Feb 2, 2017 By Harry Funk 3 min read

With Peters Township and its school district now in possession of the former site of Rolling Hills Country Club, the future of its nearly 200 acres of property was a prime topic of discussion during the annual joint meeting of the school board and council.

The cost of acquiring the land off East McMurray Road still has yet to be determined, township manager Paul Lauer said at the Jan. 30 session. But in the meantime, the municipality is making preparations.

“We are conducting a boundary survey,” Lauer explained. “This will provide not only the location of the boundary, but it will also provide topographic information and location of structures, which will assist both the school district and township in terms of developing the property.”

The township also has hired an architect and engineer to ascertain the condition of the club’s main building, which was maintained consistently until the property went on the market on the start of 2016.

“I would assume in the next 30 days, we’re going to have an assessment back as to what the condition of the building is and what type of improvements would be needed to put it to a public use,” Lauer said.

The municipality also has advertised for design services for master development and site plan for what is to be known as Peters Hill Park. Proposals are due by Feb. 21.

“One of the things that that master plan process is intended to do is to provide us direction as to exactly what activities and programs will be provided for inside the park,” Lauer said, “and to develop a plan that will direct how we will go about developing that over the next few years.”

The township also is working with a consultant regarding the condition of the swimming pool at Rolling Hills and its possible future.

Eventually, the land must be subdivided for use by the municipality, which will have about 90 acres, and the school district with the remainder.

“I think we can do that on a timetable that makes sense for the school district, if you have needs as they relate to your state approval,” Lauer told the board members and administrators in attendance.

District officials have discussed a new high school as a possible use for the property. Meanwhile, the district has engaged in a feasibility study for the existing high school to evaluate the building and determine the best use of available space.

Hayes Design Group Architects of Robinson Township, which undertook the study, also has completed a districtwide facilities assessment.

“We just got the results of those,” Superintendent Jeannine French said. And what it looked like in a nutshell, with our current buildings, to keep them warm, safe and dry over the next 10 years would be about a $24 million investment.”

In addition, a demographic study for the district is nearly finished.

“We can see where our growth might be, where we’ll have less growth, so we can make determinations,” French explained. “We’re looking maybe to move some of our building stock around and what our schools potentially would look like.”