Nov 12, 2013 3 min read

WAYNESBURG – The state Department of Transportation will open bids early next month for a project to improve sidewalks on Lincoln Street in Waynesburg that will be funded with the borough’s Safe Routes to School grant.

The project will involve replacing the sidewalk and curbs on the south side of Lincoln Street from Morgan Street to about West Street.

It is being funded with a Safe Routes to School grant awarded to the borough in 2009 for $442,500. The borough also has earmarked $81,261 from its 2012 Community Development Block grant for the work.

The project was initially proposed to make the route from Margaret Bell Miller Middle School to the north side of Waynesburg safer for children walking or bicycling to school.

The grant was to be used to replace sidewalks, install handicapped ramps and place appropriate signs on a route about three-quarters-of-a-mile long, from the middle school on Morgan Street to Second Avenue on the north side.

The project later had to be scaled back because of costs and the limited grant money available.

PennDOT will open bids on the project Dec. 5, borough manager Mike Simms told council Monday. It expects to be ready to issue a notice to proceed to the contractor in March.

In other business, council voted to make part-time patrolman Jay Hanley a full-time patrolman to replace Brian Tennant, who was elected sheriff.

Council also voted to extend Tennant’s unpaid leave of absence with the borough until Jan. 6, when he will assume his new post. Tennant was unopposed in the general election Nov. 5, after winning both the Democratic and Republican nominations in the spring.

Council agreed to begin the process to vacate an unnamed alley that runs along the north border of the parking lot at Fox Ford. The request was made by Mark Fox. It was noted Fox owns properties on both sides of the alley. Council will advertise its intention to vacate the alley.

Bryan Cumberledge, assistant borough manager, reported borough crews will stop vacuuming leaves Dec. 3. They will continue to pick up leaves that are bagged after that date.

Council discussed repairing the borough street sweeper, estimated to cost $1,730, but first asked administrators to determine if street sweeping is required by the state Department of Environmental Protection as part of an agreement the borough has with the agency to address the borough’s combined sewage system.

The borough has planned a sewerage project to separate its storm water drains from its sanitary sewers. Council members also wanted to know if street sweeping would still be necessary once the sewage project is completed.

As part of the sewerage project, the borough must prevent rain water from entering the sanitary sewers. Smoke testing had been completed in 2003 to find residences that have roof drains that empty into the sanitary sewers.

Residents had been asked then to remove their down spouts from the sewers. Mike Dufalla, an engineer hired by the borough to oversee the sewer project, questioned whether those changes were made at all the homes cited in the study. It was suggested the residences be checked again to make sure roof drains had been removed.