Residents press safety and faith-month flag requests; council okays events, discusses capital projects and PFAS testing

Residents and business owners raised quality-of-life and safety concerns during public comment at the Lock Haven City Council meeting on April 3, and the council moved forward on multiple community requests and informational items.

Karen Bridal, a Lock Haven resident, asked the council for permission to fly a Christian flag in Triangle Park for the month of April to mark a recently publicized "Faith Month." "So with your permission, I would like to fly the Christian flag at the Triangle Park for the month of April," Bridal said. The presiding officer replied that such a request requires staff vetting and an agenda item, and advised Bridal to speak with the director of community life (Casey) for follow-up.

Downtown business owner Paula Reinhart told council she has experienced incidents near her Main Street store and urged the city to study police coverage and downtown safety, warning that reduced evening patrols could invite criminal activity and harm local merchants. Reinhart described private security steps she had taken and said the police chief had been responsive; council members said they would follow up with businesses and staff.

Council approved several event permits: an outdoor free concert at Houston Triangle Park on April 19 (4:30–6 p.m.) with a companion banner for May 4, and a Keystone Central parade scheduled for Sept. 21; both requests were moved, seconded and passed. Craig Fleming requested use of Zindell Park for the 2024 "Fire on the Rocks" 10K (March 16), with final arrangements to depend on ongoing construction; the council approved the date subject to later reevaluation.

On informational items, staff outlined the 2023 capital improvement picture: the city anticipates presenting approximately $1.2 million in water-related improvements for council consideration at the next meeting, including permanent financing of roughly $1,000,000 and a potential Penvest shortfall of about $218,000. Staff also described efforts to pursue grants for a zoning ordinance update and personnel manual—citing a "stamp" grant covering about 50% of such work—and discussed potential green-infrastructure RFPs for alley improvements.

Public works staff reported on PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) testing updates from Pennsylvania Rural Water. Current testing capability down to about 4 parts per trillion was noted, with efforts under way to push detection to lower levels; staff emphasized that testing responsibilities rest with the filtration plant and that increased testing will raise operational costs the city reimburses to the authority.

Council acknowledged two small grants from the Clinton County Community Foundation—a $543 grant for the Hocherman trust (Hocherman Park) and a $667 grant for the Stephen Foreman small business development fund—and then adjourned.

What comes next: staff will vet the flag request and return any formal proposal to a future agenda; staff follow-up is expected on downtown safety outreach; capital projects and the advertised ordinance implementation details will appear on upcoming agendas.