Developer Calls Bethlehem’s Bluff on `Affordable Housing’

Aug. 27, 2026

— Jeff Ward, Lehigh Valley News Briefs

Bethlehem needs “affordable housing,” we keep hearing. Sometimes it’s referred to as “workforce housing.”

Mayor J. William Reynolds and some members of City Council have taken up the cry, talking so glibly about housing that some people assume providing lodging is a core responsibility of government.

It isn’t.

The city can point to the 120 apartments planned for south Bethlehem at “Gateway on Fourth,” but at $50 million, that project is going to require a lot of subsidies. People who already own houses — they don’t feel any shortage — will be helping pay for others’ homes. The cost per unit would be $416,000, which exceeds the price of many homes.

Now a developer has, quite amicably, called the city’s bluff. Fred Ronca is part of a team that wants to put up a three-story building with 18 efficiency apartments at 1438 Stefko Blvd., a 0.28-acre lot next to Just Born Candy. A home at the site would be demolished to clear the way.

This is where reality bites. At a Planning Commission meeting on Tuesday, Ronca explained why “affordable housing” requires some compromises.

The studio apartments would cover 478 feet to 488 feet, and the current plan provides only 17 parking spaces for 18 units, short of the 32 required. That will require zoning variances because placing 18 apartments on the site means housing “density” exceeds the rules. The project would be funded privately.

“To make the economics work, the density is needed,” Ronca said. That was the single most important thing said at the meeting, it’s the issue that will be the focus of the debate across the city.

Let’s hear it again: “To make the economics work, the density is needed.” This from a man who knows what he’s talking about, who doesn’t have to indulge in pipe dreams and happy thoughts, or win over voters.

Here’s a link to video of the meeting with the Stefko discussion starting around the 45-minute mark.

Monthly rent of $1,300 was one potential price noted at the meeting, but affordability varies with income and this plan is a long way from completion, so any price now is theoretical.

Do Bethlehem residents want a city with smaller apartments, taller buildings and a lot more people?

Will this ever get built? The city has lots of rules about development, and any project requires lots of meetings and expense before ground is broken. There are good reasons for these rules — they protect neighbors — but are they burdensome?

In 2023, the city compiled “Opening Doors,” a 92-page look at housing. My favorite line is on Page 88: “Bethlehem cannot enact various affordable housing tools that have proved to be effective in other areas.”

So, never mind …

Will the city ease up on private development, or instead count on big subsidized expensive projects? The Planning Commission raised important issues on Tuesday, but it’s up to City Council to change zoning rules and that can take a long time. Not raising taxes would help too, that is a housing expense.

Increasing the density of housing raises issues for neighbors, particularly around Just Born, where several small businesses operate.

Michael DeCrosta of More Miles Automotive on Stefko Boulevard lauded the intent of the project, but residents parking on the street could hurt nearby businesses. That could put jobs at risk. More Miles rents a lot off Stefko for customers (I’ve parked there several times) and the business doesn’t want to see residents parking there.

“Nobody wants to see you succeed more than I do,” DeCrosta told Ronca, but DeCrosta doesn’t want to see businesses lose parking and thus customers. Jobs may be at stake.

The plan for 1438 Stefko will be back before the city in the future. It’s time for some straight talk on housing from the city, not wishful thinking and brainstorming sessions.