The City of Allentown suffered the same ills as many eastern United States cities — the decline in manufacturing and industrial production and the rise of suburban development and sprawl. To move toward revitalization of the downtown area, City Center Lehigh Valley met with stakeholders and identified an opportunity to introduce office, retail, entertainment, and residential options on a substantial scale and under an extremely aggressive timeframe.

RETTEW provided turnkey land development and civil engineering services for City Center, turning the vacant lot once occupied by the Vaudeville-era Colonial Theater into a seven-story structure referred to as the building with two fronts — one side opening to Hamilton Street, the main commercial district thoroughfare, and the other opening to the Allentown Arts Park. Three City Center offers underground parking, first floor retail, Class A office space, and a green roof.

This project served as a catalyst for the ongoing redevelopment of downtown Allentown because of its prominent location adjacent to city, county, and federal government facilities. It has become home to large corporate entities such as Morgan Stanley, CrossAmerica Partners, and Norris McLaughlin & Marcus, not to mention housing RETTEW’s Lehigh Valley office.