Four Luzerne County departments want to collectively seek a $203,786 Local Share Account grant from casino gambling funds for an “emergency services bundle” to create a drone program and purchase three vehicles for the prison, coroner’s, and sheriff’s offices.
The county administration is asking County Council to approve a partnership agreement for Hanover Township to apply for the grant because the county is statutorily prohibited from applying on its own.
The council is set to discuss the partnership at Tuesday’s work session.
Township Manager Samuel T. Guesto Jr. said state Rep. Alec Ryncavage, R-Hanover Township, asked township commissions to consider applying for the county package, and the matter is expected to appear on the township’s September voting agenda.
Drone
The county Emergency Management Agency is requesting $49,700 for the drone program.
“Traditional ground-based assessments are slow, resource-intensive, and often place responders at unnecessary risk” in handling emergencies that include flooding and other severe weather, hazardous material incidents, large-scale accidents, missing person searches, and damage assessments, its presentation said.
A centralized drone program would ensure countywide coverage, standardized procedures, professionally trained pilots, and rapid deployment for all municipal partners, it said.
The funding would cover equipment, software, training, and resources necessary to operate a two-tier drone fleet capable of all-weather:
• Search and rescue
• Night operations with thermal imaging
• Real-time situational awareness for police and other emergency responders
• Flood and storm impact assessments
• Hazardous materials reconnaissance
• Mapping and other documentation for flood planning and damage documentation
At least six county emergency management workers would obtain licensing to operate the drones. The proposal estimates that up to a year would be needed to fully activate the program, which factors in time for training, multi-agency field exercises, and protocol implementation.
After initial grant funding, county EMA would sustain the program through a combination of county funds, potential partnerships with municipalities and additional grants, it said.
Vehicles
The prison is requesting $55,579 for a long-distance inmate transport vehicle, said Stanley Fiedorczyk, head of the county Correctional Services Division.
Fiedorczyk told the council’s Correctional Services Committee in May that the prison fleet is aging and not sufficient for transport demands required to transport inmates to state facilities, work release, pre-work release community service, local court proceedings, and medical visits.
In the sheriff’s office, $51,895 is needed for a vehicle because its fleet has eight vehicles out of service, the administration said.
Several frontline sheriff patrol and transport vehicles are between 11 and 19 years old, including multiple Ford Crown Victorias dating back to 2006 and 2011 — all with more than 125,000 miles and recurring mechanical failures, according to an office submission.
Coroner Dion Fernandes said his $46,612 request would fund a vehicle to proactively address his aging fleet. The vehicle would be used by staff to respond to calls throughout the county and, in some cases, transport the deceased to his office’s morgue in Hanover Township, he said.
Dallas Township
The administration also wants County Council’s approval to seek an LSA grant through Dallas Township, seeking $2.3 million to complete the next phase of paving county-owned Lower Demunds Road.
Township Supervisors voted to apply for the grant last week.
The county completed paving and stormwater improvements along 1.97 miles of Lower Demunds through a $2 million County Council allocation of federal American Rescue Plan Act funds.
County Operational Services Division Head Michele Sparich said the county received positive feedback on the completed portion, but the county does not have funds to complete the rest.
If awarded, the LSA grant would design and complete resurfacing and minor drainage improvements of the 2.03-mile stretch from Wyoming Road to Upper Demunds Road, the agenda said.
Due to the way the LSA program was set up, the county is only permitted to directly seek grants in the statewide funding round.
The council recently voted to seek a $300,000 statewide LSA grant from the Commonwealth Financing Authority to design and complete road improvements on a 4,800-foot stretch of the Huntsville Road Extension in Jackson and Lehman townships.
The county previously sought the full project cost of $524,300 for the project, but it was only awarded $222,000.
Sparich said the county does not want to proceed with the final engineering design unless the project is fully funded.
Tuesday’s work session follows a 6 p.m. voting meeting at the county courthouse on River Street in Wilkes-Barre. Instructions for the remote attendance option will be posted in the online meeting section at luzernecounty.org.