New Hope Parking Garage Back On Track Following Settlement Agreement

NEW HOPE BOROUGH, PA — New Hope Borough and Union Square have reached a settlement agreement that will allow the borough to move forward with its plans to build a multilevel public parking garage.

“We’re glad that we can finally move full-speed-ahead on this much needed project,” said Council President Connie Gering in a press release announcing the settlement. “New Hope needs this facility to ease the parking crunch that the borough has faced for many years. Completing this project will provide a very real benefit to business and residents alike.”

At the March borough council meeting, the council voted unanimously to approve the settlement and parking facility lease agreement with Union Square. The agreement, which took several years to negotiate, concludes litigation, allows the borough to move forward with final project design and keeps state grant funding in place for the garage.

The borough was awarded a $1.75 million Pennsylvania Redevelopment Program grant in December 2020 for the parking garage project.

The borough sued Union Square in 2021 after it was unable to work out an agreement with Union Square to build the garage on borough-owned land at the northern end of the Union Square lot.

Under the settlement agreement, Union Square will lease 40 surface level spaces in the exterior lot at a cost of $950/space or $32,000 annually to the borough. They will also lease 10 spaces on the first floor of the parking garage at $2,500 per space or $25,000 a year.

The next step in the garage project is for THA Consulting to prepare a final design plan and construction specifications, which will serve as the basis for a Request for Proposals to select a construction firm. Starting in the fall 2021, THA held public forums to present several preliminary design options and to solicit feedback from residents on their favored options. These meetings were mostly devoted to one-on-one discussions between THA’s designers and members of the community.

The Borough Parking Committee selected THA as lead designer due to the firm’s commitment to meet critical deadlines for the Borough to receive the $1.75 million state grant
for the project.

Borough Council, the Parking Committee and THA Consulting are committed to engaging New
Hope residents at every step of the design process, to ensure that the community’s views are
heard and considered as the project now moves to the final planning stage, according to borough officials.

When the grant was announced in 2020, the news was welcomed by Alexander Fraser, producing director of the Bucks County Playhouse..

“This is a dream come true for Bucks County Playhouse and the 80,000 people a year who come to our performances. Indeed, it will be transformative for every business in New Hope. Definitely the best news to come out of 2020,” said Fraser. “On behalf of the board and staff of the Bucks County Playhouse, we owe a huge debt of gratitude to Steve Santarsiero and Connie Gering for their belief in the dream, and their diligence in this huge first step in making it a reality."

“This garage will be a welcome addition to the Borough and will allow for easier access and less congestion as people will no longer be forced to circle the town to find parking,” said Gering in 2020. “The increased ease of finding a parking spot will benefit all businesses and non-profits,
making it better for residents and tourists alike to take advantage of all our town has to offer."