The $8.3 million plan to replace the closed Collins Street bridge, a two-way connection between Pottsville and Palo Alto, is on hold because $600,000 in required local support has not been secured, according to a PennDOT representative.
"Federal and state funding remains on the draft 2013 Transportation Improvement Program for this bridge project. If the locals come up with their match, PennDOT will remain positioned to support the project," Ronald J. Young Jr., district press officer for PennDOT's District 5, Allentown, said Friday.
If that local funding can't be secured, state Rep. Neal P. Goodman, D-123, said he's going to take steps to make sure the $5 million he and the late Sen. James J. Rhoades, R-29, secured for the project back in 2007 remains in Schuylkill County.
"The time has come where we, representatives from the City of Pottsville, the Borough of Palo Alto and the county commissioners, have to sit down and have a conversation," Goodman said Wednesday.
Schuylkill County Commissioners Frank J. Staudenmeier, George F. Halcovage Jr. and Gary J. Hess, Pottsville City Administrator Thomas A. Palamar, and John Deatrich Jr., president of Palo Alto borough council, said this week they're willing be part of such a meeting to discuss options.
"I think it's critical all of the parties sit down and talk this through. We have our share put aside," Staudenmeier, the commissioners chairman, said Friday.
"I think it would be a great step," Palamar said.
"I'm just hoping they roll up their sleeves and try to find a way to allocate that remaining $600,000. Every effort should be made to make that bridge a reality," Deatrich said.
The bridge is owned by the City of Pottsville. It's a 121-year-old, two-lane, open-deck, steel-grate bridge that connects Palo Alto's West Bacon Street to Mauch Chunk Street in Pottsville. It crosses the Schuylkill River, which is also the municipal boundary between Pottsville and Palo Alto, and the Reading, Blue Mountain and Northern Railroad.
The city closed it to vehicle traffic June 22, 2006, on the recommendation of STV Inc., Douglassville, which had been contracted by PennDOT to inspect the bridge. STV identified structural integrity issues.
Since then, Goodman and Rhoades were able to secure a $5 million state grant for the replacement of the bridge, and U.S. Rep. Tim Holden, D-17, was able to acquire a $3 million federal grant for the project, according to Goodman.
"This is the thing you have to remember: This is not a state bridge. It's a local bridge. So it's very difficult to get federal and state money for local bridges. We were able to do that," Goodman said.
While Goodman believes the local entities responsible for contributing to the project are the city, the borough and the county, Halcovavage and Hess believe the Reading and Northern Railroad Co., Port Clinton, is the fourth.
Railroad Chairman/CEO Andy M. Muller, Jr. and Railroad President Wayne A. Michel were out of the office Friday and unavailable for comment, according to a railroad spokeswoman.
Goodman believes the municipal entities involved are financially "strapped."
"They're struggling to maintain the infrastructure they currently have," Goodman said.
In December, Palo Alto approved its 2012 budget of $321,906 without raising taxes and the Schuylkill County commissioners approved the county's 2012 general fund budget of $10,632,290 without raising taxes.
Meanwhile, Pottsville city council approved a 0.6-mill tax increase in December to pass its 2012 budget of $8,058,299.
"I believe every municipality is in the same situation. Nobody has extra money, that's for sure," Deatrich said.
Deatrich said he'd like to know if there's a formula stating how much each of the municipal entities involved are required to contribute.
"That might be a problem. Where does it start without it getting ugly? All the communities involved have to sit down and they have to agree on a number," Deatrich said.
Since Halcovage and Hess believe the railroad should share part of the financial burden, they say it should be split evenly four ways.
To that end, the county has put aside about $150,000 in state liquid fuel funds for the bridge project, a quarter of the $600,000.
Goodman said he hopes the local match can be secured.
"We can't secure any more state or federal money. And I cannot, in good conscience, hold up $5 million for a project that was secured back in 2007. Sooner or later, PennDOT's going to say, 'Guys, we can't tie this money up,' " Goodman said.
So far, some of the state funding secured for the project has been used for preliminary engineering work, Goodman said.
"But we're not going to move any further because it doesn't make any sense to do all of the engineering work if the project isn't completely funded," Goodman said.