Originally Published by: BerksWeekly

Representative Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA) recently announced that $6,207,402 was secured through the government funding package for several projects that will directly benefit Berks County residents.

“These projects speak to the needs and the collaborative effort of our community, and I am immensely proud to have led this process from start to finish – including voting in favor of these vitally important, life changing funds,” said Houlahan

When the opportunity became available to secure funding for our community, I wanted to ensure that all facets of our district benefited from my office’s proposals.”

Houlahan Added, “we received more than 100 inquiries and 53 complete proposals for consideration. To provide full and fair consideration, I assembled a board of nine non-partisan community leaders that evaluated each proposal on multiple criteria including economic development, equity, health, and safety for our community. It’s a testament to our efforts that all but one proposal was ultimately signed into law. From West Grove to Sinking Spring, our residents will benefit from safer roads, more secure wastewater systems, STEM educational opportunities, access to health care in rural populations, and more through these investments.”

Notable project in Berks County include

$1,865,624 for Borough of Sinking Spring Central Business District Infrastructure Improvement Program to realign the roadways and crossroads intersections that serve a regional population of over 60,000 people in the eleven municipalities of western Berks County.

$750,000 for the County of Berks to conduct necessary environmental and capacity studies to restore commuter rail service to Reading, Pennsylvania. When completed, the rail line will create economic opportunity for our region and reduce single-vehicle traffic on congested interstates.

$450,000 for United Community Services for WorkingFamilies, Reading, PA to provide teenagers and young adults in an economically disadvantaged area academic, vocational, and life skills training.

$1,450,000 for Albright College to support the Science Research Institute initiative to connect Albright students with children of Reading and the surrounding area who can be exposed to STEAM learning so that they might fill these highly desired jobs of the future.

$500,000 for Penn State Health St. Joseph Medical Center to provide direct to medical and dental services to underserved people who live in the rural areas of Berks County who have limited access to primary and specialty medical care through the purchase of a mobile community health center.