GREENVILLE, PA. After long delay, Streetscape plans take shape

The project will happen in six phases.
By LAURI GALENTINE
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT.
GREENVILLE, Pa. -- A long-awaited Streetscape project is finally moving forward, but not quite as planned.
Greenville Borough Council began planning the project, meant to help beautify the downtown, several years ago and had even applied for and received a Pennsylvania Department of Transportation grant to help pay for it.
But before the plans were finished, Greenville found itself in financial trouble and the project was among the things that would just have to wait.
"We didn't have our match money," said borough Manager Vance Oakes, speaking of the $300,000 the borough was expected to put with the $650,000 grant to cover the cost of Streetscape's phase one.
Getting the funds
Since then, the borough has applied for and received a distressed-communities designation under State Act 47. That designation gave access to emergency funds, grants and loans from the state.
Because of that money, the project can move forward, according to Oakes, but phase one has been scaled back.
The project will consist of installing new street and traffic lights with underground cable to eliminate wiring running over Main Street, paving streets and sidewalks, rebuilding curbs, placing benches along sidewalks and planting flowers.
The original plans called for it to be done in four phases, with the first phase encompassing the section of Main Street between Mercer and Water streets, phase two being Main Street from Water Street to West Main Hill, and phase three covering Main Street from Mercer Street to Penn Avenue. The final phase would be the restructuring of Canal and Clinton streets.
The only change, according to Oakes, is that it will be done in six phases.
Splitting it up
To make sure the first phase stays within the $950,000 range, council voted to split it into two phases, Oakes said.
Phase one, which will include only Main Street between Mercer Street and the railroad tracks near Race Street, is expected to take place this summer.
Oakes said the revised bid package will be submitted to PennDOT for approval by Feb. 11. Any revisions that need made should be done and approved by March 10, he said, and the project is expected to go out for bids by the end of March.
Oakes said the bids for phase one are scheduled to be opened April 29 and the actual work on the project should begin by June 24.
Although the main work will be completed by Nov. 24 -- late in the construction season -- he expects the company will return in the spring of 2005 to do any final work.
Oakes said there is no timeline at this point for phase two to begin.