EDITOR'S NOTE: The Boyd Block Party scheduled for Sunday, Sept. 10, has been postponed to Sunday, Oct. 22, because of the weather forecast, organizers said.
BETHLEHEM, Pa. — Bethlehem business owners are coming together to celebrate the past, present and future of the beloved Broad Street with a Boyd Block Party this Sunday.
In anticipation of the completion of the Boyd Theater construction project — as well as a reminder that other local businesses on the block still are alive and well — Bethlehem Parking Authority, Monocacy Builders and DLP Realty are sponsoring the event from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The public is invited to bring blankets and chairs to the free event at 1 W. Broad St., where they can hear music by Grateful Dead tribute band Life After Dead.
There also will be specials from nearby businesses, such as Luxurious Seduction Spa, La Casa del San-Gwich and Joe’s Tavern.
Bethlehem Parking Authority will provide parking vouchers for Walnut Street parking garage.
Representatives from Monocacy Builders will be at the event to talk shop about the Boyd building project.
“It’s such an exciting opportunity for the public to meet the people bringing the Boyd back to life,” Senior Vice President of Bethlehem Initiatives for The Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce Tammy Wendling said.
Monocacy in October 2022 broke ground on the 25,000-square-foot, six-story building — which will feature 205 apartments, ground-floor space for commercial tenants and amenities including a garage, pool, garden, gym, bike station, dog washing area and co-working spaces.
The theater shut down in 2011 because of weather damage and sat vacant for about a decade before it was demolished.
“While we are thrilled to see the Boyd project come together and look forward to its opening, the process has been challenging for Broad Street business owners. Some people say the construction makes it look like the area is closed, but Broad Street and its businesses are very much open."Senior Vice President of Bethlehem Initiatives for The Lehigh Valley Chamber of Commerce Tammy Wendling
Officials are hoping the new Boyd project will help invigorate the area, which has been a target for revitalization efforts.
“This is an amazing day for the city of Bethlehem,” Mayor J. William Reynolds said at the groundbreaking in 2022.
“If you’ve been in Bethlehem for any amount of time, you know that our downtown area here, especially along this corridor on Broad Street, has been an area that we’ve been trying to drive investment. And we’ve been trying to drive people here — to live here, to shop here.”
And while the new apartments will be a boon to the block, Wendling said she wishes to remind the community that multiple businesses continue to operate as construction continues.
“While we are thrilled to see the Boyd project come together and look forward to its opening, the process has been challenging for Broad Street business owners," she said.
"Some people say the construction makes it look like the area is closed, but Broad Street and its businesses are very much open."
