News
A reproduction of an antique sidewalk in front of one of Hazleton's historic homes is being replaced with a modern, handicap-friendly pavement in a state department of transportation project designed to improve public safety.
But AnnaJean Muckler, owner of the Israel Platt Pardee mansion at 235 N. Laurel St. said the project is an unnecessary waste of public money that will degrade the historic ambiance of her property.
The mansion was the home of Israel P. Pardee, son of Ario Pardee, who founded the city of Hazleton by building the Beaver Meadows Railroad in 1833. The 19-room Queen Anne clapboard Victorian home was built in 1893 by George W. Barber, an architect nationally known for his Victorian designs. The only remaining Pardee home in the Hazleton area, the I.P. Pardee mansion is listed on the National Historic Register.
"I wish there was a way we could stop this," Muckler said of the PennDOT project to replace the sidewalk curbs outside her home.
According to Karen Dussinger, press officer at PennDOT's District 4-0 office in Dunmore, the $92,779.75 PennDOT project is a safety enhancement projects that will install new traffic poles and signal heads, junction boxes, re-time the signal controllers, construct ADA-compliant curb ramps for handicapped pedestrians, add pavement markings and signing at Diamond Avenue's intersection with North Laurel and Aspen streets.
Muckler said she spent $25,000 about 10 years ago to install new sidewalks and curbs in an off-white color for historical accuracy.
"For 25 years I have been restoring this place to historical accuracy. What they are doing is going to make it look commercial while I have been working to make it look historical," Muckler said.
Muckler said her 10-year old sidewalks met ADA specifications when they were installed.
"Church and Diamond Streets need curbing. Diamond and Aspen doesn't need curbing," she said.
But the curbs at Church and Diamond Street are not PennDOT property, they're city property. The sidewalks at Muckler's are in the PennDOT right-of-way, Dussinger said.
"The sidewalk are in our right-of-way, meaning we own the land," Dussinger said.
In the years since Mucklar installed her "antique style" sidewalks, Dussinger said ADA standards have, indeed, changed, which is why the curbs must be re-built to meet current standards.
"Specifically, we must repair the side slopes from the sidewalk down to the ramp because they are too steep and need to be flattened. Also, there is a ¾" lip between the curb and roadway that is required to be flush.
"We are removing and replacing the minimum we need to accomplish the installation of the new ramp. We are working with the contractor to tint or color the concrete to match as best as we are able and are trying to duplicate the glass in it using current materials," Dussinger said.
In any project that involves sidewalks and utilizes federal money, the Americans with Disabilities Act and the regulations that come from it require PennDOT to make them current, Dussinger said.
Muckler said in the 26 years she has lived in the Pardee mansion, she has never seen anyone with a white cane or a guide dog pass her house. She said she is not uncompassionate to the needs of handicapped citizens. But feels the money spent to re-construct 10-year-old curbs would be better spent fixing roads and bridges.
"The streets look like Bangladesh," Muckler said of potholes. "You would think Hazleton would appreciate people who restore their property."
In a written statement detailing reasons for the PennDOT project, Dussinger said: the availability of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (federal stimulus) dollars gave PennDOT another resource by which to accomplish the ongoing mission of providing ADA compliant curb ramps along the state-maintained system.
"We are moving that mission forward as we resurface the system. We allocated $32 million in recovery dollars for 15 curb ramp contracts around the state. Each of these contracts is covering multiple locations. Curb ramps also are being done as part of the 85 resurfacing projects funded with more than $406 million of recovery dollars."
But AnnaJean Muckler, owner of the Israel Platt Pardee mansion at 235 N. Laurel St. said the project is an unnecessary waste of public money that will degrade the historic ambiance of her property.
The mansion was the home of Israel P. Pardee, son of Ario Pardee, who founded the city of Hazleton by building the Beaver Meadows Railroad in 1833. The 19-room Queen Anne clapboard Victorian home was built in 1893 by George W. Barber, an architect nationally known for his Victorian designs. The only remaining Pardee home in the Hazleton area, the I.P. Pardee mansion is listed on the National Historic Register.
"I wish there was a way we could stop this," Muckler said of the PennDOT project to replace the sidewalk curbs outside her home.
According to Karen Dussinger, press officer at PennDOT's District 4-0 office in Dunmore, the $92,779.75 PennDOT project is a safety enhancement projects that will install new traffic poles and signal heads, junction boxes, re-time the signal controllers, construct ADA-compliant curb ramps for handicapped pedestrians, add pavement markings and signing at Diamond Avenue's intersection with North Laurel and Aspen streets.
Muckler said she spent $25,000 about 10 years ago to install new sidewalks and curbs in an off-white color for historical accuracy.
"For 25 years I have been restoring this place to historical accuracy. What they are doing is going to make it look commercial while I have been working to make it look historical," Muckler said.
Muckler said her 10-year old sidewalks met ADA specifications when they were installed.
"Church and Diamond Streets need curbing. Diamond and Aspen doesn't need curbing," she said.
But the curbs at Church and Diamond Street are not PennDOT property, they're city property. The sidewalks at Muckler's are in the PennDOT right-of-way, Dussinger said.
"The sidewalk are in our right-of-way, meaning we own the land," Dussinger said.
In the years since Mucklar installed her "antique style" sidewalks, Dussinger said ADA standards have, indeed, changed, which is why the curbs must be re-built to meet current standards.
"Specifically, we must repair the side slopes from the sidewalk down to the ramp because they are too steep and need to be flattened. Also, there is a ¾" lip between the curb and roadway that is required to be flush.
"We are removing and replacing the minimum we need to accomplish the installation of the new ramp. We are working with the contractor to tint or color the concrete to match as best as we are able and are trying to duplicate the glass in it using current materials," Dussinger said.
In any project that involves sidewalks and utilizes federal money, the Americans with Disabilities Act and the regulations that come from it require PennDOT to make them current, Dussinger said.
Muckler said in the 26 years she has lived in the Pardee mansion, she has never seen anyone with a white cane or a guide dog pass her house. She said she is not uncompassionate to the needs of handicapped citizens. But feels the money spent to re-construct 10-year-old curbs would be better spent fixing roads and bridges.
"The streets look like Bangladesh," Muckler said of potholes. "You would think Hazleton would appreciate people who restore their property."
In a written statement detailing reasons for the PennDOT project, Dussinger said: the availability of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (federal stimulus) dollars gave PennDOT another resource by which to accomplish the ongoing mission of providing ADA compliant curb ramps along the state-maintained system.
"We are moving that mission forward as we resurface the system. We allocated $32 million in recovery dollars for 15 curb ramp contracts around the state. Each of these contracts is covering multiple locations. Curb ramps also are being done as part of the 85 resurfacing projects funded with more than $406 million of recovery dollars."
