JACKSON TWP — The township's municipal building on Magill Road has received a makeover.

The $1.8 million remodeling and expansion is nearly complete as the police moved in this month.

In addition to redoing the municipal offices, the building was expanded to include the new police station. The department's old home was a small leased building on Route 19 that used to be an interior decorator store.

Police Chief Terry Seilhamer said the new station is a big improvement over the former station, which was “totally inadequate” for the department's needs because of its size and lack of security measures.

The property that includes the old building also is up for sale, which raised concerns that the department could have been left without a building.

The new building has a holding cell where suspects can be placed while waiting to be arraigned or processed. It also has an interview room with two-way mirrors and a processing area where vehicles can be searched.

The property has five garage bays for the police cars while the former building did not have a garage.

The new building has a multiuse room that has been outfitted as a workout room. The township provided the room and a flat-screen TV, while the officers paid for the workout equipment and use the room while off duty.

The exterior windows have been outfitted with bulletproof glass, and 17 security cameras were installed to monitor the entire property, which also includes the road crew's garages and workshop.

The doors in the police's part of the building have electronic locks that open with key fobs the officers carry. Certain rooms, such as the evidence room and the armory, can only be accessed by the highest ranking officers and the system keeps a log of who entered what room and when.

Seilhamer points out these measures are all part of good practice and prevent the department's procedures from being questioned in court.

Unlike the old station, each officer now has his own locker, desk, computer and phone extension. The station also is designed to accommodate additional officers if needed.

The department has eight officers, including the chief, but they could increase to as many as 17 officers with the space allotted in the new station, Seilhamer said.

Though there are no plans to hire new officers, the township wanted to plan ahead 20 years.

“You have to do it right the first time. We're built for expansion. We tried to anticipate the needs of the force in the future,” he said.

The design of the new station was in part inspired by the Cranberry Township police station, he said.

Members of the police visited the Cranberry station and officers to learn what they like and dislike about their facility and how their design could be done on a smaller scale for Jackson Township.

Having the police and administrative officials in the same building also allows the township to save money by sharing supplies, a break area and a receptionist.

The township plans to hire a new administrative assistant soon that will bring the total of full-time township employees to 15, all of whom now work at the Magill Road building, said Jay Grinnell, vice chairman of the township supervisors.

The new municipal building replaced a 30-year-old pole building that lacked a proper foundation, had a leaky roof and rusted walls.

The new building is a more typical construction with a good foundation and insulation. It was designed to be energy efficient and low maintenance, Grinnell said.

The total cost of the construction is about $1.8 million. While the new facility is already in use, the township does not expect construction to be completed until sometime in August, he said.

The cost of the building was covered without borrowing money or raising taxes, Grinnell said.

The township used proceeds from the sale of a property it owned on Tollgate Road as well as gas drilling impact fees from the state and other reserve funds to pay for the project.

It also received cooperation from its employees, who agreed to freeze wages to help make the new building possible.

“We couldn't have done this without the cooperation of the roads crew and police. Both were extremely forgiving in contract negotiations,” Grinnell said.