More than $890K awarded for Pike and Wayne projects

Pike County was awarded $100,000 in state funds to renovate 103 West High Street, Milford, for the Pike County Children's Advocacy Center.

Westfall Township was awarded $190,625 to build a 5,000-square-foot, six-bay maintenance garage with a 2,000-square-foot open area and a gravel driveway to provide additional storage for township road maintenance materials and township equipment.

Shohola Township was awarded $50,000 to purchase and install two emergency generators at the municipal building and the township garage.

These funds were announced Jan. 23 by state legislators, including Sen. Lisa Baker (R-Luzerne/Pike/Susquehanna/Wayne/Wyoming) and Reps. Rosemary Brown (R-Monroe/Pike), Jonathan Fritz (R-Wayne/Susquehanna), and Mike Peifer (R-Pike/Wayne). Altogether, Wayne and Pike Counties will receive $893,750 in Local Share Account (LSA) and Dairy Investment Program grants.

“One of our primary responsibilities is working toward strengthening communities,” said Baker. “State funding for efforts that improve opportunities and quality of life for residents has important impacts. This money enables projects to be completed more quickly and reduces the cost for local taxpayers.”

Other LSA-funded projects for the 189th Legislative District are as follows:

● Lehman Township was awarded $165,625 to begin and support the site work and utilities for the construction of a 9,494-square-foot building for the Bushkill Outreach and Senior Center located at Lehman Park.

“This is the first phase of the Bushkill Outreach project – a food pantry that does an excellent job caring for our residents when hard times hit,” said Brown. “The center will also act as a senior/community center offering a location for activities and services to bring our community together. I’m very pleased to begin supporting these efforts with grant dollars as well as the many beneficial grants throughout Pike County.”

Other LSA-funded projects for the 111th Legislative District are as follows:

● The Wayne County Commissioners were awarded $76,500 for the Hankins Pond Dam project in order to build a pedestrian bridge across the structure located in Mt. Pleasant Township, Wayne County.

● Mount Pleasant Township was awarded $45,000 to pave the driveway and parking lot of the Mount Pleasant Township municipal building in Wayne County.

● Greater Honesdale Partnership was awarded $90,000 to complete a Downtown Honesdale Revitalization Plan to improve Main Street.

Other LSA-funded projects for the 139th Legislative District are as follows:

● Salem Township was awarded $62,750 for the purchase and installation of solar panels at the fire department building in Salem Township, Wayne County. The production from the new system is proposed to be more than 58,000 kilowatts per year.

● Dreher Township was awarded $92,000 to make improvements to the Newfoundland American Legion Post 859 building.

The CFA-funded project for Wayne County is as follows:

● Workforce Wayne (Wayne Pike Workforce Alliance) was awarded $21,250 to develop a regional branding and pairing program specifically targeting metro area markets.

The total project cost is $25,000. The Wayne Pike Workforce Alliance will provide $750 in matching funds, and Wayne Economic Development Corporation will provide $1,000 in matching funds. Wayne County will provide $2,000 in matching funds.

The Gaming Act provides for funding

Under Act 71 (the Gaming Act), Monroe County and its five contiguous counties of Carbon, Lackawanna, Northampton, Pike, and Wayne, are eligible for LSA grant funding for projects concerning the public interest, community improvement, economic development, and roadway improvement.

The Commonwealth Financing Authority (CFA) was established in 2004 as an independent agency of the Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) to administer Pennsylvania's economic stimulus packages. The CFA holds fiduciary responsibility over the funding of programs and investments in Pennsylvania's economic growth.

“These state funds are crucial to enable our county and the townships within to further improve their facilities and ensure they are operating at a safe and efficient capacity for all our residents,” said Peifer. “I am happy to see that these local projects will benefit greatly from these grants.”