Dec 15, 2015 4 min read

WAYNESBURG – Members of the Waynesburg Veterans of Foreign Wars Post No. 4793 are making plans to build a new post home to replace its current 65-year-old building on East Lincoln Street in the borough.

Waynesburg Borough Council voted Monday to begin the process of approving a curative amendment to the borough zoning ordinance that will permit the post to construct a new building next to its exiting one.

The existing building was constructed in 1950 prior to the borough’s adoption of zoning and is now in a R-1 residential zone. The VFW is seeking to change the zoning of the property to B-1 business so the new building will conform with the ordinance.

“We plan to build a new building beside the one that’s there and then tear down the old one, if all goes well,” post trustee Ron Hampson said.

The existing building needs many repairs and is located in a flood plain, Hampson said.

The new building will be raised about five feet to be above the flood level and will be about 9,900-square-feet in size, which is a little bigger than the existing building, he said. The new home is expected to have a banquet hall, which could be rented for weddings and other events, and a larger bar area, he said.

The post has been doing well and membership has picked up in the last few years. It now has about 200 regular members and 500 members total.

“Last month we were number one in the state for membership,” Hampson said.

The VFW has been planning the new home for about the last year, although one of the obstacles it still faces is money. The VFW also will be accepting contributions and has begun searching for grant money from various agencies, Hampson said.

“It’s going to take a lot of money. It’s going to take some serious fund raising,” he said.

Hampson said they hope to begin the project before summer time.

“But that’s being very optimistic,” he said.

Council had approved beginning the curative amendment process last month for the VFW’s parcel on which the building will be constructed. The VFW had contacted all surrounding property owners regarding the plan and none was opposed.

Council agreed to add to the amendment a second adjacent parcel owned by the VFW and to contact surrounding property owners to determine whether they too wanted their properties in the business zone.

A neighboring property owner, Charles Funk of 470 E. Greene St., told council Monday he also wanted his property included in the new zone. Part of his property is used for the Lions Club Christmas tree sales and surrounding properties also now include businesses, he said.

The curative amendment for the zoning change will be advertised and property owners given a chance to comment before council officially approves the zoning change.

In other business, Kristy Vilet of 5 Kidz Kandy at 78 E. High St. asked council if something can be done in regard to downtown parking.

Vilet said normally every Tuesday and Thursday it is very difficult to find any parking spaces near her business, which definitely hurts her sales.

She suggested maybe making at least one parking space available for 15 to 30 minute parking instead of the normal two-hour parking limit, or better enforcing the two-hour parking limit.

Councilman Mark Fischer said council has been considering the issue of downtown parking as part of the revision of the borough comprehensive plan.

A study of parking in downtown prepared for the comprehensive plan indicates parking congestion primarily in the area of the courthouse. It also noted methods could be employed, such as meters that charge a higher rate near the courthouse, to encourage motorist to park in more outlying areas.

Fischer said he believes meters might be the way to solve the problem.

Borough Manager Mike Simms reported the summer road paving projects are completed. He said Franklin Street, where the water authority is replacing a line, will be added to the list of projects for next year. Patching the area excavated for the water line is expected to be completed by the water authority.