It's on in Pennsauken, $28M building project out of court

PENNSAUKEN TWP. — The township is moving to a quick groundbreaking for a building that will serve as a dual town hall and library.

“We’re really excited, top to bottom, about the library and municipal building,” township Administrator Tim Killion said. “We’re working on a new community center, as well, in a different part of town that we’re going out to bid at some point later this year. We’re in the design phase of that, as we speak. So, we have a lot going on in town.”

Patrons of the library or municipal building won’t have to adjust much. Those existing buildings are near each off Merchantville Avenue and North Crescent Boulevard (Route 130). The construction site for their replacements is the big lot at the rear of those buildings.

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“This whole area, we want to turn into like a town center, if you will,” Killion said. “We have the library municipal building there. We’re working to get a Jake’s Place playground to replace a playground that we have here. We’re going to have a walking path around the complex.”

Township wants Crescent Blvd. area a destination point

The project will cost about $28 million, with $9.3 million from a grant under the New Jersey Library Construction Bond Act. Pennsauken is paying the rest of the bill. Dual municipal and library buildings also exist in Moorestown and Medford.

The existing three-story municipal building was constructed in 1957.

“And it’s seen its time,” he said. “Initially, when this building was built, the library was in the basement … and, as the town grew, then they built the library.

Killion said the new facility, at 54,480 square feet, will be easier to get around, with bigger and better amenities. The existing playground will be replaced with a disability-friendly Jake’s Place playground model. A walkway also will wind through the complex.

"We’re really trying to make this a destination place for folks where they can get everything they want to as well as have some recreation,” Killion said.

“Like right now, across the street from where we are, a Starbucks is coming in once they get their final approval from DOT,” Killion said. “Which would be a nice, little addition to where we are. But that’s where we’re hoping to grow this out.”

After court delay, new facility breaks ground soon

The project unexpectedly was delayed last year due to litigation in state court over the construction contract award, pitting the first- and second-lowest bidders against each other. A judge decided the case in favor of the township and the low bidder at the end of November.

RSC Architects's design calls for a three-story public library along the eastern side and a two-story municipal complex along its western side, served by a central lobby.

The library features a two-story book stack and reading area, with a mezzanine, circulation desk, cafe, administrative offices, and conference rooms. Its third floor will contain similar spaces; however, it will be dedicated to children, young adults, and teenagers.

Pennsauken is anticipating a June 2025 opening. Afterward, the library will be razed for more parking but the township has not decided what to do with the municipal building.

Pennsauken’s population is around 36,000 people and relatively stable in recent years. It has seen a rise in people arriving from Philadelphia, as well as North Jersey and New York, during and after the COVID pandemic.

Joe Smith is a N.E. Philly native transplanted to South Jersey 36 years ago, keeping an eye now on government in South Jersey. He is a former editor and current senior staff writer for The Daily Journal in Vineland, Courier-Post in Cherry Hill, and the Burlington County Times.

This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: Pennsauken ready to go on $28M, dual-use, municipal-library building