Union City Borough Council

Union City Borough Sidewalk Grant If you are interested in replacing your sidewalk, the Union City Borough has a Sidewalk Grant. You can receive $1.50 per square foot of sidewalk that is replaced. Any work done on sidewalks requires the purchase of a $3.00 Sidewalk Permit and must be completed with the specifications determined by resolution of Borough Council. Contact the Borough Office for more information. This is a chance to have the work completed and receive some money back.

Union City Borough Mural Information http://unioncitypa.us/news/mural-at-south-main-street/

If you are a Union City BOROUGH resident and have tires to dispose of call the Borough Office. We still have room in the dumpster! There is no cost to dispose them and they must be off the rims. Call the Borough Office at 814-438-2331.

Reminder that the Tire Recycling Event for the Union City Borough is this Saturday, June, 5, 2021 from 8:00 - 3:00 at the Borough Garage, 35 Willow Street. Limit of 5 tires per Borough address. Must be removed from rims. FREE to BOROUGH residents. Must show proof of residency.

The Borough of Union City announces the 2021 council meeting schedule for the months of January, February, and March. Council will meet the second and fourth Tuesday each month. The meetings will be held virtually at 6:00 PM on the following dates: January 12, 2021 January 26, 2021 February 9, 2021 February 23, 2021 March 9, 2021 March 23, 2021... Members of the public interested in participating or offering public comment must send an email to [email protected] at least 3 days prior to the meeting to make arrangements.

Don’t forget to register for the residential and business Christmas Decorating contest! Registration ends December 9th. Also, drop off your letters to Santa on December 10th, 11th, and 12th at Coleman’s. Parks & Rec will once again be hosting the Holiday Home Decorating Contest. This year, we are inviting local businesses to also participate with a Christmas window display! Judging will be done on Friday evening, December 11th. The businesses & homes will be judged in a sepa...rate category with prizes for 1st, 2nd, & 3rd place in each. 1st place is $100, 2nd is $75 and 3rd place is $50. You can register by calling the Borough office at 438-2331. Parks & Rec has also made arrangements for children to drop off a letter to Santa in a special mailbox from the North Pole, that will be located at Coleman's on December 10th, 11th, & 12th. Children who drop off their letter to Santa will receive a special treat and be sure to include your return address so Santa can respond!

WINTER PARKING REGULATIONS FOR UC BOROUGH Winter parking regulations are now in effect from November 15th through April 15th.

Christmas is right around the corner! Parks & Rec will once again be hosting the Holiday Home Decorating Contest. This year, we are inviting local businesses to also participate with a Christmas window display! Judging will be done on Friday evening, December 11th. The businesses & homes will be judged in a separate category with prizes for 1st, 2nd, & 3rd place in each. 1st place is $100, 2nd is $75 and 3rd place is $50. You can register by calling the Borough office at 438-2331. Parks & Rec has also made arrangements for children to drop off a letter to Santa in a special mailbox from the North Pole, that will be located at Coleman's on December 10th, 11th, & 12th. Children who drop off their letter to Santa will receive a special treat, & be sure to include your return address so Santa can respond!

LEAF PICKUP FOR UNION CITY BOROUGH Raccoon Refuse picks up leaves within the Borough with regular garbage pickup. However, you are still limited to a total of 12 bags of garbage and/or leaves per week. If you have more than 12 bags you will need to keep them off the curb until the following week. The bags CAN NOT be set at the curb more than 24 hours prior to pickup.

ERIE COUNTY LAND BANK PROPERTIES AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE IN UNION CITY There are four properties in Union City Borough currently owned by the Erie County Land Bank. They are available for purchase. Applications will be accepted until December 31, 2020. If you are interested go to the following link to view the properties and information.... https://public-eclb.epropertyplus.com//app//propertySearch

UNION CITY BUSINESSES/CHURCHES/ORGANIZATIONS Information has been provided about Union City Borough's 150th Birthday in 2021. There was a meeting in October and we have been asking that you get involved in having an event or working with others for an event. We would love to see retail businesses get involved.... We are requesting ideas for events from you by Friday, November 13, 2020 to the following address [email protected]. The attached form can be used, or simply send an email. Please consider getting involved! If you have any questions please contact the Borough office at 814-438-2331.

See what the Erie Times News has to say about Union City!https://www.goerie.com//union-city-pride-diner/3651824001/

Union City Borough Council has hired Jason Sayers to fill the position of Zoning Officer for Union City Borough. We look forward to working with Jason and know that he will be a real asset to the Community. If you are planning any construction projects such as pools, decks, sheds, garage, storage buildings and fences, you should contact Jason at 814-722-6760. He can tell you if there are any zoning requirements for your project. The Zoning Ordinance does have set-back requirements and/or restrictions for some projects.

Our mural project is continuing and there were over 40 responses on the survey. Because public meetings are difficult at this time the artists, Tom Ferraro and Steve Mikolajewski, are requesting this one question survey be completed also. They would like the responses by next Monday, October 19th. Please forward this on to your family and friends for their responses. This is a community project and we would like as much community input as possible. https://s.surveyplanet.com/GuNrjIVgw

The Union City mural project is continuing and there were over 40 responses on the survey. Because public meetings are difficult at this time, the artists Tom Ferraro and Steve Mikolajewski, are requesting this one question survey be completed also. They would like the responses by next Monday, October 19th. Please forward this on to your family and friends for their responses. This is a community project and we would like as much community input as possible. https://s.surveyplanet.com/GuNrjIVgw

The Union City voting/polling locations are still the same. 1) Residents on the East side of Main Street vote at the CMA church located on the corner of East High and Dowman streets. 2) Residents on the West side of Main Street vote at the Firehall located on Second Avenue.

Any business/organization/church that didn't receive a letter about a meeting on Monday, October 12, 2020, please contact the Borough Office at 814-438-2331. The meeting is to discuss plans to celebrate the Borough's 150th birthday.

If you need information on posts from the Union City Borough Council Facebook page, or have questions regarding the Borough, you will need to contact the Borough Office at 814-438-2331. You can also send an email to [email protected]. Borough office hours are Monday Thursday 8:00 AM 4:30 PM and Friday 8:00 AM 3:30 PM.

There will be a Community Workshop, open house style, tomorrow, Wednesday, October 7, 2020, from 5:00 -7:00 PM at the UC Fire Department Social Hall. We need community input for the future plans for the parks. There will be preliminary plans and drawings available to review and an opportunity for you to provide comments on ideas or changes you would like to see. Please share this information with your family and friends! FUNDING FOR THIS PROJECT HAS BEEN PROVIDED BY THE PA DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNITY & ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND THE UNION CITY COMMUNITY FOUNDATION.

Union City gateway design ready for public comment Architectural designs that could transform the north entrance to Union City’s downtown business district a...re ready for public input after several months of discussion between the architect and a local committee. The area under consideration is the intersection of Main and High streets, through which thousands of vehicles pass each day. Considered the gateway to Union City’s downtown, it includes the former Union City Dinor on the southwest corner, the small borough-owned Industrial Park on the northwest corner, and the southeast corner adjacent to Ace Hardware. Nonprofit Union City Pride in 2019 acquired the former dinor and an adjacent building with funding from the Erie Community Foundation’s Shaping Tomorrow program, along with funds from the Union City Community Foundation. Using additional Shaping Tomorrow funds, Union City Pride in February engaged the Erie architectural firm Bostwick Design Partnership to work with a local Gateway Committee to fashion an overall design for the intersection’s three corners. The Gateway Committee consists of Dave Nothum of Union City Pride, Borough Secretary and Pride board member Cindy Wells, Union City Community Foundation board members Steve Jones and Jim Shreve, foundation project manager Steve Bishop, and Preservation Erie board members Melinda Meyer and Dave Skellie. Architects David Brennan and Hayden Erdman headed the project for Bostwick Design Partnership. Meeting initially via online videoconferencing, and more recently in socially distanced in-person meetings, Brennan and the Gateway Committee have worked through a variety of issues related to the intersection design. The first of those issues was whether the iconic dinor building could be repurposed, or should be removed. After visiting the former dinor, which is essentially an external shell with a stripped interior and rotting floors, Brennan said his professional opinion was to remove it. He said the cost of repurposing the building, taking into account accessibility issues and costs under the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), makes reuse financially impractical. Since the building envelope has been neglected and not properly maintained, the building has become uninhabitable and unsafe mainly because of water damage to the structure, said Brennan. Also, there have not been updates to the mechanical, electrical, or plumbing systems which makes rehabilitation very difficult if not impossible without extensive revisions and additional investment. Dave Nothum of Union City Pride concurred. Unfortunately the years of neglect have taken its toll on the building itself, said Nothum. It will be difficult to see that building removed. It’s been part of our lives for many years, but it is time to move on. Nothum added, however, that the larger transformation of the intersection into a true gateway to Union City’s downtown is exciting. We want to create an attractive entrance to the historic downtown area, he said. Several business and residential owners along Main Street and High Street have been making improvements to their buildings. We are hoping this gateway will be the ‘book cover’ that will be the draw to encourage others to ‘open the book’ and discover what Union City is all about. There is a tremendous amount of traffic that goes through our town, Nothum added. It’s important to create an image that says Union City is moving forward and a great place to live. Bostwick Design and the committee ultimately crafted an overall design that includes removing the dinor, and renovating the exterior of the adjacent brick building also owned by Union City Pride. The proposed design of that adjacent building, last used by the Union City Full Gospel Church, is intended to provide a dinor feel from the addition of a line of windows and awning-like metal roof overhang facing West High Street. The front of the building, facing Main Street, would be restored to a more historical look based on old photographs. The entire project, including a new stairwell and hydraulic lift behind the former dinor down to the adjacent municipal parking lot, is proposed to be undertaken in three phases, and would total between $630,000 and $700,000 according to Bostwick’s estimates. Phase 1, totaling between $260,000 and $285,000, would include demolition of the dinor and former church building’s Main Street façade; masonry restoration of the entire church building exterior; restoration of the former church building’s Main Street façade; and infill of the former dinor. Also included in Phase 1 are structural work for new windows and a new door toward the rear of the former church building’s High Street façade; demolition of the existing alley and stairs at the municipal parking lot level; a new retaining wall and stairs from the parking lot; and planting of grass on the former dinor site. Phase 2, totaling between $140,000 and $160,000, would include installing a metal roof overhang on the High Street side of the former church building; a new metal roof above the stairs and alley to the parking lot; the new ADA-compliant lift from the parking lot to the High Street elevation; and alley masonry restoration. Phase 3, totaling between $230,000 and $255,000, would include turning the grass at the former dinor site into a concrete plaza, surrounded by low brick walls and landscaping; installation of new concrete sidewalks and curbs; new iron fencing at the plaza; and new masonry walls and fence surrounding Industrial Park. Phase 3 also includes matching towers on the southwest and southeast intersection corners to complete the feeling of entering a gateway to the downtown ; and a mural on the wall on the west end of Industrial Park. The design will maintain the visual look of the dinor on the corner while at the same time connecting the park across the street and the parking lot in the back, said Nothum. This will provide a very inviting entrance to downtown Union City. The public is being asked specifically to provide input about three different design options for the area toward the rear of the former dinor, where a new door to the adjacent building and improved access to the lower-level parking lot would be created. The three options have differing overhead design features for that new door and the pass-through area between High Street and the new stairs to the parking lot. Architect Dave Brennan said the first design alternative includes a minimalistic approach to the adjacent building entrance roof and also the upper alley passage roof to the parking areas. This first option includes a flat roof and very simple support structure and materials. The intent of the design is to downplay the proposed design interventions while highlighting the existing buildings. The second alternative includes a hipped roof over the adjacent building’s new entrance and the upper alley passage roof leading to the parking areas. The design also includes brick columns and an exposed steel truss roof support structure. This option directs more attention to the entry to the building and the alley, creating more architectural interest to the development. The third alternative includes a pitched roof over the adjacent building’s new rear entrance and a gable roof on the upper alley passage roof leading to the parking areas. The design also includes brick columns and an exposed steel truss roof support structure. This option, similar in design to the second option, also directs more attention to the entrance to the building and the alley, creating more architectural interest to the development. Brennan said the committee had many factors to consider. The biggest challenge, he said, was creating a vision for a new downtown gateway while balancing the need to address the future of the existing dinor building. Another challenge was providing design solutions that align with the community’s ability to fund the improvements. We were tasked to create a downtown entrance that meaningfully interrupts the ongoing traffic and pedestrian flow, defines the edge and entryways into the borough, creates a theme or signature element, and creates an environment that respects the existing downtown character and architecture, Brennan added. Melinda Meyer, president of the board of Preservation Erie, a nonprofit that works to retain key historical architecture in Erie County, said the design work represents a potential new chapter in Union City’s history. It's exciting to see the community coming together to figure out a plan for how to move Union City forward, Meyer added. The north gateway project, as well as efforts happening at the south gateway, are all working toward breathing new life into the downtown. As for funding the project once the design phase is complete, Meyer said it will take time. Projects such as the gateway project don't happen overnight, she said. It will take time to line up the funding needed to move ahead with the different phases of the project. What's most important now is having the community review the proposed plans and provide comment so that the project has the support of residents going forward. Meyer and Brennan said the collaborative seven-month process to create the designs required the meshing of a variety of opinions among the committee. While the overarching goal for the project is consistent among all project partners, opinions on how this goal is achieved varied, said Meyer. It took several meetings with honest conversations to figure out what everyone was thinking, and the current working design draft reflects ideas from all planning partners. And now, the public is being asked for its feedback. Through Friday, Oct. 16, comments about the three design alternatives can be emailed to [email protected]. Large posters showing the overall gateway design, as well as the three design alternatives, are in the windows of the former Family Dollar store on Main Street, and in the lobby of the Union City Post Office. In addition, a short video about the design process and the design alternatives themselves can be viewed on the borough’s website at unioncitypa.us, and on the borough’s Facebook page. The video is also available on the Union City Community Foundation’s website and Facebook page, as well as other community Facebook accounts. It’s always good to get a variety of thoughts and opinions on any subject, said Union City Pride’s Nothum. It is very possible that the input will provide some insight that we hadn’t considered. It’s important to get community support for a project of this magnitude. Written by Steve Bishop

Friday, October 16th is the last day to provide comments on the UNION CITY "GATEWAY" DESIGN READY FOR PUBLIC COMMENT Architectural designs that could transform the north entrance to Union City’s downtown business district are ready for public input after several months of discussion between the architect and a local committee. The area under consideration is the intersection of Main and High streets, through which thousands of vehicles pass each day. Considered the gateway... to Union City’s downtown, it includes the former Union City Dinor on the southwest corner, the small borough-owned Industrial Park on the northwest corner, and the southeast corner adjacent to Ace Hardware. Comments can be emailed to [email protected] through Friday, October 16, 2020 Large posters showing the overall gateway design, as well as the three design alternatives, are in the windows of the former Family Dollar store on Main Street, and in the lobby of the Union City Post Office. See more

The Mural Project for 28 South Main Street is underway! The artists, Tom Ferraro and Steve Mikolajewski for the Looking Glass Art Project, have started to gather public input as to the content of the Mural. We want YOUR response to the survey! Go to https://s.surveyplanet.com/T0gRhPuBF to take the survey. It shouldn't take more than 5 minutes to complete the 10 questions. This mural is for our community and they would like a response from a diverse group of Union City residents. Please take the survey today and know that your input will make a difference!

There will be a meeting to receive public comment and ask questions regarding the COMPREHENSIVE MASTER PARKS PLAN for all the parks in the Borough It will be on Wednesday, October 7, 2020 at 5:00 PM at the Union City Fire Department Social Hall at 50 Second Avenue, Union City. These parks belong to the Borough for the residents to use and we want to hear from you about these parks so please plan to attend.

Zoning Officer for Borough of Union City. Go to http://unioncitypa.us/zoning-officer-job for more information.

UC BOROUGH ZONING CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS - If anyone is planning a construction project such as decks, sheds, garage, storage buildings, swimming pools and fences, please contact the Borough Office at 814-438-2331. Zoning requirements can be explained for your specific project if they are required. The zoning ordinance does have set-back requirements and/or restrictions for some projects.