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HAVERFORD, PA-Haverford Reserve, a long-planned residential community on the 209-acre, vacant, former Haverford State Hospital site is finally moving ahead. The hospital closed in the 1980s, and town commissioners initially selected a plan by a joint venture between Malvern-based Pohlig Builders and the Blue Bell-based Goldenberg Group over eight other bids in November 2003.

However, when a new board of commissioners took office, the project got stalled and mired in "internal strife," Todd Pohlig, president of Pohlig, tells GlobeSt.com. This May, the new board gave the go-ahead, and the JV has begun demolition of the existing buildings.

The township owned the entire parcel. It has retained 169 acres and is preserving 124 of them for open space with walking and biking trails. The remaining 45 acres of the township's land will house a municipal recreation center and sports park. The Pohlig/Goldenberg JV acquired the 40-acre centerpiece for $17 million, Pohlig says, "plus a $500,000-donation for trails and an environmental center. We're also responsible for demolition of the buildings and remediation of the land."