One thing that won’t be locating at the former state hospital is a casino.

The legislation bars the property from being sold for gaming uses.

Efforts to reach Browne and Schlossberg were not immediately successful.

Allentown State Hospital demolition on hold

The Allentown State Hospital on Hanover Avenue in Allentown. (Photo by Christopher Holland) –

The Allentown State Hospital on Hanover Avenue in Allentown won’t be facing the wrecking ball, at least not any time soon.

An agreement has been reached between the Pennsylvania Department of General Services and Allentown developer, Nat Hyman, who had filed a lawsuit to stop the project.

Hyman had expressed interest in buying the 200-acre property for its currently appraised value of $2.7 million and redeveloping it without demolishing all of the 28 buildings on the property.

“I’ve done a lot of these kinds of buildings. It’s exponentially more expensive when you demolish,” he said.

According to the state, the property has been mostly vacant since the hospital closed in 2010 and no one came forward to buy the property during that time. Meanwhile, maintenance costs on the property run about $2.2 million a year.

The state legislature voted to spend up to $15 million demolishing the buildings on the property, which it deemed no longer usable and then approved a direct conveyance to TCA Properties of Doylestown, giving the company the first rights to negotiate to buy the property after the demolition is complete.

According to Hyman, the state has agreed to indefinitely postpone the demolition and sale of the property in exchange for Hyman withdrawing a preliminary injunction against the plan. The state has also agreed to give Hyman 30-days’ notice of any impending sale or demolition. The state is pulling demolition bid requests from its website.

Hyman said the agreement should save the properties from demolition for months or years.

“This is going to be a long process,” he said, noting that he hopes the delay will ultimately derail the demolition.

“My goal is to ban the demolition,” Hyman said. “These buildings are beautiful.”

He said even if it isn’t him the property is sold to, he hopes any future development will include preservation of the buildings.

In addition to Hyman’s interest in the property and his subsequent lawsuit. There had been some public outcry over the demolition of the 107-year old hospital.

The property got a great deal of attention after the release earlier this year of the M. Night Shyamalan movie “Glass”, which was filmed on the property in 2017.

At least one local legislator, however, has expressed his displeasure with the delay on the redevelopment of the large piece of eastside Allentown property.

“I’m not happy about it,” said state Rep., Mike Schlossberg (D- Allentown), who supported the legislation that had been introduced by state Sen. Pat Browne (R-Allentown.)

He told Lehigh Valley Business that he still believes demolition of the buildings and a full re-use of the property is best for the community and taxpayers. This agreement, he said, is delaying progress.

“I understand you’re always going to have detractors with a project like this,” he said.

He does hope, and expect, that the issue will eventually be resolved.

“Eventually we’ll turn this site into something productive,” Schlossberg said.

 

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