Walkers and bikers looking to park in a lot near a popular path next to the former Crayola property along the Bushkill Creek got a surprise this week: Wooden barriers with signs saying “Keep Off” and “Private Property” stood at the lot entrance.
Developer Nat Hyman, who owns the lot and the former Crayola industrial complex on Edgewood Avenue, decided to put up the barriers after township officials issued a stop work order on his plan to convert the complex into apartments.
The order is in effect until Hyman obtains a required permit, Township Manager Robert Williams said.
While the trail remains open, the parking lot is a popular access point for walkers and bikers.
The closure means people have to head a longer distance on Bushkill Drive to reach the Easton trails, Josh Davis of Easton said.
“I was disappointed to see that [Hyman] resorted to that tactic,” said Davis, who was running recently along the Palmer path. “Forcing people to go onto Bushkill Drive to connect to downtown Easton is unfortunate.”
Hyman said the last thing he wanted to do was close the lot, but Palmer officials forced his hand.
“It was my only leverage in the face of Palmer Township’s bullying,” Hyman said. “I love that the trail is there.”
It’s the latest in the back-and-forth between township officials and Hyman, who owns apartment complexes in Allentown and elsewhere in the Lehigh Valley. Hyman, who bought the old Crayola manufacturing complex last year, won approval for apartments from the zoning hearing board in June.
Palmer officials said they support Hyman’s construction, but want it done properly.
“The building is an old industrial site with a use change from industrial to residential,” Williams said. “So projecting there will be residents living in this building that is now used for apartments … lives could be affected by the quality of workmanship, materials and methods.”
Williams said at least one township official saw construction of interior walls and electrical work, for which Hyman did not have a permit. Hyman disputes such work was going on.
The township disagreed, with Williams pointing to the first condition in a letter July 14 from the township — the date the zoning ruling became official — that states Hyman must obtain appropriate permits.
Williams said people contacted the township to question the amount of noise coming from the complex. Inspectors initially found no violations, but after a follow-up visit over more noise complaints, inspectors saw the work being performed that required a permit.
The township issued a stop order July 23, according to Williams, and officials followed up two days later with a search warrant to inspect inside the complex.
“I have never experienced that in my life,” Hyman said.
Meanwhile, the township is constructing a new alignment for the bike path, connecting Edgewood Avenue with nearby Hackett Park.
This alignment will use township property along a former railroad right-of-way near the bike path, according to a Palmer Township Facebook post, with a temporary route scheduled to open around Aug. 8. Future improvements will involve a fully paved asphalt trail and a safe bike path crossing, the township said.
Scott Slingerland, executive director of the nonprofit Coalition for Appropriate Transportation, said that area of the trail essentially connects Palmer to other paths in the Easton area and to Tatamy.
“I think it’s important to connect to all those places,” he said, describing the Palmer portion as being “at the intersection” of those trails.
Hyman, who threatened earlier this week to replace the temporary wooden barricades with a permanent fence, said he has changed his mind.
“I would have happily given them an easement across my parking lot,” he said. “I was fine with the people using my parking lot. But [the township] jerked me around so many times.”
Contact Morning Call reporter Anthony Salamone at asalamone@mcall.com.
