A new Pennsylvania Turnpike maintenance complex in Penn Township could feature nearly 8 acres of solar panels to offset energy costs, according to preliminary plans.
Township commissioners next week will consider the plans for the complex, which is scheduled to be built by fall of 2026, according to the turnpike website.
The new facility would be located on a nearly 42-acre property with an entrance along Route 130. It would be almost directly across the road from the current maintenance area, which has an entrance off Sandy Hill Road, said Bill Roberts, township community development director.
The move comes about 10 months after the turnpike specified the location of an interchange officially announced in October 2021. The interchange will be installed near the intersection of Sandy Hill Road, Nike Site Road and Route 130 between spring of 2032 and fall of 2034, according to the turnpike’s website.
The building plan for the site includes an office space, maintenance garages, a road salt storage building and several other operational structures.
Commissioners will vote to give preliminary approval to the turnpike, pending stormwater, sanitary sewage and driveway permit requirements.
Roberts said turnpike officials have told the township that moving the maintenance facility is part of the turnpike’s $300 million-plus project to widen the toll highway between the Monroeville and Irwin interchanges.
“I don’t know if the roadway’s going to directly affect (the Sandy Hill Road) side of it, but the moving of the maintenance facility — from what we were told by turnpike officials — was always a component of the widening project,” Roberts said.
The widening project includes expanding the highway from four to six lanes in the 10-mile stretch and reconstructing the Irwin interchange. A bridge carrying Harvison Road over the turnpike in the township is set for removal this summer as part of the widening project, turnpike officials confirmed in February.
The turnpike purchased a property on Route 130 for $794,000, according to public real estate transaction records. It is located across from the entrance to the proposed maintenance facility.
Roberts said the property was purchased from a deceased resident anywhere from several months to a year ago.
“The turnpike, at this point, seems to be opportunistically purchasing property when it becomes available within their work area,” Roberts said. “They may utilize it moving forward. They may divest themselves of it moving forward if they find they don’t need it.”
Roberts said he is not aware of any other recent township property purchases by the turnpike.
The township has not heard any information on the Route 130 interchange since August, Roberts said.
“We just know they’re in very early preliminary design,” he said. “We have heard nothing additional, other than what you can glean from their website.”
Quincey Reese is a TribLive reporter covering the Greensburg and Hempfield areas. She also does reporting for the Penn-Trafford Star. A Penn Township native, she joined the Trib in 2023 after working as a Jim Borden Scholarship intern at the company for two summers. She can be reached at [email protected].
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