Members of Bethlehem City Council took a May 5 tour of the city's Rose Garden to learn more about the lease agreement proposed by the Bethlehem Area School District to create a temporary parking lot along the Tenth Avenue side of the park during construction of the new Nitschmann MS.

Parking would be provided for approximately 95 vehicles, including those of Nitschmann staff and construction personnel, according to the district's consulting engineer, Arif Fazil. Fazil said the proposal was being made to alleviate the impact of parking in the surrounding neighborhoods when the $53.7 million project gets underway in the spring of 2015.

Fazil and city parks and public property director Ralph Carp indicated that the subject area, roughly three-quarters of an acre, will have top soil stripped and stored, a fabric liner installed and covered with modified stone, and the temporary lot would have fencing.

Several members of council appeared concerned about the removal of two or three trees near the northwest corner of the parcel, their removal necessitated by overall health and location near the proposed entrance into the lot.

As part of the proposal, the district would install a new playground closer to the Rose Garden bandshell, remove existing playground equipment and a swing set and replace 250 feet of sidewalk along Tenth Avenue at the conclusion of the project.

Construction of the new school is expected to take two and one-half years, and upon completion the impacted section of the park would be fully restored to its original state as a grass covered lawn.

City council's parks committee will review the proposed lease agreement after which it will be sent to the entire council for a vote.