Lackawanna County will seek $11 million in state grants to help pay for a trio of projects, including $8 million on behalf of the University of Scranton for improvements to the South Side Sports Complex.
The commissioners agreed Wednesday to file the grant applications through the state Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program.
In addition to the $8 million for the university, the county is applying for $500,000 on behalf of the North Pocono Public Library project and for $2.5 million for work at the county Administration Building.
Under RACP guidelines, the county may sponsor applications for potential recipients such as the university and the library that are not eligible to seek the grants on their own.
University of Scranton spokesman Stan Zygmunt said the school is still in the planning process for development of the South Side complex, which it acquired from the city in 2006.
"I have no other details I can share at this time," he said.
The university previously said it planned to develop NCAA-regulation fields for soccer, baseball and softball on the 11-acre site.
Director Susan Jeffery told the commissioners this will be the North Pocono library's final opportunity to try to secure a RACP grant for the $3.2 million project. The new 8,400-square-foot building on Church Street in Moscow is nearing completion, she said.
The grant the county is seeking for the Administration Building on Adams Avenue would be used for renovations, including the reconfiguration of space within the six-story structure, Commissioner Corey O'Brien said.
On another matter, the commissioners ratified an agreement among the county Multi-Purpose Stadium Authority, the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders and Hemingway Development for overflow parking for PNC Field.
Under the agreement, the authority and the RailRiders will be permitted to use an unpaved, 1.5-acre lot at the rear of 330 Montage Mountain Road for fan parking. The property is owned by Hemingway.
Rob Crain, RailRiders president and general manager, said the lot was used for the team's season opener last Thursday. He anticipates it will be needed in the future only when there is a sellout or near-sellout crowd.
The commissioners also:
- Approved a three-year agreement with Pennsylvania Northeast Regional Railroad Authority and Northeast Transfer Co. Inc. for operation of excursions for the Electric City Trolley Museum. Northeast Transfer, which conducts the excursions, will receive $111,390 in base compensation the first year, with the amount increasing 1.5 percent each of the next two years.
- Approved county Treatment Court's applications for a $310,000 restrictive intermediate punishment grant and a $60,000 intermediate punishment grant.
- Recognized the work of the Children's Advocacy Center of Northeastern Pennsylvania in proclaiming April as "Child Abuse Prevention Month" in the county.
- Presented Kathleen Walsh of Parents Loving Children Through Autism Foundation with a "Good Works in Lackawanna County" certificate of recognition.
Contact the writer: dsingleton@timesshamrock.com