Council approves sidewalk repairs
WAYNESBURG – Waynesburg Borough Council awarded a contract Monday to replace sidewalks on the north side of Lincoln Street, a project that will be funded through a Community Development Block Grant.
Council awarded a contract to R&B Contracting and Excavation of West Mifflin for $64,500 to replace the sidewalks on the north side of Lincoln Street between Morris and West streets.
The project is being funded with CDBG money, which must be used for projects that benefit low- and moderate-income residents.
Sidewalks on the south side of Lincoln Street had been replaced earlier with a state Safe Routes to School grant and previous-year CDBG allocations.
Bryan Cumberledge, assistant borough manager, said bids were reviewed by the borough’s engineer, SPK Engineering, and R&B presented the low bid and met all the program’s criteria. The contract amount also was lower than initially estimated, he said.
Cumberledge reported the annual fall clean-up will be held Oct. 8-10. This year’s event, he said, will be more of a “plain Jane” type of affair.
In the past, the borough has accepted electronic items and those with Freon. This time, Cumberledge said, the borough will be unable to take electronics. It will provide residents with information on where they can dispose of them, he said.
Refrigerators and other items with Freon also will have to be tagged, indicating the Freon has been properly removed, Cumberledge said.
Dumpsters will be at the borough street department compound on First Street and residents can bring items there for disposal. The borough also will pick up residential items for a fee.
In other matters, Cumberledge reported the borough, with the assistance of engineer Mike Dufalla, has submitted a grant application through the conservation district for money to replace a small bridge on Meadowlark Park Road leading to the borough sewer plant. The grant will cover the cost of materials, he said. Borough crews will complete the construction.
Police Chief Rob Toth reported the state Department of Corrections sent him a letter commending the three borough police officers, Tom Ankrom, Marcus Simms and Nicholas Rennie, who captured an inmate who escaped from the WHS-Greene hospital, formerly Southwest Regional Medical Center, last week.
He also reported police have been doing patrols before and after the start of school each day, checking on students at bus stops, and have been conducting foot patrols.
Two people expressed interest in the building at Midtown lot on Greene Street. The owner of Lam’s Garden has offered to purchase the building, which he would demolish to provide space for delivery trucks and for parking. The restaurant also is considering plans to constructing an addition on the vacant lot between its building and the Midtown building, Cumberledge said.
Council discussed possibly leasing part of the lot to the restaurant and asked Cumberledge to meet with the owner to discuss the plans in more detail.
Another resident, Les Bedilion, also inquired about possibly leasing part of the building to create a “Dairy Queen-type” restaurant, Cumberledge said. Council also said it would need more information on the proposal.
Council voted earlier this year to replace the roof on the Midtown Auto lot building using inmates from the state prison’s Community Works Program for labor. However, Cumberledge said, he didn’t know when the inmate crew would be available to do the work.
Council discussed a request for a second handicap parking space for the Pennsylvania Careerlink Center in the Fort Jackson Building at High and Washington streets.
Cumberledge noted the letter requesting the space indicated the office has six employees who are approved for handicap parking.
Councilman Mike Fischer said he was against adding a second handicap space in the area, saying the borough already has enough problems with the availability of parking spaces.
Other council members also questioned whether the handicap spaces would be used by employees all day or whether the two-hour limit would apply and whether other arrangements for handicap parking should be made by Careerlink or by the county, which owns the building.
Council referred the matter to the committee working on the comprehensive plan, which is developing a plan for parking in the borough.
Council discussed but took no action on the rates the borough charges for sewage and whether the rates should gradually be increased to help cover the costs of the sewage improvement project now in the planning stages.
The borough is required by the state Department of Environmental Protection to develop a plan to address sewage overflows at the borough’s sewage treatment plant by February 2017.
Fischer noted borough residents currently pay about $4.50 per thousand gallons of water, which is less than the $6 per thousand gallons paid by customers of the Franklin Township authority.