Committee to Study Mburgh Sidewalks

Utilities May Go Underground in Future

MIDDLEBURGH - The sidewalks in the Middleburgh business district have been an issue for several years and a new village committee has been formed to look at updating the sidewalks.

The changes could have a profound effect on the look of downtown.

Trustee Bob Tinker said that the committee could look at getting new sidewalks on both sides of the street in the business district and having the utilities moved underground, removing the need for most poles and wires.

Village board members Monday night agreed to create the new sidewalk committee and named Mayor Tim Knight, Deputy Mayor and Trustee Sheryl Adams, DPW Superintendent Cole Keyser, and Main Street business owners Patty Eddy-Beal and Rich Vilegi to the committee.

The committee will focus on the commercial and business district as the sidewalks in the residential area of the village can be covered by funds in the village budget, Mayor Knight said.

Part of the job of the committee will be finding grant funding to cover the cost of new sidewalks, Trustee Tinker said. He noted that the cost of the new sidewalk from near the post office and up Main Street cost about $115,000. To redo the sidewalk on both sides of Main Street in the business district may cost $750,000.

Mayor Knight said that the Village of Stamford in Delaware County recently got a large grant to redo their sidewalk and put utilities underground.

The underground utilities would give Main Street a much "cleaner" look, officials said.