More apartments could be opening in downtown Bradford, in an eight-story building that has been used as office space for decades.
The plans to put 18 higher-end apartments in the Hooker-Fulton Building at 125 Main St. will be the focus of a public hearing at the Bradford City Zoning Hearing Board at 7 p.m. Nov. 28 at the City Council Chambers at 24 Kennedy St. in Bradford.
The proposal comes at a time when another building down the street –– the Hotel Holley –– could be shuttered and many tenants there could be evicted next month. That building is now without a rooming house license, and the biggest violation is a non-working fire alarm system in the five-story building. If repairs aren’t made in time, people in the hotel after Dec. 8 would be charged with a violation of the city housing standards.
But there is no correlation between the timing of the plans for the Hooker-Fulton Building and the Hotel Holley situation, said Michelle Aaron-Simmons, property manager for the Hooker-Fulton Building.
“The idea for apartments has been there a few years, and we’re wanting to make a move on it,” she told The Era on Tuesday.
Bashir Sons LLC of New York City, which owns the building, is seeking to use a special exemption to convert the existing business space on the sixth, seventh and eighth floors into apartments.
The work would start three weeks after given city zoning board approval, beginning with the seventh floor, which has already been gutted, Aaron-Simmons said.
Apartments would be located on three floors, with six on each, she said. The living spaces would include four one-bedroom and two two-bedroom apartments on each of the three floors, Aaron-Simmons said.
Individuals could start occupying the apartments at the end of winter, she said. The apartments would range from 480 to 672 square feet, Aaron-Simmons said.
She said she is unsure how much the apartments would cost a month, but she would do a comparison of what’s offered locally. Tenants would pay their own utilities.
“I think there is somewhat a need for apartments downtown. I don’t know that the percentage is,” she said.
The plans for new living spaces in the Hooker-Fulton Building come as officials during the summer talked about other apartments opening downtown. They expressed an interest in attracting younger and older generations downtown and the availability more apartments in the city.
“The development of apartments in the upper floors of the buildings within the historic district has been a long-time goal of our programs and such development enhances both the community and economic growth of our downtown,” said Anita Dolan, Bradford’s community/economic development coordinator. “For the past several years we have seen many new businesses open and many facade and building improvement projects in the downtown area. It is very encouraging to see that the upper floors of many of our buildings being developed.”
The Hooker-Fulton Building was built in 1931 by Lawrie and Green, a distinguished architectural firm from Harrisburg. The building houses the Main Street Movie House, Jim Owens Counseling, American Red Cross and The Guidance Center, among others.
