Luzerne County seeking bids for airport hangars

Luzerne County is seeking bids to construct hangars and taxiways at the county-owned Wyoming Valley Airport in Forty Fort and Wyoming, an online posting said.

Bids are due March 26, a solicitation on the county purchasing section at luzernecounty.org said.

County Council unanimously agreed last month to allocate an additional $850,000 in federal American Rescue Plan Act funding for capital improvements at the 110-acre airport, increasing the total earmark to $8.3 million.

The schedule will be tight because American Rescue projects must be completed by the end of this year to comply with federal regulations.

New hangars were included in the project because the 1930s ones are deteriorating and too small for today’s airplanes, officials have said. Valley Aviation Inc., the airport’s longtime fixed base operator, has said it routinely receives inquiries from pilots and companies interested in parking their planes there if space becomes available, which is why new hangars are expected to generate revenue.

Delta Airport Consultants Inc. is handling engineering and planning for the airport projects.

Thursday meeting

The county GIS, Planning and Zoning Department will hold a public forum from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday in the county courthouse for residents to learn more about a draft county zoning ordinance amendment that would regulate data centers.

Department representatives and county attorneys will be on hand to provide information and answer questions.

If approved, the ordinance will take effect in 20 municipalities that rely on county zoning instead of handling it on their own: the boroughs of Avoca, Courtdale, Dupont, Duryea, Hughestown, Jeddo, Laflin, New Columbus, Pringle, Warrior Run, West Wyoming, and Yatesville, and the townships of Conyngham, Fairmount, Hunlock, Huntington, Lake, Newport, Ross, and Union.

The draft is under review by the county administration and the county Planning Commission. County Council approval is necessary for the amendment to take effect. Information about the proposal is posted in the GIS, Planning and Zoning section at luzernecounty.org.

Election position

The county Election Bureau is accepting applications for a vacant voting system specialist position advertised at $48,000 annually, according to a posting in the Human Resources Department career opportunities section at luzernecounty.org.

Applications are due March 12.

Minimum qualifications include a high school diploma or equivalency and 3 to 5 years of experience in a legal, governmental, or political office environment, the posting said.

This worker must perform specialized duties under the election director’s supervision, including balloting, helping in the tabulation process, and warehouse logistics, it said.

Infrastructure project

The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission has offered to replace a deteriorated drainage culvert and pipe along county-owned Main Road in Ross Township at no cost to the county, officials said.

The commission is addressing the project as part of the Harris Pond Dam rehabilitation project on its property in the township, the agenda said. For the downstream channel portion of that project, the commission will remove and replace the existing stone masonry arch culvert along Main Road with a precast box culvert and external drainage system, it said.

County Council approved the agreement.