Lewisburg Council approves $704,000 contractor for Piers Art Project

Justin Strawser, The Daily Item, Sunbury, Pa.
·2 min read

Mar. 19—LEWISBURG — The Lewisburg Borough Council approved a contractor for the Piers Art Project for more than $700,000.

At Tuesday night's public meeting, council members awarded the Piers Art Project to Dave Gutelius Excavating Inc, of Mifflinburg, in the amount of $704,659, contingent upon full execution of an easement agreement with the Lewisburg and Buffalo Creek Railroad Corporation. The park is located at 539 Cherry Alley, Lewisburg.

"The project is a little over budget than what we budgeted for, but we are already talking with the contractor about a change order," said borough Manager William Lowthert. "This was discussed with the (Planning and Public Works) committee. The committee seemed happy with the direction it's going."

The $20,000 change order will keep the current lighting. It will likely be on the agenda for next month's public meeting, said council members.

However, Lowthert said, there would also be a slight increase in cost to the railroad crossing at approximately $10,000. Overall, the project may be approximately $8,000 over budget in the end.

The goal is to redesign the park into a more comfortable and usable space. The Piers Art Park area was a coal yard with sheds, office, and scale house with one trestle connecting the Pennsylvania Railroad (the east/west railroad, now the Buffalo Valley Rail Trail) and one trestle connecting the Reading Railroad (the north/south railroad), according to Lewisburg Downtown Partnership.

The existing gravel lot will be revised and made into 30 parking spaces with solar lighting. Paved sidewalks will connect to the Buffalo Valley Rail Trail. The project includes handicap parking improvements, flood plain restoration, stormwater work and small trails.

The project is being funded through the borough, state Department of Conversation and Natural Resources, Lewisburg Neighborhoods, Lewisburg Downtown Partnership, Citizen's Electric, the CommUnity Center and the 1994 Charles B. Degenstein Foundation. Union County also allocated Lewisburg a total of $262,870 in American Rescue Plan Act funds toward the project.

In other business, the council members approved a resolution to apply for a grant through the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources for the Wolfe Field Athletic Complex Master Site Development Plan. The application is due by April 3. The development plan will determine the future of Wolfe Field as a facility and how to improve it.

The park is located near the recycling center on Hufnagle Boulevard off St. Anthony Street.