Making ‘green spaces’ in Lawrence Co.

By Mary Grzebieniak

Lots will be spruced up in New Castle, Ellwood City and other locations.

NEW CASTLE, Pa. — Lawrence County commissioners accepted a $40,000 grant Tuesday from the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources to make “green spaces” out of county-owned vacant lots.

Jo Ann McCready, district manager of the Lawrence County Conservation District, said the program started last year with a few thousand dollars from the county to spruce up unsightly, overgrown vacant lots in the city of New Castle.

The county money was used in 2009 to improve seven lots, though work on some is not finished yet.

McCready said that trees and shrubs were planted in the lots – a simple matter for the conservation district which gets seedlings wholesale.

She said the low-cost plants will fill in the lots and require little maintenance.

McCready also said that in addition to creating “green spaces” which beautify an area, the lots will have an environmental impact by helping to cool urban areas.

She said the concept of green spaces in cities is increasingly popular.

The grant, which is to be used over two years, will allow the program to be extended to Ellwood City and other sites in the county.

Tish Foster, director of the county Tax Claim office, said there are 380 such vacant lots “in repository” by the county.

This means they reverted to the county because of unpaid back taxes and were not picked up when offered for sale.

In other business at their meeting Tuesday, commissioners and several of those attended the meeting, defended the county’s expense of about $5,000 per year for travel expenses for Commissioner Dan Vogler to attend Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board and Pennsylvania Harness Racing Commission meetings in Harrisburg and other locations.

Commissioner Steve Craig said the trips cost $100 to $200, depending on whether Vogler stays overnight.

He added that Vogler is there to keep tabs on the progress of Centaur’s proposed racetrack and casino in Lawrence County.

If the facility is built, it would be one of the largest employers in the county.

In light of this, Craig said the cost is not exorbitant.

He was responding to a resident, Oran Allen, who questioned whether it is necessary for Vogler to attend the gaming and racing meetings when Centaur is not on the agenda.