Courtesy: Linda Finarelli
It took four years, three months and two weeks, but the long-awaited opening of the new Upper Dublin Township building finally arrived.
The 42-person police department was first to move into the new 52,000-square-foot municipal building at 801 Loch Alsh Ave. Dec. 12, followed by administrative offices Dec. 19, which were open to the public Dec. 22. The tax office was slated to move on Jan. 2.
The Board of Commissioners will hold its first meeting — the Jan. 5 reorganization — in the new board room.
The steel-framed, brick building with stone accents replaces the former slightly larger facility that sustained extensive damage in the Sept. 1, 2021, EF-2 tornado and heavy rains associated with Hurricane Ida. The severe storm took the life of a township resident and resulted in millions of dollars in damage to more than 1,500 public, private and institutional properties.
The 130 mph winds, windblown debris from surrounding structures and fallen trees left the township building with parts of the roof blown off, damage to the structure and building systems, and extensive water damage from five hours of heavy rains. Further water damage from a sprinkler system malfunction Dec. 25, 2022, resulted in total destruction of the building.
The $52.2 million price tag includes an 11,000-square-foot addition to the public works building and improvements to that facility, which was also damaged in the storm. GKO Architects and D’Huy Engineering, which designed the building, each were paid about $1 million.
“It went as well as any project like this could have, maybe better,” said Board of Commissioners President Ira Tackel. “It was on time and on budget. It’s not an opulent building but is fully functional and appropriate for this township size and structure.”
The public works building, which had suffered from deferred maintenance and was limited by the space and bays needed for complex repairs to the equipment, needed to be done first, he said.
The bays were not tall enough for mechanics to lift the vehicles and not all parts were heated, Township Manager Kurt Ferguson said. The building was modernized and included a five-bay addition.
Funds to cover the project include a $24.5 million insurance settlement, grants, investment interest and a $13.5 million bond, he said. The township is in the process of applying for a federal Inflation Reduction Act $2 million credit, which, if successful, will be used for future projects, he said.
The new building uses solar panels to power a geothermal heating and cooling system, expected to save $60,000 a year in utility costs, Ferguson said.
“It’s the largest net zero building in Pennsylvania,” he said. “It can do everything onsite — it’s environmentally sensible and unprecedented.”
For a municipal facility that size to be energy-efficient and self-sufficient, “it’s pretty remarkable to be able to do that,” Tackel said.
In the four years since the tornado, the police department operated out of the 520 Virginia Drive library building and administrative offices were in rented space at 370 Commerce Drive.
The 22,000-square-foot police department is on the ground floor of the new facility with administrative and the other departments on the second floor for the 135 combined municipal employees.
It was important to get the police department in first due to safety issues, Ferguson said. The police space in the prior building was smaller than most departments of its size, now it is typical, with security measures “based on real world experience,” he said.
“We went from 11,000 square feet in the old building to double that,” police Chief Fran Wheatley said. “We had people in closets and multiple sheds for storage.”
The new station has “training rooms we never had before and includes regionally SWAT and major incidence, chain of custody and evidence space,” he said.
“The finished product is a very nice police station that can address community needs — cop camp and citizen police academy — and an investment in reference to recruitment,” Wheatley said.
Both Tackel and Wheatley credited, Assistant to the Township Manager Jesse Conte, and Cpl. Dave Madrak with working closely with GKO and D’Huy to design the facility and get the construction done on time.
“It was designed to be a government complex to work for the next 20-plus years,” Wheatley said. “Ultimately it’s a long-term investment.”
“It was making the most out of a terrible situation … an opportunity to last us decades in an environmentally conscientious way,” Ferguson said. “We had the involvement of every department, especially for police space. It is accessible and will provide even better service to our residents.”
Library building renovations
Now that the police department has moved out of the township-owned library building, the administration announced previously renovations to that facility are planned to “restore and expand key public spaces.”
At its October meeting, the commissioners authorized having GKO Architects go out for bids for the library building project.
“The bids will be awarded at the board’s Jan. 13 meeting and construction could possibly be underway in mid-March,” with the goal to be done near the end of 2026, Ferguson said.
The $3.3 million project includes a comprehensive upgrade to the library’s auditorium, with an enlarged stage, theatrical lighting, an advanced sound system with hearing assistance capabilities, and a new Green Room for performances and presentations, according to a township news release. Upgrades will include improved HVAC systems, programmable lighting and new screens and monitors to enhance audience visibility and comfort.
Community rooms previously housed in the township building will be set up in part of the 8,000-square-foot space police temporarily occupied, with one large room that can be divided into two rooms and a smaller community room, Ferguson said.
The idea is to rent out the community rooms and auditorium; “there will be a source of income there,” he said.
“There were discussions about a café; a viable café would be a good possibility,” Ferguson said. “The space redesign was contemplated to have the right electrical ability to do it.”
Improvements to the library building were part of the township’s long-term plan for which $1.5 million had already been designated, and Library Director Cheri Fiory obtained two grants totaling $1.25 million along with a $250,000 private donation, he said.
The township will add in $300,000 from the bond for the township building project to complete the cost, Ferguson said.
The community rooms with have supplementary accessory spaces for storage and catering kitchens for banquet events, a GKO representative said at the October meeting. The large room will have space for 300 seats or tables and chairs for 160, with a light kitchenette and support rooms for a possible future café area, he said.
While renovations take place at the 520 Virginia Drive building, the library with support from the Friends of the UD Library, will be looking to rent space offsite at a church or other facility to house the Adult and Discovery Series and other library events, Fiory said at the meeting, noting she has worked with the Ambler Theater in the past.
