Point Marion water project complete
POINT MARION — Officials have announced that after 10 years of working on a major water project aimed at replacing aging water lines and constructing a new water tank, the project is now officially complete.
“All in all, it’s been a great project and we’re going to get closed out very soon,” said borough engineer Rick Colebank at a council meeting Wednesday.
“At this point in time, you don’t need to approve any more money. Everything is in the black,” he added of more than $50,000 of U.S. Department of Agriculture funding that remains following completion of the project.
Colebank said he would check into the possibility of using the remaining funding on related projects before returning it to the federal agency.
“It took 10 years of continuously working on this,” said council Vice President Gary Reynolds.
“We couldn’t get any money for years.”
Three of those years were spent “dreaming” of completing such a project to replace aging water lines and construct a new auxiliary water tank, said borough Manager Art Strimel.
Work on the three-phase project began in 2012, but has now come to fruition with the all-bills-paid announcement and the completion of phase three, the repairing of the roadways effected by the project, he said.
In reading the August police report and still on the subject of roads at the meeting, Strimel noted that of the traffic stops initiated over the last two months, four involved drivers overtaking vehicles along the no-passing lanes of Morgantown Road, or a stretch of US Route 119 that runs through the borough.
“It’s always been a terrible thing,” Strimel said of the risk such drivers pose to others. “It’s a very dangerous situation.”
Solicitor Gene Grimm suggested that it is not too early — as officials move toward preparing the 2015 operating budget — to negotiate the renewal of the borough’s contract with the Southwest Regional Police Department, which is set to expire at the end of March.
Council President Alfred DuBois said he would appoint a three-member committee to work on the 2015 budget next month.
In other business, council:
n Reminded that this month’s Coffee and Conversation session will be held at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 24, at the borough building. Residents are invited to discuss their ideas and concerns with council members in an informal setting at the sessions, which are held on the fourth Wednesday of each month.
n Announced that volunteers are being sought to assist with Venture Scouts and traditional scouting activities borough officials are working to establish.
Anyone interested in volunteering may call Councilwoman Victoria Evans at 304-282-4276.
n Reminded that the community park will be hosting a bike racing event organized by the Appalachian Bicycle Racing Association on Saturday, Sept. 27. Deadline to register is Thursday, Sept. 25. To register, visit https://www.bikereg.com/kickoff-cross-apcxs-1.
n Announced that three meetings have been scheduled to further discuss the proposed Free Flow hydropower projects along the Monongahela River. Input will be sought on local environmental assessments beginning at 7 p.m. on Oct. 8, at the Hilton Inn in Uniontown, 700 West Main St. Locally, the proposed Point Marion Lock and Dam and the Gray’s Landing Lock and Dam projects will be up for discussion. Interested parties are encouraged to attend. For more information, call 724-437-2816.