News Flash

Uniontown, PA - The Fayette County Board of Commissioners recently approved their funding recommendations for the 2022-23 Local Share Account (LSA) program. 

This year, more than 50 project proposals from across the county were submitted to commissioners Dave Lohr, chairman; Vincent Vicites and Scott Dunn for their review this fall. 

Following the commissioners’ selections, the projects are recommended through an application to the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) for final approval. DCED then administers the funding for those projects the state signs off on through 2023. 

Fayette County Redevelopment Authority Executive Director Andrew French said this year’s applicants requested more than $3.5 million in funding. The commissioners ultimately chose 21 projects for a total LSA funding recommendation of $658,090.

That funding will be leveraged by more than $345,000 from other funding sources secured by the project applicants, creating a total impact of more than $1.2 million countywide. 

“This year’s projects are, once again, fairly evenly distributed throughout all corners of the county,” French said. “Since the program began eight years ago, each one of our 42 municipalities has benefited from some project funded by LSA grants.” 

LSA funding is generated annually through the county’s share of gaming revenues derived from Nemacolin’s Lady Luck Casino in Wharton Township. 

French said the commissioners try to identify “high impact” projects which will have a broad effect on various municipalities when making their decisions.

“LSA funds are pretty flexible in their usage, so there’s always a wide variety of projects on the recommendation list,” he said. “We really try to capitalize on that flexibility by funding different kinds of projects every year.” 

This year’s projects cover everything from economic development projects; public safety; recreation; facility improvements; administration; infrastructure and more. They include:

• Neighborhood Stabilization Initiative - Fayette County Redevelopment Authority.
• Team Humanity Equipment for Training and Microbusiness - Team Humanity, LLC.
• Heritage Reservation Boy Scout Camp - Troop B Camp Cadet.
• Community Resources of Fayette County - Crime Victims’ Center of Fayette County.
• Brownsville Borough Public Safety Equipment - Brownsville Borough Police Department.
• C.W. Resh Park Improvement Project - Saltlick Township.
• German Township Municipal Storage Building - German Township.
• Masontown V.F.W. Post 4584 Parking Lot Safety Upgrades - Masontown V.F.W. Post 4584.
• South Union Indoor Sports Complex Turf - South Union Township.
• South Connellsville Park Improvements - South Connellsville Borough.
• Dunbar Area Little League Scoreboard Project - Dunbar Area Little League.
• Amvets Post 103 Facility Improvements - Amvets Post 103.
• MCVFC Communications Project - McClellandtown Volunteer Fire Company.
• Perryopolis Public Works Improvements - Perryopolis Borough.
• Connellsville Community Center Improvements - City of Connellsville.
• Upper Tyrone Municipal Complex Expansion - Upper Tyrone Township.
• Knights of Columbus Facility Improvements - Uniontown Columbian Association.
• DALL Recreation Improvements - Dunbar Area Little League.
• Franklin Township Parks Upgrades - Franklin Township.
• Training/Conference Room Remodel - Smock Volunteer Fire Department.
• Main Street Orient Bridge Project - Redstone Township.
• LSA Administration - Fayette County Redevelopment Authority.

Commissioner Chairman Lohr said it’s the “whole breadth and scope of the projects” that stands out, rather than individual initiatives. 

“Several projects target public safety; others target improvements to facilities; still others target infrastructure improvements like water line replacement. It would take a real Scrooge to argue that these projects don’t have merit, and there are just so many worthwhile projects out there, designed for the betterment of our communities and, ultimately, the betterment of Fayette County,” Lohr said. “I’m pleased that we have LSA monies to offer and excited by the progress the projects we’re able to fund, whether in part or in full, represent. Kudos to all who applied and congratulations to this year’s recipients.” 

Commissioner Vicites said this year’s set of recommended projects represent a “diverse” group of organizations covering “numerous areas” of the county. 

“The LSA grants are so important because they are, in most cases, community-led projects that impact the community directly. Funding at the grassroots level is extremely important for helping individual communities,” he said. “Since the LSA program’s inception, the commissioners have distributed all of the funding available, instead of keeping it for county-level projects. We’re able to make more of an overall impact by helping our municipalities and community organizations achieve their goals.” 

Commissioner Dunn said this year’s projects were a great mix of community initiatives, infrastructure improvements, support for first responders and more. 

“It was good to be able to fund so many of these worthy projects. These funds are utilized to fill in the gaps for our municipalities and authorities,” Dunn said. “This helps them fill their wish list of projects that might not get funded by other means. These projects and improvements help make our local municipalities a better place to live.” 

French has submitted the county’s recommendations for DCED approval. For more information and a complete list of project details, contact the Fayette County Redevelopment Authority at 724-437-1547 or visit www.racfpa.org. 

To learn more about Fayette County, visit www.fayettecountypa.org. 

Editor's Note: Image attached (Fayette County Logo)

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This communication, among other initiatives, is funded through the 2016 Fayette County Local Share Account (LSA) in cooperation with the Fayette County Board of Commissioners, Fayette Chamber of Commerce, The Redevelopment Authority of the County of Fayette, The Redstone Foundation and other partners. This funding has been designated for the continued promotion and marketing of Fayette County, PA.

For more information, contact Kristi Kassimer Harper, Public Relations Specialist, at 412-691-0262, kkassimer@fayettecountypa.info or Kaylie Moore, Community Relations Coordinator, at 724-430-1200 Ext. 1611, kmoore@fayettepa.org.