Butler Eagle File Photo

The county is planning to convert a former fitness club in Butler Township into a new office for the Area Agency on Aging that will include indoor pickleball courts.

Township officials are reviewing a site plan for the center at a former health and fitness club building at 215 N. Duffy Road in Butler Township where the county hopes to begin renovations in the spring.

County commissioners ratified submission of the site plan and a $25,328 proposal to design the two courts at their meeting last week.

“It’s now going through a code review with Butler Township. They’re reviewing our plans to make sure it adheres to build codes,” Commissioner Kim Geyer said Tuesday.

The county purchased the property for $437,500 in December 2021, and plans to use it to replace the agency’s current office at Sunnyview Circle.

“The building is old and antiquated. It no longer meets the needs of the agency,” Geyer said. “It’s just gotten to the point where it’s not wise to invest more money into the mechanical systems, such as the HVAC. It’s to the point where the building needs to come down or be sold.”

In addition to submitting the site plan for the township’s review, the county commissioners hired Moshier Studio of Pittsburgh to design the conversion of two racquetball courts into two pickleball courts, which is being handled as a separate project from the rest of the building renovation project.

The agency has obtained a $10,000 grant for the court renovations, she said.

“Our seniors are very active now. They’re healthy; they’re active,” Geyer said.

Eventually, the county plans to move the veterans’ affairs office to the building.

“It makes sense to put resources together to serve veterans and seniors. A lot of those services overlap,” Geyer said. “It’s near the hospital. The park is also nearby so there’s a lot of potential for partnerships with agencies and the park.”

She said the county will administer bidding for the project, and work is expected to begin in the spring.

Also at last week’s commissioners’ meeting, a $2.8 million loan to help finance the Harmony Fire District’s new fire station in Zelienople was approved.

Harmony, Zelienople, Jackson Township and Lancaster Township, the municipalities served by the fire district, agreed to guarantee the loan.

The fire district is using the $2.8 million loan from the county and a separate $3.1 million loan to finance construction.

In addition, the commissioners approved amendments to the subdivision and land development ordinance including one that requires operators of large solar panel arrays and wind energy facilities to post bond of at least 25% of the cost of decommissioning the facilities.