Lancaster Laboratories is considering a multimillion-dollar expansion here that could create hundreds of jobs.

The company has submitted plans to Upper Leacock Township for a four-story, 77,000-square-foot addition.

The building would be constructed on the south campus of its 2425 New Holland Pike complex, at the corner of Geist Road.

Some 400 new parking spaces would be added, too, according to the Lancaster Labs plans.

Lancaster Labs won four variances for the project from the township Zoning Hearing Board on Monday, all by 3-0 votes.

Next, a land development plan for the project is set to go before the township's planning commission at its April 18 meeting.

Although it's seeking township approval, Lancaster Labs has yet to decide whether it will proceed with the project, a company official said.

"We're just exploring our options at this time. We haven't committed to pursuing this," spokeswoman Lisa Bamford said on Tuesday.

Bamford said it was too early in the process to know the project cost or number of jobs to be created by the expansion, should it occur.

"We're still in the preliminary phase of this, so we haven't gotten to that point," she said.

Bamford said Lancaster Labs' owner, Eurofins Scientific, has yet to approve the expansion plan here.

Other sites owned by the Brussels-based global company likewise want to enlarge their facilities, she said.

If the local project does become a reality, it would be the 12th expansion for Lancaster Labs in its 51-year history.

Most recently, in 2007, it spent $16 million to add 50,000 square feet to the south campus, creating 105 jobs, according to newspaper records.

It began developing the south campus with a 55,000-square-foot project that was completed in 1998, newspaper records show.

That initial south-campus venture also was notable because it came with a 150-foot employee walkway across New Holland Pike.

The idea was to safely connect the original north side of the complex with the new south section.

This latest addition would be constructed on the southwest side of the existing south-campus structures.

Lancaster Labs is one of the county's largest employers. It provides pharmaceutical and environmental testing.

Lancaster Labs has about 1,200 employees worldwide, including more than 800 at its headquarters complex.

Founded in 1961 by Earl H. Hess with three employees in 2,500 square feet, the company now occupies 260,000 square feet here.

Lancaster Labs has been through several ownership changes since the late Hess sold the company in 1995.

Most recently, it was acquired last April by Eurofins for $200 million.

At stake before the zoners on Monday were variances for the height of the proposed new building, its lot coverage and its setbacks.

The type of use at the site was not an issue, explained Jack Younker, township zoning officer.

The site is zoned general commercial, which permits the kind of scientific testing done by the company.

One variance allows the addition to stand 60 feet high; the township ordinance allows up to 35 feet.

Another lets the building cover 65 percent of its lot; the ordinance allows up to 60 percent.

Two other variances allows the new structure to stand 49 feet from a neighboring property.

The ordinance requires a residential buffer strip with at least a 50-foot setback and a setback equal to a new building's height.

Assuming the addition gets built, the project would complete the build-out of the 14.3-acre south campus, according to Lancaster Labs' filing.

tmekeel@lnpnews.com