CLEARFIELD – Clearfield County, pending funding availability, will assist Penn Township with a bridge replacement project.
The announcement was made by Commissioner John A. Sobel, chairman, at Tuesday’s regular county commissioners’ meeting.
According to Sobel, the township applied for and was awarded a Multimodal Transportation Fund grant through the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.
He said Penn Township was awarded $272,672 to replace superstructure of the bridge over Bell Run, pave approaches to the bridge, aggregate for shoulders, install guiderail and end transitions.
He said the total cost of the project is $354,460 and after the grant, the township will have to come up with $81,788.
Sobel said township officials wrote the commissioners and sought to have a meeting to discuss financial assistance for the project.
He said the commissioners are willing to provide 90 percent, or $73,609.20, of the needed funding. This would leave Penn Township to come up with $8,178.80
While the county is pleased to help Penn Township, Sobel said of course this commitment is contingent upon its receipt of at-risk bridge funds from the commonwealth this July or August.
“We haven’t provided at-risk bridge monies to Penn Township at any point in the past,” he said, “so we’re very pleased to be able to do that.
“The Act 13/At-Risk Bridge monies are a significant source of assistance that the county has been able to provide for our local municipalities.”
Planning Director Jodi Brennan said Pennsylvania has some of the highest numbers of deficient bridges, and the commonwealth has done a great job with state-owned bridge replacement projects.
Unfortunately, she said municipalities haven’t received much funding for local bridges, but now Act 13/At-Risk Bridge monies present the opportunity to do that.
Since 2012 and including Penn Township, Brennan said the county has now been able to assist with 10 local bridge replacement projects with funds totaling $752,481.
In other business, the commissioners:
- authorized Brennan to work with Solicitor Kim Kesner to negotiate a contract for professional services with the EADS Group for Environmental Review Services. Brennan said the county looked for qualified consultants to provide such services for the county’s Community Development Block Grant (CBG) Program. The county also administers the program on behalf of both Clearfield Borough and Lawrence Township. She said the Planning Office recommended EADS because it had very specific experience related to CDBG, which made their proposal far more superior.
- approved a recently-revised Memorandum of Understanding with the Clearfield County Recreation & Tourism Authority.
- approved the new hire of Janelle Mescall, Probation Officer/Adult Probation, effective March 11.
- approved the separations/retirements of employees, Glenn Perry, Caseworker/Children & Youth Services, and Darien Casher, Department Clerk III/Tax Assessment, both effective March 8.
- approved the bills as presented by the Controller’s Office.
Also, on Tuesday the county’s Salary Board:
- approved a request from the commissioners to create a position of part-time secretary II/Veterans’ Affairs Office to work five days per week for four hours daily, not to exceed 20 hours per week.
- approved a request from the prothonotary to create a temporary position of DC III commencing on or about April 15 for a period of up to six weeks and then on an interim basis for the remaining six weeks to cover an employee’s 12-week FMLA.
- approved a request from President Judge Fredric Ammerman to set the salary of the adult probation supervisor at $43,000, effective March 5. Controller Tom Adamson cast the only nay vote.
