Tired of ads? Subscribers enjoy a distraction-free reading experience.
Click here to subscribe today or Login.

NANTICOKE — Two sections of Nanticoke will see improvements made to streets, according to city officials.

After being stalled in May, the Main Street sewer project will begin as soon as the contractor, Anrich Inc., of Wayne, can move a team back to Nanticoke.

Donna Wall, the interim city manager, said because the project was stalled, Anrich Inc.’s workers were moved to another construction site outside of Nanticoke. Though she confirmed Anrich Inc. was up last week to dig up “soft test pits.”

The project was suspended because of nearby fiber optic cables. When Verizon laid cables for their service in the city, they were run near the outdated sewer lines. Verizon quickly remedied the situation.

Main Street is a state road, and the city needed the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation to approve the project again.

“(Because of the cables) we had to come up with a whole new plan,” Wall said.

The project will replace sewer lines on Main Street, between Walnut and Market streets. When the Geisinger building came into the downtown in 2014, it was hooked up to the older sewer line, creating an issue when its new lines connected to the city’s old lines.

Times Leader records show the project is a federal earmark. Last year, Wall said, the city also received a Local Share Sccount grant of $500,000 for the project.

The Main Street sewer project should be done within two months.

In another part of the city, several streets will begin to be improved thanks to Nanticoke taking out a $3 million Pennsylvania Infrastructure Bank loan in April. The loan will help the city become compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The city will make four payments a year over a 10-year period on the loan, which carries .75 percent interest rate.

Wall said several streets in the Honey Pot section of the city, including Access Road and Hanover Street, are marked for that project.

The contractor for the project will be Stell Enterprises.

By Melanie Mizenko

[email protected]

Reach Melanie Mizenko at 570-991-6116 or on Twitter @TL_MMizenko