Penn Hills secures funding for long-awaited road upgrades

Upgrades to a subsiding road in Penn Hills and another with spotty sidewalks moved closer to reality Jan. 22 after council accepted $1.6 million in federal funds.

Penn Hills received two $800,000 grants: one to shore up Old William Penn Highway and another to better connect the Penn Hills Senior Center and a nearby bus stop with the rest of Rodi Road.

Repairing Old William Penn Highway has been on the radar of municipal officials for years and was included in the latest capital improvements program as an unfunded priority.

“Up until recently, it’s been a question of how that’s going to be paid for,” Penn Hills Manager Scott Andrejchak said.

The grants were requested by congressional representatives as Community Project Funding, which allows lawmakers to secure money for community-supported projects in their districts. Former U.S. Rep. Conor Lamb requested the Rodi Road sidewalks, while current Rep. Chris Deluzio asked for the money to fix a partially collapsed section of Old William Penn Highway.

With funding secured, the municipality can begin designing a solution, starting with soil sampling, according to Andrejchak. The need for land remediation is urgent, Mayor Pauline Calabrese said.

“When you take a look at the Old William Penn Highway, that is a landslide waiting to happen,” Calabrese said. “For us, that’s our Fern Hollow Bridge.”

As for the Rodi Road sidewalks, they’re part of a push by Calabrese, recent councils and volunteers to make the municipality’s main business corridor more functional.

“What we want to do is make that safer and more accessible for the elderly and disabled and for our residents who have to walk that area,” Calabrese said. “They’re not walking by choice — they don’t have a vehicle.”

Beautification also has been a priority in the area.

In June, the Penn Hills Shade Tree Commission collaborated with the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy to install a garden near the intersection of Rodi Road and Maple Lane. Since October, the commission has planted 31 trees close by.

It hasn’t all been coming up roses for beautification advocates. In December, the Churchill Zoning Hearing Board approved a double-sided electronic billboard not far from the garden, despite strong opposition from Penn Hills residents.

Regardless of aesthetic appeal, the new sidewalks will protect pedestrians, Calabrese said.

“Certainly beautification efforts are important, but these are literally for the safety of our residents,” Calabrese said.