The Adams County Commissioners approved the submission of more than $320,000 for the 2022 Community Development Block Grant, awarding funding to Biglerville Borough and Hoffman Homes, as well as covering the county’s administrative fees, at its meeting yesterday.
The $100,000 awarded to Biglerville Borough is the second grant in a multi-year project that will replace approximately 3,500 lineal feet of the water main serving the eastern portion of Biglerville Borough. “The upgrade to the water line along East York Street will provide more capacity to the residents borough-wide because the existing water main line is limited due to being undersized in some areas,” said Harlan Lawson, economic development specialist with the Adams County Office of Planning. He said the borough was awarded just under $111,000 for the same project last year and will likely seek funding from the state to continue the project in 2023.
A grant of $163,338 was given to Hoffman Homes to install a steel fence approximately one-quarter mile long and seven feet high along Orphanage Road in front of Hoffman Homes’ property. It will create one point of entry and one point of exit for all individuals and vehicles.
Located in Littlestown, Hoffman Homes for Youth provides treatment for those aged 7 to 21 diagnosed with a mental health disorder by offering services and support and helping to transition them back into the community.
“The project will be completed in two stages,” said Hoffman Homes Executive Director Rebecca van der Boeuf. The first will provide the fencing along Orphanage Road; the second will be the construction of a gate with a camera monitoring system and the only way to enter the property.
“The safety of our youth is paramount,” said van der Boeuf who explained that currently, there are two entrances to the property, and it is difficult to vet who is coming onto the property. “The type of youth we support places us at a higher risk of incidence,” she added.
CDBG funding is provided by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). It can be used for housing rehabilitation, public services, community facilities, infrastructure improvement (water, sewer, stormwater), streets and sidewalks, economic development, and planning. The minimum request is $100,000 with no ceiling limit.
In other council business, the Adams County Adult Correctional Center will receive two roof-top HVAC units with a cost to the county of $361,132 and an additional $15,240 for automation control for the units. The current system is 22 years old and needs repair. Enginuity, LLC of Mechanicsburg, PA, will complete the work.
A further $2,589 proposal was approved to hire Overhead Door Company of Harrisburg-York to replace the tracks and lift cables on the overhead garage door of the outdoor storage building at the ACACC.
An upgrade to the county’s controller office accounting software has been approved at the cost of $11,340. The upgrade includes consulting, project management, and technical and training services.
The county information technology services department has renewed its license for a reporting and analytics app that allows the IT network team to navigate and search data coming from the Cisco VoIP phone system to build reports and dashboards around that information. In addition, software updates for FaxFinder will provide the ability for all offices to send and receive faxes securely and digitally. Both agreements will cost about $4,300.
Adams county Emergency Services will share certain 911 data with Carroll County to enhance call routing and transfers between the two counties. 911 calls near the MD/PA border are sometimes challenging to locate, depending on which tower provides the service.
Judith Cameron Seniura is a freelance reporter. She began her journalism career in the early ‘70s and has written for newspapers, magazines, and other media in Ontario, Canada, Alaska, Michigan, Nebraska, San Antonio, Maryland, and Pennsylvania.