Hamburg Receives Several Downtown Grants Again

Our Town Foundation News
9/28/06

The Hamburg Area Art Alliance of Our Town Foundation was notified that they will receive $1,687.00 from the Berks Arts Council and the PA Council on the Arts organize and promote a Summer in the City Art Stroll from May - October, 2007. Art Strolls will include performing entertainment in the downtown, plus local art being showcased in participating businesses.

The Hamburg Our Town Foundation also received notification that a grant application for $25,000.00 that was submitted for the Borough was approved by the Berks County Planning Commission through their Open Space and Recreation grant program. This funding will be used to establish fishing areas and to create a canoe/kayak docking area along the Schuylkill River and Canal path. In addition, funds will be used to link the current Etchberger Schuylkill Canal Trail to the old RR bridge trail crossing over the River, which then links to the Blue Mountain Wildlife conservation area at the Kernsville Dam.

An even larger amount of funding was initially approved for the old Wright's Knitwear building. The PA Housing Finance Authority approved a total of $4.6 million which will be given to the Alliance for Building Communities, a non-profit developer that will convert a portion of the Wright's building into a 27 unit Sr. housing complex. The Alliance is hoping to have final architectural and engineering drawings and specifications complete by March 2007. This project was initiated through the Blueprint Community Team for Hamburg . It is our hopes that this project will spur development in the remainder of the old factory.