SMETHPORT — McKean County Commissioners on Tuesday approved the recommendations of the county planning commission for Act 13 funding greenways and at-risk bridges.
All three of the greenways applications that were submitted were recommended for allocations from the available $34,606, said county planning director Jeremy Morey, who attended the meeting via phone.
They are Hamlin Township baseball field drainage project, $2,582; Tuna Valley Trail Association Marilla landing trailhead construction, $6,024; and Kinzua Valley Trail Association for the Kinzua Valley Trail extension, $26,000.
According to the planning commission members’ evaluations of the at-risk bridge applications, the top three will share the $57,259 available from Act 13, the Marcellus Legacy Fund that provides for the distribution of unconventional gas well impact fees to counties, municipalities and state agencies.
These are the Dewey Avenue Bridge Rehabilitation project in Hamlin Township, $10,470; Sherwood Hollow culvert replacement project in Liberty Township, $19,616; and the Elm Street construction project in Bradford City, $27,173.
“We received seven applications seeking $390,185 in funding for the bridges,” Morey noted.
In other business, commissioners approved a six-year lease agreement with Costa’s Supermarket Inc. for office space occupied by Magisterial District Judge William Todd at 625 E. Water St. in Smethport. The monthly rent will be $1,700 for the first three years and $1,750 for the final three years, which will include borough water service.
Commission Chairman Thomas Kreiner reported that new county hirings are Tarah Rounsville, caseworker at Children and Youth Services, and Shawn Hutchings, part-time correctional officer at the jail.
In a report to the commissioners, Tracy Carl, director of emergency services, has been commended for being the first 911 emergency center in Pennsylvania to have their quality assurance and quality improvement program certified by the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency, one of only seven in the state to have been certified under PEMAs new minimum requirements.
“Even before the evaluation, we met or exceeded the state’s minimum requirements,” Carl said. “We take pride in all our training programs.”
In a letter from PEMA’s 9-1-1 Office, Deputy Director Jeffrey Boyle wrote, “We believe this to be the most comprehensive set of minimum requirements for 911 training in the country.”
Commissioner Carol Duffy introduced Karen Abbott, Early Intervention program director; Cindy Wright, lead service coordinator, IU9; Jodi Holmberg, Early Intervention technical assistant, Pennsylvania Department of Education; and Bob Esch, who spoke about Early Intervention and the National Association of Counties Research Foundation, which is launching the Counties for Kids website and public awareness campaign to promote the key role counties play in early childhood development.
Recently, NACoRF invited the county to participate in a series of activities to celebrate the launch and an opportunity to highlight the important work being done in McKean County.
These events include joining the #CountiesForKids social media day today, writing a letter to the editor and sharing the group’s published piece nationally through NACoRF, as well as the opportunity for a virtual Peer Learning Network to share childcare strategies.
“Supporting early learning is not new to McKean County,” Duffy said, referring to a 2012 symposium that was held to develop plans to strengthen early childhood learning in the county.
Five years later, Duffy attended the McKean County Early Childhood Symposium when the fifth year of collaboration and achievements of the county’s early learning programs were highlighted
“As NACoRF launches their webpage, this is an opportunity for us in McKean County to tell our story about what is happening, share resources, highlight the services available and demonstrate the commitment to build a strong foundation and continue to invest in our children,” Duffy said.
The Early Intervention Program, Abbott said, uses a collaboration of service providers, parents and specialists in childhood learning to provide support and services for children from birth to 5 years old and are experiencing developmental delays or disabilities.
Developmental delays can include vision, hearing, communication, social, adaptive and emotional.
Wright commented on the EI program that includes the age group birth through age 3, a state-mandated service that is provided free through the counties. This office is in Kane.
“This is a voluntary program, and the families decide the amount of services a child receives,” Wright said.
Wright noted the importance of the Individual Family Service Plan, which outlines the services and treatments eligible children will receive.
Holmberg pointed to the research that shows the importance of the early years on children’s brain development and how this can affect learning.
Esch referred to the local report printed every five years that shows the progress of early childhood education and the broad public support it receives from various agencies.
Kreiner reported that Bradford Regional Medical Center can answer COVID-19 questions by calling 814-362-9836, which is a voicemail only line with extremely high call volume. The quickest way to contact BRMC about COVID-19 is to use email at covidvaccine@brmc.com.
