Ann Rejrat
LNP, Lancaster, Pa.
(TNS)

Feb. 25—The Dauphin County Commissioners have awarded over $8.3 million to 151 programs and projects, with money available through gaming dollars.

The funds are available through Hollywood Casino in Grantville’s community revenue-sharing program. The Pennsylvania Race Horse Development and Gaming Act mandated that some of the revenue from casinos would go to host counties when gambling was legalized in the state. The money is to go to projects of public interest in the host county according to the bill.

The funds will be distributed to a mixture of emergency services, affordable housing projects, food bank and shelter resources, youth and veterans programs and services, and other school and community-based improvement projects, the release said. The exact total of money that was rewarded is just over $8.375 million. The local share funds, by law, cannot be used for property taxes.

“The fruits of the local share program have been plentiful and continue to impact every corner of Dauphin County,” said Mike Pries, Dauphin County Commissioner Chair, in the release. “These transformative projects would otherwise have to be paid for with taxpayer dollars.”

Here is a complete list of projects awarded funding:

1. East Hanover Township ($517,000 annual road maintenance and repair; $50,000 fire company hose and nozzle project; $100,000 fire safety equipment; $18,000 temporary shelter supplies): $685,000

2. Derry Township ($123,500 Public Works Dept. F550 truck with plow and spreader; $47,000 Police Dept. interactive training simulator; $140,000 Hershey Volunteer Fire Company new fire engine; $9,500 Hershey History Center building enhancements and technology upgrades; $15,000 Hidden Still Inc. construction, facility tours and education programs; $50,000 Mary’s Training Center HydroWorx treadmill; $12,392 Vista School ADA improvements and AED replacements): $397,392

3. Middle Paxton Township ($163,000 Potato Valley Road improvement and Red Hill Road Bridge replacement project debt reduction; $98,000 Dauphin Borough construction of community building; $30,000 Dauphin Recreation Association pool repairs; $40,000 Dauphin Middle-Paxton Fire Co. outdoor sign): $331,000

4. Rush Township ($50,000 new building to store equipment; $101,247 Jefferson Township tractor-loader): $151,247

5. South Hanover Township ($200,000 municipal complex debt service; $100,000 new public works facility): $300,000

6. West Hanover Township ($300,000 Debt reduction of fire engine; $45,960 Tall Cedars of Lebanon pavilion and roof replacement): $345,960

Municipal and Municipal Services Awards

1. Berrysburg Municipal Authority (Debt service for Sewage Treatment Plant System project): $24,000

2. Conewago Township (DCIB loan debt reduction for Meadow Lane project): $82,000

3. Court Administration for Magisterial District Judges (Debt reduction on construction of new MDJ facilities): $165,000

4. Dauphin County General Authority (Golf course irrigation system debt payment): $115,000

5. Dauphin County Industrial Development Authority (Debt service on solar farm project): $246,000

6. Dauphin County Parks & Recreation Department (Design and construct 1-mile paved accessible trail loop at Detweiler Park): $140,000

7. Dauphin County Sheriff’s Office (Debt reduction of new portable and mobile police radios): $15,815

8. Derry Township Municipal Authority&nbs

Don Stacom
Hartford Courant
(TNS)

When Middletown got a new American LaFrance fire truck in 1931, the city was a different place: The Arrigoni Bridge didn’t exist, the 1899 firehouse was still fairly modern, and a local factory’s cutting-edge product was the “noiseless typewriter.”

So it’s understandable that 92 years later, old Truck 1’s paint is bit faded.

“That’s the original paint. It’s got the original motor, the original transmission and they still work — it’s amazing it’s in as good shape as it is,” said Lt. Ryan Scranton, a leader in the campaign to restore what’s probably the oldest Middletown fire truck still in existence.

It wasn’t until two years ago that Middletown firefighters heard the old Truck 1 was in private collector’s storage garage in Binghamton, New York, which turned out to be the next-to-last stop in an unusual journey.

Truck 1 was built in 1930 by the now-defunct American LaFrance, and delivered to Middletown a year later.

It was no ordinary pumper or tanker: Instead, it was a tiller truck, a predecessor to the modern aerial apparatus. Designed to get around tight city street corners, its cab connects to the ladder and trailer section with a hinge. So the driver steers from in the cab, but a second firefighter steers the trailer section from a seat at the far back.

Truck 1 spent about 25 years in service at the downtown firehouse, where the extendible 75-foot ladder on its trailer could reach up four- and five-story buildings along Main Street.

The city lent the truck to Connecticut Valley Hospital in the late 1950s, and a couple of years later it was fully decommissioned and sent to a private collector in Philadelphia. Long afterward, the Binghamton collector acquired it and then stored it for years.

“In the summer of 2021, we got a call from the gentleman in Binghamton, a retired fire captain from there. He’d seen markings for Middletown. All he wanted was to cover the back rent he owed,” Firefighter Owen Andrew said. “So a group of us formed the Middletown Tiller Association.”

Scranton and Andrew along with several other firefighters and a group of retirees chipped in to raise about $3,000. Two local businesses, Gallitto Construction and Yankee Heritage, lent a low-bed tractor trailer so they could haul the old truck back from Binghamton.

Since the overwhelming majority of fire trucks from that era became scrap metal long ago, the nonprofit association was grateful that private collectors had not only kept Truck 1 but cared for it, too.

“That truck has been stored inside its entire life. It was never more than a couple of days outside,” Andrew said.

Still, restoration is going to be a costly job. The truck runs, but needs new tires along with rear brakes and other mechanical improvements.

“We’ve had quotes on a full restoration — paint, gold leafing, everything — from $100,000 to $400,000,” Andrew said. “But right now our goal is just to get it mechanically sound, maybe $10,000 to $15,000.”

The association got 501(c) (3) status last year, so donations can be tax deductible. It recently set up a GoFundMe page that so far has raised $1,290, and will be seeking local corporate donations later this year.

The association has taken the truck to a few local events and parades, and

On Tuesday, February 21, officials from Randolph EMC along with state and local fire representatives held honorary check ceremonies at Robbins Fire Rescue and at Ulah Volunteer Fire Department, according to a Randolph Electric news release.

Special guests included Commissioner of Insurance and N.C. Fire Marshall Mike Causey, N.C. Department of Insurance Regional Director Rosemary Parker, NC Electric Cooperatives REDLG Program Director Anna Walker, Robbins Town Council members, staff and Town Manager Clint Mack, and various other public safety representatives.

Randolph Electric has recently provided two zero-interest loans to these two fire departments within its service territory. REMC facilitated a loan in the amount of $225,000 to Robbins Fire Rescue in Moore County to help purchase a 3,000-gallon tanker engine. REMC also provided a loan in the amount of $360,000 to Ulah Volunteer Fire Department (VFD) in Randolph County to help purchase a 1,000-gallon pumper engine. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) awarded Randolph EMC grants for each fire truck through the Rural Economic Development Loan & Grant program (REDLG program). The grants are combined with a 20% match from REMC and loaned to the ultimate recipient at zero percent interest. As funds are repaid, REMC receives the payments into its Economic Development Revolving Loan Fund for relending on the next project.

Cooperatives like Randolph EMC use REDLG funds to strengthen the communities they serve by helping finance business start-up costs, expansion projects, community development initiatives and more. This program contains two funding opportunities, separately known as the REDLoan program and the REDGrant programs. Under the REDGrant program, the USDA provides grant funds to electric or telephone cooperatives to establish a revolving loan fund. The loan funds support projects that provide rural community development.

U.S. Congressman Harry Cuellar’s office issued the following news release Friday on Facebook:

“Today, I announced $2,000,000 in federal funding for Zapata County to construct a new fire station to replace the current building that was built in the 1980s.

“Zapata County has been in dire need of a new fire station for quite some time now. The deteriorating conditions of the current building cause inefficiency problems and put our firefighter’s health at risk.

“With the construction of this new fire station, Chief Arriaga and his fire department will be able to provide a higher quality service to Zapata County. This new building will also help us guarantee the health of our firefighters who risk their lives every day for us.

“I want to thank Chief Arriaga, Judge Joseph Rathmell, and the Zapata County Commissioners for their collaboration in securing these funds and for their dedicated service to meet the needs of our community.”

From Zapata County Fire Department/Emergency Management Facebook post:

“Today we had the presentation of the check of $2 million for a new Fire Department for Zapata County by Congressman Henry Cuellar.

“Zapata County Fire Department Fire Chief Daniel Arriaga and staff would like to thank the Congressman Henry Cuellar, Zapata County Judge and commissioners along with everyone that took part in this. This will not only boost the Department’s moral but will help in the continued success of providing the best of emergency medical care and fire rescue operations within the community and surrounding areas.”