Pennsylvania Power & Light Co. met Friday (4/19) with representatives of municipal governments, community organizations and social service agencies from the Hazleton area interested in applying for grants from the company's Community Partnership Program.

The meeting was held at PP&L's System Facilities Center in the Humboldt Industrial Park. PP&L representatives explained guidelines and eligibility requirements for the second-year grant program. In the first year of the program, PP&L presented nearly $120,000 in grants to Hazleton area projects, said Martha M. Herron, PP&L community development director for the Hazleton area.

-- The city of Hazleton received $55,000 for small business start-up loans and building improvements in the downtown area. Four businesses have been approved for funding of exterior building improvements.

-- Carbon County received $50,000 that it is using to rehabilitate and weatherize homes for low-income residents. Tamaqua Area 2004 Partnership received $14,000 for improvements that support economic development in the downtown area. The group recently placed historic banners in the business district and has several other projects in the works.

Those are just three of the 39 community development projects across eastern and central Pennsylvania supported last year by PP&L grants totaling $2.4 million.

"The program represents an investment in the communities we serve, which we see as an investment in the future of PP&L," Herron said.

"PP&L created the Community Partnership Program to improve the quality of life in our area by supporting small business development, improving urban neighborhoods and expanding services for low-income families," added Florence M. McNelis, PP&L customer relations representative for the Northeast region.

PP&L has allocated up to $2.5 million in Community Partnership grants this year, she said, including $500,000 for the Northeast region, which also includes the Scranton, Wilkes-Barre and Honesdale areas.

Program funding comes from corporate dollars, not from PP&L ratepayers.