First Posted: 4/16/2015
DURYEA — The planning process is finished. In the next few months, Duryea Borough residents will soon see progress in the borough’s new flood protection system.
Borough council informed residents on Tuesday that the flood protection project has been finalized on paper and is being sent out for bids in the coming weeks.
Solicitor Sam Falcone said all of the proper paperwork has been completed and he sent an email out to the state Department of General Services to put the project out for bid.
“I’m optimistic that you will see action in the next 30 days,” Falcone said. “They know the situation and are very anxious to do it. They money is already allocated and I expect action in the next 30 days. The paperwork is done, finally.”
The Lackawanna River runs through the heart of Duryea from Old Forge to where it spills into the Susquehanna River in Pittston.
Duryea Mayor Keith Moss said the updated dike will extend from the south side of the Stephenson Street bridge down past the Holy Rosary Cemetery. He said the dike will be constructed from vinyl pilings that extend upward from the ground where the current dyke is already sitting.
The money has been allocated by the state Department of Environmental Protection.
In September 2011, Tropical Storm Lee ravaged Duryea. According to a January 2012 Times Leader story, Duryea had 339 homes affected, 108 with basement damage and 192 with first-floor flooding. Three Duryea homes were listed as unsafe.
During that flood, the Susquehanna River crested at a record 42.66 feet, while the Lackawanna River also crested at a record level.
Moss’s hope is that the project will begin by the end of the summer.
In other business…
A motion was passed to have the borough engineer put the 5th Ward Paving Project out for bid. It was also passed that Foster Street be added to the project. The project already included Carroll, Church, Flynn, Hobart, Hope, Hollow, William, Willow Streets and South Alley.
Council approved We Pay Payroll, Scranton, to take over payroll processing services for the borough. After a 3-3 roll call, Moss was the deciding vote to approve the motion.
Council approved the purchase of signs regarding hours of operation at Community Park and Healey Playground with the condition of hours of the previous ordinance. An amnesty was also added that the recreation board’s movie nights would not fall under the hours of the park operation.
A regional compost fee of $2,500 was approved from the April 1 meeting.
A motion to move commercial recycling pickup to the opposite week was passed to improve accuracy of tonage for 904 Grant Street.
Council approved to make Major Lane a one-way street going from Main Street to Chittenden Street.
The council voted to donate $100 to the Greater Pittston Meals on Wheels.
