News – Page 42 – SEDA Council of Governments

High-speed internet expands in Mifflin, Perry counties

Posted on October 21, 2020 by DNS Admin

Mifflin and Perry counties are expanding high-speed internet access to hundreds of customers, expanding on SEDA-Council of Governments’ (SEDA-COG) broadband project with Juniata County.

Centre WISP will provide high-speed internet to 210 residents and five businesses in the River Road region south of McVeytown in Mifflin County and to 100 residents and three businesses in the Horse Valley Road area in west Perry County. Centre WISP has begun providing service to Juniata County residents and businesses within 8 miles of the Black Log tower near the Village of Honey Grove in Reeds Gap and plans to expand to more of the county by year’s end.

Service will be available to portions of the Mifflin County pilot area by November. Centre WISP expects the remainder of the Mifflin County pilot area, and the Perry county pilot area, to begin receiving service in the next few months.

The counties worked with SEDA-COG to secure state and federal funds to incentivize the internet expansion project and to select Centre WISP.

Mifflin County Commissioner Robert P. Postal gave the background of the county’s involvement.

“Mifflin County has been working on improved internet connectivity since the formation of the Mifflin County Internet Advisory Committee in 2016. Last year, the Committee sponsored, with funds from the Commissioners, a broadband study that identified the River Road neighborhood as a priority for attention,” Postal said. “By partnering with SEDA-COG and the Appalachian Regional Commission, funds to finance broadband development in this area is a great win for the businesses and households.”

Perry County Commissioner Brenda Watson said this is a tremendous boon for the county.

“We understand how vital high-speed internet is, especially with more people than ever working remotely because of the pandemic. We are committed to narrowing the digital divide and enhancing our county’s residents’ and businesses’ competitive edge,” Watson said.

SEDA-COG will provide Centre WISP low-interest revolving loans from a state Keystone Communities Program grant, totaling $95,000 per county served. A U.S. Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) grant gives $47,000 per county served. Centre WISP will receive a total of $426,000 from the loan and grant funds for servicing the three counties.

The funds incentivized Centre WISP to provide internet service where it wasn’t financially feasible to reach on their own, helping to bridge the last-mile funding gap.

SEDA-COG Assistant Executive Director Mike Fisher thanked Sens. Jake Corman and John DiSanto and Reps. John Hershey, Kerry Benninghoff, Rich Irvin, and Mark Keller for helping to secure the grants. He also recognized the counties and their staff for driving the project.

“We could not have done this three-county broadband project without our legislators and the leadership of our counties,” Fisher said. “We are thrilled that this project is meeting such a crucial need across several counties. We are here to fill the gaps and create public-private partnerships to meet needs that otherwise would not exist.”

Customers can choose from four packages providing speeds up to 40 megabits per second, all with no data caps. Interested customers should visit the website at www.centrewisp.com and pick their county to see pricing and speeds, and to sign up. Centre WISP will not raise their prices for at least two years.

Dave Gibbons, Centre WISP owner, thanked the project partners and explained the impacts of the expansion.

“We are excited to be working alongside SEDA-COG and Mifflin and Perry counties. These public-private partnerships provide much-needed broadband internet access in locations that presently lack the kind of connectivity modern life demands. This funding phase will allow Centre WISP to expand our coverage all the way from Centre County to Perry County, servicing each valley in between. The expansion puts thousands of customers into our service footprint, and we’re looking forward to providing fast and reliable internet access from these new towers.”

SEDA-COG enhances the quality of life and economic advantage for residents and businesses in 11 central Pennsylvania counties through its vital partnerships and initiatives. SEDA-COG also is an advocate for the interests of its communities at the state and federal levels. For more information, visit www.seda-cog.org.

SEDA-COG welcomes new staff

Posted on October 20, 2020 by DNS Admin

SEDA-Council of Governments (SEDA-COG) welcomed new staff in October.

Denise Feese joined SEDA-COG’s Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) as a program analyst on Oct. 5. She has experience in administrative, customer service, sales, marketing, accounting, purchasing, inventory control, and management.

Feese was a buyer at Metso in Danville from 2008 to 2016 and worked for Fabtex, Cargill, and GAF since, among other earlier positions. She attends Misericordia University in Dallas, Pa. for Business Management, and earned her Associate in Science (AS) in Business Management from Luzerne County Community College in Nanticoke.

As a community and economic development agency, SEDA-COG enhances the quality of life and economic advantage for residents and businesses in 11 central Pennsylvania counties through its vital partnerships and initiatives. SEDA-COG also is an advocate for the interests of its communities at the state and federal levels. For more information, visit www.seda-cog.org.

Lycoming County awards COVID relief funds to businesses

Posted on October 20, 2020 by DNS Admin

The Lycoming County commissioners voted Tuesday to award up to $1.5 million of their COVID relief funds to 165 businesses in the county.

The county had received a $10.2 million COVID-19 County Relief Block Grant (CRBG) from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Securities Act (CARES Act), through the state Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED).

County Commissioner Scott Metzger said that while they had originally dedicated $1 million to the small business recovery effort, they decided to increase it up to $1.5 million.

“Small businesses are the backbone of our county. We are dedicated to helping them and others recover from the severest impacts of the pandemic,” Metzger said.

Businesses could apply from Aug. 31 through Sept. 18 to receive part of the CRBG grant the county received to assist them with COVID-19 expenses.

To receive their full allocated grant amounts, businesses must provide documentation to show they actually incurred those COVID-related expenses. Checks to the businesses will be issued when the county receives that paperwork.

The full list of businesses that will receive grants can be viewed here.

Grants were available for businesses with annual revenues prior to March 1, 2020 of $3 million or less with 100 or fewer full-time employees.

Funds can be used for eligible costs from March 1 to Dec. 30, 2020 including operating costs, rent, mortgage interest, utility payments, eligible capital expenses, COVID-19 mitigation plans, food loss, outdoor dining equipment, and more. Invoiced documentation is required.

The Williamsport/Lycoming Chamber of Commerce facilitated the process by receiving the grant applications, and the grant review committee included Nancy Eischeid, Jason Fink, John Houser, Matt McDermott, Kristen Moyer, Joe Reighard, and Shannon Rossman.

SEDA-Council of Governments (SEDA-COG) is assisting the county by providing professional expertise and grant administrative services, as well as activity development and management to ensure accuracy and adherence with federal and state regulations.

As a community and economic development agency, SEDA-COG enhances the quality of life and economic advantage for residents and businesses in 11 central Pennsylvania counties through its vital partnerships and initiatives. SEDA-COG also is an advocate for the interests of its communities at the state and federal levels. For more information, visit www.seda-cog.org.

Shamokin City Council adopts revitalization plan

Posted on October 19, 2020 by DNS Admin

Shamokin City Council voted unanimously to adopt the Shamokin Area Implementation Plan for Economic Revitalization on Oct. 12.

The plan, also known as the GoShamokin! Plan, responds to Shamokin’s community-driven desire to proactively reinvent itself, and was created in partnership with the city and SEDA-Council of Governments (SEDA-COG).

Shamokin Mayor John Brown said the plan is central to the city moving into revitalization and thanked the parties involved.

“On behalf of the city, we are so appreciative to the collaborative effort of SEDA-COG, especially their Revitalization Coordinator Betsy Kramer, and the business community and SABER for putting together a plan to move Shamokin into a new era of revitalization,” Brown said.

After extensive community research, the plan focuses on the core of downtown, including the blocks of Independence Street between Market and Shamokin streets. At the center of the plan is creating successful places in the city as the building blocks of revitalizing the city. It lists ways to stimulate building rehabilitation and business expansion through public-private partnerships and resources.

The plan states this approach “fosters the greatest potential for creating jobs, reducing crime, enhancing community pride, and elevating the overall quality of life for Shamokin’s residents.”

Following are the plan’s key recommendations:

Foster public-private partnerships to make bricks-and-mortar redevelopment and business expansion happen;
Make the city development-ready through sound policies and promotion;
Perform a makeover of Independence Street focused on complete street improvements that greatly enhance the pedestrian-oriented and aesthetic appeal of the city’s Main Street;
Explore interim and pop-up solutions to address blight and vacancy downtown;
Create multi-purpose public spaces downtown as civic amenities and economic development venue;
Advance critical infrastructure improvements.

The plan also includes next steps.

Council’s plan adoption means they agree that a strategic approach to revitalization will best serve the community. Council will need to approve the plan’s individual steps, such as for grant applications. The plan is a living document that will evolve and change as needed, along with funding strategies.

In 2019, SEDA-COG created a partnership with Shamokin and SABER to guide the city into a revitalization revolution.

Betsy Kramer, SEDA-COG revitalization coordinator, was the point of contact for the plan and created the Request for Proposals. After receiving six proposals and conducting three interviews, Stromberg Garrigan & Associates (SGA) was the winning consultant and created the plan. Conducting the interviews were Kathy Vetovich, president of Shamokin Area Businesses for Economic Revitalization (SABER); Kathy Jeremiah, who was executive director of Faith Alliance for Revitalization (FAR) at the time; and Christine Jacoby, district constituent outreach specialist to state Rep. Kurt Masser.

“This is an exciting time for the city with momentum building toward Shamokin’s revitalization revolution. Mayor John Brown, city council, Shamokin businesses, and all our partners have incredible vision for making Shamokin the best it can be. We are honored to guide that momentum into one concerted effort,” Kramer said.

Vetovich said SEDA-COG’s efforts are vital to coordinating Shamokin’s roadmap for success.

“Before SEDA-COG got involved in Shamokin, we were all over the board. We didn’t know how to pull it off, how to get the resources we need to truly revitalize Shamokin. The support SEDA-COG has offered has been game changing,” Vetovich said.

To view the plan, visit www.goshamokin.com.

As a community and economic development agency, SEDA-COG enhances the quality of life and economic advantage for residents and businesses in 11 central Pennsylvania counties through its vital partnerships and initiatives. SEDA-COG also is an advocate for the interests of its communities at the state and federal levels. For more information, visit www.seda-cog.org.