Public Market Facade Changes Unveiled

By Christina Georgiou

A concept view of the changes to be made to the front facade of the former
Weller Center building on the 300 block of Northampton Street in
Downtown Easton, which will be the future home of the Easton
Public Market, as well as offices for the Greater Easton Development
Partnership, the Easton Main Street Initiative, and the Easton
Ambassadors program.

Easton's Historic District Commission approved proposed changes to the former Weller Center's facade Monday evening, which will house the Easton Farmers' Market year-round indoor public market, expected to open late this year.

The building will be painted a dark navy blue with "a couple of accent colors," said Anthony Bracali, president of Friday Archictects/Planners. The Philadelphia-based firm, which also designed the Reading Terminal Market, is handling the conversion of the building, located in the 300 block of Northampton Street.

Navy blue canvas awnings will provide cover for a seating area along the front of the building, jutting out over the sidewalk by about five or six feet, Bracali said.

The proposed back view of the Easton Public Market, on Church Street.

Lighting is to be added to the back of the building on Church Street, with two wall sconces that will provide vertical lighting along the wall.

Vertical signs for the public market will be constructed of a lime green painted aluminum with the letters cut through the metal on both the front and back of the building. They will be illuminated at night, Bracali said.

Vinyl signs for Easton Main Street and the Easton Ambassadors, which will be moving their offices into the building along with parent organization and building owner, the Greater Easton Development Partnership, will be located on the door glass in the back of the building on Church Street.

Easton Public Market manager, Jared Mast, noted that all the signs together may exceed the city's 20 square foot limit for signage, but the market intends to apply to the city for a variance.

Additionally, while no changes to the building's Bank Street wall are planned in the immediate future, the market hopes to add a mural there at a future date, he said, noting that the mural may or may not be considered to be a "sign" under city ordinance.

Cindy Cawley, who heads the city's zoning and codes enforcement department, said she thinks the sign's square footage probably won't be a problem, as the signs represent different organizations in the building and each is entitled to 20 square feet.

Commission member Scott Voelker wondered if the choice of dark blue was "set in stone, 'cause I really like the way it looks in the picture as charcoal."

The commission's historic consultant, Christine Uhler agreed, though she noted Easton's Historic District Commission does not have the authority to regulate the color a building is painted.

Commission members said they feel the "G" located in the facade on the center front of the former Weller Center should remain, though it will be painted over. Bracali assured commission members that is the market's plan.

"The utmost care should be taken to minimize damage to the glazed terra cotta tile on the building's facade," Uhler said, in reference to the installation of the awnings and signs. She added that attachments should be placed in the tile joints, as opposed to through the tiles themselves, during installation.

Approval for all the proposed changes was granted, though the commission stipulated the final placement of one of Easton Main Street's signs in the back of the building on Church Street needs to still be discussed before its final placement.

"It's just kind of sticking out," said Voelker.

City Agencies Seek $650,000 in Grant Funding

By Christina Georgiou

Easton City Council members listen to presentations
on three grant applications totaling $650,000, that
will, if approved by the state, support various ongoing
revitalization efforts in the city.

Easton's city council backed three grant applications seeking a total of $650,000 in state funding to support various programs related to ongoing revitalization efforts at its meeting Wednesday evening.

The West Ward Neighborhood Partnership (WWNP) is seeking $50,000 from the state in support of its Elm Street program, which would go towards sidewalk and porch renovation grants for eligible homeowners in the neighborhood, along with the addition of more street trees and support for new signs for commercial endeavors in the district.

"We want to continue the funding even though it's less than previous amounts because we want to continue our programs," WWNP Director Esther Guzman told city council members.

Mayor Sal Panto said he very much supports the work the WWNP does and lamented that more state funding to support isn't available.

"We used to get $250,000," he said. "The state continues to balance its budget on the back of the local programs."

The Elm Street program, intended to support revitalization in older residential neighborhoods, was initiated by local state Representative Robert Freeman (D-136), Panto noted.

"Even at $50,000, we're going to take these baby steps," Panto said. "It's making a difference."

The Easton Redevelopment Authority (ERA) will seek a $300,000 Keystone Development Grant through the state's Department of Community and Economic Development to rehab four blighted properties--two in the city's South Side neighborhood, and two in the West Ward.

"Without these funds, these properties will just sit as they are and continue to deteriorate," said ERA community development specialist Michael Brett.

Panto said that in addition to eliminating the hazards blighted properties pose, rehabbing as many dilapidated properties as possible in the city is ultimately a strategy for keeping taxes lower.

"I also believe the more population we have as we grow out of the Urban Renewal era...will help us to control costs," he said, adding that he wants to ultimately see the city population top 30,000. "Sustainability comes in a lot of flavors, and rehabilitation of old homes is a part of that."

Another $300,000 in grant funding is being sought by the Greater Easton Development Partnership to support the Easton Farmers' Market's Public Market, to be housed in the former Weller Center at 325 Northampton St.

The money will be used for a revolving loan program that will support capital purchases of vendors' start up costs at the market, and matching fund requirements for the grant have already been satisfied by the city's grant of $1 million to parent organization Greater Easton Development Partnership (GEDP) last year to purchase the building, project manager Jared Mast told city council members.

"As these vendors repay the loans, the funds would be put in a revolving loan account...that would be available to new or existing businesses in Easton," Mast said.

He added that the advantage to both Public Market and other business owners in the city is that interest rates would be substantially less than bank rates for the loans.

ERA and GEDP Director Gretchen Longenbach said that the ERA "doesn't intend to recover any money" for the first two grant applications, the $300,000 for the Public Market loans, if approved by the state, would serve the city's business community well in the long run.

"We hope to help multiple businesses and entrepreneurs," she said.

She added that it was initially hoped the city might be eligible for even more funding than is being applied for in all three projects, but was advised by the state to "streamline and prioritize" when it came to the Keystone Grant applications.

Easton Grants $1M to GEDP to Purchase Weller Building

By Christina Georgiou

Easton City Council voted to grant $1 million to the Greater Easton
Development Partnership to purchase the former Weller Center building.
The space will house a new indoor food market, the Easton Public Market,
similar in style to the Reading Terminal Market in Philadelphia, along with
GEDP, Easton Main Street, Easton Ambassadors, and Easton Farmers'
Market offices.

 Easton City council voted 5-2 Wednesday evening in favor of granting $1 million to the Greater Easton Development Partnership (GEDP) to purchase the Weller Center building, which will house a year-round indoor version of the Easton Farmers' Market, along with offices for GEDP and programs under its supervision, including the Easton Main Street Initiative and the Easton Ambassadors.

Council members Elinor Warner and Roger Ruggles cast the dissenting votes.

Both said they support the creation of the market, but that they were uncomfortable with using public money to finance the purchase of the building by a private entity to house it.

Ruggles said the $1 million, which will be part of $16.5 bond the city will be taking out to finance the construction of the new city hall and transportation center, will cost the city $60,000 per year until the loan is repaid.

"We're really talking about $60,000 per year that we'd be picking up for you," he said. "I understand the preliminary (2014) budget shows a $1 million deficit, and we'd be picking up $60,000 more."

He added, "There's no big incentive to perform well and get (GEDP) off the taxpayer roll (for annual funding needs)."

Mayor Sal Panto, who favored the grant to GEDP, saying the ultimate revenue the new market will bring into the city and having a quality food store in the Downtown to serve residents is worth the investment, noted that the city won't begin paying back the money until the beginning of 2015.

"If the city is on the hook for $60,000, you may see GEDP's contribution from the city drop by that amount," he added.

GEDP currently receives $375,000 in city funding annually.

Warner questioned the need for the city to finance the entire purchase price of the building.

"So, there's no other option?" Warner asked GEDP Executive Director Gretchen Longenbach, who also works as a city employee, heading the Easton Redevelopment Authority. "If we don't give you a million dollars, this doesn't happen? We haven't been presented with any other options. If we give you $250,000, would (the new indoor market) happen?"

"This is the one of three options that seemed the most advantageous," Longenbach said. "The alternative is if it's not supported this evening, we'd have to go back to (the bank) and discuss other options...There's only so many paths we can go down."

"I'd love to have such a market but I don't think we can afford such a market," she said. "I just don't think this should be paid for by the public. It's a private enterprise."

Other council members were less skeptical of the plan, though they admitted there are risks.

"I'm willing to take a chance because it is advantageous to our city," Councilman Jeff Warren said.

Vice-mayor Ken Brown agreed.

"Although there are risk, I go believe it will be supported by our community," he said.

Longenbach said that while GEDP is a non-profit corporation, the commercial nature of the market means 47 percent of the building will be subject to paying property and other local taxes, ultimately providing a return on the city's investment, though no estimate of what amount of annual revenue the building might bring the city was immediately available.

Noting the advantages of the market for the city, including filling a years-vacant building close to the Centre Square, project manager Jared Mast said plans for the indoor market are moving ahead smoothly and he envisions the Easton Public Market to be similar in style to the Reading Terminal Market in Phildelphia.

Two potential anchor vendors, both of who attended Wednesday evening's meeting, include current EFM vendor Nathan Thomas of Breakaway Farms, which intends to run an "old-fashioned butcher shop" in the new market, and a fish market run by Vintage restaurant owner Mike Pichetto.

Thomas, who raises grass-fed beef and other high quality meats, said that he realizes "not everyone can afford $10 a pound ground beef," and he intends to offer some more affordable options at the indoor market.

Easton Farmers Market Manager Megan McBride talks about
the success of the current market and her hopes for the new
indoor market before Easton City Council Wednesday
evening, accompanied by GEDP Executive Director Gretchen
Longenbach and Easton Public Market project manager
Jared Mast.

Mast said too he hopes to ensure the new food market will serve all Easton residents, not just the more well-off, by possibly offering SNAP incentives, "which will make SNAP dollars go further" for those who shop there. The Easton Farmers' Market currently accepts SNAP, but the prices of many of vendors' offerings mean it's still not usually practical for most low-income Easton residents to purchase their food there.

The $1 million grant will cover the entire $900,000 purchase price of the building and the first $100,000 of construction costs to renovate it, city officials have previously said.

EFM manager Megan McBride has said the winter indoor market will be housed in the space beginning in November, and the Easton Public Market is likely to open in early 2014.

Updated at 6:18 a.m.