Commission to discuss highway, development projects at public hearing
Numerous highway and economic development projects slated for inclusion in Fayette County’s long-range plan with the Southwestern Pennsylvania Commission will be outlined today during a public hearing to discuss the plan. After a presentation by Chuck DiPietro, transportation planning director for the SPC, the public may comment on the document, which predicts developments into the year 2030. The public hearing will commence at 4:30 p.m. at the Swimmer Auditorium in Penn State Fayette’s Williams Building. Members of the county’s public participation panel (PPP), appointed by the county commissioners, will host the hearing.
Last year the county became a full member of SPC, a regional transportation alliance, after spending years as an associate member on the economic development side. DiPietro said Fayette County is in a different position than the eight southwestern Pennsylvania counties in the organization this time around because it is Fayette’s first time for inclusion on the transportation side.
DiPietro said a draft plan is in place and is available for public comment. The plan can be viewed at www.spcregion.org under the public participation link, and comments must be submitted by Monday by mail, fax or e-mail. The full SPC board is scheduled to vote on the plan July 28, after all the comments have been summarized.
By law, long-range plans must be reaffirmed every three years and must stretch at least 20 years into the future, DiPietro said. The last plan, outlining projects into 2025, was adopted in the summer of 2000.
DiPietro said a key is that the “dual plan” handles both economic development and transportation issues. He said the 10 subcommittees include economic development, highways, public transit, freight, airports, pedestrian and bicycle, intelligent transportation systems, finance, vision/goals and objectives and forecast.
Today’s public hearing is the final of nine scheduled throughout the region. In addition to Fayette, the other counties in the SPC are Allegheny (along with the city of Pittsburgh), Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Greene, Indiana, Washington and Westmoreland. Lawrence County recently joined, and its inclusion will be handled separately, DiPietro said.
“This means much more than highways,” DiPietro said. “We’re seeking input on the vision, strategy and range of plan.”
PPP member Tammy Shell, director of the Fayette County Office of Planning, Zoning and Community Development, said joining the SPC as a full member worked out to the benefit of the county.
Among the projects that are listed for economic development are the Connellsville Airport expansion project (which includes a runway extension and construction of a terminal); improvements to Fallingwater; restoration of the Fort Necessity visitor center; sign improvements to outline tourist attractions throughout the area; development of 1,000-plus acres of Keystone Opportunity Zone tax-free sites along the Route 119 and Route 43 highway corridor; development of the Route 40 Business Park; water and sewage projects throughout the county; Brownsville wharf and riverside projects; and renovation of buildings in downtown Uniontown.
The new capacity highway projects include a full diamond interchange at the Walnut Hill exit of Route 119, near the Uniontown Shopping Center; construction of FAECO Drive in Luzerne Township, near the new maximum-security prison; Matthew Drive extension; and the Uniontown-to-Brownsville link of the Mon/Fayette Expressway.
Other highway projects are listed as widening/capacity upgrade and other upgrade projects. They include widening Matthew Drive to four lanes; widening New Salem Road; upgrading the Masontown Bridge; widening Route 21, Route 166 and Route 40; improving Route 119; and upgrading interchange improvements to Shady Grove Road.
Shell said other upgrade projects listed on the county’s 12-year plan also are listed as a general line item on the 2030 plan so they can be included.
Specific projects also include Mon/Fayette interchange upgrades; Uniontown and Connellsville intersection and traffic engineering improvements; Luzerne Township, Redstone Township and Brownsville roadway upgrades; Route 40 intersection improvements; countywide bridge, betterment and intersection safety improvements; and Route 51, Route 119 and Route 40 upgrades.