BELLEFONTE — Last week, the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) awarded Centre County $1,235,000 from the 2024 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Discretionary Program fund to support the Eagle Creek Sewer Project.

This investment will address long-standing regulatory concerns with the on-site wastewater treatment plant by connecting the Eagle Creek community to the public sewer system operated by Mid-Centre Authority in Unionville Borough.

Eagle Creek community was developed in the late 1990s as an affordable living community for working families in the Bald Eagle Valley. At its inception, the community constructed an on-site community drinking water system and a wastewater treatment plant (WWTP).

Over time, the community grew to include 33 homes, and the needs of the community changed. In 2018, the Department of Environmental Protection informed Eagle Creek that the operating permit for the WWTP would not be renewed. Eagle Creek community would have to develop and implement a plan to convey its sewage to the Mid-Centre Authority in nearby Unionville and properly abandon the Eagle Creek WWTP.

The Eagle Creek Homeowners Association (HOA) has spent $60,000 in local funds on easements, surveys and required studies. The HOA has completed the initial design, proposing the installation of about 2,800 feet of conveyance line.

Total project cost has been estimated to be $1,500,000. Without CDBG funding, costs for residents would have increased 240 percent above the area’s affordability rate, threatening the affordable housing options in Centre County.

Centre County Government and various partners worked together, recognizing this project safeguards the health and financial security of Eagle Creek residents, preserves affordable housing and strengthens the region’s infrastructure. This project helps ensure long-term sustainability and improved quality of life for the greater Centre County community.

These funds are extremely competitive. Only $6.2 million of additional water and sewer system Discretionary CDBG funds were awarded across the Commonwealth, with only five counties receiving funds this year.

Entities are allowed to request funding for the same project for three years. This was the last year that SEDA-COG, the County’s grant administrator, could apply for CDBG funds for the Eagle Creek project.

In its last attempt at requesting this funding, the Eagle Creek project was awarded CDBG funds, and the Centre County Board of Commissioners allocated the total award amount to the project.

The Commissioners issued the following joint statement:

“The Commissioners are thrilled with the announcement of the grant. This project is crucial for the families who live in the Eagle Creek housing development. The families have already invested significant funds towards this project and could not cover the entire cost of the project.This CDBG grant will make a big difference. We thank Governor Shapiro and Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) Secretary Rick Siger and his staff. We appreciate the hard work done by Senator Dush and Representative Takac and their staffs.”

“We echo the Commissioners’ sentiments. We are also grateful to our CDBG program administration: the SEDA-COG staff,” said Director of Centre County’s Planning and Community Development Ray Stolinas. “They have played a vital role in preserving affordable housing in the Eagle Creek community by applying for these competitive infrastructure dollars throughout the past few grant cycles. And thank you to the board of commissioners for recognizing the critical need for these improvements and committing the entire CDBG allotment to this project.”

Leslie Hosterman, SEDA-COG project coordinator, attended the meeting to share information about the grant application and the project. Hosterman noted that the next steps include executing contracts, conducting environmental reviews and, hopefully, getting the project out for bid in mid- to late-spring. The completion of the work is weather dependent, but with an estimate of 12 weeks for the connection project, Hosterman said it is likely the project would be completed before the end of 2026.

Hosterman and each of the Commissioners noted the importance of CDBG funding. The team thanked state and federal legislators and the community for advocating for this project as well as the continuation of CDBG programs.