North Huntingdon will negotiate further on lease for proposed $30 million sports complex

Two North Huntingdon business partners will need to continue negotiating with the township on the specifics of a lease for a proposed $30 million sports complex on township-owned property off Route 30.

At a work session Thursday evening, the business partners, David Ponsonby and Joshua Zugai, discussed the first draft of the lease with the township commissioners, who raised concerns about the lease’s duration, complexity and benefit to residents.

The two are targeting a portion of North Huntingdon’s 77-acre public works property on Public Works Drive for the multi-sport complex.

Five outdoor fields and a multi-purpose indoor facility would be built over the next six years at the 42-acre parcel. NHT Investment Partners plans to sublease part of the 42-acre parcel to the Pittsburgh Riverhounds, and the team will develop that part of the site for its fields.

The project cleared an initial hurdle in May, when the township commissioners approved a letter of intent with the NHT Investment Partners LP giving Ponsonby and Zugai exclusive rights to negotiating the lease. Previously, Matt Grubba, a spokesman for the Riverhounds, said the team hopes to be able to use the field for its Hounds Academy season that begins in fall 2025.

At Thursday’s meeting, Ponsonby and Zugai answered questions from the township commissioners and agreed to negotiate on the lease further with township Solicitor Bruce Dice.

“It’s one of the more complicated leases that I’ve read in the past few years,” Dice said. “I have comments by paragraph, if we want to go through this paragraph by paragraph.”

Ponsonby said he would like to see feedback from the township on the lease.

“We’re doing this for the township. We see a lot of benefit for the township in this,” he said. “As far as the lease goes, unless we get red lines back and comments back, we’re not aware of what your expectations is in it and what it isn’t.”

The potential long duration of the lease was a concern for Dice, as well as for several of the commissioners. The lease is initially for 29 years, but could stretch for 116 years if all renewal options were exercised.

Dice argued that it might be better for the township to handle through a public bidding process as opposed to a lease with such a long length.

“This is a leap of faith,” Dice said. “And I like the idea, don’t get me wrong — I think sports centers are the greatest thing in the world. But you’re going to be giving up control of this property for a long time, and not really getting anything other than a sports complex, that may or may not benefit — and I think it will benefit — township residents.”

Commissioner Richard Gray, who voted against the previous preliminary agreement, said that nothing in the 38 pages of the agreement was beneficial to township residents.

“It has so much in there, restrictions, and just no benefit whatsoever,” he said. He advocated for the township to terminate the negotiations at a future meeting.

Commissioner Ronald Zona said he was OK with moving forward, but would like to see the agreement trimmed.

“I think if this thing is built and it’s in our township, I think there’s a lot of benefit to our township,” he said. “We sit here month after month after month, citizens who come in and complain that there’s nothing for kids to do.

”I always argue against it and say there is a lot to do, but I think that it has a lot of benefit to have that facility in our township. I am still open minded to that, and I am still OK with moving forward and seeing what we can do.”

Commissioners Zachary Haigis, Eric Gass and Thomas Hempel wanted to see more commitment that residents would be be able to benefit from and use the complex.

Ponsonby said the commitment is to have the first public field within 18 months as a dedicated outdoor public field for North Huntingdon.

“That is what our goal is from the start. That has been what we have been shooting for this whole time. Eighteen months from lease execution, we have an outdoor field for the township,” he said. “I know we need it for our youth football program, I’m heavily involved with our youth football program, and we are struggling right now for football fields.”

He also alluded to a local sponsor who he said would help support the field.

The specifics of the field usage would be in leases with subtenants who operate the fields, Zugai said.

“That is not done in this document — that is done with the subtenants, on what entities, who gets access, those items. We have to go negotiate that,” Zugai said. “That wording does not pertain to a ground lease for that facility.”

Board President Jason Atwood was unsure of when the next vote on the lease would be.

“I know they are going to do their due diligence, they’re going to take the time necessary to make sure everything looks right,” he said. “Like I said: We’re really in no rush. We’re going to take our time to do what we need to do in order to do it right.”