SALTSBURG: Officials to pursue playground funds

Saltsburg Borough will apply for a $250,000 grant for a new playground by the end of this month, voted on by borough council at Mondays meeting.

Saltsburg officials will submit an application to the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development and the Commonwealth Financing Authority for a Greenways, Trails and Recreation Program grant that will help the borough build a new playground where a sewage treatment plant currently stands between Water Street and the West Penn Trail.

Right now, a community playground is set up in the borough, but according to council Vice President Kathy Muir, it isnt in good condition.

The old one has been vandalized. Its small, its outdated and needs to be separated from the basketball courts so the little kids are away from the bigger kids, Muir said.

The public basketball courts will remain in their current location at the park at the head of the West Penn Trail between the trail and Water Street, Muir said.

The application for the grant is due July 21 and will be submitted by grant writer Leann Chaney. The grant is part of the Marcellus Legacy Fund, which allocates funds for the planning, acquisition, rehabilitation and repair of greenways, recreational trails, open space, parks and beautification projects.

The borough is requesting the maximum amount of money authorized by the grant, $250,000.

According to the grant, projects require a 15 percent local cash match of the total project cost or cash equivalents for the appraised value of real estate. A parking lot that is set to be paved once the sewage treatment plant is torn down will qualify as the boroughs 15 percent match for the project, according to Chaney.

Councils vision for the new playground includes new equipment, a bathroom, water fountain, benches, garbage cans and more. In addition, Muir hopes to install security equipment to ensure the park is not vandalized.

Because of its location between the trails, there is a plan for the park to be nature-themed.

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SALTSBURG: Officials to pursue playground funds