Chester County commissioners proclaim Black History Month, hear workforce update and approve multiple contracts and grants

The Chester County Board of Commissioners on Feb. 19 proclaimed February 2025 as Black History Month, received a briefing on workforce programs, and approved multiple contracts and grant awards covering housing rehabilitation, behavioral health supports, public-health services, bridge reconstruction and trails design.

The proclamation was accepted by Teresa Thornton, president of Black White Projects, a Phoenixville nonprofit that documents local African American history. “Black history is American history, and its richness enhances our collective narrative,” Thornton said as she accepted the proclamation on behalf of local organizations.

The board then heard a departmental spotlight from staff in the county’s Workforce Development office, who described services for job seekers and employers and several grant-funded programs that connect residents with training, apprenticeships and paid work experiences. “We are primarily, and actually fully at this time, grant funded,” the workforce presenter said, describing individual training accounts, on-the-job wage reimbursement and youth programs offered through the county’s PA CareerLink site in Exton.

After the presentations the commissioners approved the meeting’s consent agenda and a series of contracts and grant awards. Several items were approved with no extended discussion.

Votes at a glance

- Consent agenda (minutes, authorizations to bid, several resolutions and vouchers) — approved (consent agenda was adopted with Item C removed initially, then Item C, the Chester County Veterans Charitable Fund addendum, was approved separately). Commissioner Moskowitz recorded an abstention on the Veterans Charitable Fund addendum; no other recorded roll-call votes were provided in the transcript.

- Contracts approved (motions passed): • Open Hearth Inc. — $315,050, term 01/01/2025–12/31/2025, for rental and hotel respite assistance for individuals with serious mental illness; funded by state HealthChoices program (state funds). • Chartwell Street LLC (Kennett Area Community Services community housing arm) — $300,000, term 01/01/2025–12/31/2026, for renovation of an affordable single-family home in London Grove Township; funded by U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Home Investment Partnerships (HOME) program. • InTime Services Inc. — $11,808, one-year contract extension for 911 and safety/security staff scheduling software. • Actuarial Solutions LLC — $60,000, calendar year 2025, for actuarial services for managed behavioral health. • Public Health amendment for environmental investigative services for lead-based paint — total contract value $62,900 (consolidation of multiple contracts and small cost increase after 8 years). • Workforce Development amendment: Chester County Economic Development Foundation — $95,645, term 01/01/2025–06/30/2025, to provide additional programming for the Higher 1 project.

- Grant awards approved (motions passed): • Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency — $105,000 (01/01/2025–12/31/2025), 2024 Home for Good award supporting residents at risk of homelessness. • U.S. Department of Justice — $10,000 (calendar year 2025), federal forfeiture proceeds sharing with cooperating state and local law enforcement. • Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (liquid fuels) — $700,000 award amendment for reconstruction of County Bridge No. 175 in Schuylkill Township (term extended to 06/30/2026). • Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission Regional Trails Program — $200,000 for design phase of the Downingtown Trestle rehabilitation to extend the Chester Valley Trail and the P& T corridor. • Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) — $75,000 for a new Open Space Accelerator program; the program will offer municipal mini-grants that require a 50% local match. The presenter said the program is expected to engage seven municipalities; the transcript’s reference to the total program amount is inconsistent and not specified in the record. • Pennsylvania Department of Health renewal — $1,994,240.09 (public-health emergency preparedness renewal). • Three Workforce Development awards from Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry totaling $1,275,766.01 (individual awards cited in the meeting: $175,000; $1,002,216.01; and $98,550) with terms that run through mid-2026–2027 as stated by staff.

What the workforce briefing covered

Workforce Development staff summarized the department’s role as the county’s local workforce entity and fiscal agent for more than 20 active provider contracts. Staff described partnerships with regional counties, the PA CareerLink site in Exton (479 Thomas Jones Way, Lincoln Corporate Center), employer services, youth programs and supports such as individual training accounts (described in the briefing as $4,000 grants for eligible participants) and on-the-job training wage reimbursements (described as up to $6,000). Staff urged organizations and potential partners to contact Workforce Development about grant collaboration and services.

Context and next steps

Most items on the agenda were routine contract and grant approvals that the board approved without extended debate. Public comment periods produced no speakers for either agenda or non-agenda items. Several directors and department heads gave brief presentations or introduced items for the record; no ordinance or legislative action was introduced that required multiple readings.

The board’s next actions on projects requiring outside approvals — for example HUD-funded renovations or state-funded bridge reconstruction — will proceed according to the funding agencies’ conditions and timelines described in the awarded contracts and grants.