Blakeslee – Pennsylvania State Representatives Rosemary Brown (R-189), Mike Carroll (D-118), and Mario Scavello (R-176) joined the Monroe County Industrial Development Authority (MCIDA) on Wednesday to present a check for more than $66,000 in Local Share Account (LSA) gaming revenue to the Monroe County Municipal Waste Authority.
The Waste Authority plans to use the funds to purchase a new Ford 350 Cargo Van and a Ford F350 pickup truck with a special lift gate and tilt bed. The vehicles will support Monroe County’s Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition (ARD) litter cleanup program and its dear carcass removal program, respectively. Waste Authority Executive Director Jim Lambert says he is grateful for the bi-partisan support of the legislators who lobbied on behalf of the Authority’s LSA grant application.
“The support of Representatives Scavello, Brown and Carroll was essential to the success of our grant application,” says Lambert. “The funds made available through the LSA grant will keep Monroe County beautiful by enabling the Waste Authority to continue cleanup programs that enhance our scenic local roads.”
The funds are part of grants provided to Monroe County via the Pennsylvania Horse Race and Gaming Development Act, or Act 71, which set up a “local share assessment account” (LSA) and required Pennsylvania’s Department of Community and Economic Development to distribute money that is generated by licensed gaming facilities to support community and economic development projects and mitigate the impact of gaming activities.
MCIDA Executive Director Chuck Leonard says that the grant given to the Waste Authority exhibits the diversity of projects supported by LSA grants. “These grants fund everything from higher education to infrastructure development and everything in between,” says Leonard. “Anything that’s critical to our region’s economic success. And since Monroe County’s natural beauty is critical to our tourism industry, the impact of this grant can’t be understated.”
The Monroe County Industrial Development Authority is part of the Pocono Mountains Economic Development Corporation, a non-profit economic development corporation dedicated to creating jobs for Monroe County residents, expanding the county’s tax base, and attracting new investment with the direct support of the Monroe County Commissioners. More information on economic development in Monroe County can be found at www.www.pmedc.com.
The Monroe County Municipal Waste Authority provides comprehensive information regarding waste disposal and coordinates a wide variety of recycling programs. More information is available at The Waste Authority.