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MILTON — As the one-year anniversary of the relocation of a restored replica ACF railcar to the railroad pavilion on Filbert Street approaches, Milton Borough Council has approved a design plan for a canopy to cover and preserve the piece of locomotive history.
The railcar, restored by Beech Creek rail buff John Gummo, was donated to the Milton Historical Society in September after council approved its placement adjacent to the borough offices on the condition that the historical society handle all maintenance and erect a canopy to shield the car from the elements.
A design submitted to council included what Milton Historical Society President Tim Bittner previously described as a hip-type canopy roof, which will incorporate design elements from the existing pavilion for visual consistency. As part of its approval, council noted that the society would also be responsible for any maintenance to the canopy itself.
Council also approved the borough’s 2022 Community Development Block Grant proposal. The proposal for the grant, which is available only to projects meeting specific federal criteria, is eligible under the category of removal of architectural barriers and would fund curb cutting along South Turbot Avenue, in conjunction with upcoming paving projects along the street.
A motion was approved to authorize borough Manager Jess Novinger to apply for a multi-modal transportation grant to offset costs associated with change orders for an ongoing construction project along Marsh Road. The construction, aimed at widening the road to allow for truck traffic and redirecting it from moving through Montandon, has been in the works for roughly two decades, and has been stymied by environmental impact concerns, namely the presence of the endangered eastern spade foot toad.
The borough has already received two other multi-modal grants, worth $2 million, as well as an Appalachian Regional Commission grant, worth $697,000, towards the project, which has also encountered halts due to wetland mitigation concerns. Novinger said the total amount of the grant she will be applying for is not yet determined.
The Milton Fire Department received an EMS grant in June that will be used to purchase a Kubota utility vehicle (UTV) with a skid unit that will be used for community events like the Harvest Festival and athletic games. The UTV will be equipped with a water tank, pump, and snow plow to assist with brush fires and snow removal. Thus far in July, the fire department has responded to 16 calls, including one structure fire at the Milton American Legion on Sunday.
Council President Jamie Walker noted in his report to council that he would be speaking with Novinger about the possibility of installing cameras in Milton’s public parks after concerns over trash, dog feces, consumption of alcoholic beverages and tobacco use.
In other business, council approved:
• A request from the Milton Harvest Festival Committee to hold the annual celebration along Broadway and Bound Avenue. The approval had previously been tabled over questions about power supply given the new layout of the event, but council member Dale Pfeil said electricity should not pose a problem.
• Rescinding of an engineering bid awarded to KPI Technology for the demolition of a property at 332 Beaver St. A bid of $7,800 was approved in June for the engineering work, said Novinger, but after informing KPI that the demolition would largely be handled internally by the borough, she was told that the engineering work would not be needed, reducing the scope of the project and rendering the bid unnecessary.
• Land development plans submitted by Marsh Road Real Estate in order to expand Patton Warehousing operations.
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