Uniontown City Council reallocates grants to buy fire truck
Uniontown City Council on Wednesday reallocated unused money from two community development grants to buy a used fire truck.
Council unanimously voted to reallocate $25,000 from the city’s 2008 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and $3,000 from the 2009 CDBG to buy a 1992 pumper from the New Haven Hose Co. of Connellsville for $27,000.
City officials said only $2,000 was needed from the 2009 CDBG and the $3,000 figure on the resolution was an error.
Fire Chief Charles Coldren said the truck has only 6,500 miles and comes with thousands of dollars of equipment including 1,200 feet of five-inch fire hose.
The original purpose of the $25,000 taken from the $354,433 2008 CDBG was to pay for engineering costs for a street-scape project in the East End, but the money is not needed because federal money is no longer available for the project, said Mark Yauger, executive director of the Uniontown Redevelopment Authority, which runs the city’s CDBG program.
The $3,000 taken from the $360,837 2009 CDBG was part of a $63,000 allocation for buying a new ambulance. However, changes in regulations from the state Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED), which administers the CDBG program, would have required the city to expand its ambulance’s service area if it bought the ambulance, Yauger said.
Council agreed to reallocate the $60,000 remaining from the original 2009 allocation to the ongoing rehabilitation project at Bailey Park.
In addition, council voted to submit an application to the DCED for $322,897 in 2011 CDBG money.
Turning to a separate matter, council voted 4-1 against advertising for contractors to study the lighting inside city buildings and to look for ways to reduce the city’s electric bill.
Councilman Gary Gearing said rebates for reducing electrical consumption are available through West Penn Power.
Council members said they wanted more information about the rebate program.
In other business, council:
n Asked solicitor J.W. Eddy to contact the Uniontown Area School District about the $89,600 in sewage tap-in fees the district owes for its building construction and renovation projects.
n Agreed to sell 11 trucks that don’t run to Specialty Metal of Uniontown for $11,482, which was the highest of four bids submitted for the vehicles.
n Voted to have the IRS conduct a compliance audit of the fire and police pension plans through the Voluntary Compliance Program for approximately $8,000 for each plan.
n Authorized the Uniontown Police Officer’s Association to lease space in the police station lobby to raise money for education, training and equipment.