Franklin Regional, conservation district officials seek grant for work on Haymaker Run

Franklin Regional School District officials recognize the value of their front yard at the elementary campus along Sardis Road in Murrysville.

With several acres of natural habitat and the high-quality stream in Haymaker Run along its western border, “we’re looking at the Sloan campus as an environmental center,” Superintendent Gennaro Piraino said. “We want it to be a place where we can teach kids about the natural world, the local environment and make it a great habitat for all types of local species.”

Part of accomplishing that goal involves work on the manmade structures that have helped foster fish habitat in Haymaker Run.

“We went out and took a look at the site and the in-stream fish habitats installed 25 years ago,” said Westmore- land Conservation District Watershed Program Manager Chelsea Walker. “Some of them are starting to fail, and we invited the fish and boat commission to take a look and help design some repairs and retrofits.”

Structures such as jack dams — small dams that create slower-flowing pools where fish can congregate — and other features not only provide habitat, but can also help stabilize stream banks, Walker said.

Franklin Regional school board members authorized Walker to pursue a grant to help fund the project.

“We did a project last year along Shupe Run in Mt. Pleasant with 40 structures, and the cost there came to about $60,000,” Walker said. “There are 24 structures in this project.”

Walker said if the conservation district’s grant application is approved, she will have 90 days to complete the project.

“The local Rotary and the fish and boat commission have agreed to help match partial funding,” she said. “If we get the grant, we’d like to get the project done between late August and mid-September.”

“I’ve used it fishing with my children the last few years,” said school board member Mark Kozlosky. “I appreciate the commitment to making it a nice, well-maintained area.”