LOWER POTTSGROVE PA – Details, details, details.

East High Street bridge.

The ability for the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) to temporarily use land owned by Lower Pottsgrove (PA) Township during reconstruction of the East High Street bridge over Sanatoga Creek was officially granted by the township Board of Commissioners last night (Monday, July 6, 2009). The action, however, really was just a paperwork ratification of an earlier board approval.

Commissioners last month (June 18, 2009) agreed to accept $500 from PennDOT in payment for its use of a former township pumping station property as a work staging area when the department starts next year to refurbish the bridge. The temporary assignment gives PennDOT access to the parcel for as long as rebuilding takes.

But, as with so many things governmental, there are “I”s to be dotted and “T”s to be crossed. Township Manager Rodney Hawthorne pleaded mea culpa, saying he’d forgotten to include another resolution as part of last month’s approval.

This one recognized PennDOT’s $500 offer was a purchase of the easement in lieu of condemnation. That’s a fancy way of saying that – had it wanted to – PennDOT could have taken the easement without township consent, but decided instead to pay for the privilege. The department’s kind-and-gentle nature is now a matter of public record; board approval was unanimous.

Also Monday:

• Commissioners were asked by representatives of Sunnybrook Ballroom about the timing for release of funds approved by Montgomery County for improvements to be made at the ballroom. The board said it expects to be able to transfer money to Sunnybrook next month.
• Residents of Wooded Way off Kepler Road asked when they might expect their road to be re-paved. Not too soon, Hawthorne replied bluntly, because re-paving money is limited. The board agreed to have the road examined and put on its resurfacing wish list.
• The board decided to notify a First Avenue resident, and the attorney who represents him, that fixing drainage problems on his property are his responsibility and not that of the township.
• Given  implementation of a new state law that licenses home improvement contractors, board members discussed the possibility of changing the way it identifies contractors within the township.

These and other items from the board’s first of two monthly meetings at the municipal building, 2199 Buchert Rd., will be covered in greater detail by The Post later this week.

Related (to the East High Street bridge):

• PennDOT Set For Meeting On Bridge Work
• Missing Walks Latest Bridge Complaint
• Will Road Be Closed When School Re-Opens?
• State Says No To Keeping Bridge Open
• Township Looks To Pols For Bridge Help
• Bridge Closing Threatens Businesses, Board Says
• Sanatoga Bridge Closing This Spring
• Bridge Repairs Next Year

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