Pennsylvania Resources Council (PRC) has made the determination that the Hard to Recycle Event slated to occur on July 27th will need to be postponed. Due to circumstances outside of PRC's control at the venue, the host location is no longer suitable for the public to use this Saturday, July 27th. No alternative sites were available or logistically feasible. All event registrants should have been notified through PRC regarding the event's postponement. As of this time, an alternative date for the event has not been identified, but PRC is working with their vendors and community partners to assess future availability. When a new date is secured PRC will notify all previous registrants and an advertising campaign will follow. Please stay tuned for further details!
While we are sorry that this opportunity to safely and responsibly dispose of your materials is no longer readily available, PRC would like to extend a welcome to attend another one of their upcoming HTR collection events which can be found on their website. The QVCOG has been notified that the 2024 Gaming Economic Development & Tourism Fund Grant application window will be open from August 19th through August 30, 2024. This Grant allows municipalities, nonprofits, and COGs to carry out important economic development projects for current and future use. Administered by the Redevelopment Authority of Allegheny County, these grants provide financial assistance to entities to facilitate economic development projects within the County. This Grant opportunity has no local match requirement. All member communities are encouraged to apply through the QVCOG! Eligible projects are cited below: A. Economic Development Projects: Projects that promote local economic activity and create and/or retain jobs; B. Infrastructure Development Projects: Projects that improve or create infrastructure; C. Job Training: Workforce development projects; D. Community Improvement Projects: Projects that improve or create civic, cultural, or recreational activities or facilities; E. Public Safety Projects: Projects that promote the safety of affected communities; F. Public Interest Projects: Projects that improve the quality of life in the affected communities; and G. Projects with a $150,000.00 project budget or greater. Any member community that wishes to utilize the QVCOG for the application and administration of a project must submit necessary application materials (see below) no later than the end of business on August 23rd. Municipalities interested in utilizing the QVCOG for this application opportunity are encouraged to contact Executive Director Conners at their earliest convenience to develop an appropriate strategy and address potential questions about the program. The application window is extremely limited which makes the next few weeks crucial. GEDTF Application Form ![]()
Beginning August 12, 2024, through September 13, 2024, Allegheny County Economic Development (ACED) will be soliciting pre-applications for construction related projects for its 2025-26 (Year 51 cycle) Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program. Per ACED guidelines, if your municipality is a member of a Council of Governments (COG), all applications should be submitted through said COG. Every QVCOG member community is eligible to apply for CDBG funding for “non-income based” projects exceeding $20,000 in cost such as ADA accessibility improvement projects and blight remediation. Additionally, member communities may submit pre-applications for general recreation, road reconstruction, and sewer and water projects with the completion of a concentrated household income survey (see attached). All are encouraged to consider potential projects with their municipal engineers & staff. The QVCOG is happy to facilitate meetings with municipalities to discuss the pre-application process. Pre-applications will be due to the QVCOG by end of business on Friday, September 6th. Below you will find the CDBG Pre-Application link which will need to be completed by you or your municipal engineer in advance of September 6th. Additionally, I have included the GIS based grant application and awards map which outlines recent CDBG & GEDTF projects. This advanced notice should allow ample time for pre-application meetings, questions, etc. CDBG Year 51 Pre-Application Application Survey: https://forms.gle/55xNDb99oCDZRaab6 GIS map of past applications and grant awards: https://qvcog-qvcog.hub.arcgis.com/pages/maps ![]()
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Due to a scheduling conflict, the June 19th QVCOG Board of Delegates meeting has been moved to take place at the Leetsdale Borough Municipal Building (373 Beaver Street, Leetsdale, PA 15056). All other meeting details, including the meeting time (7:00 p.m.) and Zoom availability will remain the same.
Now that Cargill, Inc. has agreed to the exercise of the second option year, thereby extending the term of the contract for rock salt by one year for the period July 1, 2024 to June 30, 2025, your municipality has the opportunity to review its annual rock salt usage and adjust, if necessary, its estimated tonnage requirements for this upcoming winter season. The terms of your contract allow the estimated requirements to be updated no later than the commencement of the new contract year. Accordingly, an assessment of those needs is to be made at this time and reported to the SHACOG office by completing the Estimated Requirements survey for the 2024-2025 winter season.
This Estimated Requirements survey is accessed through the SHACOG website at www.shacog.com. If you need assistance in accessing or completing the survey, please call Sue Dawson (412-429-1130) at the SHACOG office. This survey is similar in form and scope to the standard estimated requirements survey. It is merely gathering pertinent data as well as establishing your estimated rock salt tonnage requirements for the forthcoming winter season. The intent to maintain your municipal commitment to the terms and conditions of the bid is again embodied in a declaration which is in electronic form and which must be agreed to for your estimated requirements information to be saved. As was the case with the original commitment prior to the bid, agreeing to the listed conditions binds your municipality, regardless of who completes the survey. In addition, please be reminded that minimum/maximum purchasing percentages for the upcoming winter season will be based on the estimate you provide in this survey. Please note that even if there is no change in your needs, you must still complete and submit your information. Failure to respond will result in your tonnage and purchasing requirements remaining the same as submitted last year for the upcoming winter season. So that we may provide timely notice to the vendor, you must complete the survey and submit your information by Friday, June 21, 2024. The U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has released the 2024 CDBG and HOME Program income limits. The income limits are effective as of May 1, 2024. Below, you will find a breakdown of the income limits. Household Survey forms have been included, with the updated income limits for those who wish to apply for our CDBG Yr. 51 (2025) funding round, for activities requiring household surveys. This information will be vital to review/consider during the CDBG Year 51 Pre-Application process (anticipated to take place in August, 2024). ![]()
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In place of the traditional “Annual Dinner” event, the QVCOG will be hosting a more interactive and engaging reception to recognize the value of intergovernmental collaboration and those who make it all possible. The event will take place at the Edgeworth Club on August 29th from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Additional details will be provided at a later date.
The Natural Resources Conservation Service recently shared the link below with the Allegheny County Conservation District who subsequently shared it with the QVCOG. It is a survey for homeowners and municipalities to let NRCS know if they were impacted by the record setting April rains leading to streambank erosion, landslides and other detrimental impacts. The hope is that gathering this info could lead to more funding for the Emergency Watershed Protection (EWP) program. Survey results will be assessed, and eligible property owners will be notified if the EWP Program is made available in Allegheny county. Correspondence will include additional program information and next steps. Program availability is not guaranteed.
USDA Seeking Disaster Recovery Needs in Western Pennsylvania | Natural Resources Conservation Service. The deadline to submit answers to NRCS is May 17. TO: Participating Municipalities in the SHACOG Purchasing Alliance FROM: Stanley Louis Gorski SUBJECT: Rock Salt - Exercise of Second Option Year For the second consecutive year, many have questioned if we actually had a winter season, but according to the calendar, winter is officially behind us, and the second season under the current rock salt contract will soon be coming to an end. Although it may appear somewhat early, pursuant to the terms of the contract, attention must already be focused on the next winter season. Recall that the bid for the current contract was designed to accommodate a multi-year arrangement. The third year of the contract - referred to as the second option year - is one that must be achieved by mutual agreement with the vendor, Cargill, Inc. It is unknown at this time if Cargill is interested in pursuing an option year. Nonetheless, it is necessary to protect your municipal interest by formally giving notice of your municipality’s desire to extend the contract if Cargill finally agrees. Under the current terms, unless the municipality has terminated the contract with Cargill, Inc. the participating municipality may give notice of its intent to extend the term of the contract from July 1, 2024 to June 30, 2025. This notice must be communicated in writing to the vendor by May 1, 2024. Cargill, Inc. then has until May 10, 2024 to notify the participating municipality in writing if it wants to continue the contractual relationship. If it agrees, then the contract continues under the same terms and conditions, with only the price subject to an adjustment. That price may be adjusted by the CPI formula in the contract. Only the first option year price, unchanged by fuel price adjustments, is used in that calculation. By way of example, the formula would accommodate the current CPI of 3.2% so if that percentage was to prevail, the price would increase from $85.85 (the initial first option year price not altered by fuel price adjustments) per ton to $88.60 per ton. The option to extend is exercised by giving written notice to the vendor by May 1, 2024 that your municipality is exercising that option. Because the municipality is the official party to the contract with the vendor, only the municipality can exercise the option. Consequently, each municipality must send its own letter. For your convenience, a sample letter is attached. (This letter should be transferred to your municipal letterhead.) It is unknown if Cargill will grant exceptions for communications received late, so if you are going to invoke the option year, it is imperative that your letter is sent so that it arrives before the May 1, 2024 deadline. You should email your letter exercising the first option year to [email protected]. Receipt is to be acknowledged by Cargill. You are requested to copy both SHACOG and your COG on your email. If Cargill, Inc. agrees to the option, those participating municipalities that invoked the second option year will receive subsequent communication concerning estimated requirements for the forthcoming winter season. If the vendor declines, you will receive pertinent information for the next bid. Please note that you do not have to commit to an estimated tonnage requirement at this time. Your letter is intended only to secure the option year. Considerations concerning the balance of the current year purchase obligations and estimated requirements for the second option year, if successfully secured, will be addressed later in subsequent communications. Should you have any questions or require additional information concerning the above, please contact the SHACOG's office by phone at 412-429-1130 or send an email to [email protected]. ![]()
Bids for 2024 Spring Commodities were opened on March 7, 2024. The bid tabulation is available on the SHACOG Purchasing Alliance website for the following products: • Road Aggregates • Liquid Asphalt • Bituminous Surfacing Materials • Line Painting and Reflective Glass Beads • Guide Rails and Posts, Components and Installed • Traffic Signs and Sign Posts • Thermoplastic Pavement Markings • Frames, Rings & Grates – Cast Iron and Steel • Precast Concrete Inlets and Risers • Manhole Inserts • Plastic Pipe • Swimming Pool Chemicals • Wastewater Treatment Chemicals • Fertilizers • Weed Killer • Ballfield Mixture • Top Soil • Hardwood Bark Mulch • Wood Carpet • Mushroom Compost • Portable Toilet Rental Service Please remember that participants must formally accept the bids to secure the prices offered by the vendors. It must again be emphasized that each municipality is responsible for accepting these bids. The joint purchasing format employed to secure these bids does not result in a master contract. Therefore, formal notice of bid acceptance must be issued to the vendors by your community in order to secure the quoted prices. This should be done by May 17, 2024. Please be reminded that absent notice by this date the vendors are not obligated to honor these prices. Following through with this formal award procedure is of particular importance due to the many conditions imposed on their bids by the various vendors. This is especially true concerning product availability and surcharges, which are specifically prohibited by our specifications. Although placing a condition on a bid technically represents a counteroffer and not a bid, the final decision about what to do with a vendor’s offering is that of each municipality. Since price will often prevail regardless of any condition, to preserve that price, notice of acceptance of the bid by the stipulated date is critical. Remember, this is a contractual process. The bid – or offer – by the vendor is the first part of that process. Municipal acceptance is the second part. Do not, however, confuse acceptance with the actual placement of an order. Unless otherwise indicated, these prices are firm for a one year period. Since these are not requirements contracts, the municipality is not obligated to purchase anything. Nonetheless, that should not preclude notifying the vendor that its bid was accepted to “lock in” the price. The municipality is then protected should a purchase be required in the future. A sample letter to achieve this end is provided below. Of course, if the municipality wants to place an order, a purchase order should simply be sent with the notice of award. You are encouraged not to delay the issuance of these notices. Please send copies of these letters to the SHACOG office. Should you have any questions or require additional information concerning the above, please do not hesitate to contact the SHACOG office at 412-429-1130. ![]()
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