New Police Station in Springettsbury Township municipal building renovations

Buchart Horn site drawing locates new Police Station in Springettsbury Township municipal building renovations (From Buchart Horn web site, Dec. 2020; Annotated by S.H. Smith, 2020)

Posted by Stephen H. SmithDecember 30, 2020February 21, 2021 All Posts, Buildings, Pennsylvania, Roads, Springettsbury Township, York County

New Police Station in Springettsbury Township municipal building renovations

The expansion of the Springettsbury Township municipal complex closer to the southeast corner of Mount Zion Road and Pleasant Valley Road is imminent. A fire in the existing Police Station a year ago was the final straw in a string of significant issues within what is the original municipal building for Springettsbury Township. A year-long planning effort during 2020 will likely result in a groundbreaking during the first half of 2021.

My post last week, Dr. Louis V. Williams a Springettsbury Township benefactor, unexpectedly resulted in the greatest volume of e-mails for any of my 1,130 YorksPast posts. The comments/questions can be grouped into seven topics; each will be answered in forthcoming posts.
• 41 e-mails concerning imminent Springettsbury Township building additions
• 24 e-mails about the Springettsbury Township Library Fund
• 21 e-mails of general thanks for the bio on Dr. Louis V. Williams
• 16 e-mails about Williams’ Farmhouse
• 7 e-mails concerning Williams’ Polyclinic Hospital in York
• 1 e-mail about the original frame farmhouse on Williams’ farm
• 1 e-mail (from England) concerning Dr. Williams’ internationally known daughter Lydia

Generally most of those contacting me, had not heard anything about imminent Springettsbury Township building additions. The following is a summary of what I know:

I initially heard about a fire at the Police Station during the February meeting of the Springettsbury Township Historic Preservation Committee, where our committee was informed it was the consensus of the Township Supervisors to immediately began the site selection and development process for a new Police Station using Buchart Horn Architects. We were also informed, if building additions end up including a Community Room, it will sit on the site of the Township Farmhouse.

In listening to many of the Meetings of the Township Supervisors throughout 2020, most via Zoom: the site north of the Existing Township Offices was selected, from several options, for the New Police Station. In April the square footage of the initial plans were reduced. In May discussions about a Community Room option began and conclude in June with agreement to move forward with the room. In August, the plans are such that Buchart Horn is authorized to move forward with construction document phase. In November, the Springettsbury Township Planning Commission review Land Development of the new Springettsbury Township Police Station and provide several things to be addressed on the plans submitted by Buchart Horn.

The Buchart Horn site drawing, at the beginning of this post, was discovered via a Google search; it locates the new Police Station within Springettsbury Township municipal building renovations. I’ve shaded, in yellow, the location of the Existing Township Offices. This drawing shows the size of the New Community Room much reduced compared to the size that would have resulted in demolition of the Williams’ Farmhouse.

The following is a 2018 aerial photo of the existing Springettsbury Township municipal complex near the southeast corner of Mount Zion Road and Pleasant Valley Road.

2018 Aerial Photo of Springettsbury Township municipal complex at the southeast corner of Mount Zion Road and Pleasant Valley Road (Source: York County Tax Assessment web site; Annotated by S.H. Smith, 2020)

In January 2001, the existing Springettsbury Township Police Station occupied all of the original Municipal Building; previously shared with all other Springettsbury Township administrative departments since 1964. The existing Township Offices, north of the Williams’ Farmhouse, were occupied December of 2000.

The original Springettsbury Township Municipal Building along Mount Zion Road. was occupied January 1964. Prior to that the township rented rooms in volunteer fire company buildings, where the administrative office of Springettsbury Township occupied a single, small room within the single-bay firehouse at 2914 East Market Street until 1958. After which, the township could spread out into two larger rooms within the newly built 3013 East Market Street volunteer fire station. Until December 1963, those two rooms housed the township administrative office and township police department, which was established in 1958.