Feb 14, 2024 By Mike Jones 7 min read

The projects recommended for a piece of the Local Share Account’s casino gambling money are expected to be approved by the Washington County commissioners during Thursday’s voting meeting, with one notable subtraction from the original list.

The LSA committee voted last week to recommend approval of 50 projects to receive $8.7 million in gambling revenue out of a total of 94 applications that were considered.

But Commissioner Larry Maggi questioned why the proposed list he saw in early February also included a $500,000 grant to the City Mission for its new women’s shelter, only to be removed by the LSA committee at the last minute for unknown reasons before the panel voted.

Maggi said he requested and received the preliminary list on Feb. 2 from Chief of Staff Daryl Price that showed 51 projects were set to be recommended for approval, which also included City Mission’s application. But that item was inexplicably removed when the committee voted through video conferencing for its Feb. 6 meeting, which lasted about 15 minutes and is posted on YouTube.

“I’m just curious why we took one off,” Maggi rhetorically asked Price during Tuesday’s board workshop meeting.

“The recommendations were changed,” said Price, who is a member of the LSA committee.

Maggi then asked Commission Chairman Nick Sherman and Commissioner Electra Janis whether they contacted anyone on the LSA committee to make changes, which both of them denied doing.

“Why was one removed?” Maggi asked again. “We’ve never done that before. We’ve never micromanaged … and (we’ve) tried to take politics out of it.”

“We all got the same email,” Janis said of the list of recommended projects the commissioners received following the LSA committee’s Feb. 6 meeting. “Our votes (at Thursday’s meeting) will reflect that.”

Sherman said he was unaware of any changes made before the LSA committee’s vote, and he plans to approve the list at Thursday morning’s board meeting.

“I think the (LSA) committee did a great job,” Sherman said after Tuesday’s workshop meeting. “Every year there are projects that won’t be approved, but I think the list that was given to me is a great list with great projects.”

In addition to the last-minute change, it’s also unclear why the LSA committee had $9.2 million at its disposal from the state Department of Community and Economic Development, but decided to only recommend allocation of $8.7 million with the 50 projects. The remaining $500,000 that is available – the same amount requested by City Mission in its application – will go back into the account for consideration in future years.

Jeff Kotula, who is president of the Washington County Chamber of Commerce & Tourism Promotion Agency and serves as the LSA committee chair, said the panel is “not bound to award” the total $9.2 million from this year’s allocation and that “any funds remaining are rolled over into future grant years” for consideration. He added that the review process continues until the recommended list is approved.

“The committee is continually reviewing projects up until the public vote and the only list is the list considered at the public meeting where it is voted upon and becomes final,” Kotula said. “Ultimately, the City Mission’s project was not able to gain the committee’s support for the final list of recommendations.”

City Mission President and CEO Dean Gartland said that decision would be a blow to the nonprofit’s attempts to build its women’s shelter in Washington.

“It would be heartbreaking to know that we did not receive anything from the 2024 LSA fund. Particularly given the nature of our project, expanding our shelter services for homeless women,” Gartland said. “I know that there are many worthy projects in Washington County deserving of support, and we certainly believe we should be one of them.”

Gartland is leaving his leadership position in March and will be succeeded by former commissioner Diana Irey Vaughan.

Meanwhile, Maggi said he’ll continue to ask questions about why the proposed list he received dated Jan. 30 changed before the LSA committee’s meeting a week later.

“Some (projects) you do like and some you don’t like. But you always held your nose and voted on them,” Maggi said of the commissioners’ past support for the LSA committee’s recommendations. “If there were some changes, I should’ve been included or at least consulted with.”

After the commissioners approve the LSA committee’s recommendations, the list of projects will be forwarded to the Redevelopment Authority of the County of Washington, which oversees the program and sends the final package to DCED for approval by March 31.

The entire list of 50 projects recommended for $8.7 million in Local Share Account funding can be seen below…

* Washington St. Demolition – Cokeburg Borough – $50,000

* AP Delsandro Veterans Memorial in Donora Borough – $119,000

* Charleroi Playground Improvement Project Phase 2 – Charleroi Borough – $160,000 (Requested $106,781)

* Elementary Park Accessibility Enhancements – Fallowfield Township – $70,000

* John White House Roof Restoration in Chartiers – Washington County History & Landmarks Foundation – $38,000

* Lower Speers Park Playground Revitalization Project – Speers Borough – $32,367

* Park Renovations – Mount Pleasant Township – $82,000 (Asked for $320,787)

* Project New Life in Washington – Washington Area Senior Citizens Center – $173,500

* Roberts Stone House in Canonsburg – Washington County Cultural Trust – $75,000 (Requested $250,000)

* The Journey Continues Phase Two – Little Lake Theatre in North Strabane – $50,000 (Requested $200,000)

* Veterans Park – Burgettstown Borough – $31,615 (Requested $125,985)

* Victory Park Restroom and Concession Building – Centerville Borough & Center-West Joint Sewer Authority – $193,960 (Requested $208,960)

* WBDA Façade Grant in Washington – Washington Business District Authority – $150,000

* West Middletown Park Rehabilitation Project – West Middletown Borough – $67,500

* Midtown Market & Event Center Phase 2 in Canonsburg – Canonsburg Economic Development Committee, Inc. – $385,000 (Requested $500,000)

* Sanitary Sewer Lateral Rehabilitation – Carroll Township Authority – $250,000

* 3rd Street Utility Reconstruction Marianna Borough and MarianneWest Bethlehem Joint Sewerage Authority – $250,000 (Requested $463,000)

* CAP Sanitary Sewer Flow Reduction and Repair Project – Municipal Authority of the City of Monongahela $26,000 – (Requested $120,000)

* McCombs Road Sanitary Sewer Replacement Project in Peters Township – Peters Creek Sanitary Authority – $758,000

* Prosperity Village Sewage Planning Project – Morris Township – $38,017

* Pump Station Upgrade in Centerville – Vestaburg New Hill Joint Authority – $200,000 (Requested $210,175)

* Sewage Treatment Improvements in Cross Creek – Independence Cross Creek Joint Sewer Authority – $195,000 (Requested $316,500)

* Upgrading of Control Systems for the Devils Den and Bucey Road Lift Stations – Hanover Township Sewer Authority – $40,535 (Requested $128,650)

* Wastewater Treatment Plant Improvements Project in Allenport – Mid Mon Valley Water Pollution Control Authority – $78,000 (Requested $200,000)

* Deemston Water Storage Tank – Southwestern Pennsylvania Water Authority – $300,000

* Public Water Service Extension – Avella Area School District – $253,000

* Vestaburg Waterline Replacement Project Phase IV – Tri-County Joint Municipal Authority – $291,400

* Water Line Replacement in Allenport, Elco, Roscoe and Stockdale – The Municipal Authority of the Township of Washington – $250,000 (Requested $453,800)

* Storm Sewer Cleaning and Televising – Carroll Township – $100,000 (Requested $200,000)

* Always B Smiling Activity and Learning Center, Outdoor Sensory Zone in Peters Township – $261,800

* Berry Road Evaluation – South Strabane Township – $57,000

* Gunny’s Ridge Veteran and First Responder Mission in Hanover Township – $125,000 (Requested $482,246)

* Harmony Life Center in Washington – $169,500 (Requested $300,000)

* Troop B Camp Cadet – Pennsylvania State Police – $10,000

* Tutor Library and Student Resource Development – Literacy Council of Southwestern Pennsylvania – $26,000

* Beth Center Community CS and STEM Initiative in Deemston – Bethlehem-Center School District – $50,000

* Centerville Clinic Training and Education Center in Charleroi – $400,000

* Community Equitable Technology Integration in Canonsburg – Arc Human Services, Inc. – $247,482

* Fort Cherry School District and Southwest Training Services Career Readiness Program – Mt. Pleasant Township – $92,240

* Robotics Team Equipment Project in Canonsburg – Titanium Titans, Inc. – $20,000

* STEAM Career Academy and Digital Media Center in Chartiers Township – Chartiers-Houston School District – $93,800

* Trinity High School Additive Manufacturing Capabilities – Trinity Area School District – $61,425

* WACTC Equipment Machine Shop & HVAC – Western Area Career & Technology Center – $100,000 (Requested $188,062)

* Canonsburg Area Senior Center Interior Updates – Aging Services of Washington County – $19,000

* Washington County Fairgrounds Equestrian Center Site Design and Land Development Plan – Washington County – $375,000

* Washington County Airport Southside T-Hangar Project in South Franklin – Redevelopment Authority of the County of Washington – $750,000

* Project 47 in Buffalo Township – Mel Blount Youth Home of PA – $300,000 (Requested $600,000)

* Wild Things Park Updates in North Franklin – Washington Frontier League Baseball – $350,000 (Requested $511,240)

* Alta Vista Lot #1 Solar Project in Fallowfield Township – Mon Valley Alliance – $383,859 (Requested $1 million)

* Home Ownership Center of Washington County – Blueprints – $100,000