MAR LIN - The Norwegian Township supervisors gave approval to apply for a $100,000 grant to beautify the Maple Avenue Long Dam and Recreation Complex.
The dam is owned by the township and is overgrown with lily pads and other plants.
Supervisor Robert Kirwan said the township wants to clean the area to "make it an ice rink in the winter time" and for fishing in the summer.
The supervisors approved the resolution to apply for the Greenways, Trails and Recreation Program Grant from the Commonwealth Financing Authority. Money from the program comes from the Marcellus Legacy Fund.
Donald Cuff, engineer for the township, will submit the grant application, Kirwan said.
The cost to clean out the lily pads is estimated at $40,000, he said. The township would have to contribute $15,000.
"It's something that we have been trying to get for the last three, four years but we couldn't get any money together," Kirwan said.
He did not know when the township might receive word on if they received the funding.
"If we get the money, we can start this thing early next spring," Kirwan said.
Supervisor Leo Grace did not attend the meeting.
In other business, the supervisors approved a resolution to permit the Minersville Sewer Authority to inspect and enforce the grease trap program within the areas of the township that discharge to the authority treatment plant. There is no cost to the township.
All details have not been revealed, but it looks like the possibility of a red light at routes 901 and 209 is closer to reality.
"A light is looking very promising," Kirwan said.
Supervisor Stanley Petchulis said he spoke with a representative from the office of Sen. David Argall, R-29, about the red light June 16.
"The design of the highway is to start Oct. 1, 2014, approval sometime in 2015, construction to start in 2016 at (the) Turkey Hill 209/901 intersection," Petchulis said he was told by the representative.
The effort to get a red light at the intersection has been something supervisors have been unsuccessfully trying to get for years.
Kirwan said in February, a state legislator told him the red light is eligible for state funding from the state Transportation Program, a plan that specifies what infrastructure gets funding.
In May 2013, township officials met at the intersection with state representatives, Minersville borough officials and state Department of Transportation employees about the issue.
Dennis Toomey, PennDOT traffic and operations engineer, District 5, said previously that the cost for the light would be about $250,000 and design work might be $75,000 to $100,000.
Usually, the township receives about two to three calls a month inquiring about the light at the intersection, Kirwan said.