By Anthony Salamone | asalamone@mcall.com | Slot UPDATED: December 13, 2024 at 11:17 AM EST
For about 100 years, the iconic Dixie Cup atop the former Wilson factory was a Lehigh Valley landmark. For the next 100 years, Lehigh Valley residents may be able to drink from the cup.
The developer who is restoring the former factory plans to make it the centerpiece of a public park.
Earlier this year, Brian Bartee said his company, Skyline Investment Group, hired nationally known artist Bruce Rosenbaum to help create a public park proposed for the project that will use the old Dixie Cup water tower. This week, Bartee shared renderings with The Morning Call of Rosenbaum’s vision.
The 5-ton, 30-foot cup would be brought down to level, taken off site and refurbished by Rosenbaum’s company, ModVic LLC, and transformed into a “spectacular feature installation,” according to Bartee.
Rosenbaum specializes in merging history, art and technology to create unique “steampunk creations” or art. Steampunk refers to a creative style that combines Victorian-era historical elements with more modern and sometimes fantastical visual fare and technology, according to the Associated Press.
A summary of the project provided by Bartee says Rosenbaum plans to restore the massive Dixie Cup. It will feature a hidden lid that holds water recirculated and cascading gracefully over the sides into a circular pool, creating a stunning water feature and fountain.
A robot will dispense drinking water and serve as a “docent” to educate visitors about the rich history of Dixie, which opened its Wilson plant in 1921. The company employed hundreds of people who turned out disposable cups and related products before closing about 60 years later. The robot — Bartee has named it “Trixie” — will be interactive and answer questions about Dixie products and the company.
“The cup is so special,” Bartee said. “It will be amazing to give it back to the community.”
The old factory had been reused for warehousing but was vacant over recent decades. Bartee plans to convert the complex into 405 apartments. The borough and Northampton County have largely embraced his plans.
The cup is seen as a centerpiece to a plaza adjacent to the Two Rivers Trail that runs along the Easton area.
Bartee’s vision includes a spiral pathway that will guide visitors out of Rosenbaum’s Dixie Cup art installation.
Adjacent to the Dixie Cup plaza, a new community hub being built from a former boiler house will open as a bar, cafe and a “bark park” for residents to share outdoor space with their canine pets. The boiler house is away from the main factory property, near the 25th Street side; Rosenbaum said he also is working on the hub.
As for the landmark visual from Route 22, drivers still will be able to see it — sort of. Bartee plans to install a giant, lightweight, fiberglass replica of the Dixie Cup on the roof, which he said will ensure the “iconic silhouette” remains part of the area skyline.
Borough solicitor Stanley J. Margle said Bartee appeared last month to update council on the project financing and request that the borough sell or transfer one lot on which he plans to place the refinished cup. Margle said the borough plans to transfer the land.
About 3 acres of the complex open to the public will feature the cup, park and hub, Margle said. Plans call for the first apartments to be rented during the fourth quarter of 2026, Bartee said.
“This is going to be the most significant project in Wilson Borough history and one of the most significant projects in the county,” Margle said.
Bartee and Rosenbaum said once the cup is removed from its perch, which could happen in the spring, it could take about 18 months to complete the restoration and related work.
Rosenbaum and his Thorndike, Massachusetts, company — the name is short for Modern Victorian — have gained national recognition. The Wall Street Journal dubbed him the “steampunk guru.”
Bartee, founder and managing partner of Skyline Investment, acquired the former Dixie Cup factory this year from Salisbury Township attorney Joseph Reibman with Wilson Park Ltd. He has estimated the redevelopment could cost $185 million and said Skyline has spent money on environmental remediation work, as well as paid back taxes owed to Wilson, Northampton County and Wilson Area School District, the single largest property tax collector.
The county is working on a tax-incentive plan for the project, according to Margle. The borough and school district previously approved the plan, known as tax increment financing. TIFs, which are authorized by state law, are often used to redevelop or improve distressed properties.Contact Morning Call reporter Anthony Salamone at asalamone@mcall.com.