Unable to find a business interested in his first-floor location, a building owner has attempted to get permission to convert the space into apartment units.

On Jan. 18, William Ritter asked the Catasauqua Zoning Hearing Board to change the designation of a first-floor rental unit from commercial use to residential use. The rental is part of a two-unit building Ritter owns at 30 Second St.

He purchased the building from St. Mary’s Church.

“The first floor was the office for the church’s credit union,” he said.

According to Ritter, he and Realtor Jessie Chupella searched for a commercial tenant but have not been able to attract anyone.

Part of the problem, according to Chupella, is parking is restricted along Second Street. Most of the customers using the church’s credit union were there to drop off funds and had little impact on Second Street parking, he said.

The unit is located in an R-3 zone that is classified as high-density residential. The zoning ordinance allows residential units on upper floors only, not on the street level.

Ritter wants the borough to allow the unit to be changed to residential. The building at 30 Second St. is a separate structure but is attached like a town house to St. Mary’s Parish Hall.

According to the zoning ordinance, conversions like the one proposed by Ritter are permitted as a special exception.

The board questioned the parking situation. Part of Ritter’s request is to exempt the owners from the need to provide four tenant parking spaces.

According to Ritter, there is usually room to accommodate parking on Union Street.

Mayor Barbara Schlegel discussed traffic flow plans with Ritter as an adjunct to the meeting. She explained Front Street will be converted to two-way traffic this year. Union Street is a designated connector between Front and Second streets to allow cars access to Race Street.

Schlegel explained plans by PennDOT to alter traffic on Second Street could have a detrimental effect on parking. She cautioned Ritter that PennDOT’s changes are on the drawing board, but there is no firm commitment on when the changes will be implemented. PennDOT has proposed a series of three traffic-control lights at Race Street intersections with Lehigh, Race and Second streets in an effort to control traffic jams on Race Street. The latest projection is work would start around 2020. The start date is an estimate.

There is a paved courtyard in the front of the Ritter building bordering on Second Street. A vintage iron fence encloses the paved area. Ritter is reluctant to use it for parking.

“Presently, tenants use it for outdoor cooking during the summer,” he said.

The board was equally reluctant to open the courtyard for parking. The needed parking access to Second Street would eliminate two public parking spots and would require tenant-owned cars to back into what is expected to be heavy traffic on Second Street.

The zoning hearing board took a recess after all the information was presented and returned after an extended, private discussion, at which time the board gave a unanimous thumbs-down to the request.

After rendering their decision, the zoning board members offered no further comment.