NextGen Municipal Building Renovation Project

• Latest Closures
• Highlights
• More Project Illustrations
• Summary
• Timeline
• Photo Gallery

Latest Closures & Relocations

December 2023: The main (archway) first floor Library entrance and parking lot, located next to the Municipal Park Playground, is now open. Visitors may still enter the Kids Library through the ramp entrance located on the opposite side of the Municipal Building near Clair's Kennel.

March 2023: The full Adult and Children’s sections of the Library on the second floor are both open. The third floor of the Library is closed. Patrons can place and pick up holds. Holds are located on the second floor of the Library adjacent to the main desk.

January 2023: The Main Entrance Visitor Hub is open to the public.  Access the Tax Office, Township Administration, Department of Planning & Community Development and the Police Department during business hours located on the upper-level lobby entrance of the Municipal Building.

Mid-July 2022: The Kids Library moved to its new permanent location at the rear of the building with a direct access parking lot entrance.

Highlights
One-Level Library – Completed
The Municipal Building Renovation Project has shifted the Kids Library to the second floor. A new, enclosed bridge connects the Adult and Kids Libraries together. The new design addresses the issues of accessibility, restroom facilities, security and more. Parents and caretakers will enjoy the ADA-compliant restroom included within the Kids Library area. A new children's program room includes state-of-the-art technology, lockable storage and a workspace with a water supply for crafting projects. A new library entrance is level with the parking lot. Most of the existing third floor space will be reconfigured into a combination of meeting rooms, study rooms and community space, with access to an outdoor rooftop courtyard.   

Above: View of the building's rear showing the addition to the Police Department on the left and the Library addition at the center, which bridges the nonfiction section of the current Adults Library to the former school district wing (future Kids Library).

Main Entrance Visitor Hub – Completed
The main entrance facing McLaughlin Run Road now serves as a hub for visitors during business hours. Instead of just having access to the Tax Office and Administration area, the visitor hub now includes the primary entrances to the Police Department and the Department of Planning & Community Development. 

Above: View of the Municipal Building's front entrance showing the addition to the Police Department.

Police Department Expansion – Completed
The Upper St. Clair Police Department will receive a much-needed expansion and modernization during the Municipal Building Renovation Project. A new Police Department entrance will be constructed in the main entrance visitor hub. A receptionist will greet the public during business hours in the new waiting area. New garages will be built for police vehicles. Updated technology will be installed in the dispatch center and the police conference room, and the officers' locker rooms will be expanded and modernized.
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More Project Illustrations

Above: Aerial view showing the open courtyard atop the Library addition as well as the Police Department addition (upper left of the image).


Above: Aerial view showing two additions in relation to the current main entrance to the Library.
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summary
Starting in 2021 and going into 2023, the Township of Upper St. Clair Municipal Building at 1820 McLaughlin Run Road is undergoing a renovation. Among the benefits will be much-needed physical improvements to the Upper St. Clair Library and Police Department. 

Project planning began in 2018 after the Upper St. Clair School District announced its plans to move out of the Municipal Building. Over the next year, Township staff studied multiple options for the use of the available space. At the direction of the Board of Commissioners, staff developed a conceptual plan in 2019 to reallocate the vacated space for Township use with an emphasis on improving the layout, providing operational efficiencies and enhancing the experience of residents and the public as they engage with the Township. 

The project and its anticipated funding were included in the 2020 budget, but was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. After a temporary pause, progress resumed in late 2020 and the project was adopted into the 2021 budget. In February 2021, the Board of Commissioners authorized a 20-year bond issue to finance the project. The renovation project is estimated to cost roughly $8 million.
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Timeline

In the late 1950s, the original shell of the Municipal Building was constructed -- a small facility housing the Police Department and Public Works. In May 1969, the first major addition to the project was dedicated to include space for the Township offices, the Upper St. Clair School District administrative offices, the Library and the Post Office. The last major physical reconfiguration to the Municipal Building was done as part of "Project 2000," a label coined in the early 1980s when the next several decades of the building's use was being planned. That project completed in August 1987 and included an addition for the Library and reallocation of the administrative and police space. Beginning in 2010, the Township began a series of phased renovations to incorporate functional efficiencies, cosmetic enhancements, upgraded equipment and other improvements. Now, nearly 40 years after planning for "Project 2000," the opportunity is here to plan the building's use for decades to come. 

• June 2019: The Board of Commissioners approved the 2020-2024 Capital Improvement Program, including plans for the NextGen Renovation Project to take place in 2020-2021.

• September 2019: Upper St. Clair School District administration moved out of the Municipal Building.

• December 2019: The Board of Commissioners approved the 2020 budget, including anticipated bond funding for the NextGen Renovation Project.

• March 2020: The NextGen Renovation Project was temporarily put on hold due to the staff's need to focus on the COVID-19 pandemic's impact on the community. 

• June 2020: The Board of Commissioners approved the 2021-2025 Capital Improvement Program, moving the NextGen Renovation Project timeline to 2021-2023.

• November 2020: Progress on the NextGen Renovation Project resumed.

• November 2020: The Township was awarded a $750,000 grant for the Library portion of the project through the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's 2020 Keystone Grant for Public Library Facilities program.

• December 2020: The Township was awarded a $250,000 grant for the Library portion of the project through the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's 2020 Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program. 

• December 2020: The Board of Commissioners approved the 2021 budget including the anticipated bond funding for the NextGen Renovation Project. 

• February 1, 2021: The Board of Commissioners approved a 20-year bond issue to provide funding for several capital projects, primarily the NextGen Renovation Project. The $14 million bond issue was settled on March 25, 2021.

• February 22, 2021: Public presentation of NextGen Renovation Project plans and timeline during a Special Meeting of the Board of Commissioners (6:15 p.m.).

• June 1, 2021: Public presentation of NextGen Renovation Project plans and timeline during the Informational & General Affairs Meeting of the Board of Commissioners (7:30 p.m.). Click herefor a copy of the presentation document.

• August 24, 2021: Construction bid opening (9:00 a.m.).

• September 7, 2021: Construction bids awarded at the Board of Commissioners Regular Meeting (7:30 p.m.).

• November 2021: Construction begins, which focuses on interior renovations of the former school district wing. It will eventually house the Children's Library and the Department of Planning & Community Development. This phase was completed in the summer of 2022.

• April 2022: Construction begins on the addition to the Police Department and the construction of the Library connector, which will join the new Children's Library with the existing second floor Adult Library. Full public access to the new one-level Children's Library and Adult Library was available in January 2023 when the connector was completed. The Police Department addition was initially planned to be complete in November 2022, but was delayed and will not be complete until the second half of 2023. 

• May 2022: Interior renovation of the existing second floor Adult Library and the Technical Services section begins. Other second floor Adult Library renovations and interior renovations of the existing third floor Children's Library began. The Adult Library renovations were completed in January 2023 and the interior renovations on the third floor of the Library are expected to be completed in 2023. A portion of the space will be converted into use by the Police Department.

• July 2022: The existing second floor Library Young Adults area will become a community space accessible from the Library. Work on this area was completed in early-2023.

• August 2022: Interior renovation of the existing Police Department begins. This phase is expected to be substantially completed in the second half of 2023.

• January 2023: The Main Entrance Visitor Hub, which now includes entrances to the Tax Office, Township Administration, Department of Planning & Community Development and the Police Department, opened to the public.

• February 2023: The Library’s entire second floor renovation, which includes the full Adult and Children’s Libraries, was completed and opened to the public in its entirety. The two spaces are now connected due to the addition of a brand-new connector space.
• March 2023: The Police Department's new parking garage started to be built. 
• Summer 2023: Work began on the interior and exterior of the Police Department's addition. The upgraded USCPD Dispatch Center was completed in July, giving dispatchers much-needed additional space and technological updates. 
• October 2023: Renovations to the Police Department's upgraded parking garage and modernized and expanded locker rooms were completed.
• November 2023: The exterior renovations to the Police Department's addition were completed to give the entire Municipal Building a uniform look. The interior improvements included expanded office space, an updated dispatching center, new conference and interview rooms, an enlarged garage space and additional equipment storage for the department.
• December 2023: The main (archway) first floor Library entrance and parking lot, located next to the Municipal Park Playground, reopened. 

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Photo gallery

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