Residents who receive a letter in the mail from the state Department of Transportation in the coming weeks shouldn\u2019t be alarmed. It does not mean the receivers of these letters will lose their property.
\nYesterday, PENNDOT announced that it recently mailed \u201cIntent to Enter\u201d letters to all property owners within the project study area. The purpose of these letters is to inform residents that PENNDOT and members of the consultant team for the Northern Altoona Access Project may be entering area properties to perform environmental research and other studies vital to the project.
\nThis is the next phase of work on the project. During this phase, the Project Team will explore various alternatives to connect northern Altoona with Interstate 99.
\nThe study area for the project extends from the Juniata area, Fourth Avenue, north to Pinecroft and from I-99 west to Bellwood Road (state Route 4015). As part of this phase of the project, extensive engineering and environmental studies will be conducted. In order to conduct these studies, specialists will be in the area collecting field information.
\n\u201cRecipients of an \u2018Intent to Enter\u2019 letter does not mean a property is or will be acquired for the project,\u201d said Earl Neiderhiser, district engineer. \u201cIt is far too early in the design process to make those decisions. The studies are being conducted to help determine the best results for this project.\u201d
\nAll team members will be wearing an identification badge stating that they are with the project team. If residents or property owners have any questions, they should be directed to Jim Campbell, P.E., PENNDOT\u2019s project manager at 696-7163.
\n\u201cInformation sharing and community input throughout the project developments is important to the success of this transportation project,\u201d said Neiderhiser. \u201cWe are committed to maintaining the level of community involvement initiated on this project.\u201d
\nThe Northern Altoona Access Study was initiated in 1999 by PENNDOT to evaluate ways to improve accessibility to Juniata, Greenwood, and Bellmeade. This seven square-mile study area encompasses a section of Logan Township and the southern portion of Antis Township. A Needs Analysis was completed in June 1999 by PENNDOT and a team of consultants.
\nThe Needs Analysis concluded there are several sections of Altoona that cannot easily reach I-99 because of the rail lines, the Little Juniata River and the low rolling ridges in the valley. Creating a better connection with I-99 and Chestnut Avenue is essential for the transfer of people and goods and initiating further development. An Environmental Overview identifying natural, social and economic constraints was also conducted.
\nThe current Project Team, led by L. Robert Kimball & Associates of Ebensburg will conduct an Environmental Assessment. The EA will be prepared in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act. McCormick, Taylor and Associates will be leading the public involvement efforts of this project.
\nConducting an Environmental Assessment ensures that transportation projects will be developed in an environmentally-sensitive manner that reflects input from the community, business, and state and federal resource agencies. Throughout the assessment, the project team will collect public input regarding the interests that are important to the community \u2013 preserving a healthy environment while meeting community needs.
\nThe project team will build on the Public Involvement Program originally created during the Needs Analysis. A public meeting is currently being organized. Members of the previous Public Advisory Committee will be contacted within the next few weeks and asked to continue their participation on the new Community Advisory Committee. Additionally, new members may be solicited. A public officials meeting will be held prior to each public meeting to provide a project update.
\n\u201cDates, times and locations have not yet been established,\u201d said Michele Jacoby, community relations coordinator with PENNDOT District 9. \u201cWe\u2019re looking to begin holding them sometime late in the spring.\u201d
\nThe project team will be providing information to the public through the project website, www.northernaltoona.com, newsletters, information outposts in local communities and public meetings.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Residents who receive a letter in the mail from the state Department of Transportation in the coming weeks shouldn\u2019t be alarmed. It does not mean the receivers of these letters will lose their property. Yesterday, PENNDOT announced that it recently mailed \u201cIntent to Enter\u201d letters to all property owners within the project study area. The […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-47183","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-local-news-in-the-tyrone-pennsylvania-area"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tyronepa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47183","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tyronepa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tyronepa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tyronepa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tyronepa.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=47183"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/tyronepa.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47183\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tyronepa.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=47183"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tyronepa.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=47183"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tyronepa.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=47183"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}