Hopewell Township has amended a contract with Spiezle Architectural Group to add funds for additional environmental services in the design and planning of a new senior and community center.
Township Committee members approved additional funds on Feb. 3 for the additional professional services needed by T&M Engineering Associates, a sub professional consultant working with the Hamilton based Spiezle.
The total for the additional services totals $89,984. The work – sewer and water permits ($29,800), civil design ($21,225), survey and geotechnical services ($21,100), Phase 2 site investigation ($15,259), other potential expenses ($10,016), and project management ($2,600).
“We are moving forward,” Township Administrator George Snyder said of the design and planning of the new senior and community center. “These are additional environmental services outside the original scope of work with Spiezle Architectural Group.
“I had a meeting with our grant administrator, and he said we could admit these for the grant. The total work they projected right now is $89,984 and we have about another $10,000 for contingency.”
Spiezle Architectural Group was hired by the township to design and plan for a new senior and community center. In 2024, they were appointed by the township with a $1.67 million contract.
The additional services in the amended contract increases the contract to $1.77 million.
In summer 2024, Hopewell Township Committee members adopted an amended redevelopment plan for the Zaitz Redevelopment Area for the construction of the new senior and community center.
The amendment to the redevelopment plan provides an area for the Hopewell Valley Senior and Community Center and also additional roadway access from Reed Road to the Zaitz Redevelopment area.
The senior and community center would use a portion of the Zaitz Redevelopment Area that potentially could contain parking facilities and a community garden in the designated area.
The Zaitz’s area consists of 44 acres and is one of the designated sites that will be utilized for affordable housing as part the township’s third round affordable housing settlement.
The new senior and community center will be located at 1646 Reed Road containing a little more than 15 acres and is near the intersection of Reed and Diverty roads as well as next to the Zaitz Tract.
Hopewell Township, Hopewell Borough and Pennington residents would use the center.
In June 2023, state legislators had announced that the project would receive $2 million in state grant funding to build the new senior and community center.
Additionally, Mercer County provided $60,000 to support the project.
The first community outreach meeting for the preliminary programming and design of the center was completed in April 2021.
Spiezle Architectural Group at the time presented examples that included community multipurpose rooms that can accommodate 100 occupants; a community game room, community art room with a classroom for mixed media; and youth creators space focused on STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) programming.
