LOWER HEIDELBERG TWP., Pa. -

While investigators search for clues in the Legacy at Papermill arson, construction crews are working to rebuild.

The apartment building, an over-55 community in the area of Calming Drive and Legacy Boulevard in Lower Heidelberg Township, Berks County, burned to the ground Feb. 25, 2014.

"This whole building was engulfed. It was 3-4 stories high. It was the most incredible sight. The heat, the sound of the crackling wood," said Marlies Leid, a neighbor.

It is an image that many neighbors cannot erase from their minds.

For Cynthia and Ray Bickley, who live across the street, the trauma the fire caused was even more substantial.

"The glass started cracking as I was calling 911, so it was really scary," said Cynthia Bickley.

The heat of the fire was so intense that it actually spread across the street and started melting the siding off the Bickleys' home.

"We had all the siding replaced. We had all the windows replaced. The back porch was all warped, PVC plastic, had that whole thing replaced," said Bickley.

Now a year later, the developer said the new apartment building is about 50 percent complete, and three quarters of the units have already been leased, but with police not being any closer to catching the arsonist, neighbors said they are sleeping with one eye open, afraid it could happen again.

Read the original post:
One year after arson, apartment building being rebuilt in Lower Heidelberg Twp.

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March 18, 2015 at 5:58 pm by Mr HomeBuilder
Category: Apartment Building Construction