District Court Moving to Adjacent Condo in Hatboro

After a background check, a call to references and a thorough evaluation of bids, the Hatboro Borough Council on Monday awarded a contract to the lowest of eight bidders to transform an adjacent condo into the borough's district court. 

Southampton-based Maxis Construction will be paid $292,200 to fit-out a new home for District Judge Paul Leo. Once the work is complete–likely later this year–Leo's cramped second-floor courtroom will be relocated to a now-vacant condo at Victorian Village. 

"They’re on time with their work and they don’t ask for change orders," Borough Manager Fred Zollers said of Maxis, adding that references shared with borough officials that the company is "easy to work with."

Zollers told the governing body that he's still trying to finalize who will serve as project manager for the construction. He's scheduled to talk to a potential candidate next week and is "still looking for some other suggestions."

The plan is for the borough to sign a 10-year lease with Montgomery County contingent on outfitting a space to eventually house Leo's court.

Council President John Zygmont said previously that the county pays Hatboro $57,000 per year to lease Leo's existing space. Under a tentative 10-year contract set to begin this fall, he said Hatboro would earn $70,000 per year in lease fees. 

Hatboro would be responsible for the first $150,000 to outfit the space and the remainder would be split between Hatboro and the county, he had said.