CLEARFIELD – The Clearfield County Commissioners on Tuesday approved the disbursement of at-risk bridge funds to three local municipalities.
The county recently solicited funding applications from local municipalities, and four were received, said Planning Director Jodi Brennan.
Projects were required to repair or replace a municipally-owned, structurally deficient bridge to be eligible for the county’s at-risk bridge funds.
A project’s scope must remove the bridge’s structurally-deficient status, Brennan said, noting all four projects were eligible, per the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation.
In addition, she said they all met the program guidelines that included a 20 percent match. She said a total of $400,000 was requested; however, the county only had $132,000 available.
Because of the funding limit, Brennan asked the county to assist three municipalities where the bridges remain closed. This included Gulich, Cooper and Morris townships.
The county approved $50,000 allocations to Gulich Township for TR 919 Walnut Street over Muddy Run and Cooper Township for TR 774 Coalward Street over Sulphur Run.
It also approved $32,000 in funding to Morris Township for TR 704 Colorado Road over an unnamed tributary to Moshannon Creek.
Brennan said the county received a fourth application from Irvona Borough, which she recommended funding in the future once additional at-risk bridge funding becomes available from the state.
She said the Irvona bridge has received funding previously but is currently open. She did say much more funding is needed to complete this project with costs being over $1 million dollars.