Logan Township has applied for a $2.3 million grant from the state to construct a second access road to its 100-acre Strawberry Hills property, on which the supervisors plan to construct various recreational facilities, including a pair of soccer fields and a walking trail.

The current primary access is from the west, via Grandview Road, North Fifth Street, North 19th Avenue and North Eighth Street, while the proposed second access would be from the east, via North Ninth Street in Juniata, according to township officials.

The township is seeking the money from the state’s Multi-Modal Transportation Fund to allow for better traffic flow and for safety, according to township Manager Tim Brown.

“It’s a lot cleaner shot from (Juniata),” than from Grandview, Brown said.

The total cost of the project would be about $2.5 million, according to minutes of a prior meeting.

In November, the supervisors approved an application for a $1 million grant from the state’s Local Share Account program for the second access project.

That $1 million is the maximum request accepted by the LSA program.

Consultant Penn Strategies is putting together the Multi-Modal Transportation Fund application.

At the same recent meeting in which they approved the Multi-Modal application, the supervisors approved the drafting of a match commitment letter.

The Multi-Modal program requires a 30% match — $700,000 in this case.

The supervisors also approved an amendment to a contract with Stiffler McGraw and Associates for its ongoing design work on the second access.

The design work has proven to be far harder than expected due to environmental concerns, including those related to stormwater facilities and a state Department of Environmental Protection requirement that the township pull an “individual” rather than “general” permit for the project, officials said.

Accordingly, the township will double the initial $35,000 payment to Stiffler.

The new access route will start from the western end of North Ninth Street, which is in good shape and runs to within a block of the tract, according to township Planning Director Cassandra Schmick.

The road would continue into the site to where facilities are planned.

The second access would be a total of 4,000 feet long.

The design calls for the road to be constructed for easy accommodation of other potential development within the site.

The plans include construction of sidewalks and a walking trail parallel to the road.

The township would need to get grant money to do the project, according to Brown.

The township is not necessarily expecting to get all the money it’s asking for, officials said.

In addition to the soccer fields and walking trails, the plans call for a pavilion, a playground, a parking area, fencing, signage, landscaping, stormwater controls and utilities for the tract.

There has been talk of Strawberry Hills being a potential site for an indoor sports complex that has been proposed for Blair, and the township would welcome such a project for the tract, according to Supervisor Ed Frontino.

Mirror Staff Writer William Kibler is at 814-949-7038.