The New Year brought in new business contracts for the Greene County community. Last Thursday, the Greene County Commissioners met for their bimonthly general meeting. They discussed different grant approvals with Wisecarver, community contract agreements, as well as administrative appointments.
For updates on the Wisecarver project, the commissioners decided to match funds with the Economic Development Administration under their 2021 fiscal year funding. The total amount for the Wisecarver Eco-Tourism Initiative is $974,214. The commissioners are waiting on grant approval.
Looking at community contracts, an increase of $3,568 was granted to Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Pittsburgh. The money is intended for their Parenting and Pregnancy Support services.
Other contracts related to mental health services in Greene County: Canvas Group therapists Misty Hanna and Nicholas Orlando were each approved an amount of $31,500 to perform their therapy services. The commissioners also gave $25,000 to Connect Inc. for their housing supportive services.
Focusing on technology issues in the county, the commissioners agreed to allocate $299,960.01 for the Statewide Interconnectivity Funding. The program will help improve internet connection in the region. Commissioner Mike Belding expressed his hopes with the program.
“Our system’s aging and to keep up with technology, this is a grant to bring us up to new technology and also interoperability with our neighbors,” Belding said. “This is a pretty good program.”
At the meeting, the commissioners approved funds to purchase future agricultural conservation easements throughout 2022. The funds were approved through the Certification of County Funds, the total resulting in $5,000. An additional $2,646 was allocated with the Clean and Greene contribution.
The commissioners also reviewed the Non-endowed Fund Agreement with the Community Foundation of Greene County. Commissioner Betsy McClure encouraged community member involvement with this program.
“This is for people who want to make a contribution to the county,” McClure said. “And would like to have a write-off for that.”
For a sneak peak of community events this year, Altered Gas Performance Event, LLC is planning to host five “Flashlight Drag” races. They are scheduled for May 22, June 19, Aug. 14, Sept. 10 and Sept. 11. The commissioners approved this schedule and are just waiting for the solicitor’s approval.
Other key points at the meeting consisted of appointments. Local attorney Lukas Gatten was approved to be a Guardian ad Litem for the county. Belding was reappointed to the Industrial Development Authority Board. His term will expire on Dec. 31, 2026.
At the end of the meeting, Commissioner Blair Zimmerman thanked Mapletown and the Southeastern school district for allowing the commissioners to visit and tour the school. McClure informed the public of free COVID-19 testing at the Greene County Airport Jan. 19-22.
“It’s a service we wanted to put out there for folks to get tested,” she said.
McClure also announced that the State Fair Queen competition was held the weekend of Jan. 22 in Harrisburg. Two of Greene County’s past queens attended, Greene County Fair Queen, Krysten Debolt and the Jacktown Fair Queen, Morgan Mooney.