JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – Cambria County Library is about to undergo a major technological upgrade.
The project calls for using $2 million in state money to put a new computer lab, updated learning space, meeting rooms and relocated Pennsylvania CareerLink space onto the first floor.
Construction is tentatively set to begin in October and to be done by the end of 2026.
Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, promoted the initiative Tuesday during a visit to the library on Main Street, downtown Johnstown.
The Pennsylvania Broadband Development Authority Multi-Purpose Community Facilities Program funding was obtained through a competitive grant program after Cambria County Library Executive Director Ashley Flynn brought the idea to the attention of state Rep. Frank Burns, D-East Taylor Township.
“When (people) are here in the library, we believe that they deserve topnotch facilities to be able to learn, to be able to recreate, to be able to grow, to be able to find that opportunity,” Shapiro said. “And so Ashley’s vision, supported by your representative, and now funded with our state dollars – those $2 million – are going to transform this library and help it grow even more and help it open up its doors to more and more people so that there can be more access to opportunity.”
Flynn described the grant money as a “monumental gift” that will enable the library “to advance our mission to connect our community with resources that educate, entertain and empower.” The grant will cover the majority of the expected total cost that is more than $2.5 million.
Burns spoke about how the proposed improvements will continue the library’s longtime mission of providing educational opportunities to the community.
“If you grew up in Johnstown, this is where you came,” Burns said. “This is where your parents took you. This is generational. Now we’re moving forward in a direction where the broadband infrastructure that they’re putting in place is going to allow a different type of learning here. It’s going to allow people of different income classes to be able to access the internet and learn the way everyone else is.
“This is a milestone in our area because this is the type of investments in our community that will change the future of those kids. There are a lot of underprivileged kids in our area. The only way – the only way – to get them out of the situation that they’re in is through education.”
Funding the library’s project is part of an overall mission to bring better internet connectivity to the state.
The PBDA recently awarded $45 million combined in Multi-Purpose Community Facilities Program funding, through a Coronavirus Capital Projects Fund established by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. Four local organizations – Cambria County Library, Bishop McCort Catholic High School ($897,612), Gallitzin Borough ($942,564) and Somerset County Library ($1,066,990) – received grants.
Still, approximately 254,000 residences and businesses across the commonwealth are without affordable high-speed internet, according to the governor.
There are 4,000 such locations identified in Cambria County. Shapiro described three-quarters of them as being in position where funding has been secured and the PBDA team is working on a connectivity plan. Funding has been identified for the other 1,000, but final federal financing is still waiting.
“This has been an ongoing effort over the first few years of my administration, and now we’re in a position to actually deliver on the promise of connectivity for this community and others all across Pennsylvania,” Shapiro said. “This is really, really big.”
Dave Sutor is a reporter for The Tribune-Democrat. He can be reached at 814-532-5056. Follow him on Twitter @Dave_Sutor.
