Brownsville council gives park permission lease section
BROWNSVILLE – Brownsville Borough Council Tuesday gave permission for the Brownsville-Luzerne Park Board to consider a lease agreement with a man who wants to develop part of the park for use by dirt bikes, quads, snowmobiles and skateboarders. Council president Jack Lawver said the proposed area is not currently in use at the park. He said the proposal calls for a training track for children and a larger track for more experienced riders, available for an hourly fee. Lawver said Gary Trainor, the man proposing the lease agreement, is also interested in starting a business near the park.
“He wants to go year-round, including snowmobiles,” Lawver said. “He wants to draw people from a three-state area.”
Council gave its approval for the park board to continue lease discussions, with the final agreement to be approved by the council and by the Luzerne Township Supervisors.
Council also approved a motion to put in a new backstop at Fenwick Park and to buy a portable pitching machine for the Brownsville Youth Baseball program. The money will come from a recreation fund that uses fees collected by the borough from Charter Communications. The cost of the baseball improvements is not to exceed $3,500.
The council also discussed paving the basketball courts at the North Side and Water Street playgrounds and purchasing new basketball hoops for those playgrounds.
Council also approved a resolution to continue studying the possibility of a joint police force with Brownsville Township. Councilman Scott Rohrer said the next step is to develop a budget based on the actual spending in 2002. Articles of agreement between the borough and the township are also being drafted, and the borough is looking into grants available to regional police forces for the chief’s salary and for equipment.
The uniform allowance for part-time police officers was discussed. While the police contract calls for each officer to receive a $200 uniform allowance, the contract doesn’t cover part-time officers. Council has adopted a policy of providing a $100 allowance after a part-time officer has worked at least 100 hours in the borough.
Lighting improvements are being considered for the North Side business district. Council members met recently with some of the business owners to discuss the possibility of installing decorative lampposts in the business district, with utility wires moved underground or behind the buildings.
“We want to bring it down through the rest of town,” Lawver said. “We’re looking to see what funding is available.”
Lawver said the Greater Brownsville Area Chamber of Commerce is approaching Allegheny Power to see what assistance the utility company may be able to provide to the borough and the businesses.
At the request of Harold Richardson, council offered its support to the proposed Monongahela River, Railroad and Transportation Museum. Richardson is on the committee formed to get the museum up and running. The committee is in the process of selecting a site for the museum.