HOOVERSVILLE, Pa. — Hooversville Borough in Somerset County has received a $22,890 grant from the Industrial Sites Reuse Program to remediate a former gas station site at 792 Barn Street. The cleanup will pave the way for the construction of a new municipal office and police station for the borough.
The Department of Community and Economic Development, or DCED, approved the funding. The grant is specifically designated for the approximately 0.34-acre property at 792 Barn Street, which operated as a gas station until 2015 and a restaurant until its closure in 2019.
DCED Secretary Rick Siger announced the approval of the $22,890 grant for Hooversville Borough. Siger stated that transforming and reusing abandoned sites provides new development opportunities for communities.
“This investment will turn a long vacant site in Hooversville into a space that serves the community — supporting local revitalization while protecting public health and safety,” Siger said. He added that programs like the Industrial Sites Reuse Program continue to provide “new life and growth for communities large and small across Pennsylvania.”
The remediation project will include several key environmental tasks. These tasks involve soil analysis, groundwater sampling, excavation and the removal of four abandoned underground storage tanks. Once complete, the site will meet environmental conditions required for redevelopment.
Department of Environmental Protection, or DEP, Secretary Jessica Shirley also emphasized the benefits of such projects. Shirley explained that projects like this one remove environmental hazards and allow for new, productive development, enhancing public safety in the community.
“Thanks to ISRP and the Hazardous Sites Cleanup Fund, we can keep cleaning up sites in places like Hooversville all across Pennsylvania,” Shirley said.
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