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Borough weighs site and funding gaps for public-safety building; condemned church flagged as safety hazard and possible training resource
Summary
Borough staff said $14 million in grants are promised toward a public-safety building estimated at $34 million, and staff identified alternative sites to reduce soil-stabilization costs. Separately, planning staff reported the vacant church at 502 Major Road remains a public-safety hazard and could be used for non-burning fire training pending hazardous-material review.
Borough staff updated the Planning Commission on December 18 about two safety-related matters: the funding and site search for a new public-safety building, and the condition of a condemned church building that poses winter-collapse risks.
On the public-safety building, the borough manager reported approximately $14,000,000 in grant commitments but said the current 65%-design estimate to build the facility is roughly $34,000,000, including about $6,000,000 for soil stabilization. "We have about $14,000,000 of grants promised, but we only actually have a grant agreement in place for $1,250,000 of it from the state," the manager said. Staff have commissioned lidar and surface-data reviews to identify sites with better soils and lower stabilization needs; the manager said four candidate sites were under evaluation and at least one borough-owned site could save millions in stabilization costs.
Separately, planner Chen updated the commission that the structure at 502 Major Road (a church building) was assessed by the fire department and remains a significant public-safety hazard: the structure is shifted on its foundation and may collapse under snow load, and staff reported evidence of children entering the structure and prior interior fires. Chen said the church had applied to demolish the building but requested extensions; as of December, there were no final remediation actions.
Commissioners asked whether the fire department could use the vacant building for controlled training. Chen and staff said burning the structure for training could be prohibited if asbestos or other hazardous materials are present, but other training uses (forcible entry, search-and-rescue drills) may still be possible. Staff planned an internal meeting to determine feasibility and next steps. "We fear that there might be some asbestos, which would prohibit burning," the manager said; staff said they would pursue a safety-determination process and report back.
Next steps: staff to complete feasibility analysis for alternative public-safety building sites and to consult property owners about potential acquisitions; staff to confirm whether the church building can be used safely by the fire department for non-burning training or whether remediation/demolition is required.
