Dec 2, 2003 By Jackie Beranek 3 min read

VANDERBILT – The Yough Sanitary Authority Monday passed a resolution that will extend the life of the authority for another 50 years. Widmer engineer Marie Hartman said Dawson and Vanderbilt boroughs and Dunbar Township must approve similar supporting resolutions. She also said that board members don’t have to worry about Franklin and Lower Tyrone townships agreeing to the resolution because they are not members of the authority – simply customers.

The $7.9 million project will take in parts of Dickerson Run in Dunbar and Franklin townships, Hull Town in Lower Tyrone Township and parts of Vanderbilt and Dawson boroughs.

According to Hartman, a 210,000-gallon sewage treatment plant will be build on the Vanderbilt side of the Youghiogheny River and will service about 700 families and businesses in the area.

Hartman also said that about 14 miles of sewerage lines would be placed in the ground in addition to two pumping stations, one on the Vanderbilt side of the river and one on the Dawson side of the river.

The engineers plan to go under the Youghiogheny River in order to complete the pumping station on the Dawson side of the river, according to Hartman.

The Yough Sanitary Authority will receive a $4.2 million Rural Utilities Service (RUS) grant and a $3.2 million RUA loan to help fund the project.

Solicitor Richard Husband said Vanderbilt and Dawson boroughs and Dunbar Township should pass their resolutions before the end of the year.

Husband said the authority’s term was originally scheduled to expire May 3, 2015.

“As a condition of the RUS grant/loan, the term of the authority must exceed the term of the RUS borrowing, which is 40 years,” said Husband. “This move tonight will help to make that happen.”

In other related matters, Hartman reported that six core-borings were conducted at the WWTF and Dickerson Run Pump Station site on Nov. 5 and 6 showing that the sites are appropriate to hold the two proposed structures.

“I’m happy to report that the Geotechnical Investigation Report, prepared by ACA Engineering, Inc., showed that the sites are suitable to support the proposed structures,” said Hartman. “Based on the test boring information, the natural solids, weathered rock and rock encountered at the site we discovered that we many have to break up some rock by manual means or by doing some blasting.”

Hartman said since the site is so close to the river the workers may also have to pump out some water in order to keep the site dry.

In other matters, Hartman said Widmer Engineering Inc. has talked with both owners of the property where the proposed wastewater treatment facility will be located and are awaiting return telephone calls from the property owners.

The board also agreed to pay Widmer’s bill of $37,752.76 for site survey work. The bill included payment for services for the crew chief, survey crew, project engineer, CAD operator, direct labor and overhead.

The board also agreed to change their meeting next month to Jan. 12 at 7 p.m. in the downstairs room of the Vanderbilt Borough Building. Authority members also talked about renting a building to be used as offices for the authority and moving meetings from the borough building to the DL & V Fire Company.