Why we're running
Innovative Borough Communications
Since our very first Democratic council members were elected four years ago, one of our top goals has been to improve our borough's communications. First, we introduced live streaming of our borough meetings on Zoom. This allows our residents to remain fully informed of the borough's business, even when they are unable to attend the meetings in person. Secondly, we introduced quarterly newsletters that update our residents on upcoming events and give them important seasonal reminders to keep our community safe and beautiful. Finally and most recently, we are in the process of setting up a modern communications system, which will allow our residents to sign up for email and text updates on important borough business and safety alerts. We expect that service to be fully operational by the end of 2023. Stay tuned!
Inclusive Boards & Commissions
Ever since we were sworn into office in January 2020, we've been working hard reconstituting and reinvigorating several important boards and commissions in the borough that had been left inactive and/or vacant for years.
Starting with the critically important Planning Commission, our council recruited members of our community who were committed to ensuring a modern and consistent plan of development within the borough. One very large project that has been overseen by that commission has been the storage unit project currently under construction on Springfield Road next to the train tracks.
Additionally, we have reconstituted the Parks and Recreation Board, which is currently planning events to engage the entire community, including a recent outdoor movie night at the Hopely Athletic Complex.
We are eager to hear from all residents interested in serving on these boards. Please read the board descriptions and fill out the borough interest form to let us know how you'd like to serve Aldan!
Improving Our Parks
Thanks to the hard work of our council members and the borough engineer, in 2023 Aldan Borough was awarded a state grant that has allowed us to hire a landscape architecture firm to help us develop a comprehensive Master Plan for our borough parks. This plan will enable us to apply for much larger park-development grants to modernize and beautify these community assets.
To ensure that the process has the most representative input of the community, our borough council team recruited residents of diverse backgrounds to comprise the steering committee, which has been shaping the overall direction of the plan. Additionally, all residents have had the opportunity to provide their own input to the proposals through public meetings, online surveys, and through direct feedback to the architects who presented their current plans at our July 4th celebration.
We will continue to work hard to obtain additional state and county grants to allow these parks to be developed to their fullest potential.
Investing In Our Community
In addition to the parks grant described above, our borough officials have applied and lobbied tirelessly for additional funding from our county and state governments. As a result, since 2020, Aldan Borough has been awarded nearly $1.3 million in additional funding from our county and state governments. This funding is currently being used to address many important needs in our borough and does not cost our local residents an extra dime in property taxes.
Among the many projects currently in progress from this funding, we are (1) replacing our street lights with energy-efficient LED lights ($155,000), (2) improving our recreational resources ($75,000 for widening our walking track, installing lighting around the track, and installing a new scoreboard for our youth club), (3) purchasing new police body cameras ($15,000), (4) repairing our storm sewers ($75,000), and (5) creating a master plan for our parks ($50,000). Additionally, we have been awarded a $1 million grant to expand our municipal building, which will allow our administration to serve our community much more efficiently and effectively in the coming years.
Looking ahead, we plan to continue lobbying aggressively for additional grants to support the rehabilitation of the parks throughout the borough.