Fishing Pier in Sharpsburg May Be Done By End of Week

Aspinwall Herald
12 January 2012
By Mary Ann Thomas

At long last, the installation of the fishing pier at the 13th Street boat ramp is under way, with much of the construction slated for completion by the end of this week.

The pilings have been driven into the river, said borough Councilman Matthew Rudzki, and a crew was working on the railings on the decking and a catwalk earlier this week.

The pier will be among only a few public fishing piers on local rivers in Allegheny County available with access for people with disabilities, said Dennis Tubbs, the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission's regional outreach education coordinator for the southwestern region.

"Allegheny County has very limited opportunities for people with limited mobility to fish," Tubbs said.

The pier is another addition to the 13th Street boat ramp and park, a 2-acre site with a parking lot, pavilion, boat and kayak launch that opened in August 2008.

The borough received about $110,000 in grants for the pier from the state, Allegheny County and the Port of Pittsburgh. Pampena Landscaping of Plum is doing construction.

"Sharpsburg's use of the whole ramp area -- it's one of the best uses of grant money that I've ever seen," said Tubbs. "They have volunteer groups and businesses that pitched it, and they really worked at it."

Mary Ann Thomas can be reached at mthomas@tribweb.com or 412-782-2121 x1510.