ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT
ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT
Joseph R . Dietrick , P . E ., P . L . S . - Consulting Engineer
Murrysville is an outstanding community for many reasons including great schools , great churches , great community spirit , great parks , great roads and , of course , great people . In an era were politics seems to rule over common sense , Murrysville stands apart because the good of the community has always overridden any political influence . This has allowed Murrysville to develop in such a way as to provide for exceptional housing opportunities while at the same time preserving open space and farm land . The strict environmental requirements that are necessary to maintain a high quality of life are of utmost importance to the Murrysville community . There is a community spirit in Murrysville that continues to want a better way of life that has enabled Murrysville to become such a great place to live .
The 2016 Paving Contract was awarded to the Tresco Paving Corporation in the amount of $ 1,500,000 . This year ’ s project included the following streets : Bren Dina Court , Cal-Ken Court , Cherry Drive , Christy Road , Cole Road , Crowfoot Road , Gun Club Road , Harvest Drive , Hickory Hill Road , Lou-Nita Court , Manor Oaks Drive , and Sardis Road . The repairs on the roads consisted of pavement replacement , milling of old asphalt , and adjustment of the existing inlets . Also included in this contract was the construction of a new connector road between Old William Penn Highway and the Branthoover Jug Handle . This new connector will allow traffic to access Route 22 from Old William Penn Highway at this location . In all , approximately 17,000 tons of new asphalt was installed on Murrysville ’ s roads .
Because of its location on the Route 22 corridor , Branthoover Cutoff , now named “ Tanglewood Way ” was made to be aesthetically pleasing with earthwork being performed , including clearing of underbrush , tree trimming , grubbing , and planting of grass . The Public Works Department was instrumental in the development of the road connecting Route 22 and Old William Penn Highway , as well as the aforementioned earthwork . Coming in 2017 will be a pedestrian / bike trail along this improvement to connect with the Westmoreland Heritage Trail at the Roberts ’ property .
During the course of preparing Crowfoot Road for a bituminous overlay , it was discovered that the concrete bridge deck on the bridge carrying Crowfoot Road over Haymaker Run was deteriorated . An emergency contract was prepared to remove the old bridge deck and construct a new reinforced concrete bridge deck . This work needed to be accomplished before school started in August because the Crowfoot Road Bridge serves as the main access point for school busses entering and exiting the Sloan Elementary School . Gulisek Construction completed the required work in five weeks and the bridge was ready in time for school . The cost of this project was $ 67,600 .
A Community Development Block Grant project , sponsored by the Westmoreland County Planning Department was started last year on Washington Street . This project included removal of an existing concrete slab bridge and installation of a 60- inch diameter culvert with concrete endwalls . The project also involved the relocation of storm sewers , a gabion retaining wall , rock riprap , pavement repair , pavement overlay and guide rail installation . Winter weather halted this project in December and the work has subsequently been complete in the spring of this year .
Murrysville continues to update and improve its MS4 program . MS4 stands for Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System and Murrysville is required by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection to obtain a permit for this system . The permit requires Murrysville to maintain records of its entire storm system including inlets , pipes , stormwater detention basins , ditches and swales . All stormwater outfalls have to be located and tested on a regular basis . Compilation of this data , mapping of the infrastructure and maintenance of records is a formidable task that the staff is working on almost daily . In support of the MS4 program , the Murrysville Council passed a new Stormwater Management Ordinance in February . This new ordinance now requires new developments to ensure that at least 50 percent of the required parking spaces are constructed with pervious pavement . The new ordinance also requires more use of Stormwater Best Management Practices ( BMPs ) on all newly developing sites .
Murrysville partnered with the Westmoreland Conservation District to improve seven stormwater detention basins throughout Murrysville . Detention basins in the Country Meadows Plan , Fairfield Estates Plan , Settler ’ s Ridge Plan , Kellington Estates Plan , Hilltop Estates Plan and the Heritage Estates Plan were modified . These modifications included reducing the outlet orifices and in some cases installing new outlet structures . The purpose of this project was to make these stormwater basins more effective at detaining stormwater flows . The benefits of this project include reduced downstream flooding and better water quality for the Murrysville streams .
A total of seven subdivision plans and four site plans were reviewed in 2016 . The site plans reviewed included the demolition of the existing Sheetz store and construction of a new , larger store at the same location .
Murrysville has been working with the Westmoreland County Parks Department in the development of the Heritage Trail . The Heritage Trail will be a biking and walking trail that follows the old railroad grade of the Turtle Creek Railroad . Phase I of this trail will start in Trafford and end in Murrysville near Duff Park . The Murrysville Public Works Department has assisted the County with the installation of storm pipes and bridge construction . Plans are being prepared for the construction of a trailhead parking area that will be located across from the Branthoover Cutoff . This trailhead parking area will provide direct access to the Heritage Trail .
The Municipal staff met with representatives from Sunoco to discuss the Mariner East II pipeline project . This project will follow the same route as the Mariner East I pipeline . This pipeline will carry natural gas from Western Pennsylvania , Northern West Virginia , and Eastern Ohio east to the terminals near Philadelphia .
The Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission is planning to expand the Turnpike between Irwin and Monroeville . This expansion will require the replacement of the bridge carrying Trafford Road over the Turnpike . This project will obviously impact travelers on Trafford Road , but will also impact Lyons Run Road in Murrysville . Lyons Run Road will be re-constructed for about 1,300 feet and a new culvert will be constructed . The date of this construction is not known at this time . urrysville MUNICIPALITY OF MURRYSVILLE NEWS
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