Delmont moves ahead with infrastructure-related projects
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Delmont officials are moving ahead with multiple infrastructure-related projects, including progress on two state consent orders aimed at addressing storm water and sewage issues in the borough.
As part of the consent order Delmont entered into along with the Franklin Township Municipal Sanitary Authority and its client communities, public works head Bill Heaps announced that smoke testing had been completed far in advance of the 2023 deadline.
As a result, Heaps said the borough would be sending out about 80 violation letters. A significant portion of the violations, he said, were for homeowners who did not have a proper vent cap installed.
One of the next steps in the consent order is for Delmont to locate and address any illegal connections, like a storm water down-spout running into the sewage system, by 2025.
The borough has also put a draft plan in place to build a storm water detention pond in the wooded area between Stotler and Dogwood drives.
After several Dogwood Drive residents complained that they were not made aware of the early construction work related to the project, Councilman Stan Cheyne agreed to meet with them and address their concerns, mostly related to cutting down trees affecting sight lines along the back of Dogwood Drive properties.
“We may try and tweak the project a little bit,” Cheyne said. “The next phase will include some additional tree removal, and residents have asked if it’s possible to make some changes to the design so it may have less of an impact on them.”
Borough engineer Gary Baird of Lennon Smith Souleret Engineering said project officials will do what they can do accommodate nearby residents’ requests.
“The size it needs to be is the size it needs to be (in order to work effectively),” Baird said. “But we may be able to adjust the shape a little.”
“We’re trying to address it, but there are some things that can’t be changed,” Cheyne said.
He added that he plans to schedule a time to meet with residents and go over the draft plan for the pond, which is expected to be bid out this spring in anticipation of being built in the summer.
In other business:
• Council appointed Julie Walczer to a new three-year term on the borough’s zoning hearing board; appointed Pam Simpson and Dan McCool to new terms on the Delmont Recreation Board; and appointed Tim Schmida and Paul Samios to new terms through 2024 on the planning commission.
• Mayor Alyce Urban announced a tentative date of Aug. 6 for this year’s Delmont Days community celebration.
“I’m looking for anyone who wants to volunteer and help me get things organized,” Urban said. “We’d like to do a parade this year, and that’s something I’ve never done before.
Anyone interested in volunteering can call the borough office at 724-468-4422.
• The Delmont Visionary Committee will host an April 30 clean-up at the Rose Wigfield Parklet at 27 Greensburg St.
For more, see Facebook.com/DelmontVC.