Public Meeting held December 13, 2001

picture of public meeting On December 13, 2001, PENNDOT and the Greenhorne & O'Mara Project Team conducted the second public meeting for the U.S. 219 Improvements Project at the Berlin-Brothersvalley School in Berlin, PA. Approximately 250 residents attended the meeting to observe how the project is progressing.

With the Phase I environmental and engineering studies complete, the Project Team unveiled seven preliminary alternatives for transportation improvements. The main focus of the meeting was to solicit input from the public concerning these alternatives.

picture of public meeting Alternatives presented included:

No-Build (Do Nothing);
Transportation System Management (TSM) (transit, park-and-ride lots, minor roadway improvements, and signage);
Upgrade of existing U.S. 219 and the Garrett Shortcut; and
Four alignments for construction of a new four-lane highway: Corridors A, B, C and D.

The Public Meeting was organized as a workshop to ensure that all questions, concerns, and comments could be addressed by PENNDOT and the Project Team.

picture of public meeting Stations were placed in the school's cafeteria that provided information on environmental and engineering resources. These stations used mapping, graphics, and visual techniques to illustrate the preliminary alternatives and how each affects the local communities and the environment.

Of particular interest to attendees was the Geographic Information Systems (GIS) station. A computer-generated aerial fly-over through the study area was used to illustrate how the corridors traverse the study area. The GIS station also contained a computer kiosk that attendees could "zoom-in" and locate their property or particular areas of interest in the study area.

A computer-automated presentation was set up in a separate room and ran continuously throughout the evening, providing an overview of the project and an update on the current status of the studies.

picture of public meeting A Farmers/Right-of-Way station was also set up in a separate room which contained large-scale property and aerial photography maps depicting property boundaries and tax identification numbers. Residents and the farming community were encouraged to locate their property and discuss with PENNDOT Right of Way personnel and Project Team members any concerns they had about the location of the study corridors.

PENNDOT requested the public to comment on which corridors should be carried forward to detailed studies (Phase 2), which corridors should be dismissed from further consideration, and any concerns they might have.

corridor map Based on Phase I environmental studies and impacts, PENNDOT recommended Corridors B, C, and D be carried forward, while the Upgrade of existing U.S. 219, TSM, and Corridor A be dismissed from further consideration (see map). Corridor A is recommended to be dismissed from detailed studies due to a greater amount of environmental impacts than Corridors B, C, and D. The majority of the people in attendance were in favor of the Project Team's recommendations.

Comments received from attendees included:

Consider locating an interchange to provide access to Berlin
Consider looking at a corridor west of the Garrett Shortcut
Environmental concerns - farmland, wetlands, water quality
Provide for the Laurel Highlands Hiking and Biking Trail
Utilization of existing PENNDOT Right-of-Way is a plus (Corridors A and D)

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Public Meeting held December 13, 2001