Hollidaysburg final budget projects $1.4M surplus

Public can inspect proposed 2025 plan at borough building; vote set for December

HOLLIDAYSBURG -- The borough's 2025 final budget, a public hearing to establish a school, funding for a two-phase project at the Phoenix Volunteer Fire Department and more were on the agenda at Hollidaysburg Borough Council's meeting on Thursday.

Borough Finance Director Stacy Wert said the borough projected revenues of about $11,485,000 and projected expenditures of about $10,077,000, leaving it with a projected surplus of about $1,408,000.

Built into the budget is a police car; eight police body armor vests; a new treatment system, upgrade renovation and maintenance for the wastewater treatment plant; and a $61,000 allocation for the Green Light Go program, Wert said.

"That's actually a state grant program that we qualified for," Wert said. "We would be required to pay 20%, which was $61,000, and the grant will pay the additional cost of 80%."

Wert said the borough would also be giving the Phoenix Volunteer Fire Department about $5,500 to install new valves in the Holiday Hills area, which would increase water pressure to hydrants.

The 2025 final budget is available for public inspection on the second floor of the borough's municipal building. The council will vote to adopt the budget at its December meeting.

A public hearing was also held to consider a conditional use application by the Great Commission Schools to construct a school on its vacant property located in the Conservation Recreation zoning district. The vacant property, part of what is commonly known as Stowell Farm in the Gaysport neighborhood of Hollidaysburg, was rezoned during the council's October meeting from Traditional Neighborhood Development.

Under the property's new zoning, schools are permitted as conditional use, said Calvin Webb, the borough's special counsel for the hearing.

Laura Wray, vice president of Great Commission Schools' board and chair of its building committee, addressed the zoning's conditional use requirements and detailed how the committee would meet them.

Chief among many Gaysport residences' concerns is that new construction will exacerbate flooding, but one requirement for the property's conditional use is that "the total impervious surface is not to extend 20%," Wray said.

"That will be no problem because of the size of our lot," Wray said.

As for capacity, Wray said the school would be built to hold at most 300 students and 30 full-time staff. That could mean about 300 total vehicles per day visiting the school for pick-up and drop-off.

"If I double what we currently have, it could be up to 150 in that time, but that's really expanding the number," Wray said.

Following the public hearing, the council gave Webb the green light to prepare the decision for formal adoption at its December meeting.

Before giving his borough manager report, Ethan Imhoff briefly yielded the floor to Eric Schmidt with the Phoenix Volunteer Fire Department to "speak on two matters of importance."

Schmidt said the department asked the borough to submit a Local Share Account grant application on its behalf for a new engine last year, but it was not funded. He asked the borough to submit another LSA grant for the 2025 fiscal year on the department's behalf, and that they were requesting $300,000 in funding for a two-phase project at the fire station.

"The first phase of the project is removal and replacement of the rubber roof on the fire station," Schmidt said. "The current roof is 30-plus years old and in need of replacement."

The second phase would be covering the roof's surface with solar panels to help offset the department's yearly electricity costs of about $10,000 to $12,000, Schmidt said.

"Unfortunately, the nature of our business makes it necessary for the apparatus to be plugged in while it's in the station," Schmidt said.

With solar panels, the department's monthly electric bill could possibly be eliminated by selling the power back to the grid, Schmidt said.

The council approved the department's request to submit the grant application.

During his report, Imhoff announced that Blair County Commissioner David Kessling would be attending the council's December meeting "to talk about the county's perspective on the desire to change the tourism promotion agency."

Supporters in favor of keeping Explore Altoona as the county's tourism promotion agency spoke during the council's October meeting.

In other matters, council approved the proposed appointments of the six members to the Borough Blight Committee, which will begin to meet in January 2025. Council member William Kitt, Redevelopment Authority Member Randy Manning, Planning Commission Member Chad Repko, Borough Director of Community Development Andrew Holodnik and resident members Kevin Sommers and Ellen Miller will be formally appointed during the council's December meeting.

The council also approved the Main Street Matters program for the state Department of Community and Economic Development.

"Last meeting, the counselor allocated $45,000 of its community development block grant funds to a micro-loan and micro-grant program for businesses on the 1 through 500 blocks of Allegheny Street," Imhoff said. "We're applying for a matching grant from the DCED for another $45,000."

The Holiday Parking Meter Program will be happening again this year as council approved the motion to have a quarter placed in an expired meter by the parking enforcement officer "as a courtesy and to show appreciation for shoppers frequenting downtown businesses," Imhoff said. The program will run from Dec. 2, 2024, until Jan. 1, 2025.