Bellefonte Boro council gives update on wall collapse
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BELLEFONTE -- While there are no major updates on the wall collapse that occurred on Nov. 12, Bellefonte Borough officials have been keeping a close eye on the proceedings.
A section of the stone wall/support along South Water Street (state Route 150) collapsed earlier this month, forcing PennDOT to detour traffic and make it a one-lane road.
Currently, traffic leaving Bellefonte toward State College is traveling on one open lane on South Water Street, according to borough officials. Inbound traffic toward Bellefonte is being directed onto Stoney Batter.
According to Bellefonte Borough Council, PennDOT has indicated it's currently reviewing repair options for the bridge. The repair work is estimated to take two months to complete once started. PennDOT officials are currently surveying the grounds.
"They're doing core borings to see where bedrock is and how far down that is. They've yet to devise their final plans -- might even be a temporary plan for now," said borough Manager Ralph Stewart. "That's the best we can say at this point."
The core boring/drilling took place on Nov. 21, before the borough meeting took place.
Councilmember Joanne Tosti-Vasey read an email that she and some other members received from MPO staff regarding the collapse: "The important thing now is what can be done immediately to address the situation. To that extent, the MPO staff has approved an administrative modification that will allow PennDOT to use low-bid savings to get a contractor on site immediately to do soil borings."
Based on the outcome of the ground sample taken, there are two different approaches being considered. Either the borough gets maintenance out to place rock and make temporary repairs, or bring in a contractor to do a design build approach before the asphalt plants close at the end of next week.
Tosti-Vasey also suggested a stone or brick facade to retain the "feeling" of the park area.
"In terms of our historic community I think that would be really nice," said Tosti-Vasey.
There is no indication at this time whether the idea would add additional costs to the repairs or if it can even be done. The plan moving forward is to wait for PennDOT to decide on the repairs before moving on to beautification.