Commissioners to vote on road ownership
WAYNESBURG – The Greene County Commissioners will vote today on taking ownership of Murtha Drive, which would provide access to the Wal-Mart Supercenter under construction in Franklin Township, until the road is completed and the township agrees to take it over. The commissioners voted at Wednesday’s agenda meeting to place the ownership agreement and an engineering contract concerning Murtha Drive on the agenda of today’s regular meeting.
Solicitor Farley Toothman said the ownership issue is contained in an addendum that would be added to the developer’s agreement between the county and McHolme/Waynesburg LLC, the Wal-Mart developer.
The addendum states the county will own the road until the township takes ownership, Toothman said.
Pam Snyder, chairwoman of the board of commissioners, said the addendum was needed to keep the project moving forward because the township wants to wait until the road is completed before accepting ownership.
Money from escrow accounts that McHolme funded would be used to hire an engineering firm to inspect and manage storm water runoff work, easements and curb cuts on Murtha Drive for the Wal-Mart during construction of the road.
The commissioners voted to place an engineering services contract for that work with PBS&J of Washington County on today’s agenda.
In another road issue, the commissioners agreed to vote on advertising an ordinance needed to initiate and enforce regulations for speed limits, weight limits and construction of county-owned roads and bridges.
The county owns Progress Drive, off Route 21 in Franklin Township, the planned Murtha Drive and a couple other roads, officials said.
Snyder said the county has an agreement with the state Department of Corrections to maintain ownership of Progress Drive, which provides access to the State Correctional Institution at Greene.
In unrelated business, the commissioners received copies of high-resolution digital aerial photos of the county taken through the state’s PA Map program.
Chris Markel, program manager, said the photos were taken last spring and will become part of a digital statewide map.
He said the commissioners soon would receive information on elevations in the county. The elevation data was gathered using laser imaging detection and ranging (LIDAR) technology.
The county will receive the elevation data from the PA Map program in exchange for providing the state with parcel and road centerline geographical information system (GIS) information for the map.
Brady Stroh of Penn State University, which is administering the PA Map project with a state grant, said the county would receive a check for $23,040 for participating in the project. The amount of money participating counties receive is based on the amount of land in the counties.
Also at Wednesday’s agenda meeting, the commissioners agreed to vote on releasing county bond proceeds to fund nine construction and planning projects.
The amounts and projects are $580,000 for the Mount Morris water line extension in Perry Township, $400,000 for the Mapletown/Cabbage Flats sewer extension and upgrades in Monongahela Township, $125,000 for the combined sewer overflow elimination project in Waynesburg, $150,000 for Phase 2 of the Dry tavern sewer extension in Jefferson Township, $150,000 for the Porter Street/Braden Run waterline extension in Franklin Township $100,00 for the Ceylon Road overload elimination project in Cumberland Township, $75,000 for the Browns Ferry water line replacement project in Cumberland Township and $25,000 for a multi-municipal comprehensive plan with Morris Township as the lead municipality.
In a separate issue, Snyder said the commissioners have asked state Rep. H. William DeWeese, D-Waynesburg, to propose legislation that would allow counties to tax gas and oil wells.
A December 2002 ruling from the state Supreme Court effectively removed gas and oil wells for county tax assessment rolls, the commissioners stated in a letter written Wednesday to DeWeese.
“This single court order had the effect of removing millions of dollars of value from the Greene County’s assessment roll, which is relied in by our five school districts and 20 townships. And since 2003, hundreds of new gas wells have been permitted, drilled and are actively producing sizable royalties,” the letter states.
In other business, the commissioners also agreed to place on today’s agenda:
? A contract with Advanced Communications Inc. to engineer and design an extension of the county’s fiber-optics network for $2,080. The extension will connect the county’s 911 service to network.
? An agreement with TriZilla Racing on behalf of West Virginia University to use the county airport for a bicycle race on April 21. County recreation Director Jake Blaker said three drag races and a NCAA cross-country track meet also are being held at the airport this year.