Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Affordable Housing topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Commission conditionally approves Little Lehigh Phase 2, grants streetscape and parkland waivers for 35‑unit affordable project
Summary
The commission conditionally approved Little Lehigh Phase 2—two buildings with 35 affordable units restricted to 80% AMI—while granting waivers for certain streetscape requirements and clarifying parkland dedication rules for affordable projects; commissioners pressed the applicant on setbacks, Verizon utility constraints and future phase consistency.
The Allentown City Planning Commission granted conditional approval May 12 for Little Lehigh Phase 2, a two‑building affordable housing development proposing 35 units restricted to 80% area median income. Staff recommended conditional approval subject to addressing city comment letters, obtaining necessary zoning hearing board variances and submitting a minor subdivision application.
Chris Rice of T&M Associates presented civil details, explaining that phase 2 follows a recently completed phase 1 and will include two L‑shaped buildings around a central courtyard, 27 parking spaces (meeting the affordable‑housing parking reduction), underground stormwater basin, and pedestrian access from Lehigh Street to the interior courtyard. Architect Fawn Wong described residential facades with pitched roofs, brick veneer at the base, and compliance with adopted transparency and material percentages.
Commissioners praised the architectural approach but raised concerns that the buildings sit close to Lehigh Street, and flagged a Verizon fiber optic line that limited opportunities to increase the setback. The applicant and developer representative explained that the unit count and minimum floor areas are constrained by a low‑income housing tax‑credit application and funding requirements, limiting design flexibility.
The commission voted to grant waivers from the cited streetscape provisions (planning staff noted the project would submit a revised streetscape section for staff review) and to treat parkland dedication for the fully affordable buildings in accordance with the code provision that authorizes waiver for projects committing units at 80% AMI for 20 years. After additional conditions — including requiring compliance with staff comment letters, coordinating any street/tree/utility work with city bureaus, and exploring, as feasible, an increased front setback to better match phase 1 in a future subdivision — the commission voted to grant conditional preliminary/final approval.
Commission action: the commission approved the streetscape waiver and parkland dedication waiver, then approved conditional preliminary/final plan approval subject to the staff comment letters and the feasibility exploration of an increased future setback; any required variances must be pursued with the zoning hearing board and staff will review revised plans when resubmitted.
Next steps: applicant will pursue necessary variances and resubmit revised plans for staff review; staff and applicant will coordinate on streetscape, stormwater and utility issues before final sign‑off.
