Ewing to Celebrate Grand Opening of New Construction Office Space

Ewing Township’s busy Construction Office will have a new home beginning March 20, 2024, when Ewing officials cut the ribbon on a newly retrofitted space at the Ewing Fire Department Firehouse at 1666 Pennington Road. The event will be from 12 noon to 1 p.m.

“As our construction office has expanded over the years to meet the needs of our flourishing community, we knew we had to devise a permanent solution for additional office space,” Mayor Bert Steinmann said. “Under the guidance of Jim Megna, Ewing’s Construction Official, we came up with a plan to relocate the office to the existing 8,000 square-foot multi-purpose space attached to the firehouse, a win for our residents and our hard working construction office employees.”

The old Construction Office at the Township Municipal Building at 2 Jake Garzio Drive, having outgrown its area, required the township to install temporary and costly modular buildings to house additional office space. The new office accommodates all managers and members of the construction office and includes offices for the fire inspectors as well as creating an area for voting to continue to occur, something very important for our residents.

Naturally, it was understood that the renovation and relocation must not have any impact on the functioning of the firehouse during the construction process or once it is officially occupied. DIGroupArchitecture, an MBE/DBE/SBE firm, was selected to lead the design effort. DIG’s President, Vince Myers, is a resident of Ewing Township.

The Ewing Construction Office is charged with the enforcement of the New Jersey State Building codes. Also known as the “New Jersey Uniform Construction Code," which is the State-mandated code that provides for the safety and well-being of Ewing residents. The March 24 ribbon-cutting ceremony celebrates a plan that was well conceived and executed, enabling the construction office to continue their important work of helping Ewing Township continue to grow and develop. Ultimately, the space vacated by the construction office will be renovated for current municipal needs.  

Design

The new construction office accommodates all managers and members of the construction office and includes offices for the fire inspectors as well as creating an area for voting to continue to occur, which is very important for our residents. While it was determined early on that the multi-purpose room could accommodate all the necessary functions envisioned, it lacked windows and views to the outside, critical to overcoming work fatigue and stress. Inspection of the existing conditions revealed the optimal solution. Two large garage doors that had been removed and infilled were easily re-opened and replaced with large windows, creating a flood of natural light throughout as a central design feature.  Enclosed offices, workspaces and conference areas adjoining the main workspace have glazing to borrow the natural light filling the space. The construction office layout builds on the workflow, best practices and lessons learned from the former location, designed for an amplified, professional visitor experience and productive interaction with staff members. A major focal point is an interpretive artwork graphic design that forms a backdrop to the public waiting area of the construction office. The graphic, furniture selection and interiors were cohesively executed by DIG in coordination with the Mayor and Jim Megna’s team to create a construction office in a spatially adequate, healthy and invigorating environment that promotes efficiency and productivity that we can all be proud of.