Cambria County commissioners award $3M+ in project funding

Katie Smolen, The Tribune-Democrat, Johnstown, Pa.
·2 min read

Sep. 9—EBENSBURG, Pa. — Several Cambria County organizations and municipalities will receive some financial help from the county to complete projects.

The Cambria County commissioners on Thursday approved the allotment of over $3.2 million to complete a variety of projects, from stormwater improvements to trails to a new fire station out of the county's American Rescue Plan (ARP) funds.

Projects that were awarded funds include:

—Cambria County Library System: building improvements, $1,250,000

—Brownstown Borough: stormwater management, $30,175

—Greater Johnstown Water Authority: Westmont Borough waterline relocation, $50,000

—Southmont Borough: Cheney Run stream project, $64,254

—National Park Service: 9/11 trail, $50,000

—Bottle Works: Pavilion/Tulip Building renovations, $250,000

—Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art: building improvements, $35,000

—United Way of the Laurel Highlands: PA 211 system, $18,000

—Hope Fire Company: new fire station, $300,000

—The Arts Futures Fund: arts and cultural grant, $100,000

—Northern Cambria Community Development Corp.: firefighters' memorial trail, $850,000

—South Fork Historical Society: "Through Town and Time" project, $65,000

—Berwind Wayside Festival Park: kitchens and pavilion project, $12,000

—Johnstown Area Heritage Association: Johnstown Flood Museum project, $125,000

—Portage Municipal Authority: Bens Creek impoundment project, $26,910

—Cambria County Industrial Development Authority: operational support, $75,000

The approval did not come without the initial disagreement of Commissioner Scott Hunt, who first put a motion on the table to amend the list to remove the $850,000 award for Northern Cambria Community Development Corp. for the firefighters' memorial trail project.

"This was a tough one for me, and my thought on it comes back to what we said when we weren't sure how we wanted to spend the money. We didn't want to do people's entire projects. We wanted to kind of help them cross the finish line," Hunt said, adding that he supported funding the project, just not in full.

President Commissioner Thomas Chernisky said the trail, which would be near the county fire school, would not be a one-time giveaway, but would create a legacy that could continue to be used.