TOWNSHIP OF WASHINGTON—Township Council members selected an all-brick facade for the roughly $5 million public works facility to be built behind the town hall.
The project will replace the former DPW facility in the same site, which was razed recently due to longstanding soil contamination caused by leaking gasoline storage tanks decades ago.
Township Administrator Mark DiCarlo presented the two proposed building designs for a new DPW facility: either a concrete and brick building, or an all-brick exterior building. DiCarlo said between the two exterior designs the architect said there were no cost differences “even worth mentioning.”
He asked the four council members present to select what option they preferred. Councilwoman Stacey Feeney was absent due to issues she was experiencing with a remote connection.
DiCarlo did not provide a cost estimate on Feb. 21, and did not respond to Pascack Press’s emailed questions before press time. In December, Arcari Iovino estimated a brick and mortar building would cost $4,978,350. (An all-brick facade building was not offered then as an option.)
DiCarlo said he would be meeting next week with Mayor Peter Calamari, the architect, and Boswell Engineering to discuss timeframes and move forward.
In December, Arcari Iovino estimated a 10,000 square foot building, although the two designs presented showed about 7,960 square feet of space.
The new two-story DPW facility includes a first floor with five vehicle bays (one is a wash bay), and also first floor space for tools, tires, a laundry, two utility rooms; two staircases, and an elevator.
On the second floor are two sleeping quarters, two offices, a meeting/break room, three lavatories, two showers, men’s and women’s lockers, and a storage and mechanical room.
It was not clear what would happen with space currently occupied by the former volunteer ambulance headquarters behind town hall. The ambulance corps recently moved to new quarters in the newly opened Emergency Services Building on Washington Avenue.
DiCarlo’s presentation occurred nearly 2.5 hours into the meeting, after residents had left following the public comment period. Council discussed the two outside design choices for about four minutes.
Council also approved a resolution to employ Lisko Environmental as its licensed site remediation professional (LSRP) to continue environmental monitoring including “soil remediation services related to DPW site, 350-354 Hudson Avenue.” This includes monitoring wells and soil sampling as required under its NJDEP agreement, officials said.
No cost or task breakdown is provided on the resolution. We have reached out for a copy of the proposal.