With groundbreaking on the $1.7 million downtown streetscape project in Greenville delayed at least until next spring, the Greenville Municipal Authority has informally been asked to play a larger role in planning for the project.

Councilman David P. Henderson -- attending Tuesday's authority board meeting -- asked the authority to pinpoint possible infrastructure work that may be necessary for it to undertake in the near future along Main Street.

The authority, the borough and PennDOT could then look for ways to incorporate the work into the streetscape project, he added.

Henderson said it could be less expensive and difficult for the authority to tackle improvements along Main Street while the downtown project is going on -- while ground is ripped up for surface improvements.

The most recent downtown revitalization effort has been in the works for about four years -- part of a $5.5 million series of local projects, including ones to build a sports complex in West Salem Township and a fire station on the town's east side, among others.

The projects were to be funded by grants and part of a $3.7 million bond floated two years ago. The fire station was built and the sports complex is nearly complete, but the bond money is gone and ground has yet to be broken on the downtown project.

Project plans include decorative period lighting, brick sidewalks, park benches and traffic-flow improvements.

Nearly $900,000 of the bond money was misappropriated and spent to keep the borough afloat. About $711,000 of the bond was to be used for the downtown project; of grants issued for the project, a $650,000 PennDOT grant remains.

State officials who run the state Act 47 program for financially distressed communities -- which the borough entered this spring -- have said they plan to look for ways to ensure that the downtown project has enough funding to be completed.