Phillipsburg officials agreed the town would buy the former Freeman Elementary School on Tuesday night.
The former grade school at 120 Filmore St. has acted as the town’s temporary municipal building since 2017, after concerns about asbestos and mold forced government officials and law enforcement to abandon their offices at 675 Corliss Ave.
The town’s temporary occupancy agreement with Phillipsburg School District expired in 2020.
The town bought the former school building from Phillipsburg School District for $75,000, plus settlement fees totaling $1,283, according to public records.
The building is still considered a temporary lodging for municipal offices, Business Administrator Matt Hall said.
“The only reason we purchased the building is because the school district allowed us to use the building on a temporary basis, but it’s almost seven years later and the school district needs to be compensated for the building,” he said.
The town is now waiting on the state to approve its RFP (request for proposals) application, which would allow it to accept bids from contractors interested in remediating the Corliss Avenue building.
A summary prepared in 2020 estimated remediation could cost as much as $6.5 million, with a lead time of up to one year, according to the town.
Officials said they couldn’t make heads or tails of what caused the project to be delayed so far, but they were glad it was being handled now.
“The town of Phillipsburg administration and governing body are working together on a plan to abate the Corliss Avenue building,” Mayor Todd Tersigni said.
Phillipsburg Police Department also occupied the Corliss Avenue building until 2019. The police department is now located inside the former Andover Morris Elementary School at 712 S. Main St.
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Glenn Epps can be reached at gepps@lehighvalleylive.com or glenn_epps_on Twitter.
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