WHITEHALL TWP., Pa. — Allentown Central Catholic High School representatives this week will present Whitehall Township Planning Commission with plans for an athletic complex along the western side of Bridge Street.
The site, which spans 23.61 acres, is bordered by Reliance Street to the north and Ruchsville Road to the south, as shown by sketch plans viewed by LehighValleyNews.com.
Coplay Creek flows along the northwestern and northern edge of the site.
The land is owned by Jaindl Realty LP.
The high school, at 301 N. Fourth St., Allentown, is raising money for the project and other initiatives as part of a capital campaign to mark its 100-year anniversary in 2026.
Central Catholic officials told LehighValleyNews.com in interviews last month that the school had an agreement of sale for the Whitehall land, and it was working through permitting and zoning requirements for the project.
At the time, they declined to share the location of the land, which has since become available through documents filed with Whitehall Township.
The school's officials also said they weren't yet ready to disclose the cost of the athletic complex project.
Sketch plans
The Whitehall site was surveyed in April, and Central Catholic submitted its sketch plans to the township at the end of last month.
The school is working with the engineering and consulting firm, Barry Isett & Associates.
The planning commission is set to review the initial plans for the athletic complex Oct. 15. The review session begins at 6:30 p.m., and the meeting starts at 7:30 p.m.
The sketch plans show a turf field and synthetic eight-lane track at the southern edge of the site.
It features restrooms, bleachers, a press box, a ticket booth and a 3,000-square-foot training and storage building.
School officials previously said the track and field will include lights and a scoreboard, and it will seat 500 to 600 spectators.
The sketch plans also show a parking lot along the site’s southeastern corner, featuring 267 parking spots and entrances on Bridge and Willow streets.
Willow street runs into Ruchsville Road.
Central Catholic’s officials previously told LehighValleyNews.com the turf field and track will be the biggest priorities at the complex.
Other proposed projects at the site are dependent on the success of the school’s capital campaign, they said.
Those projects include a jump pit, throwing area, tennis courts and practice fields for baseball and softball, officials said.
The sketch plans show a shot put and field event area to the north of the turf field. North of that, there would be five tennis courts with bleachers.
On the northern-most end of the site, the sketch plans show a multiuse grass field.
The sketch plan also outlines options for spray irrigation and stormwater management.
Meeting students' needs
Adrienne Motley, Central Catholic's director of alumni relations, said in a September interview that the school hopes to use the complex for most, if not all, sports teams, except football.
If all goes well, the complex will open for student use sometime next school year, Motley said.
“We need to really make sure we have this to provide what our kids need."Adrienne Motley, Central Catholic's director of alumni relations
“We need to really make sure we have this to provide what our kids need,” she said.
Though the athletic complex isn’t the only fundraising project for the centennial capital campaign, Motley said it's a priority because Central Catholic is the only Diocesan high school without its own fields.
“That is really where a lot of that athletic focus came from,” Motley said.
Randy Rice, Central Catholic’s principal emeritus, said in September that the athletic complex will help the school save money on field rentals for sports, such as soccer and lacrosse.
Instead, those teams and others will use the new complex.
