Peters to hire attorney to negotiate the purchase of Rolling Hills

Peters Township Council agreed March 14 to hire a Pittsburgh attorney to help it acquire some, or all, of the 190-acre shuttered Rolling Hills Country Club on East McMurray Road.
Council is expected to be joined by the Peters Township School District, who are expected to vote on the matter at its March 21 regular meeting.
In a letter dated March 7 to both Michael Silvestri, township manager, and Jeannine French, the district superintendent, William Bresnahan, the attorney, said he would perform the legal work for the “possible negotiation, acquisition, and/or condemnation of the Rolling Hills Country Club property on East McMurray Road for the construction of a new public park and high school.”
Bresnahan’s rate would be $385 an hour, which would be split between the township and the school district, Silvestri said.
“He has significant experience and his expertise is invaluable,” Silvestri said.
Rolling Hills, which closed at the end of last year, is in the process of being acquired by a consortium of developers that includes the principals of Horizon Properties, one of the major developers at Southpointe. The property is of interest to the township, which would like to use the land for recreational purposes. The district, meanwhile, has spent $500,000 at the high school on various repairs in recent years and is eyeing the land for a new high school.
“The district continues to be interested in the Rolling Hills property,” said Shelly Belcher, district spokesperson. “The school board will be exploring special counsel at the next regular board meeting.”
Silvestri has met with the developers, but said it is still too early in the discussions to say how the developers feel about the township’s interest in the land. The township is also going to begin meeting with financial advisors to explore ways to finance the purchase of Rolling Hills.