Two municipalities are looking to secure state funding for separate projects that would expand the Centre Region’s bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure.
College Township is hoping to construct a shared-use path connecting Puddintown Road to Hastings Road on the Penn State campus. At its meeting last Thursday, council authorized applying for a PennDOT Multimodal Transportation Fund grant to cover a portion of the projected $2.77 million cost.
State College, meanwhile, aims to build a shared-use path on Easterly and Westerly parkways and from Blue Course Drive to Whitehall Road. The borough has applied for a PennDOT Transportation Alternatives Set-Aside and will also submit an application to the Multimodal Transportation Fund program for the $1.2 million project. Douglas Shontz, assistant to the borough manager, said the hope is that one of the two will be awarded.
College Township’s proposed “path to campus” would run mostly adjacent to East College Avenue before connecting to the existing path at Hastings Road near University Drive.
“The Centre Region has been proactive in the planning and development its bicycle and pedestrian network,” Council President Eric Bernier wrote in a letter to PennDOT accompanying the application. “The East College Avenue Shared Use Path alignment was identified as a crucial missing link in College Township’s Sidewalk Master Plan, Centre Region Bike Plan and Penn State’s Bicycle Master Plan. This new path will further enhance the larger network and provide the public with a new transportation option.”
In the summer, the township engaged Keller Engineering to prepare an opinion of probable cost. PennDOT Multimodal funds will cover up to 70% of a project cost on a reimbursement basis with the municipality providing a 30% local match.
That means College Township would be responsible for $832,000 of the project.
“It’s a sobering number,” Councilman Paul Takac said during an overview of the projected cost earlier in October. “It’s a lot higher than we thought it would be, if I recall correctly.”
Takac and his fellow council members, however, unanimously agreed the path is a priority for the township.
“I’m very much in support of this,” Takac said. “I think that our constituents have spoken loud and clear that they would favor this as well.”
The project would likely require additional borrowing to complete, but options may be available to drive down the township’s cost, township Manager Adam Brumbaugh said.
“There may be some opportunities for us to gain some additional participation from various players or interested parties that may be so inclined,” Brumbaugh said.
Developer Aspen Heights Partners agreed to contribute at least $75,000 as a condition of its land development plan for Aspen East Penn, an apartment complex under construction at the former Hilltop Mobile Home Park site.
The path will be partially in State College, and both the borough and university have agreed to grant easements. The township may be able to reach agreements with one or both to contribute to the cost of the project, as both have identified it as a transportation priority, Brumbaugh said.
Mike Bloom, management analyst, said it would likely be a year before PennDOT makes grant announcements and the project could begin to move forward. The township would then have three years to complete the path.
“Recognizing also, a project of this scope, you’re probably going across multiple budget years. That’s another way to lessen the impact to some degree,” Bloom said.
“I would support this at the end of the day because it is something that we need, so however we have to find the monies up front, let’s do it,” Councilman Anthony Fragola said.
State College’s proposed project would construct a new shared-use path that “will expand our bicycle and pedestrian network and result in improved access to public schools, public parks, residential neighborhoods, commercial enterprises and our walkable downtown,” Jasmine Fields, sustainability program officer, told the borough’s Transportation Commission on Oct. 12.
The project is comprised of two sections. The first is along Easterly and Westerly parkways between University Drive and O’Bryan Lane.
The second section connects the Orchard Park greenway along Blue Course Drive to Whitehall Road, near the entrance to The Yards at Old State.
“That would in the future connect residential neighborhoods from Orchard Park to the Musser Gap bikeway as well as the Whitehall Regional Park which is set to be constructed in the future,” Fields said.
Centre County commissioners on Tuesday approved letters of support for both the College Township and State College projects.
“I think it’s especially appropriate right now… just on Sunday we had another serious injury of a cyclist on North Atherton,” Commissioner Mark Higgins said. “I think both of these suggestions are tremendous. I know there’s a lot of excitement for the ability to go from the current bike path along the bypass to just safely pop in to campus. It’s right on my commuting route. I see a lot of cyclists but also a lot of pedestrians walking along the shoulder of College Avenue. People go 50, 55 miles an hour on that road and you’ve got pedestrians walking feet away from them. It’s pretty dangerous.
“I know lots of people use Easterly and Westerly Parkway as commuting routes to eventually take one of the other bike paths toward campus. Wonderful to see that. I’m very supportive of this.”
