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Centre Daily Times May 18 2005
Historic Academy building plot for sale; buyer interested
By Erin L. Nissley; enissley@centredaily.com
"The property that was the site of the historic Bellefonte Academy, until the building was destroyed in a fire last summer, is for sale.
A "for sale" sign is propped against the stone marker. And Bellefonte Borough Manager Ralph Stewart said he's received at least one inquiry from an interested buyer about building condominiums on the property.
The property owner, the Rev. James P. Nolten, declined to comment on the status of the sale and provided no details on the cleanup from the July 14 fire that gutted the building.
There also was no information available on whether the Head Master's House, also used as apartments and left undamaged by the blaze, is still occupied.
Fire marshals said the fire began when children playing with a lighter set a bed on fire. Flames spread quickly through the stately, four-story building that was converted from a school into apartments in the 1940s. Twenty-one families were left homeless in the fire, although no one was injured in the blaze.
Bulldozers and other heavy construction equipment leveled what was left of the building last summer. An empty lot is all that remains of one of Bellefonte's most recognizable landmarks.
Stewart said the land is zoned for condominiums and hopes that when the land is sold, it will continue to be used that way.
"That's a good use for that land," he said.
Erin L. Nissley can be reached at 231-4616."
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