5.19 Million in Keystone Grants Awarded  | Compendium
Glenn R. Miller

Glenn Miller, Deputy Secretary & Commissioner for Libraries

5.19 Million in Keystone Grants Awarded 

I am very pleased to announce on behalf of the Pennsylvania Department of Education that the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania will be awarding 18 municipalities in 15 counties with $5.19 million in Keystone grants to improve their local libraries.   The grants, ranging from a low of $25,000 to a high of $750,000, will help support significant library building improvements.  All grants will be matched on a dollar-for-dollar basis.  

Library Projects 

Please join me in congratulating the following libraries:

County Municipality Project Library Award Brief Project Description
Allegheny Braddock Borough Braddock Carnegie Library Association  $750,000 Install efficient temperature control system including new HVAC, thermal/moisture control, and rehab/securing of all windows, doors, stairwells, shafts.
Allegheny Richland Township Northern Tier Regional Library Association  $38,580 Make entrance doors automatic; install efficient lighting in program area; new flooring and paint in main library.
Allegheny Township of Upper St. Clair Upper St. Clair Township Library  $750,000 Reconfigure and increase library space in shared facility.
Armstrong Kittanning Borough Kittanning Free Library  $28,976 Upgrade lighting; upgrade flooring; upgrade security system.
Berks Borough of Leesport Schuylkill Valley Community Library $134,712 Construct addition, replace roof, upgrade entrance for ADA, add restrooms.
Chester County of Chester Chester County Library & District Center  $387,500 Renovate first floor for accessibility, adding public workspaces and seating; combine service desks.
Clarion Clarion Borough Clarion Free Library  $105,385 Replace boiler; ADA upgrades to sidewalks, entry doors, restrooms.
Dauphin Dauphin County Dauphin Co Lib Sys: McCormick Riverfront Lib.  $750,000 Full library renovation incorporating newly-acquired adjacent building.
Erie Erie County Erie County Public Library: Millcreek Branch  $25,000 Hire consultant for needs assessment / feasibility study for relocating branch.
Huntingdon Huntingdon County Huntingdon County Library  $48,650 Replace elevator.
Indiana Burrell Township Burrell Township Library  $229,000 Construct new library facility.
Lackawanna Lackawanna County Lackawanna Cty Lib Sys: Abington Comm Lib Assoc  $49,150 Renovate and expand kitchen facilities in community room.
Mercer Town of Greenville Greenville Area Public Library  $75,000 Replace boiler; replace roof; upgrade lighting.
Montgomery Souderton Borough Indian Valley Public Library  $97,480 Roof replacement.
Montgomery Upper Moreland Township Upper Moreland Free Public Library $70,457 Make 2 emergency exits ADA compliant.
Somerset Borough of Somerset Mary S. Biesecker Public Library  $241,799 Improve entrance steps / sidewalks for accessibility; install solar canopy parking structure; interior plaster, tile and flooring.
Warren Warren County Warren Public Library, aka Warren Lib Assoc  $659,697 Create teen space and maker spaces; add ADA entrance doors; reconfigure restrooms; upgrade signage; update elevator; upgrade HVAC; upgrade lighting; install security cameras.
Westmoreland City of Greensburg Greensburg Hempfield Area Library $748,145 Rebuild restrooms for ADA; build service counters; improve mechanical systems and life safety systems.

About the Keystone Grant Program 

The Keystone Recreation, Park and Conservation Fund was established by an act of the General Assembly in 1993. The Department of Education, through the Office of Commonwealth Libraries, Bureau of Library Development, administers the public library portion of this program which is funded from a portion of the state’s realty transfer tax.

Grants pay up to 50 percent of eligible costs in planning, acquisition, construction and rehabilitation of public libraries.  Examples of fundable projects include, but are not limited to: ADA upgrades, new roof, replacement windows, energy efficient upgrades to HVAC systems, facility expansion and new construction.

A competitive grant application process is used to award matching facilities grants to municipalities that sponsor state-aided public libraries. To be eligible, the sponsoring municipality and the board of the state-aided library must jointly submit an application developed cooperatively by both entities and signed by their governing bodies. The Keystone grant requires a dollar-for-dollar match.

We anticipate a next round of Keystone grant opportunities in 2021.  

Glenn

 

Glenn R. Miller | Deputy Secretary & Commissioner for Libraries
Pennsylvania Department of Education | Office of Commonwealth Libraries
333 Market St. | Harrisburg, PA  17101-2210
Phone: 717-783-2466 | www.statelibrary.pa.gov
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This communication is issued on the Deputy Secretary’s behalf by Carrie Cleary, Executive Assistant  (ccleary@pa.gov; 717-783-5725)