Bethlehem Township Commissioners discussed a sketch plan for Amaya Spa/Retreat Center, to be located at 4401 William Penn Highway, at their April 17 meeting.

Thomas Comitta, of Thomas Comitta Associates, presented the Base Engineering, Inc. plans. The main building would be 24,412 square feet, and the complex would include 57 guest rooms, three villas, a banquet hall and a restaurant.

Board President John Merhottein questioned the number of facilities this complex would have. “I heard a banquet facility, I heard medical facilities, a spa, a restaurant. So how many uses are there?”

“The principal use is the integrated medical spa, with physician offices,” Comitta said. “Again, that’s approved in the settlement stipulation. That’s the principal use. Accessories that were approved by the township include restaurant, hotel accommodations, including hotel cottages, and the conference center. Those are our uses.”

Questions from Commissioner Luke Verdes confirmed that the main medical use will be cosmetic surgery, from which it can take more than a day to recuperate, depending on the procedure, necessitating rooms.

The agreement between Thomas Comitta Associates and the township was reached in 2012. None of the current commissioners sat on the board at that time.