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Public Works details stormwater repairs, new equipment and GIS mapping as part of 2026 budget
Summary
DPW representative Pat Cusick told council the department completed 15 in-house stormwater projects, replaced 735 linear feet of curbing and wants a new supervisor, a dry-vac street sweeper and continued GIS/utility coordination funded in next year’s budget.
Pat Cusick, speaking for the Department of Public Works, described a busy 2025 for stormwater and street work and outlined capital and staffing requests for 2026.
Cusick said DPW completed 15 stormwater projects in-house after “18 solid weeks of rain events” and replaced “735, linear feet of curbing” to reduce flooding impacts near residents. He detailed a range of equipment investments: a new salt shed (reported capacity 1,300 tons), two new garbage trucks, trailers for flood operations, and an asphalt recycler hotbox to support pothole and road repairs. On equipment requests, DPW asked for a new dry-vac street sweeper for four-season capability and an additional highway supervisor to reduce current spans of control.
Cusick also described asset and utility coordination efforts. He said traffic loops were recently mapped into the state PA 811 system to reduce accidental hits and that the department has started geotagging infrastructure for GIS-based asset management. On contract work and consulting, council discussed the third-party pave-cut contractor and Pennoni; Cusick and staff recommended renewing the contract with the noted pass-through cost in the budget being reduced from an earlier estimate of $500,000 to $300,000.
Why it matters: stormwater projects, vehicle and equipment purchases and staffing levels affect the city’s ability to respond to storms, maintain roads and clear snow. Councilors asked about use of a former salt shed lot (noted to be in a floodplain so not available for permanent structures) and asked for confirmation of project completions and black-ice monitoring plans. Cusick said the Cherry/Blucher project is complete and that winter mitigation routes were prioritized during the first snowfall.
No formal vote was taken on DPW requests at the hearing; council members asked for periodic updates and documentation to support renewal of service contracts and purchase requests.
