Decision awaited on fire-damaged Century Inn’s future
SCENERY HILL – North Bethlehem Township is awaiting a decision on the owner’s plans for the future of the historic Century Inn, which was gutted by fire last month.
Township code enforcer Andrew Burchin said he instructed the owner of the 20-room stone building dating to 1794 that she needs an application for a demolition permit before anything more can be done to remove the fire debris. Burchin said the owner, Megin Harrington, also must present him with two copies of the blueprints showing the design for a rebuilt inn before construction can begin.
“That’s where the Century Inn stands,” Burchin said.
Harrington and her son, Chip, managed to escape from the inn uninjured after he discovered a fire on the first floor of the building late Aug. 17. A state police fire marshal the next day ruled the blaze an accident, saying the fire started in a rear utility room.
Harrington has indicated to her neighbors and the township that she plans to rebuild the inn, which also served as her home. She could not be reached Monday.
On the inn’s Facebook page, the Harringtons stated, “We will be taking it one day at a time.”
Burchin said the small village of Scenery Hill would not be the same without the inn, which became a popular destination for family events and hosted Gen. Marquis de LaFayette for breakfast in 1825, according to a 1955 story in The Washington Reporter. The newspaper also reported Andrew Jackson had breakfast there in 1829, before he became president.
“It’s going to hurt Scenery Hill drastically,” Burchin said.
He said he recently informed Chip Harrington of the need for a demolition permit while workers were “caving the third floor to the second floor.”
“I haven’t heard a thing since,” he said. “I will help them any way I can.”
The inn was one of the oldest such businesses in continuous operation on Route 40, having been built before the National Road reached Scenery Hill.