Uniontown City Council approves two-way traffic on East Church Street
UNIONTOWN — City council authorized allowing two-way automobile traffic at the intersection of East Church Street and East Main Street, which will allow access to East Main Street from East Church Street.
East Church Street is currently a one-way road with only westbound traffic from East Main Street to Beeson Avenue, where the road becomes West Church Street and eventually connects with Morgantown Street.
But two-way traffic previously existed at the intersection of East Church Street and East Main Street, council noted, recalling that access to East Main Street from East Church Street was prohibited during the administration of former Mayor James Sileo, who served in that role prior to current Mayor Ed Fike taking over in 2008.
The resolution restoring two-way traffic on East Church Street states that no record of a formal action by city council or evidence of a traffic or engineering study detailing the need or benefit of eliminating two-way traffic on East Church Street exists.
The implementation of two-way traffic will be directed on a trial basis, according to the approved resolution.
“(I)f we see that there’s something not right about it, we can change it,” Fike said.
Council member Martin Gatti said that downtown business merchants were largely in favor of two-way traffic on East Church Street.
“I think anything that allows more accessibility downtown is an asset, in my opinion,” Gatti said. “It’s something I think we should definitely give a look.”
The approved resolution states that prohibiting traffic from entering East Main Street from East Church Street “hampers access to the business district, serves no legitimate commerce, and frustrates commerce”.
Council voted 3-0 for the resolution. Council members Blair Jones and Joby Palumbo were absent, but Ed Fike said that Jones was in favor of the move, and Palumbo’s father, Francis “Chip” Palumbo, was in attendance and said that his son approved of the resolution as well.
“Of course, you’d have to take down the existing signage that indicates one way,” city police Chief Jason Cox advised. “It probably would be good to at least put up some temporary signage advising that it’s two-way along with immediately changing the painting on the roadway.”
Brian Lake, project manager for K2 Engineering, the city’s engineering firm, said that K2 studies show that East Church Street is safe the way it is but added that the firm didn’t find any immediate safety issues when considering two-way traffic on the street either.
“It should be a successful venture, I think,” Gatti said.
In other business, council adopted by a 3-0 vote an ordinance authorizing the city to enter into an intermunicipal police services agreement with South Union Township that provides for city police services to the township in the Sheepskin Trail, Hutchinson Walkway and Hutchinson Park areas.
Per the agreement retroactive to Aug. 1, South Union Township agrees to pay the city an administrative fee of $208.33 for each month that the agreement remains in effect and $42.18 per hour for up to 80 regular hours of service and an overtime rate of $48.72 for each additional hour or for special times or events for which service is requested by the township.
“We’re excited to begin this process,” Cox said.
South Union Township does not have its own police department and relies on state police for coverage, an arrangement that township Supervisor Robert Schiffbauer said last month will not be impacted by the proposed agreement.
“It’s a great working relationship between our police department and South Union Township,” council member Joe Czuchan said.
Schiffbauer said that senior citizens and mothers with small children often trek along the Sheepskin Trail and noted that the wide variety of demographics attracted by the trail made the agreement make sense to the township.
City police officers who appear on the township’s behalf in criminal hearings and trials in the Court of Common Pleas or in district justice courts will have that time counted as part of the hours for services rendered by the Uniontown Police Department to the township.
City police will respond to all emergency and 911 calls in the service area, per the agreement. Either municipality may terminate the agreement at any time by giving 30 days notice.
South Union Township completed its 2.2-mile portion of the Sheepskin Trail last year.
“I think it’s a great agreement between the two municipalities,” Gatti said. “(It’s a) good use of our police department.”