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North Penn renovation update: land-development approvals, NPDES resubmission delay field-work start; sustainability upgrades highlighted
Summary
Consultants told the committee that land-development approvals and a conservation-district NPDES resubmission are pending; staff said field work for bid package 2 will be delayed until permits are final. The presentation also outlined envelope, lighting and HVAC upgrades and noted a solar rooftop study.
Consultants and staff told the Facilities and Operations Committee that the North Penn High School renovation is progressing through permitting and design review but that the start of some field work will be delayed until certain permits are complete.
Jamie Lynch, a consultant from CHA, said preliminary land-development work was completed in October 2024 and that the Planning Commission granted final approval in September; the Board of Supervisors also provided final land-development approval last week. Lynch said the next outstanding item is the NPDES permit; the conservation district issued another round of comments in September and the district has resubmitted responses for review.
“With these two items in the rearview mirror… we can actually start construction work on bid package 2,” Lynch said, noting that the district has issued a notice-to-proceed for shop drawings but will delay field mobilization until the NPDES permit and recorded agreements are complete. He added that the schedule will be shifted by the length of the permitting delay.
Lynch also reported recent coordination with PennDOT and Montgomery County on Sunnneytown Pike (also spelled Somnney Town in earlier materials). He said PennDOT and Montgomery County indicated they have no current plans to widen Sunnneytown in their 10-year plans and that retaining curb now could create future redundant work and stormwater costs. The team will retain existing flasher locations and add signage; a pedestrian crossing at Sunnneytown and Snyder Road will remain part of the plan pending final permit and location review.
On sustainability, consultants described building-envelope and systems upgrades intended to reduce classroom energy use. Planned measures include replacing a built-up roof with single-ply roofing and 6 inches of insulation (raising thermal resistance), adding stud-wall insulation in classroom exterior walls, replacing single-pane windows with insulated double-pane glass, upgrading lighting to LED with occupancy and daylight sensors, and installing packaged dedicated outdoor-air units with dehumidification. Lynch summarized the package as delivering “more than a 50% reduction in total energy consumption for each classroom” compared with existing conditions.
Student representative Audrey McCarthy commented, “We’re definitely all excited about the solar panels and the new lighting. I’ve been telling a lot of my friends — guess what? We’re getting solar panels.”
A public commenter, Jason of Lansdale, urged caution on solar cost and savings estimates and characterized rooftop solar payback projections as optimistic. “I think this notion that somehow you’re going to save money with solar panels is really overstated,” he said during public comment.
Lynch also summarized other project milestones: AM radio-tower design work slated for 2026 bidding, progress on bid-package shop drawings, and that contingency and allowances remain to manage near-term change orders. The district stressed coordination with contractors on site staging and parking (a contractor staging area at the radio-site will be used) and said the township has been cooperative in expediting land-development recording.
Committee members asked about the NPDES resubmission timing and staff said they would confirm whether the resubmission had already been filed. Lynch said the site-work contractor and general contractor are prepared to mobilize once permits are in hand.
