Murrysville staff to try to stretch $7,500 police bicycle grant into broader program

Murrysville officials told council they received a $7,500 grant intended to support a police bicycle program and will seek internal budget options to implement the program without turning the award back.

Chief Administrator Michael said the original grant application requested slightly more than $21,000, so staff and finance will explore cost-sharing and in-house resources to keep the grant and mount the program. "The grant was for $7,500," Michael said. He described possible uses including neighborhood patrols, coverage at community events and patrols along the trail.

Michael said staff also discussed reserving a municipal parking spot at the Roberts trail head to stage the bicycle patrols, allowing officers to deploy bikes and retain ready access to vehicles if they must respond to other incidents.

Council did not vote to appropriate funds at the meeting; staff said they will work with the finance department to identify potential funding sources and report back to council. No timeline for implementation was finalized during the session.