Palmerton Borough Council’s plan for allocating funds from the 2018 Community Development Block Grant was met with little opposition during a public hearing Thursday.

In an advertisement for the hearing that went out in early September, the council released its selected project for the block grant’s 2018 funds: improvements to Fourth Street, from Delaware Avenue and approximately 850 feet south.

Jennifer Hunsicker, program coordinator at the Carbon County Planning and Development Office, relayed the proposal during the council meeting.

In her delivery, Hunsicker appraised the anticipated grant amount for Palmerton at $102,078, which includes $83,704 in project expenses and $18,374 in administrative costs.

Hunsicker also said that the borough plans to cancel street improvements to Lehigh Avenue, the designated project of CDBG funds from 2015, and instead allot the remaining $40,291 for street improvements to Princeton Avenue, the approved grant project from 2016.

“Over the next three years, the Palmerton borough will continue street improvements throughout the borough,” Hunsicker said.

Questions included if Princeton Avenue was going to be milled, as opposed to just paved, and when would the improvements be completed.

Borough Manager Rodger Danielson answered both, saying the road is going to be paved and that the improvements are slated to start first thing in the spring.

“There’s really not a lot of pavement there to mill,” Danielson said in response to one of the inquiries.

The CDBG is a Department of Housing and Urban Development program that began in 1974. The purpose of the grant, as stated on the HUD website, is to “(provide) communities with resources to address a wide range of unique community development needs.” As an entitlement community, Palmerton is eligible to receive annual funding for community projects through the grant.

The county must apply to the CDBG on behalf of Palmerton borough on or before Nov. 2.