Editor's note: This is the last in a three-part series of articles on the Catasauqua Police Station.

After years of delays and disagreements among Catasauqua Borough Council members, the ink is finally drying on an agreement of sale signifying the borough's purchase of the FL Smidth property. While the land is meant to be developed for both housing and municipal services facilities including a police station, that does not mean ground will be broken for a new station in the near future.

The borough signed off on a sales agreement on June 28 to purchase the environmentally challenged site along Front Street in the downtown district.

According to the supporters of the land purchase, developers have shown some interest in the site because of its location. Supporters of the purchase say they expect to be approached by these developers now that the land is purchased. The purchase was approved by a 4-3 council vote.

Identifying a location on the property for a municipal complex is billed as the first step not only in building a new, efficient municipal complex, but also in beginning the rebirth of Catasauqua as a destination location.

Drawing up land development plans, getting them approved and dealing with developers is time-consuming. Meanwhile, the borough's 18 police officers are working in 1,500 square feet of overcrowded space adjacent to the municipal building on Bridge Street.

At council's June 24 workshop session, borough resident Virginia Tabor, who regularly attends council meetings, asked what options the borough has to get some interim relief for the police department. Tabor did not receive a response at the workshop meeting, but council President Brian Bartholomew spoke to The Press about it later.

"I don't know what we do in the interim," said Bartholomew, who had opposed the land purchase. "We have no money. Everything we had, we spent to get the land."

The borough council supporters of the FL Smidth purchase contend that once a developer pays for the excess land not used by the borough for new municipal facilities, that income will pay some of the cost of constructing a new building.

"It could take five years before the new building is ready," said Bartholomew. "There was no thought given to a transition plan."

In December of 2012, Bartholomew proposed moving the police department into the now vacant Wachovia Bank building on Bridge Street. The bank could be converted to office space more quickly than waiting for a new facility to be built, but the goal to have a centralized emergency services building would not be realized unless the police station were to be moved again once the new facility became a reality.

No one knows how long it will take to get a new building ready for occupancy. If the opponents of the land purchase are correct and contamination is unearthed on the former industrial site, then the project could be delayed for decades as the various litigants fight out their position in the courts.

Time has moved slowly through the process with little real progress being made. It took the borough two years to get a sales agreement for the property. It took developer Weston Solutions six months to say no after had receiving an approval to proceed. Before this, there had been decades of discussion over a new fire station.

In a conversation with The Press, Mayor Barbara Schlegel suggested that the police department take over the conference room/mayor's office and use it for storage.

"They might be able to get by with more storage as a short-term fix," she said. A vacant office across the street from the current police station, once occupied by former state Rep. Joseph Brennan, could serve as a temporary location. Options are few because of limited funds for temporary facilities.

Another suggestion offered by Tabor was to hire a professional organizer to streamline the station's functions. An independent third party could give the administration practical ideas that would allow the department to transition and keep up with technological change while they wait to get into a new building.

Schlegel commented the borough fire department might have a priority need over the police department. New equipment and updates to existing equipment are needed and there is no place to put the new equipment.

"There have been several proposals for the police department," Bartholomew said. "Getting a part of the Lincoln School was the latest plan. Council rejected the idea when they had the votes to pass it.

Bartholomew's comment indicates the divisiveness that he sees between council members with different ideas on how to solve the borough's problems.

"We need to wait and see what they come up with," he said, referring to the four council members who supported the land purchase with their votes.