COUDERSPORT — The Potter County Commissioners on Thursday authorized beginning the process to rename a Coudersport bridge, approved the continuation of community revitalization support and discussed developments within the Data-Driven Justice Initiative.
The Potter County Veterans Service Committee now has official authorization to pursue assistance to have a local bridge named in honor of U.S. Navy Commander Philip F. Palmatier Jr., who was killed during a training mission over the Gulf of Mexico in 1990.
The bridge naming is a continuation of the efforts to memorialize Potter County citizens killed while serving their country, with all the county’s Vietnam War veterans now honored in a similar manner. State Rep. Martin Causer, R-Turtlepoint, has worked with other state legislators to officially recognize the named bridges through proclamations, and will do so in this case as well.
In other news, the Potter County community revitalization program will continue, with a contract approved to continue services from John Bry to provide technical support and training through June 30.
Bry also writes and submits grant applications on behalf of the program, and last year secured more than $63,000 in funds. Bry will be paid a total of $10,000 through quarterly installments throughout the contract period.
Meanwhile, Commissioner Paul Heimel shared information on efforts to transition the DDJ Initiative program for the future.
The program will now be administered through the National Association of Counties (NACo), the Laura and John Arnold Foundation and an appointed team of long-term federal agency representatives. Passage of the 21st Century Cures Act provides funding for substance abuse treatment and mental health services.
Potter County is one of 140 state, county or local governments to become involved with the program, which is aimed at implementing research-based criminal justice reform at the local level where needs can be easily identified and addressed.
New recommendations from Pennsylvania’s Justice Reinvestment Initiative working group could help drive down prison and jail populations, with estimated savings of more than $100 million over the next two years.
Some of the saved funds would be repurposed to cover new spending on expanded probation services that could continue to reduce recidivism and inmate populations.
The report calls for changes at both the state and county levels and took more than a year to develop. Proposed changes include studying ways to reduce pre-trial imprisonment and reforms in the handling of parole violations; standardizing county probation procedures and dedicating state funding to hire additional probation officers for counties; downward adjustment of state sentencing guidelines for low-level crimes; presumptive parole for certain inmates; and streamlining pathways into intermediate punishment programs.
In other news, the commissioners acknowledged a change of position for Vicki Flewellyn as a multi-function clerk, retroactive to Dec. 5. Flewellyn will split her week working three days in the public defender’s office and two days in the Galeton magisterial district judge office until further notice, with no additional pay.
The next commissioners meeting will be held immediately following a retirement board meeting set to begin at 11 a.m. Jan. 19 at the Gunzburger Building in Coudersport.
