Allentown planners OK shuttered Croc Rock proposal

It’s the final countdown for downtown Allentown’s Crocodile Rock, a shuttered concert venue that once ranked among the world’s top 100 similar-sized clubs.

The city Planning Commission on Tuesday approved City Center Investment Corp. plans to replace the facility at 520 Hamilton St. with a six-story, mixed-use building.

The ground floor would include 1,000 square feet of retail and 9,400 square feet of office space, including co-working space. There would be three units of work space for artists on the side fronting Maple Street, according to plans presented by Center City Project Manager Robert DiLorenzo.

Sixty-nine residential units would comprise the upper five floors. There would be 21 studios, 43 one-bedroom apartments and five two-bedroom apartments. The top-floor apartments would include loft space, DiLorenzo said.

The land development approval, which planners backed 6-0, puts the 1960s-era building on pace to be demolished next month. The new building would be ready for occupancy by the end of August 2018.

City Center’s proposal for the site is a departure from the brick, steel and glass structures that have dominated the nearly $400 million in development the company has built in Allentown using tax credits from the city’s Neighborhood Improvement Zone.

The company’s design is modeled after some of the city’s historical structures. It features a sloped mansard-style roof, similar to the one that adorned the Hotel Allen, which once sat at Seventh and Hamilton streets.

Planning Commission member Christian Brown said the proposed building would bring “much needed character and a bit of tradition to downtown, particularly Hamilton Street.”

“The unique masonry, the scalloped shingles on the mansard-style roof — I think everything about it is really a much-needed example of, hopefully, more to come,” Brown said.

In June, zoners agreed the current structure, built in the 1960s, was not historically significant and its demolition would not have a negative impact on Hamilton Street. The building is in a historic district that protects buildings built before 1948.

Croc Rock has been largely vacant for two years, but its decline began in earnest in 2013 when the club lost its liquor license. Owner Joe Clark continued to hold shows at the venue for two more years, attempting to court fans too young to drink, but no live acts have played there since 2015. Clark has maintained for years that he would renovate the club, and last year floated a proposal to convert it into a combination concert venue and motel.

The historic Hotel Allen was torn down decades ago and replaced with an office building that City Center demolished to clear the way for Two City Center.

What’s planned for the site of the former Crocodile Rock:

Number of stories: 6

Number of apartments: 69

Office space: 9,400 square feet

Retail space: 1,000 square feet

Source: City Center Investment Corp.

Written by Nicole Radzievich; Published by the Morning Call