Large grant approved for Lebanon Steel Works redevelopment project

State Rep. John Schlegel announced Tuesday that the Commonwealth Financing Authority has approved more than $2 million for the City of Lebanon, on behalf of Second Sail Development, LLC, for the redevelopment of the Lebanon Steel Works, a former Bethlehem Steel site along Lincoln Avenue.

The CFA, an independent agency within the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development, holds fiduciary responsibility over funding programs and investments in Pennsylvania's economic growth. It approved a Business in Our Sites grant of about $632,000 and a low-interest loan of $1.7 million for the Lebanon Steel Works Creative Community Development Project.

“The reclamation and restoration of this historic industrial site will help to promote business development and economic growth in our area,” Schlegel said in a news release. “The brick and timber structure has been largely unused for many years. The CFA funding will enable the developer to clean up asbestos and lead paint and help restore the building to productive use. In addition to the many new businesses and jobs this project will generate, it will also produce much-needed tax revenue.”

Lebanon City Council in March unanimously agreed to file the application with the CFA for the project at 121 Schneider Drive, which would have the 30,000 square foot property subdivided for a multi-tenant space. The space will be used in part by larger, maker-type business and will feature event space, small format artist studio space and executive office space.

Developer Evan Reinhardt said during a pre-council meeting in March that the goal of the project is to make the site an "economic powerhouse" for the Lebanon area. At the time, three small businesses had already submitted letters of intent to Reinhardt to lease space at the site: Philadelphia-based studio Weaver House; Denver, Colorado based Mudslingers; and Martin Made, a local woodworking shop.

The $632,000 in grant funding is to be used to help the property owner with hazardous material abatement, such as asbestos and lead, said Lebanon City Mayor Sherry Capello. She added that the developer is currently looking for additional funding that will bridge the gap on the project related to increased wage costs.

"The building has mainly sat vacant since Bethlehem Steel closed in the late 1980s, and it is a very historic building with a mixture of uses," Capello said. "Because of how it was built, how long ago, and its size and how everything is laid out, it really doesn't lend itself to modern industrial uses."

The city is excited to see the site converted into a community oriented space that will be used to support small creative businesses, Capello said, adding that she believed Reinhardt has a good grasp on what the needs are and what can be successful. She is hopeful that the project will kick start more redevelopment projects within Lebanon City.

"It's just a great way to bring that history and modern uses together," Capello said, "and give us something that we really don't have."

Daniel Larlham Jr. is a reporter for the Lebanon Daily News. Reach him at DLarlham@LDNews.com or on X @djlarlham.

This article originally appeared on Lebanon Daily News: Large grant approved for Lebanon Steel Works redevelopment project