Falls Twp. Moves Forward with Plans for New Municipal Complex

The Falls Twp. Board of Supervisors held an informational session during this month’s council meeting to discuss plans to move forward with the proposed plan of the Falls Township Municipal Complex.

The new complex, which would feature a building for administration and police and a separate building for public works and parks and recreation, has been an ongoing process lasting the past three years.

During the council meeting, the Falls Twp. Board of Supervisors approved for Kimmel Bogrette to resume preparing construction documents, moving the process into its next phase.

If the project stays on schedule, construction could begin as early as next summer and finish as early as September 2016.

Bogrette was first hired by the board back in Fall of 2011, and in May of 2013 was instructed by the board to begin construction documents for a new municipal complex to be located in place of the existing location at 188 Lincoln Hwy. in Fairless Hills.

In October, the project was halted when the board became worried about impending building costs and possible finance options.

“This is definitely something we have wrestled with as a board,” said Chairman Bob Harvie. “We wanted to make sure we were doing the best we could to monitor the public’s finances.”

The complex, which would increase by nearly 30,000 square feet, will cost the township over $16 million to build.

“Most people that visit this building see very little of it. [You] don’t see everything behind the curtain, it definitely is a building that was never built to be a municipal building,” said Harvie. “It’s been sort of cobbled together.”

Harvie as well as other board members were in agreement that a new building is a necessity, with Member Jeffrey Rocco saying any money spent on the current building ‘feels like a waste’.

While some residents, like Guido Mariani were in agreement that the township needs a new headquarters, resident Andy Dell wasn’t so sure, especially when it came to the cost.

“It would be kind of ridiculous to borrow the money from a bank if you can afford to pay for this,” said Dell. “If you paid cash for the building and lowered the cost a little, we could pay first and not have any debt.”

The township currently has an estimated $34 million in savings, making them one of the wealthiest townships in the county.

“Now you guys aren’t making money off your investment,” said Dell. “It seems fairly simple to me, as much as I don’t want a new building, spend it now and save the $5 million in interest.”

Dell’s estimate was exactly on point, if the township did decide to finance the project over a course of 30 years, it would pay an estimated $5.2 million in interest.

While the township may not make money directly off the investment of building a new municipal complex, the board has pinpointed interest in using geothermal technology for the building after hearing of its success at the Manheim Township Public Library.

While geothermal technology will cost the township an estimated $300,000 upfront, it has proved to be a ‘no brainer’ for long term building owners, converting into payback in less than 8 years, according to Kimmel Bogrette.

Now that the township has approved the continuation of construction documents, the project is estimated to go up for bid between February and May 2015.