The Whitehall Township Board of Commissioners voted Aug. 11 to approve a motion to review and develop another option for building a recreation center.

Commissioner Ken Snyder introduced the suggestion, proposing the township find an alternative way to fund the recreation center. He noted the current proposal to build a new center would cost the township around $11-12 million.

Snyder requested additional funding to conduct a study on the possibility of utilizing an existing building at Fullerton Memorial Playground. He asked if the building could be upgraded at a lower cost.

Some options Snyder came up with to reduce the costs would be to downsize the building by reducing the square footage or proceeding with different forms of construction.

He reported he has been in contact with HRG, which supplied him with an estimate for how much a project study would cost — approximately $22,000, with $6,000 in funds from the recreation budget.

Snyder said once the project study is finished, the board would have a second option for the recreation center. Commissioners could still move ahead with the originally proposed plan of $11-12 million, but the study of the Fullerton park building might show a lower cost.

Once the two options are proposed, Snyder said, they may need to have a referendum or public meeting to see which option the township should consider moving forward with.

“The residents should be exposed to option A or option B. We need to have an option B because you can’t leave the Fullerton building the way it is,” Snyder said.

Snyder mentioned there’s no heat in the Fullerton building currently, and it is now operating on one air conditioner. He noted the building will need to add a heating system before winter.

Snyder noted the existing pool, which is no longer operational, has been discussed with Mayor Joseph R. Marx Jr., with ideas to potentially add a splash and dog park in the area.

Commissioner Alberta Scarfaro commented on Snyder’s motion for the recreation center, asking why they can’t look for additional funding.

“I think if we’re going to do a recreation center, it should be a center to serve the next three, four or five generations,” Scarfaro said. “It needs to be something that’s going to last and not something where the population will outgrow it.”

“I know you mean well by this,” Secretary Randy Atiyeh said in addressing Snyder, “and I know you don’t want to see nothing done. I’m with Commissioner Scarfaro in the sense that if we’re going to do this, we do this.”

“I’m not opposed to choice B. I agree with [Atiyeh] with what he said. People always look at the least costly avenue, and I think it’s a good idea to have that study done,” Scarfaro added.

Commissioner Phil Ginder offered his comments after Atiyeh and Scarfaro.

“If you get an option B, it may enhance option A. When you see what option B is, and we’re spending all that money, it may enhance option A,” Ginder said.

Once deliberations were finished, Snyder made a motion to the board to authorize up to $30,000 for the evaluation of another option for the recreation center. The board of commissioners approved this motion unanimously in a 7-0 vote.

The board of commissioners will next meet Sept. 2, for a workshop, and Sept. 8, for a regular meeting. Both begin 7 p.m. at the municipal building, 3219 MacArthur Road.