Luzerne Bank building in Wilkes-Barre sold to investment group

Jerry Lynott, The Times Leader, Wilkes-Barre, Pa.
·2 min read

Oct. 7—WILKES-BARRE — The Luzerne Bank building on Public Square has been sold to an investment group.

A letter sent to tenants by the former owners, the Pyros and Sanderson families, said the tallest building in the Wyoming Valley, as well as the nearby One South Main Street and the Parkside Apartments in Kingston changed hands on Oct. 1.

After 40 years as landlords it was time "to call it quits," the letter said.

"It's now time to turn the ownership over to a new group. The Bloxton Investment Group out of Philadelphia and San Diego have purchased the properties," the letters said.

Jeff Pyros, who had managed the building, said Bloxton approached them. "We had no intention of doing anything," Pyros said Thursday. But the families wanted it to be a package deal with the other properties. The sale price was not disclosed.

Pyros, whose late father Nicholas been a partner with Donald Sanderson in Pyros & Sanderson, Achitects and Planners, said family members are spread out across the country, making it difficult to manage the properties. He lives outside Park City in Utah.

The former Pyros & Sanderson designed and built and had been headquartered in the One South Main Street office building.

Michael Bloxton, a principal with Bloxton Investment Group, said no immediate changes are planned. "We're really trying to stabilize the property," he said.

Longer term the new owners will focus on innovation and opportunity and try to "bring a bit of fresh perspective" to the building, Bloxton said. By the end of the month a new website for the property, 67publicsq.com should be ready, he added.

The nearly century-old building stands 14 stories tall topped with a penthouse, according to the web site of the former owner, 65 Public Square Associates.

A bank has always been in the building since it was completed in 1930, the website said. The Luzerne Bank has a branch on the first floor. The Wilkes-Barre Deposit and Savings Bank was there first with the former Northeastern Bank and PNC Bank following. The bank lobby stands five stories and features a painted ceiling with gold-leaf accents and sculpted of figures of coal miners, merchants and native Americans.

Offices and business are among the tenants on the upper floors and the uppermost have been converted into luxury apartments. Former co-owner Sanderson and his wife Judy moved into the front apartment on the 14th floor overlooking the city after moving from their home in Bear Creek.

The conversion of the bank building's office space into high-end apartments downtown was copied by other developers, the tenant letter said. The building's height made it attractive for more than the view of the Wyoming Valley. "We were there before the internet. We housed on our roof some of the first cell phone antennas in the city," the letter said.

Reach Jerry Lynott at 570-991-6120 or on Twitter @TLJerryLynott.