A York-based engineering firm is about to do $2.6 million worth of engineering and design services for improvements in the Old City area of downtown Williamsport.

Buchart Horn was hired by City Council after submitting a proposal through a competitive qualifications based selection request for proposals. Five companies submitted similar proposals, Scott Williams, city planner and deputy director of the department of community and economic development, said.

Old City is the area named because it was the first place settlers began to build houses and businesses, government buildings and animal stables in the late 1700s. It is an area east of Market Street that has been under revitalization for many years.

Funding sources

The Old City Revitalization Project is being developed under a funding partnership between the city and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) under an existing grant award agreement.

Final architectural design and project engineering will be used to plan and construct a new economic development facility adjacent to the Lycoming College campus.

The newly proposed facility is expected to fill a regional economic development need, but, now, requires a funding partnership between HUD and the city, according to the firm’s scope of the project. This work is expected to take about seven months of the award of the design and engineering contract and permitting a bit longer, but that is not in control of the firm.

Scope of the project

The Old City Revitalization Initiative includes three major components: City street light modernization; utility improvements; and the Basin Street Susquehanna Riverwalk connector.

So far, public and private partnerships have invested a total of $57 million in the first two phases of the project.

There’s been initial communication with both the SEDA-Council of Governments SEDA-COG Joint Rail Authority and the Williamsport Municipal Sanitary Authority regarding alignments to the river walk connection at Basin Street, but no formal agreement with either entity for a final alignment.

Subsequent correspondence with the authority officials has ruled out the possibility of a trail alignment through the wastewater treatment plant.

The street light modernization is on the following: East Fourth Street from Market to Penn streets; East Willow Street from Market to Penn streets; East Third Street from Market to Penn streets; East Church Street from Market to Basin streets; Mulberry Street from Little League Boulevard to East Church Street; Academy Street from East Fourth to East Church streets; and Basin Street from East Fourth Street to Jefferson Lane/I-180 ramp.

Utility upgrades will require a consultant to convene a coordination meeting with Lycoming College to determine sufficiency of current utility availability at undeveloped tax parcels owned by the college. It is Buchart Horn’s understanding that the area of interest is bounded by Fourth Street, Basin Street, Academy Street and Third Street.

As for the Basin Street connection to the Susquehanna Riverwalk, the company will provide preliminary and final design for a new bicycle/pedestrian connection to the walk along Basin Street.

The path will be designed on the east side of Basin Street from Fourth Street, across the I-180 Basin Street exit ramp, underneath I-180, across Jefferson Lane and the Basin Street ramp to 1-180. From the south side of Jefferson Lane, the path will ascend an Americans with Disabilities acceptable grade and width compliant ramp to a new grade crossing the active SEDA-COG Joint Rail Authority rail line and then connect to the existing Susquehanna Riverwalk.

Railroad approval is critical for the viability of this alignment, the firm states. Buchart Horn will prepare a preliminary layout and meet with representatives of SEDA-COG as soon as possible in an effort to determine if the railroad will approve the proposed at-grade crossing.

The whole project details also are available for public viewing on the city website.