Feb 19, 2016 By Suzanne Elliott 2 min read

Peters Township officials, as well as the Peters Township School District, have sent a joint letter – dated Feb. 11 – to Rolling Hills Country Club chairman of the board expressing interest in acquiring property at the now-closed 190-acre site that sits along East McMurray Road.

“I can state that a joint letter from Dr. (Jeannine) French (Peters Township School Superintendent) and myself was sent to Rolling Hills noting our joint interest in the property and would like to have a dialogue,” said Michael Silvestri, Peters Township manager, in an email.

The letter is expected to be discussed at the Feb. 22 council meeting, Silvestri said.

Shelly Belcher, a district spokesperson, confirmed the letter expresses an interest in acquiring the property. She also said the district has been looking for available property in the community for quite some time.

“Currently, the district does not own any land that would allow for significant development,” Belcher said in an email.

At a joint workshop held earlier this month, both entities discussed two projects high on their wish list, a community pool, and how to freshen up Peters Township High School, which was constructed in the late 1960s. The district has spent more than $500,000 on various repairs at the building in recent years and district officials have said it does not make financial sense for it to keep doing these kinds of repairs on the building, which needs new windows and possibly a roof replacement.

The township, meanwhile, is gearing up to do a $40,000 feasibility study to determine whether it makes financial sense to construct a community swimming pool. If it does, then a determination will be made of the type of pool that should be built and its location.

Rolling Hills, which shuttered at the end of the year, is in the process of being acquired by a consortium that includes the principles of Horizon Properties, a major developer in Southpointe. The deal has not yet closed.