Bishop James McIver of the Overflowing Life Christian Center and his Revival Fires Ministries came before the Catasauqua Zoning Hearing Board Sept. 17 to ask for a special exception determination for property at 5 Race St.

McIver wants to move his church from 635 W. Turner St., Allentown, to Catasauqua, but the property, at the intersection of Race and Lehigh streets, does not meet the requirements for parking.

A special exception was requested for the parking and a variance was needed for a requirement for an off-street loading zone.

The property's loading dock is accessible from Lehigh Street.

According to McIver, the property has eight parking spaces. He presented leases to the board for an additional 23 spaces. The lease agreements are with neighboring businesses who would allow church members to park in their lots when attending church events.

McIver indicated that his congregation has 130 members.

Board member Daniel Scheirer expressed a reservation about the leases.

"These are not notarized and they are only for a year," Scheirer said.

He also expressed concern that the parking spaces on the property are not striped.

According to McIver, a church secretary will be on the site during the week.

Residents were concerned about the safety of people crossing Lehigh and Race streets to attend services.

McIver said services are held Sundays from 9:30 a.m. to noon and Wednesdays from 7 to 9:30 p.m.

He said the church provides ushers for its congregation and part of their duty is to provide assistance to parishioners who need help crossing the street.

"They wear yellow vests and escort those who need help crossing," he said. The intersection at Turner Street in Allentown, where the church is now located, is also heavily traveled, he said.

McIver indicated his intent is to purchase the building, although some residents at the hearing questioned the wisdom of the decision without a permanent parking solution.

Making the property a church also removes it from the tax rolls.

The property is located in a DC-Downtown Commercial zoning district.

The building was last used by the owner, Carl DeMarchi, as a metal polishing business.

Before McIver expressed interest in the building, developer Abraham Atiyeh had taken an option to purchase the property. Atiyeh intended to use the building for storage and asked the board for a variance to allow electronic advertising signs to be placed on it earlier this year.

The board denied the request because the property was located in a historic district.

Demarchi told The Press Atiyeh dropped his option to buy the property after his request was denied.

McIver will need to get a permit for signs, but he indicated that they would meet the existing signage guidelines.

After internal discussion, the board approved the variance but established certain conditions.

McIver must show the borough's zoning officer, Eugene Goldfeder, proof that he has leases for at least the 30 spaces required for a church by the zoning ordinance.

The board also asked that the existing leases be formalized. The board added a twist suggested by the board attorney. If McIver meets the parking requirements by securing parking spaces at a new location, then he must come before the zoning board again for a review so the board can determine any lease's impact on traffic in the area.

Also every year, McIver will be required to show the zoning officer he has 30 parking spaces available.

The use as a church was approved as long as the parking meets the zoning requirements.