Bidders wanted for ferry service
The Fayette County commissioners voted Tuesday to seek bids for the five-year inspection and dry dock service of the Fredericktown Ferry, which transports passengers between Fayette and Washington counties across the Monongahela River. According to Paul Nixon, head of the bridge department, five years ago the service was not put out to bid.
During the agenda meeting, Commissioners Angela M. Zimmerlink and Vincent A. Vicites voted to place on Thursday’s agenda a motion to seek either bids or quotes for the maintenance work. Commissioner Joseph A. Hardy III was absent. The cost of the work will be split between Fayette and Washington counties.
Nixon said the U.S. Coast Guard mandates that the work is done every five years. He said the ferry must be towed to the site where the work will be done and then pulled out of the water, and any needed repairs are performed. Nixon said he is only aware of two local places that perform the inspection and maintenance service, and they are located in Charleroi and Elizabeth.
Nixon said five years ago the work was performed in Elizabeth, and the total cost was about $15,000.
Zimmerlink said she wants to comply with the county code, which mandates that anything that costs more than $10,000 must be put out for bid. When she asked Nixon if there was a provision that would allow the county to forgo the bidding process, Nixon said he was unsure. However, he said five years ago the service was not put out to bid, noting the county’s cost was $7,500, which is less than the $10,000 amount.
When Zimmerlink made a motion to place the item on the agenda, she directed Nixon to determine before Thursday by contacting one of the county’s three solicitors if bids must be secured or if written quotations are sufficient.
Vicites said he thinks the county should advertise the work by putting it out to bid.
Employees of SCI-Fayette mostly utilize the ferry, which travels between LaBelle in Fayette County and East Fredericktown in Washington County.
The commissioners also took action regarding the Sheepskin Trail, voting to place on Thursday’s agenda motions to purchase property on the southern end of the trail and to seek bids for construction of the trail from the Yough River Trail to Dunbar Borough.
Tammy Stenson, director of the Fayette County Office of Planning, Zoning and Community Development, said the agreement with CSX to purchase about 50 parcels of land at a cost of $86,174 is being funded entirely by the McKenna Foundation of Latrobe. When the trail is complete, it will stretch through the center of the county.
The commissioners voted to place on next month’s agenda a motion to consider transferring the administration of the Farmland Preservation Board from the planning office to the Fayette County Conservation District. While Stenson said the two agencies want to split the responsibilities, Zimmerlink said she didn’t necessarily agree with that proposal and wants to discuss the issue at a meeting before voting on it.
Vicites agreed that the issue should be discussed at a public meeting before it is voted on.
Under public announcements, the commissioners said as of April 1, the Fayette Area Coordinated Transportation is providing services through the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation’s Rural Transportation Program for Persons with Disabilities. For more information, call 724-628-RIDE or visit factbus.com
Also, the annual “Hard to Recycle” drop off event will be held from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, May 12, at the Fayette County Fairgrounds.