BEACH LAKE, PA — Here’s a message for the residents of Berlin Township: The community center belongs to you, from the top of its solar-paneled roof to the bottom of its sturdy foundation.

That’s because the township, after making regular payments since 2006 to the Wayne Highlands School District, has finally cut its last check.

A township official said Berlin paid a total of $82,000 for the building. Payments began after a reversal by the school district, which had originally agreed through a handshake deal to give the community center to the township. The official—who did not want to be identified, so painful is this chapter of Berlin history—said the “old-timers” who recall the original deal are gone now. 

When the school reversed course, the township agreed to buy the center and resolve the problem once and for all. From the moment the township started making payments, the community considered the center its own, the official said. And, referring to the period of uncertain ownership, the official added, “We never wanted that to happen again.”

The center, built in 1913, is the former township school and serves as a town hall. It includes meeting rooms, the offices of the board of supervisors and township secretary. It is available for community events and private ones, like family reunions, birthday parties, and small weddings, according to the township website.