June 23, 2025
— Jeff Ward, Lehigh Valley News Briefs
Bethlehem Township’s Zoning Hearing Board will meet Wednesday to consider a variance for a child care use at 5007 Freemansburg Ave., and it will review what the zoning administrator said are garden apartments 3157 Santee Road, near Freedom High School.
The agenda says Primrose Schools LLC seeks a break from the township ordinance that a nursery school/day-care center have a minimum lot space of 1,500 square feet per child. Primerose seeks a reduction for its site to 474 square feet per child, not quite a third of what the ordinance requires.
On Santee Road, in a property that backs up to Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church, Bruno D. Scipioni. Sr. and Rachel Scipioni are appealing a Notice of Violation that says a single-family dwelling is being used as garden apartments.
The appeal contends that the building is not being used for garden apartments, and it also seeks other relief.
There are also two other agenda items, see below. Agendas are subject to change and should be checked online the day of the meeting.
The Bethlehem Township Zoning Hearing Board will meet at the township municipal building, 4225 Easton Ave., at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, June 25.
Here is a link to the agenda and below is a cut-and-paste version.
JUNE 25, 2025
PUBLIC NOTICE
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN THAT THE BETHLEHEM
TOWNSHIP ZONING HEARING BOARD, AT 6:30PM ON
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 25, 2025 AT THE TOWNSHIP MUNICIPAL
BUILDING, 4225 EASTON AVENUE, BETHLEHEM, PA 18020 WILL
HOLD PUBLIC HEARINGS, AMONG OTHER ISSUES,
CONCERNING THE FOLLOWING:
Appeal #09-2025 of Primrose Schools LLC seeks relief concerning real
estate located at 5007 Freemansburg Avenue, Bethlehem Township,
Northampton County. The relief requested is a dimensional variance from
Bethlehem Township Zoning Ordinance Section 275-189.A(50)(d), which
requires a nursery school/day-care center located in a residential district to have
a minimum lot area of 1,500 square feet for each child cared for at any one time
other than children of the operator. The applicant requests a minimum lot area
of 474 square feet per child, thereby seeking a variance of 1,026 square feet per
child cared for. The real estate is located in the Rural Residential (RR) Zoning
District and Neighborhood Enhancement Overlay District, maintains
Northampton County Tax Parcel Identification Number N8 1 2 0205 and is
described in Northampton County Deed Book Volume 2002-1, Page 352941.
Appeal #10-2025 of Bruno D. Scipioni, Sr and Rachel Scipioni seeks relief
concerning real estate located at 3157 Santee Road, Bethlehem Township,
Northampton County. The appellant is seeking to appeal a “Notice of
Violation” issued by the Bethlehem Township Zoning Administrator on April
16, 2025. The Zoning Administrator issued a Notice of Violation to the
appellant regarding a change of use from a single-family dwelling with an
accessory apartment to garden apartments without a permit, operation of a
garden apartment which is not a permitted use within the Medium-Density
Residential (MDR) District, installation of a parking lot without a permit, failure
to comply with the paved area setback requirements of Bethlehem Township
Zoning Ordinance Section 275-144.G(4), failure to comply with parking lot
screening requirements of Bethlehem Township Zoning Ordinance Section 275-
144.I, and failure to submit for site plan review as required by Bethlehem
Township Zoning Ordinance Section 275-178.C for garden apartment uses. The
appellant contends that the property is not operating as garden apartments and that the applicant intends to occupy one of the units in compliance with the
requirements of Bethlehem Township Zoning Ordinance Section 275-190.D(1).
The applicant also requests a dimensional variance from Bethlehem Township
Zoning Ordinance Section 275-144.G(4), which requires no off-street parking
area nor outdoor display of vehicles or articles for sale to be located within 25
feet of the existing right-of-way line of a collector or local street. The applicant
requests a 15-foot setback for the parking lot, thereby seeking a variance of 10
feet. Finally, the applicant requests a dimensional variance from Bethlehem
Township Zoning Ordinance Section 275-144.I, which requires (1) no off-street
parking area for uses regulated by the commercial building code to be developed
in such a way that vehicle headlights could shine into a dwelling located within
200 feet or less of the parking area; and (2) wood fencing, fencing with the
appearance of wood, brick walls or evergreen screening as needed to resolve the
concern of this section. The applicant requests that no screening be required,
thereby seeking a variance from all requirements of Bethlehem Township Zoning Ordinance Section 275-144.I. The real estate is located in the Medium-Density Residential (MDR) Zoning District, maintains Northampton County Tax Parcel Identification Number M7SW3 25 1 0205 and is described in Northampton County Deed Book Volume 2004-1, Page 275508.
Appeal #11-2025 of Sebastian Lavalle seeks relief concerning real estate
located at 2621 Farmersville Road, Bethlehem Township, Northampton
County. The relief requested is a dimensional variance from Bethlehem
Township Zoning Ordinance Section 275-49.G(2), which requires a minimum
rear yard setback for an accessory structure to be four feet, except 10 feet for
any building from any alley that the building will have vehicle access onto. The
applicant also requests a dimensional variance from Bethlehem Township
Zoning Ordinance Section 275-49.F(2), which requires a minimum side yard
setback for an accessory structure to be six feet, except three feet for a storage
shed of less than 100 square feet of flor area, and except zero feet along the
shared lot line of attached dwellings, provided that no structure shall obstruct a
drainage swale. Respectively, the applicant requests a zero-foot rear yard setback
for an existing shed, thereby seeking a variance of four feet; and, the applicant
requests a zero-foot side yard setback for the same existing shed, thereby
seeking a variance of six feet. The real estate is located in the Medium-Density
Residential (MDR) District, maintains Northampton County Tax Parcel Identification Number M7 17 12B 0205 and is described in Northampton
County Deed Book Volume 2008-1, Page 020346.
Appeal #12-2025 of Aashish Kharb and Shafali Kharb seeks relief
concerning real estate located at 3661 Westwood Drive, Bethlehem
Township, Northampton County. The applicant is seeking an interpretation
that no zoning relief is required, pursuant to the terms included in the definition
of a rear yard within the Bethlehem Township Zoning Ordinance Section 275-
24, in order to establish that the yard area along the western property line be
considered a side yard and not a rear yard. Alternatively, the applicant is seeking
a variance by estoppel to establish that the setbacks of the property as shown on
the submitted plans and survey and the yard area along the western property line
be considered a side yard. Finally, to the extent necessary, the applicant is
seeking a dimensional variance from Bethlehem Township Zoning Ordinance
Section 275-114.G, which requires a minimum rear yard setback for a principal
building to be 50 feet. The applicant requests a rear yard setback of 20 feet,
thereby seeking a variance of 30 feet. The real estate is located in the Agriculture
(AG) District, maintains Northampton County Tax Parcel Identification
Number M8 4 21-3 0205 and is described in Northampton County Deed Book
Volume 2023-1, Page 049501.
All interested parties are invited to attend and be heard.
Supporting documents are available for review at the Bethlehem Township
Municipal Building located at 4225 Easton Ave, Bethlehem, PA 18020 by
appointment with Zoning Officer Aaron Stasiw (astasiw@bethlehemtwp.com /
610-814-6464) or Assistant Zoning Officer Erika Soto
(esoto@bethlehemtwp.com / 610-814-6432).
Lehigh Valley News Briefs 