James and Florence Williams of 617 Front St. appealed to the Catasauqua Zoning Hearing Board Aug. 21 for permission to subdivide their property, allowing a back building to be sold.

"I have lived in this house all my life," said Williams who inherited the house from her mother. "I need to be able to sell the back building to get money to keep us going."

Williams tried to rent the unit but was unable to attract the right kind of tenant.

The building Williams wishes to sell fronts Railroad Street, a narrow alley.

"There is no parking on Railroad Street," reported Borough Manager Eugene Goldfeder after consulting the borough code book.

Despite the rule, property owners along Railroad Street typically park in their narrow front yards, but a portion of their car is in the Railroad Street cartway. Some owners have the front area paved though this particular building has deteriorated macadam in front of the house.

The parking discussion was prompted by a question from neighbor Janice Lathrop whose property is across the alley.

"It has been a standard practice to park there, but we keep creating these parcels in the borough without parking," she said.

Lathrop said after the meeting she has incurred some minor damage to her property when snow removal equipment is used and the equipment operator needs to avoid parked cars. In addition to a waiver for two parking spaces, the property also required variances for front-, rear- and sideyard setbacks as well as the size of the parcel.

An important consideration for the board was that Williams currently has a buyer for the property, Jeffrey Joseph, who attended the hearing. He owns several well-maintained properties in the borough and does not have any code violations.

"The intent is to redo the property with a new kitchen and bath, new windows, new roof," he said.

Without Joseph's participation, the building could be allowed to deteriorate and become an eyesore.

Bernard Skripek questioned if Joseph had any expansion plans for the one-bedroom house.

"We are not going to expand it," replied Joseph.

Attorney Joseph Piperato, who represented Williams in his request before the board, emphasized that the property has always been classed as residential and was built before zoning laws were legislated.

"One of my uncles used to live there," added Williams.

Although the area is zoned as Downtown Commercial, Piperato noted that no commercial development is anticipated at either the newly created lot or at 617 Front St.

The Zoning Hearing Board voted unanimously to grant all the variances requested.