Jan 17, 2003 By Amy Karpinsky 4 min read

The Fayette County Commissioners Thursday took a step toward renovating the former Federal Building in downtown Uniontown to allow for its use as an alternative school and headquarters for the county juvenile probation office. Following a request from Commissioner Ronald M. Nehls, the commissioners voted to send out a request for proposals for renovation bids at the Peter Street building.

Nehls said he was requesting the action following a meeting with architect Michael S. Molnar about renovating the building. Nehls said although Molnar didn’t have an exact figure, he estimated that the cost would be $600,000 or less.

When commissioner Sean M. Cavanagh voiced concern about spending money on the project when there are other top priority projects in the county in which bond funds have been designated, commission chairman Vincent A. Vicites said that the funding for the renovations won’t come from bond issue.

“It won’t affect the $11.7 million bond issue and we’ll try to do it as cost effectively as possible,” Vicites said.

Nehls said the income from tenants of the building will pay for renovations. If the rent money falls short, Nehls said the commissioners could use their line of credit. He said the Molnar estimated that it would cost between $3 million and $4 million to reconstruct the building.

Vicites estimated that building on to the courthouse would cost millions of dollars. He pointed out that the commissioners obtained the building at no cost and a large portion of the renovations will be in the area where juvenile probation will relocate He added that there will be a comprehensive records department in the basement.

Nehls said a lot of hard work was involved in getting the post office to stay. He said now negotiations are ongoing with Adelphoi Village for a school for students on probation. Adelphoi previously sought to house juvenile offenders on the second floor of the building and the request was rejected by the Uniontown Zoning Hearing Board.

Cavanagh said he wants to make sure the leases are reviewed by the county solicitor to ensure that they are “iron clad.” Nehls said the post office is paying $10 per square foot and Adelphoi will pay $5 per square foot. He added that negotiations are ongoing with another tenant for the building.

“We’re taking the first steps to move forward,” Vicites said, adding that juvenile probation office personnel would like to move into the site by July. Vicites said they have streamlined all the line items to make sure the renovations will be cost effective. “There will be no extravagance whatsoever,” he said.

In other action, the commissioners approved a motion to seek proposals for architectural and engineering services for the Fayette Area Coordinated Transportation building being planned for location at the Connellsville Airport. A total of $1.6 million in funding is available for the project, which will centralize the county’s ground transportation.

The commissioners also voted to authorize the director of the Office of Human and Community Services/FACT, a legal consultant and FACT consultant Harold Jenkins to negotiate with the Fayette County Airport Authority for a deal to lease property at the airport.

Nehls asked if the county knows how much the lease will be, since his fellow commissioners voted down an agreement to purchase another building to house the FACT operations. Vicites said they have a “ballpark figure” that needs to be finalized.

The commissioners tabled an agreement between the Human and Community Services/FACT office and attorney Sheryl R. Heid for legal consultant services. Michelle Shumar, director of the department, said she spoke with Heid about the agreement and Heid was not prepared to enter into an agreement for services until she found out her employment status with the county.

For the 2003 budget, the commissioners did not include Heid as an assistant county solicitor as had been done in the past. Shumar said Heid expressed interest in speaking with county manager Warren Hughes to clarify the situation prior to entering into an agreement. When Shumar expressed concern about negotiating for the FACT site, Vicites said he would find legal help from another source, if need be.