News

January 21

Nanticoke moves on 2 grants

Information on a federally funded roads program must wait until next month.

By Sherry Long slong@timesleader.com
Staff Writer

NANTICOKE – Council approved two ordinances Wednesday that clear the way for City Administrator Holly Quinn to submit two grant applications that could help the city acquire $500,000 from the state.

Quinn said she has been working with state Sen. John Yudichak, D-Plymouth Township, on two redevelopment projects on Market Street and in downtown. Project details were not available.

If the grant applications are approved, money from Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program would propel these projects forward.

In other business, a resident living on Alden Road asked about the status of the “K-route” project that has been in the works for several years.

The K-route is a federally funded program because the roads, Alden, Union and Prospect streets, are federal emergency routes out of town. Some of the sewers on the three streets will be replaced, and all three will be repaved and resurfaced.

Quinn said the city’s engineer from Michael J. Pasonick and Associates would attend the city’s next meeting on Feb. 2 to answer questions about the progress of the K-route project.

The resident asked if the engineer was originally due to attend Wednesday’s meeting and Quinn said the engineer had another commitment he had to take care of so he could not attend this week’s session.

Officials also learned the city received its temporary tax anticipation note loan of $250,000 last week and it was deposited into the general fund. It must be repaid by the end of this year.

Councilman James Litchkofski said the city will save roughly $15,000 in interest charges this year with the loan because of a lower percentage rate. The exact rate was not available.

Finance Director Pam Heard said the city received 98 percent of its budgeted amount for earned income taxes as it received $2,059,496 out of a projected $2.1 million.

“Berkheimer are holding fast to their projections for 2011. We will stay in constant touch with them to make sure that we are hitting the target we are supposed to,” Litchkofski said.

Treasurer Al Wytoshek said he was pleased with the amount of property collections paid in 2010 as 89 percent of all homeowners paid their taxes. He hopes it will be 90 percent next year.

He said the city is still owed a little more than $87,500 from different homeowners throughout the city.

Also, the council, in a 3-0 vote, approved an ordinance defining what types of picketing would not be allowed.

Quinn said the adoption of the ordinance was a housekeeping matter. During an indexing of all the city’s ordinances, it was discovered the city did not have a picketing ordinance on the books, so officials, realizing most other communities already have such a description, decided to pass the ordinance.

Councilmen Jon Metta and Brent Makarczyk were not at the meeting.

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