Welcome to Frackville sign, area discussed at council meeting
KAYLEE LINDENMUTH / SHENANDOAH SENTINEL - A traffic island where the Welcome to Frackville sign once stood is seen on Oct. 16, 2023.
FRACKVILLE – Discussions are underway regarding the fate of the Welcome to Frackville sign at the south end of town and the island where it once stood.
Matt McCormick, a borough resident, asked council at Wednesday’s regular meeting if there were any plans to deal with brush to improve the sightlines for vehicles turning off Altamont Boulevard onto Route 61.
The sign has been gone for awhile and the island where it stood is in West Mahanoy Township.
Ron Jordan, council president, said they are discussing the matter with the township.
“There’s some back-and-forth about who owns it, who should be responsible for it,” Jordan said.
Jordan said the island is township property, but the borough was involved in coordinating with PennDOT for its installation, and there are concerns over liability for volunteers working on maintaining the area.
“Once we get that hashed out, who will take care of it, then it’ll be taken care of,” Jordan said.
Jordan didn’t have a timeline for when anything might happen.
“I do know this much, eventually, down the road, if there’s a red light put there, that all might change anyway,” Jordan said.
For larger vehicles, the brush makes it difficult to see traffic on Route 61, McCormick said.
Council also said the sign will be replaced, whether at the island or elsewhere.
Jordan also said the priority is to handle the situation in the proper manner.
“We want to do the right thing to make sure it’s cut back, but the other thing is how far back, how much down, without killing it,” Jordan said. “It’s hard to believe, but there’s a lot to do with this, to prune trees the proper way and the right time of the year.”
In other business, council approved:
- multiple change orders related to the FEMA Spruce Street project;
- the purchase of seven desks for the police department, conditional on if they are eligible for purchase through COSTARS;
- the purchase of several rifles, handguns, ammo, and bodycams using a grant received by the police department;
- the cancellation of an agreement with Realty World to sell property on North Lehigh;
- the approval of the 2024 police and non-uniformed MMOs.
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