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WILKES-BARRE &#8212; Wilkes University moved a step closer to expand its engineering programs with the planned conversion of a vacant downtown office building into classrooms and labs.The Wilkes-Barre Zoning Hearing Board Wednesday approved a request for a special exception to turn the 64,000-square-foot building at 116 S. Main St. into another school property.Attorney Joseph Persico told the board he is serving as the agent for Wilkes which has yet to purchase the property from Java Inc.Persico called Charles Cary, executive director of facilities for the school and William Hudson, dean of the science and engineering school, as witnesses to explain the project.&#8220;We plan to take the building and do a total remodel of it into a state-of-the-art university building with labs, classrooms and offices,&#8221; Cary said.The building would add to the school&#8217;s presence on South Main Street where it already has student housing at 10 E. South St., the public safety building and parking garage, the Sidhu School of Business in the University Center on Main and art gallery in the former Bartikowsky Jewelers.The project would be a plus for the neighboring properties, Cary said. &#8220;It would actually enhance the area, taking a vacant building and turning it something useful,&#8221; he said.Hudson said the converted building would allow the school to expand the existing mechanical, electrical and environmental engineering programs and add new areas of study.&#8220;We&#8217;d like to expand the numbers there but then also grow the capabilities in programs such as software engineering, computer engineering, engineering physics, bio-engineering, actuarial sciences probability and statistics and so forth,&#8221; Hudson said.In a separate vote the board approved the school&#8217;s plans to build an addition to the former Bartikowsky property at 141 S. Main St. and the relocation of the Sordoni Art Gallery.The board also gave the go ahead for the Children&#8217;s Service Center of Wyoming Valley Inc. to construct a two-story addition to its building at 335 S. Franklin St. and expand the parking to allow for 100 spaces on the property. The addition will allow the center to consolidate its outpatient services into a central location and contain a pharmacy and space for a pediatric medical group.<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta>By Jerry Lynottjlynott@www.timesleader.com</bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta>Reach Jerry Lynott at 570-991-6120 or on Twitter @TLJerryLynott</shirttailMeta></div>

Wilkes eyeing downtown office building to expand engineering programs