The Borough of Gettysburg is actively seeking several grants to improve infrastructure and keep citizens safe. It is also making another attempt at relieving traffic congestion caused by tour buses.
At their meeting on Monday, the council unanimously approved applying for the federal Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) grant. The borough is seeking $10,096,944 to revitalize Baltimore Street. If awarded, the grant will fund wider sidewalks that will be ADA-compliant, traffic calming devices such as curb bump-outs and signalized crosswalks, bus stops, brick sidewalks, new trees, new LED streetlights, benches, trash receptacles, roadwork, and stormwater management improvements.
This is the fourth year the borough has sought RAISE funds, Borough Manager Charles Gable said. If this year’s application is successful, the borough will be required to commit $2,524,236 towards the project. Gable said he hopes the Gettysburg Stormwater Authority and Gettysburg Municipal Authority would contribute money for the match since the project affects areas in their purviews. If those attempts are unsuccessful, the borough has money in its Capital Reserve Fund for the project.
Elm Street Program
The borough also unanimously approved a grant application seeking $25,000 from the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development for the Elm Street Gettysburg Program.
The Elm Street Program went dormant several years ago but residents wish to revitalize it, Main Street Gettysburg President Jill Sellers said. Gettysburg’s Elm Street neighborhood is a 10-block area in Ward Three. In the past, volunteers organized neighborhood clean-ups, monthly community dinners, facade improvement programs, and crime prevention techniques.
The Elm Street Program grant requires a $25,000 match. If the application is successful, money from the community restricted for that purpose will be used, Sellers said.
WellSpan supports police
Chief Robert Glenny told the council that WellSpan Health awarded the borough’s police department a $40,000 grant to support officer training. Glenny said the money will be used to pay for training sessions and officer overtime associated with the training.
Glenny said another grant-funded initiative, new cameras and computers in police cruisers, has been finalized. The equipment was installed in new cars the department recently acquired.
Councilperson Chad-Alan Carr acknowledged the work of McKenzie Johnson, a WellSpan crisis responder who works with the borough police department. Johnson’s work is also funded through a WellSpan grant. Glenny echoed Carr’s kudos, adding that Johnson has helped several residents acquire long-term mental health medication.
“Those are near impossible to garner in this state,” Glenny said.
Bus parking
The borough is taking a second stab at a bus parking pilot program.
The council unanimously approved a program from late March to late June that will allow restaurants with a seating capacity of 50 or greater to reserve several meters for up to 12 hours a day when they expect buses.
Bus parking will be allowed on the square and the borough’s main streets, Borough Council President Matthew Moon said previously. The price of a bag will be determined by the cost of parking in the space for 12 hours. Borough parking rates are determined by where the meter is located.
Moon said the proposal states spaces can only be reserved for buses and not general restaurant traffic. Restauranteurs will be encouraged to ask borough staff to remove meter bags when buses leave even though the business will pay for the bag for the entire day.
The pilot program was first discussed in February after one launched last summer was deemed ineffective. Carr said he has not received any comments on the proposal. During the public comment portion of the meeting, Destination Gettysburg President and CEO Karl Pietrzak said his organization supports the pilot program.
Other business
In other business:
- Moon read a proclamation by Mayor Rita Frealing, who was absent from the meeting, declaring March 11 to 15 as Civic Learning Week in Gettysburg. Councilperson Alicia Sanders, a Gettysburg Area School District Civics teacher, said the proclamation is designed to highlight the importance of Civics education.
- Named Kenneth C. Kime Jr. as a member of the Code Enforcement Appeals Board, Jennifer Yablonsksy as an alternate to the Zoning Hearing Board, Jenny Dumont as an alternate member of the Planning Commission, and Councilperson Judith Butterfield as a voting delegate for the Pennsylvania State Association of Boroughs Annual Conference.
Alex J. Hayes has spent almost two decades in the Adams County news business. He is passionate about sharing stories focused on the people in our communities and following local governments in an age when few journalists report on their meetings. Alex is also a freelance writer for several other publications in South Central Pennsylvania. Alex encourages readers to contact him at ahayes83@gmail.com.
We actually have other areas in Gettysburg other than Baltimore Street that could use funding! When is enough ….. enough!!!!!!!
True!