County Commissioners lay out goals for 2023

Pike County. Commissioners say expending medical services, as well as the restoration of the Bennett Avenue Property, are high priorities.

| 18 Jan 2023 | 03:59

Reorganization happened at the Commissioner’s meeting on Tuesday January 3, 2023 before the start of the official meeting. Meetings will continue to be held on the first and third Monday’s of the month at 11 a.m.

The priorities of the Commissioners for the year 2023 is expanding medical services and working on initiatives to achieve this goal. Along with this is, another high priority item is the restoration of the Bennett Avenue Property, according to Commissioner Matthew Osterberg.

There have already been strides in achieving better medical services for Pike County. On Dec. 7, 2022 the commissioners announced their plan to establish the Pike County Medical Foundation Fund. The vision of this foundation is to have it serve as the vehicle to bring a 24-hour emergency room to the county. Already, $2 million from the American Rescue Plan Act has been allocated to fund the foundation, according to Commissioner Osterberg.

Along with this financial contribution, the commissioners have committed a 30 acre county-owned property located at the Blooming Grove complex to any provider that is willing to open a medical facility, Osterberg added.

With the restoration of the Bennett Avenue Property, it will be used for the new office space for the Pike County Transportation and Human Services Offices. It will house the county fleet as well as the future site of a new countywide recycling center.

The county plans to partner with the Human Resource Center to assist in staffing the facility.

This project will be presented at the Milford Borough meeting in February, Osterberg said.

See Page 20 for related story: Osterberg and Schmalzle announce their 2023 re-election campaign