Group to have Schwab building’s clock restored

Weatherly residents could soon hear the sound of chimes from the clock tower atop the borough’s historic Schwab school.

A group of local volunteers dedicated to the preservation of the school is moving forward with plans to have a local company restore the landmark clock of the 107-year-old school building which the borough acquired last year. They are also looking forward to the next steps in the project.

“Through the efforts of the alumni and friends, and the borough, we’re able to facilitate the first portion of bringing the building back to life,” said Charlie Palermo, president of the Schwab School Restoration Project committee.

While the borough owns the school, all fundraising activities are coordinated by the group of local volunteers.

Palermo said the committee had assembled the $3,845 needed to update the clock mechanism. They decided against fixing the old one, which would have required someone to wind it each week to keep it running.

The work will be done by a Weatherly-based company, Bradford Clock, which has offered to do the project without charging the borough for labor.

No timetable for the project was specified. Palermo said that the clock will be removed and worked on at Bradford. Meanwhile, another Weatherly business, Dawn’s Vinyl Designs, will restore the clock face.

At the same time, the bell-ringing mechanism will be updated, restoring the chimes that were once heard all around the borough. It’s estimated that will cost an additional $1,800 maximum, which the committee is also prepared to spend.

Mayor Tom Connors thanked the committee for funding the clock restoration, which he said should spur interest in the entire school project.

“I think it’s going to be a start of some good things happening with that building,” he said.

With the clock project underway, the committee is already looking forward to their next goal for the school — replacing the roof. Currently tarps are patching the worn roof. They were put in by the bank which the borough purchased the school from. Palermo asked council to consider allowing the committee to see how much it will cost to a do a roof project, while admitting it will be more expensive than the clock.

“We would like to plan our year with fundraisers necessary to fix the roof. An estimate would really help us out, to help the building out,” he said.

He also reminisced about how the clock tower was once lit from the exterior, something he hopes to revive.

“Can you imagine driving down the Plains Road and seeing that all lit up again. I look at it every day and think, ‘Wow, that day is coming.’ ”

In other business

Council also:

• Awarded a contract to BCM Engineers to do a feasibility study for a 5-mile trail connecting the borough to the D&L Trail. The cost is $48,265, which is covered entirely by two state grants. The proposed trail would follow the Black Creek and end at Penn Haven Junction.

• Voted to apply for a state grant to repaint the borough water tower. A similar application in 2016 was not funded. The estimated cost is near $200,000.

• Approved a request for proposals to repave the entirety of Evergreen Avenue. The street is approximately 2,800 feet long.

• Scheduled an electronic recycling event for June 23, and discussed adding a second one in September due to high demand for last year’s event.

• Borough Manager Harold Pudliner Jr. reminded residents to shovel around electric meters so borough workers can read them, and thanked residents for moving their cars in a recent storm.

• Pudliner reminded residents that they are not allowed to throw out construction debris in borough-provided trash cans, and asked them to break down cardboard boxes when using the recycling bins at Eurana Park.

• Pudliner also said that skating at Eurana Park is “at your own risk,” however the borough will post signs when the ice is safe to walk on, and when it is not.