“It’s 17,000 square feet in total,” Neel Shah says about the ambitious renovation project he and his business partner Emmanual Patricio are working on at 13 – 15 E. Third St. With a goal of maintaining the integrity of the building’s vintage façade, they successfully navigated through the process of acquiring certificates of appropriateness, as the historic structure is within the South Side historic district.
Built circa 1915, the 3-story adjoining structures once housed the F. & W. Grand 5 and 10.” The masonry building was likely, designed by iconic South Bethlehem architect A.W. Leh (1848-1918), according to Bethlehem Historic Conservation Commission Historic Officer Jeffrey Long.
At some point in its history, the venerable building hosted a dollar-type store with a hookah lounge next door. The wall separating the two businesses was taken out, although the load-bearing steel columns remain. The combined first floor commercial space at 13 – 15 E. Third St. can be developed as one large space for a tenant or be divided into two retail entities…