Bridgeville seeks other funding sources for flood control project

Bridgeville is seeking a $500,000 grant to replace culverts on Commercial Street after the borough lost federal funding for the project earlier this year.

Council in September authorized officials to apply for a Gaming Economic Development Tourism Fund grant from Allegheny County Economic Development.

“This is a part of the McLaughlin Run Flood Control Project that we lost our FEMA funding earlier this year for,” said borough Manager Joe Kauer. “This application is an attempt to secure outside funding.”

Bridgeville had been awarded $5.33 million from the Federal Emergency ManagementAgency’s “Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities” funding for the flood control project.

In April, FEMA had cancelled the program. A news release described it as “wasteful,” “ineffective” and “politicized,” and that FEMA was returning to its “core mission of helping Americans recovering from natural disasters.”

Borough officials, in a statement, countered that assessment, calling the project “a textbook example of good government and community-driven planning.”

In other business, council will continue to work with PennDOT to find a safe way to connect Chartiers Park with sidewalks on the north side of Chartiers Street, Kauer said.

Council in September tabled a plan to build 450 feet of new sidewalk on the south side of Chartiers Street from Bank Street to Chartiers Park.

“We’ll discuss this more at our October meeting,” Kauer said.

Council also tabled a motion to hire a new police officer, as the highest-ranked candidate on the Civil Service eligibility list took another job, Kauer said.

“We hope to have this on our October agenda as well,” Kauer said.