Part 3 of series

Seems like old times for the Northampton Area School District Seemsville site.

The 92.32-acre property at Route 329 and Seemsville Road, East Allen Township, has been under consideration by NASD as a site for an educational facility since 1995 when it was purchased for $227,500 from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

The Seemsville tract may be back on track.

The NASD Board of Education approved an agreement Feb. 8 with D’Huy Engineering Inc. for a Seemsville property master plan at a cost not to exceed $540,500.

A big driver for reconsidering the site is the aging condition of certain NASD buildings and millions of dollars in infrastructure work at the Seemsville Road and Route 329 intersection by the Northampton Business Center, also known as Jaindl-Watson Development, or JW Development.

The NASD school board voted Dec. 3, 2018, to give the 288-acre Jaindl-Watson warehouse project an easement on 13.6 acres of the 92.32-acre Seemsville tract for a realigned Seemsville Road and Route 329 traffic light, stormwater improvements, extension of water and sewer lines and other improvements estimated to cost $4.5 million and paid for by JW Development.

Northampton Area School District Elementary School Options and Facility Improvements, the March 22 D’Huy Engineering master plan report, includes cost comparisons of renovating or replacing district buildings or constructing a new facility on the Seemsville property.

The Capital Maintenance Plan, prepared in 2011 by D’Huy Engineering and updated yearly by the district’s consulting engineering firm, is part of the basis for the options and facility improvements report.

“The plan identifies extensive work is required at Franklin, Washington, Moore and the administration building,” according to the report. “When comparing renovation costs versus capital improvements, all four buildings exceed 100 percent and three of the buildings have site challenges. These buildings should be evaluated for program requirements and efficiency improvements and be considered for replacement,” the report concludes.

Here is the report’s evaluation of the buildings:

• Franklin Elementary School: Renovations are not cost effective - replace on current site or relocate; building not ADA compliant (i.e., toilet rooms); replacement of HVAC system; replace roofs

• Moore Elementary School: Consider renovations or replacement depending on review of curriculum and program needs; replacement of HVAC system; add new sprinkler system; replace roof, close skylights; replace interior and exterior lighting; expand parking, repair or replace existing parking areas; upgrade sewer plant; 11 teaching spaces without natural light (no windows)

• Administration building: Consideration to replace building after review of program needs on current site or relocate; IT department cannot be combined at existing location because of site constraints; replace HVAC system; replace plumbing and sewer system; replace interior and exterior lighting

• Washington building: Renovations are not cost effective - replace on current site or relocate; building not ADA compliant (i.e., toilet rooms); replacement of HVAC system

The report recommends these steps to evaluate new construction at the Route 329 site:

• Compare costs of new elementary school versus costs for renovations and additions.

• Compare costs of new administration-IT building at Route 329 site compared to replacing administration building and Washington building (IT department).

• Current infrastructure costs being implemented by others make the use of the site more feasible.

The report recommends Option 3B, which would close Franklin and Moore and build a new elementary school, as the least expensive of the options and provides the district the opportunity to consolidate district elementary schools.

Conclusion: East Allen Township zoning and Seemsville master plan timetable