The funding for another major element of "Impact Warren" has fallen into place.

U.S. Senator Rick Santorum on Wednesday delivered a check for $1.5 million, which will be used the create a new Transit Authority of Warren County transportation center in a former Loranger Manufacturing building on Clark St.

Coupled with PennDOT money the transit authority has saved and earmarked for new facilities in recent years, TAWC now has enough funding for the $2.2 million transit center.

TAWC executive director John Aldrich said exact costs will not be known until an architect refines the cost of renovating the building, but the $1.5 million delivered by Santorum should be enough to meet costs.

"We're confident we have adequate funds to what we want to do," Aldrich said after Santorum delivered the ceremonial check. "We have enough now."
Aldrich anticipates TAWC may now be in a position to acquire the building as soon as this fall.

The $1.5 million, said Aldrich, can be applied to acquisition, design, engineering and renovation work of the new transit center.

Santorum said he was pleased to be able to secure funding for "Impact Warren," a $50 million downtown and riverfront revitalization project which the senator said obviously is a "high priority" in the community.

The federal funding, said Santorum, will help "make sure we have the economic impetus to keep this beautiful area strong and growing."

Warren Mayor Mark Phillips said that the efforts of Santorum and other federal and state lawmakers "show that when you have a good, solid project, legislators will come to bat for you."

Phillips said, "The pot of money is only so large" for competing communities, but he believes the strength of "Impact Warren" lies in the fact it contains varied components, including housing, recreation and transportation.

The current TAWC facility in Starbrick is cramped and landlocked by topography. Estimates for renovating and expanding the Starbrick facility range from $600,000 to $800,000. PennDOT has told the authority it does not think spending that much money on renovating the existing building would be cost effective.

The Starbrick building contains about 10,000 square feet. The Loranger building, once converted, would provide the authority with more than 18,000 square feet.
In a project description included in the authority's 2002-2003 budget package, a facilities committee said a new transit center in Warren could not only house the authority's 16 vehicles, but include offices, a waiting area, maintenance area and a place to temporarily house charter buses which come into the Warren area. A transit center could also be an asset in attempting to attract regular commercial bus service to the Warren area.