MORGANTOWN – A new pedestrian bridge, a wall restoration along Richwood Avenue, and the first three neighborhood projects to receive funding through the Morgantown MOSAIC initiative have each received the official go-ahead from Morgantown City Council.
Earlier this week, the body approved a $412,398.82 base bid from Green River Group for the placement of a pedestrian bridge spanning Deckers Creek in lower Greenmont, next to the Kona Ice shop at the convergence of Brockway and Pennsylvania avenues.
The project site is within the right of way of a former vehicular bridge that connected Brockway Avenue (formerly Deckers Creek Road) to Valley Crossing.
The city is financing the project using $201,309 in Community Development Block Grant funds, plus $211,089.82 in Congressionally Directed Spending dedicated to development in lower Greenmont.
Initially, the city said it intended to utilize a 100-foot, pre-engineered fiber reinforced polymer test bridge offered as a donation by WVU. However, it’s since been determined that the test bridge is not appropriate for the site, forcing a transition to the construction of a new steel bridge and altering the cost of the project.
Final completion of the bridge is anticipated within 160 days following execution of the contract.
On Richwood Avenue, the city is allocating $152,500 to address a block wall constructed decades ago to cover old trolley car garages originally built in the 1930s.
Parotta Paving was selected to do the work as the lowest of five bidders.
The Morgantown Utility Board is covering $17,500 of the project in order to address the replacement of sewer lines in the area while the contractor is on site.
According to information provided by the city, the replacement wall will be slightly lower, approximately six feet, and designed to reflect the historic character of the original cut stone.
The city’s portion of the work will be funded through the use of $148,000 currently available in the Wiley Spruce Brockway tax increment financing account.
That TIF district will be officially eliminated June 30, allowing for the July 1 start of the new 73-acre East End Village TIF in support of the East End Village development project.
The wall project must be completed and all invoices paid by the June 30 termination of the district.
Lastly, working through the Neighborhood Coordinating Council, the city has selected the first three neighborhood projects that will receive grant support through the newly created Morgantown MOSAIC initiative.
The program was initiated to increase civic pride by providing 50% matching grants for small to medium-sized projects spearheaded by the city’s various neighborhoods.
“I think it’s certainly a highlight,” City Manager Jamie Miller said of the initiative. “I like to say you can’t govern pride or force pride into the community, but projects like these sure give us an opportunity for the community to show that pride.”
Those projects, and grant awards, are:
Woodburn Neighborhood Gateway Landscaping Project – $500 – The project will support the creation and maintenance of a garden framing the neighborhood entrance sign at the intersection of Richwood and Monongalia avenues.
Greenmont Neighborhood Sign Project – $2,000 – The project will support the creation and placement of a neighborhood sign to be designed by local artists and residents and located at the Arch Street island.
Oak Grove Cemetery Restoration Project (1st Ward) – $2,000 – The project will aid ongoing efforts to restore many of the large and historic monuments that have deteriorated or been damaged over time.
