Rail Trail adds new phase with Lickdale Road trailhead, campground connection

This article was funded by LebTown donors as part of our Civic Impact Reporting Project.

A previously unannounced phase of the Lebanon Valley Rail Trail was officially adopted Thursday, April 16, by Lebanon County Commissioners, who gave their unanimous approval to request state funding to pay for it.

LVRT hopes to file an application by April 30 for state grant funding through the Pennsylvania Department of Natural Resources for Phase 10C, which is estimated to cost between $550,000 and $650,000.

Other topics addressed at Thursday’s meeting include placement of a court facility dog through Probation Services and replacement of the roof at the county’s mental health department facility in the 200 block of Lehman Street, Lebanon.

There were also lengthy discussions with county residents about 287(g) agreements with U.S. Immigration and Customs signed by the district attorney’s and sheriff’s offices.

LVRT’s new phase

The new project was adopted Thursday following unanimous approval by commissioners for LVRT officials to apply for state grant funding through DNR. 

The project on Lickdale Road in northern Lebanon County includes four components, according to LVRT grant writer Tom Kotay.

The plan calls for construction of 21 parking spaces at a new trailhead on Lickdale Road in Union Township, construction of a mid-block crossing of Lickdale Road near the entrance to the trailhead, construction of the rail trail on campground property via an easement to a connection with the trail in Swatara State Park, and placement of signage at the trailhead, along Lickdale Road, and within the campground easement area.

The campground referenced in the plan is the Jonestown/Hershey KOA private campground, just off of state Route 72 at 11 Lickdale Road. 

“As you recall, we had often talked to you about completing the project at Lickdale Road. Well, now there’s a need for an extension across Lickdale Road at what PennDOT would call a mid-block crossing because Lickdale Road is a state route,” Kotay said. 

He noted LVRT officials want to put in a trailhead at Lickdale Road, so they are in the process of acquiring an easement from the campground owners.

“That easement will allow us to build a path that will get to the trail system in Swatara State Park, and from there literally people can go almost anywhere. They can get on the Appalachian Trail. Ultimately, they can get on the trail system in State Game Lands 211 and go toward Harrisburg,” Kotay told commissioners. “So this is a really interesting project for us. I usually come here with a lot of confidence that we have all the details ironed out but as of today we still don’t.” 

He provided an update on the unresolved pieces.

“We’re in the process of acquiring the property for the trailhead. We’re in the process of getting the easement through the campground. We hope to have those in the next couple of weeks. If we don’t, we’ll have to amend our application and ask for some retro activity from DCNR,” Kotay said. “They always like those things in the package full and complete when you submit your application, which we must do by the end of April.” 

LebTown asked why the project was added this late in the process, which is targeted for completion in 2028.

“We’ve been working with them (state officials) for several years to do this project. It just hasn’t happened,” Kotay said, saying negotiations couldn’t be completed. “We decided we’d take on this project to make it happen. The state parks folks at one time had an easement that was not usable, was not feasible for the campground to take and run with, so they just threw up their hands and said we’re not doing anything more.”

That left a dilemma for an area of the trail that Kotay said sees many users on a summer weekend.

“But we have to have a safe crossing. There’s going to be, you know, on a good weekend a 1,000-plus people crossing at that location. We have to have safety. We have to have it. So we’re taking it on,” he added. 

Kotay noted trail officials are also seeking a long-term linear easement through the campground, and anticipate having that agreement recorded by early July. Also, Wilson Consulting Group in early June will conduct a safety study along Lickdale Road at the crossing, with follow-up with PennDOT on permits and final design details.

As the organization approaches the 30th anniversary of the project’s launch in June 1996, Kotay updated commissioners on a completion timeline.

He noted that phases 10A, 10B, and 10C are set for completion by the end of 2027. Work continues on Phase 8 near Bunker Hill, and Kotay said it will be finished in early to mid-2028, uniting the entire 28-mile trail from southern Lebanon County at the Lancaster County line to Swatara State Park in the north.

Court-appointed canine

Two years after county commissioners approved acquisition of a courtroom canine, a potential match has been found following an application and vetting process that was expected to take 12 to 24 months. 

“This is, I believe, the 10th dog that we’ve met. So we finally have a dog that seems to be very well suited for what we’re looking for,” said Audrey Fortna, director of Probation Services.

Fortna received permission in April 2024 to pursue the canine program, and this approval allows her department to move forward with making the purchase.

“The purpose, again, for the facility dog is to ease the stress and anxiety of individuals who come into the office for appointments or who are participating in court hearings. It will mostly be used for our treatment courts, so for DUI court, drug court, veterans court. And as we continue to meet to look at building a mental health court, this would be extremely beneficial in the use in the mental health court as well,” she said.

The animal would also be available for National Night Out activities and for children in the juvenile unit, Fortna added, as well as providing stress relief for her staff. There is no cost to the county for the program, with funding provided through grants. 

Fortna said there’s a two-week field training scheduled for the first two weeks of June for the animal’s primary and secondary handlers. She verified through the county’s insurance carrier that no additional liability insurance is required and no current staff members have allergies to dogs.

She also noted the dog will not be “forced” upon individuals and will only be around those who have provided consent. Fortna said the dog is a female yellow Labrador retriever that has the right temperament for this kind of work.

Roof replacement 

Commissioners unanimously voted to hire Mount Joy-based Progressive to replace the roof at the Lebanon County Mental Health/Intellectual Disabilities/Early Intervention building at 220 E. Lehman St., Lebanon, at a cost of $496,940.

“The roof has come to the end of its life and does need to be replaced,” said MH/ID/EI administrator Holly Leahy. “We have partnered with TREMCO to assess the roof, create specifications for the replacement and then identify potential roofers to complete the project.”

TREMCO representative Randy Kline said inspections, including for asbestos, which was negative, revealed that there are two roofs on the building, which has developed leaks into the building.

“We’ll be tearing off both of those roof systems and going back with a quarter-inch-per-foot tapered insulation, as well as four-by-four pumps at all the drains to ensure that there’s no more ponding water on that roof,” Kline said. “As part of the project we also have a cover board and a 60mm key single-ply membrane on top. We also will replace the metal edge system and improve all the new counter flashings on the lower roof area. … All electrical work will be included with that as well. For the project itself, we will conduct weekly progress meetings.”

TREMCO representative Matthew Kline said roof replacement is slated to start in May and be completed by the end of June.

“The intention is file inspection offsite by the end of June. So not a lot of room for error, but we’ve got it planned out and the contractor knows that they are the apparent low-bearing pending approval and they have confirmed that they can improve that time for error,” he said.

The timing is critical because the department is using existing funds to pay for the project, according to Leahy.

“All of that is within our budget, and we have not necessitated any additional county tax dollars to cover that,” she said. “We only have those funds available through June 30th of 2026, because we run on a fiscal year, so that is the end of our fiscal year. After that, we would not have those funds available. Those will be utilized for other services and supports within the next fiscal year.”

Other county business

In other business, commissioners unanimously voted to: 

• Amend 49 contracts for fiscal year 2025-26 totaling $874,953 for the county’s MH/ID/EI department, with 44 amendments for early intervention initiatives, four related to building expenses, and one for mental health programs. There is no additional cost to county taxpayers for the amended contracts. 
• Approve the MH/ID/EI crisis enhancement plan.
• Accept the treasurer’s report, including a beginning cash balance of $3,186,946.13 and receipts totaling $194,567.21, for a cash balance of $3,381,513.34. Less expenditures of $1,666,734.29, and less a tax claim of $72,758.85, the ending cash balance is $1,642,20.20, which includes payment of Friday’s county payroll.
• Conduct personnel transactions, including a three-year collective bargaining agreement with the court-appointed professionals unit from Jan. 1, 2026, through Dec. 31, 2028. Terms include a 4% wage increase each year, no changes to the annual health insurance deductibles and co-pays, an additional level added to the longevity plan, and additional non-economic article revisions. 
• Accept a change order for ongoing renovations to the public defender’s and assessment offices totaling $4884.04 for an electric strike from Reed’s Lock & Access Control Systems Inc. of Annville as part of a door access control unit.
• Name Elisa Rodriguez and Constance Renninger to the Commission for Women’s board of directors.  
• Proclaim April 16, 2026, as Dr. Ira Byock Day in Lebanon County. Byock is a leading expert in hospice and palliative care. 
• Grant real estate tax exemptions to eight fully disabled veterans or their families.
• Approve the minutes of their April 2 meeting and April 1 workshop session, which was followed by an executive committee session to discuss personnel.

Next meeting

Lebanon County Commissioners meet the first and third Thursdays of the month at 9:30 a.m. in Room 207 of the county municipal building, 400 S. 8th St., Lebanon. The next meeting is Thursday, May 7.