By Bob Niedbala, Staff writer

niedbala@observer-reporter.com

WAYNESBURG - Plans for the construction of a new armory at EverGreene Technology Park were granted conditional approval Monday by Franklin Township Planning Commission.

The state Department of General Services plans to build the new Pennsylvania National Guard readiness center on an 18-acre parcel north of the park's existing building.

The new readiness center will replace the Capt. Robert C. Wiley Armory in Waynesburg, which was constructed in 1914 and, according to national guard officials, has outlived its usefulness. The armory serves as home to Company C, 1-110th Infantry.

The new readiness center will include about 38,000 square feet of floor space, said Rich Rush of Widmer Engineering, the engineer who presented the plans to the commission. This will make it about the size of the existing building at EverGreene, which has 40,000 square feet, he said.

The readiness center also will include a large fenced area at the rear for vehicle storage and a 129-space public parking lot.

The building will be staffed by four full-time guardsmen and will serve as a training center for 148 soldiers one weekend a month, Rush said. No live ammunition will be stored at the site.

The building also will be open for public use, Rush said.

DGS will purchase 18.18 acres in the park for the new center from the Greene County Industrial Development Corp. The corporation, which owns the 248-acre park, is now in the "final stages" of completing a sales agreement with DGS, GCIDC executive director Don Chappel said Monday.

The state expects to award a contract for the construction of the new building in late summer or early fall of 2008, Rush said. The project should take a year to complete, which means it would be ready for use in the fall of 2009, he said.

The readiness center was previously estimated to cost $12.8 million, with funding being shared by the state and federal governments.

Matt Mazonkey, an aide to U.S. Rep John Murtha, D-Johnstown, said Monday that Murtha had included $9 million for the project in an omnibus spending bill that was expected to be passed by the U.S. House late Monday.

If approved by the House and Senate, the bill could be signed by the president by the end of the week, Mazonkey said. Murtha earlier obtained a $480,000 appropriation to prepare the design for the readiness center.

The plans were approved by the commission with the conditions the developer complete an agreement of sale; receive a lot split for the parcel; receive erosion and sedimentation control plan approval from the conservation district; receive plan approval from K2 Engineering in regard to the uniform construction code; design signs to meet township requirements; and ensure lighting does not create glare on neighboring properties.

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