A developer may be turning a long-vacated building in downtown Lebanon, often referred to as the “old CenturyTel building,” into residential space.
The Lebanon Planning Commission held a public hearing for and approved an “adaptive reuse project” for the former brick building adjacent to the SafeHaven Thrift Store during its regular meeting on Wednesday, June 17.
The three-story building, located at 890 S 2nd St., consists of approximately 29,974 square feet and comes with 36 parking spaces. It was built in the 1980s and used as a call center for CenturyTel until the company sold the building in 2018. According to sales records, it appears the building has been unoccupied since 2016 or 2018.
The applicant, Josh Bacher of the Scott Lepman Company, submitted plans to convert the space into an apartment building with 26 one-bedroom units.
It is zoned Central Business Commercial.
Based on Lebanon’s development code, Development Services Director Shana Olson elected to refer the application to the Planning Commission for review and decision “due to the significance of the proposed downtown residential conversion and the public interest associated with implementation of recently adopted housing and commercial district regulations.”
In her report, Olson brought forth Lebanon’s Ordinance No. 3036, which was adopted in 2025 to expand housing opportunities within commercial zoning districts and support implementation of the city’s Housing Production Strategy.
Prior to the new ordinance, residential development within portions of the downtown commercial area was generally limited to upper-story residential uses. The amendments removed restrictions requiring residential units to be located exclusively above ground-floor commercial space and expanded opportunities for residential occupancy within commercial districts
The application includes requests for exemptions or waivers concerning system development charges (due to the building already being constructed) and bedroom window sizes. The current windows in the building only open eight inches, and the applicant requests a waiver to avoid replacing them all with larger windows that would be required for fire and ventilation safety in exchange for alternative fire and ventilation options.
Olson explained these issues will be addressed at a later date during the permitting process.