A 181-unit apartment complex on Allentown’s East Side took a step forward Tuesday, despite some residents expressing concern about how the units could negatively impact the community.
Applicant Manny Makhoul, represented by engineer Joe Rentko before Allentown’s planning commission Tuesday, has proposed apartments across seven buildings and one standalone unit at 730 E. Turner St.
The planning commission gave the project preliminary, conditional approval. Some of the conditions include adding a bicycle path, having the Shade Tree Commission review the landscaping plan that includes 300 proposed trees to replace those removed for the project, having more color and material variations for the apartment buildings’ facades, and including a residential amenity like a playground or picnic areas.
Planning Commission Chair Christrian Brown, the one member who voted against the project, said he was concerned about giving approval despite the roughly five dozen outstanding comments for the project, but Rentko said many of them were technical or related to outside agencies, and that he had no concerns about addressing them or revising the project for them.
“I know it’s a rough project because some of the neighbors don’t like it, but we’re doing our best to try to accommodate everybody here,” Rentko said.
During the meeting, a couple of residents voiced concerns over how the development would strain issues such as overpopulation at local schools, decreasing property values, overwhelmed traffic and increasing taxes.
“Single-family housing? Fine, that’s what most of our hill is,” said one woman who lives across the street from the proposal. “Apartments? No thank you.”
“Driving down East Turner Street and the surrounding areas, it’s already difficult,” said another woman who lives nearby. “It requires you to pull over to the side just to allow the opposing car to pass through. God forbid if there is a snowstorm or an emergency where a fire truck or EMS needs to get through during rush hour. The streets are not designed to handle the additional level of traffic.”
Rentko later told The Morning Call that, while he didn’t have the specific numbers immediately on hand, the trip generation calculations they did for the project indicated the traffic impact would be below the threshold to warrant a formal traffic study or any concern.
He anticipates it will be four or five months before returning to the city with a final plan.
