North Huntingdon moves meeting on sports complex lease
North Huntingdon officials moved a special meeting set for 7 p.m. Wednesday to receive public input about a proposed sports complex to the Norwin Middle School auditorium at 10870 Mockingbird Drive.
The meeting initially was planned for the North Huntingdon Townhouse, but the meetings have been packed at times since two residents proposed building multiple fields on 42-acres along Public Works Drive off Route 30. Residents living near the public works property have attended meetings to express their opposition to the proposed sports complex.
The commissioners recently received a third version of a proposed lease from the prospective developers, David Ponsonby and Josh Zugai, who plan to build outdoor fields. Ponsonby and Zugai are partnering with the Pittsburgh Riverhounds soccer team, which would be involved in building an indoor facility for its soccer academy.
The developers are seeking a 29-year lease, with three options to extend it 29 years, totalling 116 years. The developers proposed paying the township just $1 a year to rent the land.
Zugai could not be reached for comment.
The township commissioners are expected to vote at the board’s Oct. 16 meeting.
This story is updated to reflect the correct day of the meeting.
Joe Napsha is a TribLive reporter covering Irwin, North Huntingdon and the Norwin School District. He also writes about business issues. He grew up on Neville Island and has worked at the Trib since the early 1980s. He can be reached at jnapsha@triblive.com.
Remove the ads from your TribLIVE reading experience but still support the journalists who create the content with TribLIVE Ad-Free.