A number of uses for the current site of the Schuylkill County Coroner’s Office and Morgue in New Philadelphia are being proposed. Among them are a haunted house, ghost tours, a taproom, an arcade, a museum, and festival venue.
The former school building property is currently also operating as the Simon Kramer Institute, which conducts cancer radiation treatments.
The prospective buyer, 999 Ventures LLC, of Emmaus, is seeking a use variance from the Schuylkill County Zoning Hearing Board. The board will consider this proposal on Tuesday evening at 6 p.m. at Schuylkill County Courthouse.
An Agreement of Sale is already in place for 999 Ventures to purchase the property from Anthracite Radiation Therapeutics Inc., which is owned by David Moylan, who operates Simon Kramer Institute and serves as Schuylkill County Coroner. If the sale goes through, equipment used in the Coroner’s Office would not be included.
Moylan rents space within the building to Schuylkill County for its Coroner’s Office and Morgue. Schuylkill County rents the Coroner’s Office and Morgue space for $2,500 per month. A renegotiated lease was just approved in April. It previously rented the space for $200 per month.
In an amended application to the Schuylkill County Zoning Hearing Board, 999 Ventures writes, “The institutional building would primarily be used as a haunted house attraction, similar to attractions such as Pennhurst Asylum or Eloise Asylum.”
A majority of the former school building would be used for this purpose, the applicant writes.
However, the medical offices would stay and the County could still keep its Coroner’s Office and Morgue in the same facility. The Coroner’s Office and Morgue entrances are in the rear of the former school building.
999 Ventures says it possesses a brewery license which would allow it to operate a taproom inside the building, if the variance is granted.
An event center is also being proposed for the football field area of the sprawling property. It would be an ideal setting for outdoor festivals, concerts, movies, and car shows.
999 Ventures says it would employ between 5-10 people on a full-time basis. But part-time help, depending on the event being hosted, could be up to 100. If the new uses are granted by the Schuylkill County Zoning Hearing Board, they would operate between 12-10 p.m. or from 6 p.m. until midnight for certain events, according to the application.
Ghost tours could also be conducted on the property and would occur from 7 p.m. until 3 a.m.
No physical changes to the lot or structures on the property are being proposed.
Before the Zoning Hearing Board, 999 Ventures will be seeking a use variance because the property is located in a high-density residential district of New Philadelphia.
“While not specifically permitted by right, the Applicant’s proposed use of an event center, including using the building for a haunted house, is complementary to the surrounding neighborhood uses and the lot is sufficiently sized to not interfere with neighboring properties,” the application states.
Separate variance for off-street parking and other parking issues are also being sought on Tuesday. Some large events may require additional parking that’s not available at the property. The prospective buyer says it’s securing leases for off-site parking locations and would transport people to the property.
In the past, long after the school had closed, this building has played host to the area’s semi-pro basketball team, the New Philadelphia Firedogs, and the football field was briefly the home of the Schuylkill County Coal Crackers semi-pro team.
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