Thu. Mar 28th, 2024

Tyrone Borough Council is scheduled to meet Monday with the municipality’s 2005 budget one of many items to be considered on the council’s meeting agenda.
The Borough is also expected to ask council to reprogram $10,000 in Fiscal Year 2003 CDBG (Community Development Block Grant) funds which had previously been set aside for swimming pool improvements. The borough held a public hearing last month on the issue as required and now council is expected to vote on the reprogramming of the funds for the purpose of helping to demolish and clear spot blight properties in the borough. Finance director Phyllis Garhart explained earlier this week that if approved by council the funds could be used for the demolition and clearance of a condemned private property on Washington Avenue.
Garhart also said if another way is found to take care of the Washington Avenue property such as the current owner or a potential new owner clearing it at their own cost, the borough then could set the money aside to use for other condemned properties.
Earlier this week, Mayor Patricia Stoner clarified the $10,000 CDBG money through the state’s Department of Community and Economic Development is not money that would be used in the borough’s effort to acquire and demolish properties in the 900 block of Pennsylvania Avenue.
She explained that $650,000 in money the borough has requested through DCED for the purpose of acquiring the Pennsylvania Avenue properties is not CDBG-related. That request was made for the prevention and elimination of blight under the Housing and Redevelopment Assistance law.
Stoner also explained if the borough did receive the funding and could acquire the properties, additional money would still need to be obtained to demolish and clear the properties. She said Altoona Blair County Development Corporation is assisting the borough in obtaining additional funding.
ABCD executive vice president Pat Miller has said the goal is to make the area “shovel ready” for an unnamed developer to build a hotel property in downtown Tyrone.
As for the 2005 budget, the proposed version has been available for public inspection for the last several days. The proposed budget council will consider for final adoption Monday night contains no increase for taxpayers. The real estate tax assessment will remain at 29 mills.
The highlights include: a total budget of $7,687,400 which breaks down to $3,075,000 for the general fund; $2,647,000 for the sewer fund; $1,808,000 for the water fund; $144,000 in the highway fund and $13,400 for the capital expenditure fund.
The budget includes a compensation of $50,000 for the borough manager’s position. The borough has been without a manager since Nathan George was fired in June. There has been no indication as to when the borough plans on filling the position.
Other compensation issues including wage increases for both union and non-union employees are to be addressed by council on Monday.
Borough secretary Kim Murray confirmed the Tyrone Borough Authority is scheduled to meet on Tuesday at 4 p.m. in a public meeting for the purpose of setting water and sewer rates.
An agenda released to The Daily Herald shows council will be addressing some change in its own ranks. The resignation of council member J.R. Watson is to be considered by the body. Council will also consider the resignation of a Tyrone Borough Authority member, Vance Clark and an appointment of a new member to the authority.

By Rick