Luzerne County Council’s Real Estate Committee unanimously agreed Monday to allow the administration to negotiate a potential purchase of the historic former train station in downtown Wilkes-Barre.
This authorization came with a condition that the full 11-member council must vote to proceed if the administration negotiates an acceptable price and wants to submit a formal purchase offer.
Owned by Market Square Properties Development LLC, the 4,000-square-foot station on Wilkes-Barre Boulevard is listed for sale at $625,000.
The county is interested because its tourism office, Visit Luzerne County, has been housed inside the train station since February 2022.
County council had approved the leasing of 2,100 square feet inside the station for the county tourism office in April 2021, agreeing to pay $32,400 annually for five years, with the option to renew for two additional three-year terms.
County Chief Solicitor Harry W. Skene told the committee the tourism lease is $2,700 per month. While the final purchase price is subject to negotiation, the administration believes the purchase repayments would be around the current monthly rental if the county makes a 20% down-payment.
Committee Chairwoman LeeAnn McDermott asked if the down-payment would come from interest earnings on the county’s federal American Rescue Plan Act funds and how much interest remains.
Crocamo estimated $3 million in American Rescue interest remains and said that is an option. The county also can tap funds from within and repay them later if necessary, similar to the county’s use of $425,000 in community development fund interest for a loan to West Hazleton to complete a bridge repair project, she said.
The county had accrued that interest on $6 million in community development funds that had been set aside in case the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, or HUD, follows through with a $6 million penalty threatened more than a decade ago over a lack of development at the former Hotel Sterling site in Wilkes-Barre.
Crocamo told the committee the train station also has an “absolutely gorgeous” office area on the second floor that can be leased out to further reduce the county’s purchase expense. The station does not have an elevator, which means the second-floor space may not be a good fit for a county office, she said.
Once the purchase expense is repaid, the county could receive revenue from the tourism office rental, she added.
The tourism bureau covers its expenses through revenue from the hotel tax and other outside sources — not the county’s general fund operating budget.
If the county must vacate the train station due to a purchase by someone else, Crocamo said she does not know where the tourism office could relocate and maintain “such a presence.”
Skene also emphasized the station is on the National Register of Historic Places and has been fully remodeled while preserving its history and character.
Visit Luzerne County Executive Director Alan K. Stout told the committee the prior leased tourism space on Public Square in Wilkes-Barre was a plain office that required visitors to find and pay for parking.
In comparison, the station has ample parking and space for displays and material to promote county attractions, which is the office’s mission, he said. People want to check out the station, he said, describing it as a “little castle on Wilkes-Barre Boulevard.”
Grant funding also was used to purchase a digital sign in front of the station that highlights events, he said.
For these reasons, Stout said his office prefers to stay put in the station for many years to come.
Council members Jimmy Sabatino, Kevin Lescavage and Brittany Stephenson also serve on the real estate committee.
Sabatino, committee vice chairman, asked how many parking spots come with the property.
Stout said there are 30 spots for the station, including approximately five used by tourism workers.
Lescavage said he supports pursuing a purchase offer, in part because it would be a “sad moment for Luzerne County” if the tourism office must vacate the building. He also believes there are many opportunities to improve downtown Wilkes-Barre, the county seat, and the station site is part of that.
Developer George Albert, of Market Square Properties, recently said plans are in the works to bring a Starbucks and credit union to other parcels in the station complex.
Albert’s company purchased the 6.36-acre complex in June 2016 for $1.2 million from the county Redevelopment Authority, which had purchased the property in 2006 from businessman Thom Greco for $5.8 million.
Prior county commissioners had authorized federal community development funds for the county Redevelopment Authority purchase. With no funds to develop the site, the authority sold the property to Market Square.
Market Square already sold two parcels in the complex and recently completed a subdivision that allows the train station portion to be sold separately.