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Borough expects CDBG funding for senior-center parking-lot reconstruction; county agrees to cover unexpected playground pipe work
Summary
Engineers said the senior-center parking lot has severe settlement and likely requires ground improvement; county commissioners have provisionally supported a CDBG application that could bring about $715,000 for construction. During Manor Park playground work crews found a blocked storm pipe; the county pledged funding to cover the contractor's change order so the borough would not bear the extra cost.
Kurt Schroeder of Gilmore Engineers told council the senior-center parking lot shows extensive settlement, likely caused by landfill material under the surface, and "it's one of the worst parking lots I think I've seen in my career." He said that full reconstruction with geotechnical ground improvements will be required rather than a simple mill-and-overlay.
Schroeder said county commissioners have "blessed the support of this grant" pending HUD approval and that, if HUD approves the CDBG request, the commissioners can award the borough about $715,000 to cover construction. Schroeder cautioned that the CDBG amount is expected to cover construction costs but likely will not fully cover specialized engineering and design; staff will explore county partnership and potential ARPA funding to offset design costs.
Separately, the Manor Park playground project uncovered a silted storm drain that required replacing the pipe under the playground. Schroeder described a contractor change order that he and staff discussed with council. During staff remarks earlier he cited a change-order figure of roughly $53,000; the motion recorded in the meeting packet contained a larger numerical string when moved on the floor. The county pledged to provide funding to make the borough "whole" so the borough would not incur that added cost on the playground project.
Council approved initial payment on the Manor Park Playground Improvement Project (payment #1) as part of routine project payments and later approved a contract action to replace the compromised pipe, with the motion recorded in the minutes. Staff said the full playground project is roughly $400,000 with the borough's out-of-pocket costs around $40,000 for engineering and matching work.
Next steps: staff will continue to pursue formal HUD/CDBG approval and will coordinate with county staff on design-cost sharing and with the contractor to finalize change-order documentation for the playground pipe work.
