$100,000 QUESTION
PennDOT asks boro to maintain roads
By James Moate Endeavor News

Emporium Borough Council is considering an offer of roughly $100,000 from the Pa. Department of Transportation (PennDOT) to take over maintenance of two sections of road within the borough that are currently serviced by PennDOT.

They discussed the matter during a meeting Monday.

PennDOT maintains North Broad Street between Fourth and Fifth streets as well as the section of Portage Road that goes to the Shippen Township line. If the transaction takes place, PennDOT will pay the borough about $45,000 to take over maintenance of the North Broad Street portion and roughly $55,000 for the Portage Road parcel. In addition, the borough will receive an estimated $2,000 yearly increase in their liquid fuels allotment.

According to borough manager Don "Stretch" Reed, roughly $80,000 represents the cost of the pavement and the remaining $20,000 is a bonus for the borough to use in maintaining the the sections of road, as well as the equipment needed to do so.

Reed said that the borough council is seeking feedback from the citizens regarding the issue.

"We want to know if the people of Emporium think this a good idea or not," he commented. "We want to know if they think it's worth it."

In other council business, it was announced that the Cameron County Chamber of Commerce has invited the council to a meeting regarding the potential sesquicentennial celebration in 2010. All municipalities within the county have been invited. It will be held in the courthouse at 7 pm on Feb. 19.

Fire and safety committee chairman Max Narby said that Kaza Fire Equipment attended a recent committee meeting and addressed the issue of traffic flow during major fires. It was determined that a set of hose ramps needs to be purchased in order to allow residents to travel from through the borough when disaster strikes.

Hose ramps are placed over large stretches of hose so vehicles can go over them without endangering the lives of firefighters. Council agreed to pay as much as $1,200 to purchase a set of hose ramps capable of covering hoses up to 5" in diameter. On Tuesday, Emporium Rotary donated $1,200 to the Emporium Volunteer Fire Department for the purchase of another set of ramps.

In other matters:

• Council members appointed Rick Allen, a resident of Fifth Street, to the Zoning Hearing Board

• Gave Reed and Tim Leydig, Emporium Borough's director of public works, the green light to attend a seminar in April addressing flood protection facilities. Held at Sylvan Springs Mountain Resort, the seminar is being held by the Department of Environmental Protection.

• Council members agreed to appoint Cameron County High School senior Brittany Lundberg as a junior council person. Brittany will attend council meetings and learn about the proceedings of local government first-hand.

• Pat Garrigan, chairman of the sewage committee, announced that the Mid Cameron Authority wastewater treatment facility project is going well.

• Council members approved a request by Reed to attend a Pa. State Association of Boroughs conference at the end of March.