Big ideas in store for Tarentum and Cheswick riverfronts, but planning is slow-moving

Planning for the Tarentum/Cheswick riverfront project is moving more slowly than officials would like.

Cheswick Council Vice President Shawna Almes said she is “eager for things to get started” on designs for fishing and boating access and other recreation.

“As soon as we get word that we can start, I want to have a public meeting right away,” Almes said.

The boroughs earlier this year were jointly awarded a $50,000 state grant through the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission for planning.

Funding comes from the state’s boating facility grant program. It will help the municipalities promote water-based activities, focusing on accessibility and community engagement.

Tarentum Borough Manager Dwight Boddorf said he is waiting for the state to send the fully executed contract before planning can begin. He has been in contact with state officials for a status update.

“The contract is still undergoing their legal and compliance review,” he said.

Boddorf said it is expected to be in hand within weeks.

Tarentum and Cheswick councils have been eyeing riverfront changes over the past year with the goal of opening the shoreline to more residents and tourists.

Tarentum made the move in late 2023 to eliminate the borough’s 24 boat docks while officials finalize a riverfront development plan.

This spring, the shoreline was nearly empty for the first time in decades.

In Cheswick, the decommissioning of the nearby Cheswick Generating Station in Springdale gives borough officials the chance to “have a true riverfront park,” Cheswick Council President Brad Yaksich said.

“That’s our No. 1 thing we’re excited about,” he said. “We can have river access now. With the barges that were always parked there, you could never have a boat launch or kayak access or an unobstructed riverfront.”

Bringing more people to town will help drive local economies, Yaksich said.

“We are looking at a commuter dock where boaters could pull up, come into town and enjoy what we have, and then continue on their way,” Yaksich said.

Planning for both communities will fit into a larger design that includes links to the Three Rivers Heritage Trail.

In Tarentum, the trail will span about 4 miles through the borough and neighboring East Deer. It will go off-road through Dreshar Stadium and Riverview Memorial Park, and then pivot to on-road sections along First Avenue, West Fourth Avenue and West Sixth Avenue.

Cheswick officials are working with Friends of the Riverfront and engineering firm Gibson-Thomas to complete trail planning in the borough. It’s expected to be about a mile long, adjacent to the river.

Almes said, as soon as they get the green light, public meetings will be scheduled to gather ideas on other riverfront recreation.