Council seeks state funding for a new headworks at the wastewater plant

The Borough is seeking state funding to upgrade the headworks at its wastewater treatment plant. On April 14, Council adopted Resolution No. 2025-02, authorizing the Borough to apply to the Commonwealth Financing Authority for funding toward a new headworks at the Tyrone Wastewater Treatment Plant and giving Borough officials the authority to sign the application and related grant documents.

What the headworks does

The headworks is the first stop for everything that flows into a treatment plant. Before wastewater reaches the tanks where it is actually cleaned, the headworks screens out rags, grit, sand and other debris that would otherwise clog pumps, wear down equipment and foul the treatment process downstream. It is the plant’s first line of defense, and when it is undersized or worn out, problems ripple through the rest of the system. Replacing or upgrading the headworks protects the more expensive treatment equipment behind it and helps the plant keep meeting the discharge limits the state holds it to.

Why apply to the CFA

Infrastructure of this kind is costly, and the Borough is looking to the state to help carry the load rather than placing the full weight on sewer ratepayers. The Commonwealth Financing Authority is the state body that administers a range of grant and loan programs for community and economic-development projects, including water and sewer infrastructure. Its programs are run through the PA Department of Community & Economic Development, and applying is a competitive process with deadlines and required signatures — which is why a single resolution does two jobs at once: it commits the Borough to apply, and it names who is authorized to sign on the Borough’s behalf so the paperwork can move without returning to Council for each step.

What it means for sewer customers

This vote does not, by itself, build anything or change any rate. It is the step that lets the Borough compete for outside dollars. If the application succeeds, grant funding would offset the cost of the headworks work and reduce how much of the project has to be recovered from local sewer revenue. The plant operates under a state-issued discharge permit, and keeping its treatment process reliable is what allows Tyrone to meet the standards set by the PA Department of Environmental Protection. You can read more about the Borough’s wastewater operations on the sewer department page.

On record: Resolution No. 2025-02 is part of the public meeting record at the Borough Office, 1100 Logan Avenue. Learn more about the funding program at the Commonwealth Financing Authority, and about state water-quality oversight at the PA Department of Environmental Protection.