Plans advance for Allentown School District’s new, $136 million East Side campus

Allentown School District completed a key legal step in advancing plans to break ground on its $136 million East Side campus that will house 1,200 elementary and middle school students, holding a hearing Monday for the public to review the project.

Bids have not yet been completed for the project, but the school board has approved a maximum construction cost of $99.8 million out of the maximum project budget of $136 million being built on the former grounds of Allentown State Hospital.

Construction is slated to begin in the spring, and the building is scheduled to open during the 2027-28 school year, said Stephen Behrens, a principal at Breslin Architects.

Two parallel wings — one for elementary and one for middle school students — will surround an “academic courtyard,” and the connecting wing will hold performing arts spaces and innovation labs that focus on food and fitness.

A combined gym and auditorium space will host a stage and bleachers. The campus design also features a multisport synthetic turf field and 164 parking spaces.

Those who spoke Monday night expressed excitement at seeing the long-awaited project near execution.

“At last we’re getting a school over here,” said school board Vice President Audrey Mathison, a longtime tenant of Allentown’s East Side.

When completed, the 208,000-square-foot campus will host 800 elementary students and 400 middle school students.

“Let’s finally bring this to our children,” district parent Yahaira Aviles said. “My babies aren’t going to enjoy it. My grandbabies will.”

Aviles’ three children grew up on the East Side. One is a district graduate, while the other two are Dieruff High School students.

Aviles said that the new school is long overdue and that she attended the hearing to thank the project team for taking the time to make it happen.

Besides Aviles, the only other speaker during public comment was former board member Robert E. Smith Jr.

Smith said he’s been pushing for a new middle school for 20 years and he’s glad it’s finally happened.

“It’ll be a great asset, not only for the neighborhood but for the city and Lehigh County in general,” Smith said.

As a resident of the neighborhood who lives about a block away from the new campus, Smith said he is concerned that Hanover Avenue — which forms the lower boundary of the site — could see traffic backups.

The district also needs a plan to ensure that truck traffic does not disrupt the neighborhood during construction, Smith said.

City officials will work with the project team to address traffic concerns, district solicitor Jeffrey Sultanik said.

In addition to providing a design preview and time for public comment, the hearing also included an overview of the project’s financing. The district will issue general obligation bonds to fund the project.

The total millage impact from the bond issues will be 0.98 mills, said Scott Scherer from PFM Financial Advisors.

When asked by Sultanik if the district can afford the project as contemplated, Scherer said, “Yes, I think the financing feels comfortable with that.”

Future impact on taxpayers remains undetermined. Mathison told The Morning Call that she could not yet say what, if any, tax implications the project could have.