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(rshsdepot) Wilkes Barre, PA

The following was just posted in "Jersey Central Lines" on the Railfan.net Forum

Henry

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Re: Trackage and rolling freight in WB to be cleared
Post by XPLORER 01/23/06 at 12:40:32 in "Jersey Central Lines"
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The CNJ Station Wilkes Barre
6/4/2005
Luzerne County officials may be so passionate about Wilkes-Barre and Scranton being connected by passenger train service they are ready to wager millions of federal funding on its success. The application will be approved at the June 17 meeting and forwarded for federal approval, Commissioner Stephen Urban said Friday. The amount the county will try to borrow has not been determined. County officials hope to use proceeds of the "Section 108" loan to acquire and restore the Market Street Square complex owned by Wilkes-Barre City businessman Thom Greco. The plan is to reopen the train station and repair track connecting Northeastern Pennsylvania's largest two cities, Urban said. "This project would create a central rail station in Luzerne County where all residents can board a train to Scranton and hopefully on to New Jersey and New York," Urban said. Market Street Square is appraised at $5.5 million, Urban said. He does not know the cost of repairing the track.. Commissioner !
 Todd Vonderheid said options and cost benefits of acquiring the complex are still under discussion. He added that it was premature to talk about a sale. "It's unfortunate that Commissioner Urban chooses to reveal the details of a deal that's still in the negotiation stages, and potentially jeopardize the success of that deal," Vonderheid said. "Greg (Skrepenak) and I are more concerned about improving the quality of life in Northeastern Pennsylvania than seeing our names in the newspaper."
Greco would not comment on any deal with the county. He did say he has been discussing the 7-acre complex with county officials for more than a year.
"This is probably one of the most valuable pieces of land in the City of Wilkes-Barre," Greco said Friday. "It has access to the rails and the station is historic."
A "Section 108" loan carries great risk. If the county is unable to make payments, the federal office could deduct funds from the county's annual $6 million Community Development Block Grant. Block grants fund local projects, like street paving and playground renovations, in the county's 72 boroughs and townships. Each of the 72 municipalities is eligible for funding once every three years. The county's four cities - Hazleton, Nanticoke, Pittston and Wilkes-Barre - receive their own block grant funds. Sandra Russell, director of the county Office of Community Development, confirmed her office is researching a "Section 108" application. Future block grants serve as collateral, but reducing the county's annual block grant is a last resort, Russell said. "The loan has to be repaid," Russell said. "It isn't a gift; it's a loan. But our intention is to make sure we get paid back, so we're not sacrificing our future allocations. "If the county applies and is approved, the goal is !
 a project that generates enough revenue to cover loan payments, she said. Projects approved for funding must meet federal guidelines. Land acquisition or renovation and new construction are all eligible. There are three primary criteria eligible projects must meet - benefit people with low or moderate incomes, eliminate slum and blight or urgent need. The county could apply for less than $30 million. It also could apply more than once until it reaches the $30 million ceiling. The going interest rate on "Section 108" loans are 3.4 percent. Every application is reviewed by federal officials in Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. County officials do not know the length of the application process. John Carpenter, a HUD spokesman, could not be reached for comment Friday. In Lackawanna County, commissioners are moving forward with a plan to have passenger rail service from Scranton to New Jersey and New York. There is no timetable for completion, Commissioner Bob Cordaro said Frida!
 y. Lackawanna County officials are aware of Luzerne County's p!
 lans and
 support the project, Cordaro said.
"We agree an important component would be a Scranton to Wilkes-Barre link," he said. "From Lackawanna County's standpoint, we think a regional economy is a significant part of our future. We're committed to any project furthering that goal." 
7/7/2005
If commissioners Greg Skrepenak, Stephen Urban and Todd Vonderheid approve the request, the money would serve as a down payment on the possible purchase and redevelopment of the downtown Wilkes-Barre parcel, said authority solicitor Joseph Blazosek. The possible purchase of the 7-acre complex from owner Thom Greco is still months away. The $200,000 advance would not bind the authority or county into completing the transaction. Urban will support the authority's request, made on Wednesday, and expects Skrepenak and Vonderheid to do the same. The commissioners' goal is to acquire the historic train station and restore passenger rail service between Wilkes-Barre and Scranton, Urban said. "To bring (passenger) rail service back to Luzerne County you need a place for the train to stop," Urban said. "I think rail service will help grow this county and bring people back to it. I believe rail service from Wilkes-Barre to Scranton is feasible." Two separate appraisals have placed the!
  value of the complex the county intends to acquire at about $5.5 million, Urban said.
The county wants the train station, parking lot and strip mall. The Citizens Bank and McDonald's on the complex will not be included, Blazosek said.
The authority also addressed funding the purchase. The board unanimously authorized hiring consulting firm Mullin, Lonergan & Associates to oversee a Section 108 loan application to the federal Office of Housing and Urban Development.
County officials will apply for the loan, but the authority will borrow the money, Blazosek said. Under terms of a Section 108 loan, if the county is unable to make payments, the federal office could deduct funds from the county's annual $6 million Community Development Block Grant. Block grants fund projects, like street paving and playground renovations, in the county's 72 boroughs and townships. Each of the 72 communities is eligible for funding once every three years. Urban does not believe block grant funds would be jeopardized if a Section 108 loan was used to acquire the parcel. "The only risk is if we don't have the money to pay it back," Urban said. "I don't envision that happening." Although a consultant was retained, no formal application has been submitted to HUD, said Andy Reilly, deputy director of the county Office of Community Development. "Ultimately our office has to make the application to HUD," Reilly said. "I'd imagine we'll be hearing the specifics and !
 details of every thing shortly." The redevelopment plans for the complex would meet the federal agency's guidelines for the loan, according to Joseph Hogan, a principal of the authority's retained Philadelphia consulting firm. Those requirements include job creation and eliminating slums and blight. The county could borrow up to $30 million through Section 108. The amount it intends to borrow has not been determined, Urban said. Renovations to the train station will be included in the amount requested, the minority commissioner added. To link Wilkes-Barre to Scranton, approximately 3.5 miles of track needs to be rehabilitated, Urban said. He expects federal and state sources, other than a Section 108 loan, to fund the track renovations. No price has been estimated yet on that 3.5- mile rail rehabilitation.
Federal, state and local officials also are working on creating passenger rail service from Scranton to Hoboken, N.J. The $350 million project is still in the preliminary stages and no construction timetable has been set.
7/14/2005
Greg Skrepenak, Stephen Urban and Todd Vonderheid approved a $200,000 transfer of funds to the Luzerne County Redevelopment Authority. The authority will use the $200,000 as a down payment on the 7-acre parcel owned by Thom Greco.
The $200,000 guarantees the county first right of purchase and prevents Greco from selling it to anyone else while the county secures funding from a federal Office of Community Development Section 108 loan. Two appraisals have placed the value of the property around $5.5 million. The county plans to turn the historic train station into a visitors center and eventually use it as a passenger station for rail service between Wilkes-Barre and Scranton. "I think the possibilities are endless," Skrepenak said at the meeting in Nescopeck Borough.
8/2/2005
Greco will be paid $50,000 when he authorizes an agreement of sale approved Monday by the Luzerne County Redevelopment Authority. Two additional payments of $75,000 each will be made in 30 and 60 days. The $200,000 serves as a down payment and is refundable should the county not secure funding by April, said Allen Bellas, chairman of the redevelopment authority. The county will apply for a federal Office of Housing and Urban Development Section 108 loan in the next 90 days to finance the purchase, according to the agreement of sale. County officials covet the 7-acre parcel for a tourist center and plan to renovate part of the complex to an active passenger train station, if rail service from Scranton to Wilkes-Barre comes online "I just believe trains are the way to go," said Stephen Urban, minority Luzerne County commissioner. "I think people will want to come here and live here. That will help the economy grow." Proposed passenger rail service between Scranton and Hoboken,!
  N.J., received a $120 million federal funding commitment last week, which gives more validity to the Luzerne County project, Urban said. He believes a commute from Wilkes-Barre to New York City will be possible in a reasonable amount of time. The amount of stops will have the most impact on travel time, Urban said. A Citizens Bank branch and McDonald's restaurant on the complex are not included in the purchase, Bellas said. The $5.8 million purchase price was calculated through two separate appraisals.
10/14/2005
The Luzerne County Planning Commission designated six of the Market Street Square Complex's 7 acres as "blighted." The designation is a requirement of the federal Office of Housing and Urban Development's Section 108 loan program. County officials hope to borrow at least $5.6 million from the federal agency by April 2006. The funds will be used to acquire the six blighted acres from businessman Thom Greco. The county's renovation plans include a visitors' center, public parking and possibly a passenger train station. "Obviously, we wanted to save the building," said Adrian Merolli, director of planning. "It has historic value." The designation also requires county agencies to remove debris and address any possible structural concerns with the old train station, Merolli said. Once funding is secured and the parcel is acquired, the county plans to make half of the site available for private development, said Commissioner Todd Vonderheid. 
Ownership of Market Street Square also is critical for the plan to provide passenger rail service between Wilkes-Barre and Scranton, said Commissioner Stephen Urban.
The Luzerne County Redevelopment Authority has given a refundable $200,000 to Greco as a down payment.
10/21/05
Initial designs to rehabilitate the blighted plot of land in the city's downtown are in.
An estimated $3.75 million investment would transplant a lavish visitors center onto the 7-acre parcel, beautify the landscape with trees, shrubs and well-kept lawns, and create space for commercial development, according to plans unveiled Thursday.
Rehabilitation of the complex would lay the groundwork for the second phase and ultimate dream of the project: A passenger rail station that provides service to New York City. The second phase includes building a new train station and laying railroad tracks across from the proposed visitors center. The plans have been drafted but the costs have not been calculated. "This is the first time plans have been unveiled about what the county envisions for the site," said Luzerne County Commissioner Stephen Urban. "If this area is going to grow, it's going to need the infrastructure to grow." The county has authorized purchasing the Market Street Square complex from businessman Thom Greco for $5.8 million, hoping to finalize the deal by April 2006. The purchase and revitalization are dependent on obtaining a federal Housing and Urban Development Section 108 loan, said H. Allen Bellas, executive director of the Luzerne County Redevelopment Authority, which is heading the project. Las!
 t week, the county's planning commission designated a majority of the complex as "blighted," which is a requirements to get the loan. Bellas called the designs "preliminary master plans" that are subject to change. Nonetheless, the conceptual design is a positive for the city in the midst of major downtown improvement projects, he said. Turning the former train station into a visitors center is a great way to preserve the city landmark. The proposal includes a lobby, museum, dining and banquet room, lounge and a cabana deck, he added. "We're looking to see it become the entrance to the new Wilkes-Barre," Bellas said. "A piece of old Wilkes-Barre will be the welcome center." A start date for the initial phase of the project has not been determined because there are too many variables, Bellas said. The phase including the new train station is even less clear, considering it could take several years to connect passenger rail service to Scranton, let alone Wilkes-Barre, Bellas !
 said.

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