Lafayette College Approved to Demolish Deco North Third Street Buildings, With Conditions

By Christina Georgiou

 Members of Easton's Historic District Commission (HDC) approved the demolition by Lafayette College of the former Case's Tire building and adjacent structures on North Third Street, with the stipulation that the college produces a letter from its president stating that the institution's entire board stands by the project and promises to build its planned new arts buildings on the site. A further condition of the approval is that if a geophysical analysis of the site finds it unsuitable to build on, the college will turn the area into a "green space" instead.

Representing Lafayette College Monday evening, from left to right
were Vice President of Finance and Administration Mitch Wein,
Director of Facilities Planning and Construction
Mary Wilford-Hunt, and KSS Architects partner David Zaiser.

Representing Lafayette College, Director of Facilities Planning and Construction Mary Wilford-Hunt, Vice President of Finance and Administration Mitchell Wein, and Philadelphia-based KSS Architects partner David Zaiser all said that a detailed geophysical analysis must take place before the plans for the college's new arts buildings for the site can be finalized, and that to do that, they need to raze the buildings.

But HDC member William Dohe, who is also a professional licensed architect, questioned the move at first, saying the city has granted permission for demolitions in the past, only to have the site stay vacant for years and/or not have anything built on such sites at all.

"The reason for a historic district commission is to preserve historic structures," Dohe said.

Dohe said he'd also have liked to see further plans of what the college intends to build on the site.

"No demolition unless we know what we're going to get," he said. "I'm confused why we don't even get a schematic."

HDC Chair Steven Glickman echoed the sentiment, wondering, "Why do you need a demolition permit before the schematic design is complete?"

Wilford-Hunt said the uncertainties that lie beneath the site mean the plan could change, depending on what a geophysical survey finds. But the college doesn't have plans to change what it presented to the board in December, she added.

A conceptual drawing of Lafayette College's new arts campus as
presented to the city's Historic District Commission in December.

  "There aren't dramatic differences, so we didn't need (to draw up a schematic plan)," she said.

HDC advisor Christine Uhler siad the approval board needs assurances that the project is actually going forward before the demolition could be permitted, and also that the HDC should be given some idea of what will take place on the site between the demolition and construction ground breaking.

Uhler also questioned again why, if the college was uncertain of whether the new buildings would be feasible, they didn't just do something with the existing structures.

"It would cost at least $2 million to fix those buildings," Wilford-Hunt said. "Given our experience on the site, we want a thorough geophysical analysis before we undertake the cost of design.

"We have (college) board approval. We have everything we need, from our side, to move forward," she added.

"It's in our master plan. The board is very excited about this," Wein said. "It's really this approval process that we're working through with you that we need to move forward...It's the single largest project (the college) is focusing on right now."

Easton's Historic District Commission discuss Lafayette
College's application to demolish the former Case's Tire
building on North Third Street.

"I would feel more secure if you came back with a design," Glickman said.

"We do have a limited budget," Wilford-Hunt said.

"Is there something you could come back with prior to demolishing the building?" Glickman asked.

"Imagine the Catch-22 we're in. You want the plan, but we can't do the plan until we know  the geophysical conditions," Wilford-Hunt said.

"The college is committed to this project, but we need to make sure the design works," Wein said.

"I'm trying to understand how that would affect what we'd see from the ground up," Dohe said. "We don't regulate what goes on below ground. In fact, we don't really care."

He added, "Everything you're telling me says there's a possibility you could entirely scrap this site for this use. And then we're stuck with a site you can't build on with no buildings."

"It seems like you could have come before us with a plan that could be modified later," Glickman said.

Lafayette representatives said they were under the impression that the concept approval the board granted in December represented the plan adequately.

HDC members, however, pointed out the approval was contingent on a signed contract and plan approval.

Dohe said sticking to those stipulations was important, because "there's no guarantee for the city. It's private property, and if it's a gravel lot...it's an eyesore."

He added that in many local suburban municipalities, developers are required to escrow the money for entire proposed projects to ensure they're completed.

"If it fails, the township completes it, with the (escrowed) money," Dohe said.

"Obviously, we know it's an important site," Wein said. "I don't think there's any chance it's going to end up an ugly space."

Only one board member, Clay Mitman, voiced support for the proposal to allow the college to demolish the buildings without a further stipulation.

"The college tries to do the right thing," he said, adding that he personally didn't have any objections to the proposal.

But in the end, the board unanimously voted to allow the buildings to be demolished, as long as the two stipulations are met.

College officials said they plan to demolish the existing structures later this spring or in early summer, and hope to be breaking ground for the new structures, which will house student arts programs, by this autumn.