Sources: Allentown arena office complex to house LVH

Lehigh Valley Health Network will be the anchor tenant of the six-story office building due to open next year as part of Allentown's hockey arena complex, according to sources.

Plans were unveiled last week for a 203,000-square-foot office building and 180-room hotel attached to the 8,500-seat hockey arena to be built at Seventh and Hamilton streets, but city officials would not reveal the hotel operator or the developer of the office complex.

However, four sources confirmed this week that City Center Investment Corp. will be the owner of the office complex, and that Lehigh Valley Health Network medical offices are expected to be its primary tenant.

Lehigh Valley Health Network spokesman Brian Downs said only that hospital officials have been discussing everything from sponsorship to marketing to medical offices involving the arena project.

"We've been discussing several opportunities to be part of the arena project, but nothing has been finalized," Downs said. "We would like to have an announcement sooner rather than later, but I can't confirm anything right now."

Owned by developers J.B. Reilly and Joe Topper, City Center was created last year to develop around the arena project. City Center Chief Operating Officer Jim Harbaugh echoed Downs' cautious tone, stressing that no deals have been signed.

"It would be great to have Lehigh Valley Hospital as a tenant," Harbaugh said. "But we can't talk about discussions while they are still in progress."

The sources, however, said that City Center has been chosen to own the proposed 200,000 office complex, and while several health care organizations have been considered to be part of a major sports medicine component of the hockey arena, Lehigh Valley Health Network is expected to become the building's anchor tenant.

Allentown is completing demolition of a square block of businesses between Hamilton and Linden streets and Seventh and Eighth streets. The on-site office building would face Hamilton Street; the onsite hotel would face Seventh Street.

The arena is scheduled to be home to the Philadelphia Flyers' top minor league hockey affiliate, the Phantoms, beginning in September 2013. City officials have said the cost of the hotel and office complex would be in addition to the $158 million cost of building the arena, and would be funded by private investors.

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Sources: Allentown arena office complex to house LVH