The township planning board Thursday awarded a Pennsylvania-based developer approvals to build two large digital monument displays along Route 38 and I-295 and a new Mount Laurel EMS building along Route 73 that will also feature a large digital billboard on its facade.

MOUNT LAUREL — Motorists driving along some of the busiest corridors in Burlington County will soon know for certain when they enter Mount Laurel.

The township planning board Thursday awarded a Pennsylvania-based developer preliminary and final site plan approval to build two large digital monument displays along Route 38 and I-295, and a new Mount Laurel EMS building along Route 73 that will also feature a third large digital billboard on its facade.

The digital monument displays will be used to promote municipal and local messages, as well as for advertising space for nonprofits (at no cost) and other businesses.

The two digital monument displays located at Route 38 and Midatlantic Drive and along I-295 off Pleasant Valley Avenue will be similar in design, and the new EMS building will be built at Route 73 and Howard Boulevard, across from the Wawa.

All three projects are part of the redevelopment plans approved for each site, and the developer, Catalyst Experiential, has been designated as the redeveloper of each site.

“We do wonderful things with pieces of property that would otherwise be unbuildable under most municipal ordinances,” said Thaddeus Bartkowski, founding partner of Catalyst Experiential.

The two monument displays will each consist of two digital screens, or visual communication technology, facing both directions of traffic. “The Wings,” as the developer called it, include screens that will be extended over a reflection pool by four undulating steel beams on each side. The reflection pools will each feature a cascading water feature as well.

Below the digital screens will be “Welcome to Mount Laurel,” which will be illuminated at night, along with the undulating steel beams.

The digital monument display at Route 38 and Midatlantic Drive will be 29-feet tall, and each screen will be 692 square feet. The display along I-295 will be 39-feet tall, and each screen will be 922 square feet. The display along I-295 will not be visible from the New Jersey Turnpike.

Each display will also feature extensive landscaping, with thousands of plantings at each site. As part of each approval, Catalyst Experiential will be required to maintain the landscaping and operation of each display. There will also be an escrow account established, funded by Catalyst Experiential, in case it fails to maintain the displays.

The new EMS building will be 7,860 square feet and feature four bays with drive-through access, a lounge, kitchen space, two bunk rooms, showers, lockers, two offices, training space, and a laundry room. The front tip of the building will be constructed out of glass, with the remaining siding a combination of aluminum panels and stone siding.

“We wanted to create something that was forward-looking in nature of design, but relevant for today,” Bartkowski said.

The front of the building will also feature two 700-square-feet screens facing each direction of traffic that will be used like the other two monument displays. No taxpayer funds will be used for the construction of the building, according to Bartkowski.

Each project was approved by a unanimous 6-0 vote, however, some planning board members had issues with the monument display at Route 38 and Midatlantic Drive.

“I don’t think it reflects Mount Laurel, it looks very futuristic,” said Lisa Conte, planning board vice-chair. “That just doesn’t fit that site.”

As part of its approval, the planning board recommended to the redevelopment entity, the Mount Laurel Township Council, to reconsider the design of sign and its material makeup and potentially amending it.

According to Township Planner Joseph Petrongolo, its the council’s decision, however, to amend the design or not.

Construction on all three projects could begin over the next couple on months, officials said.