Elevator Addition For Bernards Municipal Building In The Works

BASKING RIDGE, NJ — Bernards Township officials are looking to build an elevator addition to the municipal building to conform with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

Kevin Settembrino of the firm Settembrino Architects gave a presentation of the project at the Tuesday night, Feb. 15 meeting.

The project would include the addition of an elevator and lobby which will be located where the current rear entrance to the building is. It will connect the mansion and the most current addition in the back.

"We are trying to take the vernacular of the original building and try to extend it into the elevator addition to make it look like it was a part of the original building," said Settembrino at the meeting.

The exterior of the addition would copy the existing roofline, brick veneer, and windows on the mansion.

Due to COVID-related construction and supply issues, Settembrino is anticipating the build time to take a minimum of 9 months but no more than a year.

"The lead time is longest for the elevator then glass on the windows. Everything else will be built and we will still be waiting for the elevator," said Settembrino.

The Bernards Township Committee is looking to fund the project within its 2022 cap, so Settembrino recommended not going out to bid until the end of the summer to keep costs down.

"At the beginning of the summer, you will get fewer bids and higher prices. At the end, contractors are less busy," said Settembrino.

Township Administrator Pat Monaco said this project has been in the works for a very long time with the engineering department and committee looking it over.

"We had difficulties with ADA ad also had a recent evaluation and it is something that needs to get done. We are not conforming and we need to be able to mitigate this issue… but this is a long time coming," said Monaco.

Have a news tip? Email alexis.tarrazi@patch.com.

Get Patch breaking news alerts sent right to your phone with our new app. Download here. Don't miss local and statewide announcements. Sign up for Patch alerts and daily newsletters.