Plans for a proposed multimillion dollar office building in Jim Thorpe need work before Carbon County officials can break ground.

On Tuesday, the Carbon County Planning Commission reviewed the county’s Susquehanna Street project, which includes demolishing the former archives building and constructing a three-story, 66,279-square-foot building and parking garage next to the current 76 Susquehanna St. offices.

Kevin Marmas, senior project engineer for McCarthy Engineering of Boyertown, said the project will be built on the current parking lot on Susquehanna Street and connect into the 76 Susquehanna building.

It will include a two-level parking garage with approximately 110 parking spaces, and a third level office space that will house county offices, as well as a fourth courtroom. The cost has not yet been released.

The reason for the new structure is because current space in the county courthouse is maxed out and growing court caseloads could necessitate a fourth judge in the future.

Ivan O. Meixell, county planner, outlined 25 items that need to be addressed in the plans based on Jim Thorpe’s ordinances, but added that no action by the commission was being taken. The comments will be submitted to Jim Thorpe, which will be responsible for approving or denying the project.

During the discussion, Commissioners Wayne Nothstein, chairman, and William O’Gurek provided additional comments about the project.

The commissioners said there will not be a retaining wall in the rear of the building because it will butt up against the rock face. O’Gurek addressed concerns about blasting since St. Mark and St. John Episcopal Church is located directly behind where the proposed building will be constructed.

“We had the tour through the church, which has the most concerns with their stained glass and everything,” O’Gurek said, adding that the project will not include blasting.

Nothstein vibration monitoring will be used on-site so if the vibrations get too high, the site will be shut down until plans are made to protect the historic church’s structure.

O’Gurek also said that the architectural design, completed by Form Space Design of Bethlehem, will mimic the current architecture already found in Jim Thorpe.

“We want the building to be a gateway coming into the town so the people coming to Jim Thorpe see something that matches the architectural beauty that is already here,” he said.

The project will now go before the Jim Thorpe Planning Commission on July 17.

Carbon County has been working on building additional office space since 2016 when commissioners refinanced its bonds to free up $7.7 million for capital projects, including constructing a maintenance building at the upper end of the county parking lot, relocating the archives office to the east side of Jim Thorpe and matching grant requirements for the proposed multiuse fire training facility in Nesquehoning.