ALLENTOWN, Pa. — Allentown officials hope to land almost $4 million in state funding to improve safety for pedestrians and drivers.
City Council on Wednesday authorized Mayor Matt Tuerk to submit three million-dollar grant applications and two smaller requests for financial support.
The administration is asking the state Transportation Department for $1 million to fund pedestrian safety improvements at Hamilton Street’s intersections with 12th, 13th and 14th streets.
Tuerk and his officials also are seeking a million-dollar “Green Light Go” state Transportation Department grant that would help replace aging and potentially dangerous traffic signals at 19th and Roth streets.
Mayor Matt Tuerk's administration is set to also apply for $1 million in state funding to support a 1.2-mile extension of the Martin Luther King Drive trail.
Meanwhile, a million-dollar grant from the state Community and Economic Development department could pave the way for a wider road and new traffic signals on both Lehigh and Union streets.
Two further grant applications could net Allentown $500,000 for vehicular and pedestrian upgrades at Hanover Avenue and Linden Street and $300,000 to buy a new truck, trailer and “paint eradicator” to maintain crosswalks throughout the city, according to the resolutions council passed Wednesday.
The administration is set to also apply for $1 million in state funding to support a 1.2-mile extension of the Martin Luther King Drive trail.
That project would close a “critical gap” between the MLK trail and Little Lehigh Parkway Path, creating an eight-mile network, according to city officials.
It’s set to cost about $2.3 million to complete, with city officials hopeful of banking a seven-figure check after winning a $250,000 grant.
