SLIPPERY ROCK — Borough Council may form a committee focused on developing or selling the vacant lot at the corner of New Castle and Main streets.

Borough Manager Shawn Pugh said the lot is scheduled to be surveyed in the next couple of weeks so it can be assessed to determine its estimated value.

The 0.3-acre lot has been a topic of conversation in the borough for nearly a year. At a June meeting, council rejected a $208,300 bid from Slippery Rock Development for the lot. Nearly 20 residents of the borough showed up at the meeting to express their desire to keep the vacant lot a green space, urging council to accept Slippery Rock Development’s bid.

The lot is zoned as a central business district and Main Street corridor overlay.

Disagreement over the lot’s future continued Tuesday, with Mayor Jondavid Longo advocating for it to be developed as a business, and Councilwoman Alexandra Tuten on the side of keeping it a green space.

Longo said a business developing that space could provide a lot of money to the borough.

“When that lot was generating $32,000 to 33,000 a year when the bank was still there, that was a nice chunk of change for a borough like ours,” Longo said. “We can’t sustain ourselves on just what’s here.”

Tuten said the lot could be a draw for local residents who may spend more time downtown if there was inviting seating.

“When you look at main streets, almost every one of them has a green space with picnic tables and stuff where people come and they congregate,” she said. “It brings them to patronizing the shops on Main Street.”

Council President Jeff Campbell said Tuesday he would like to make a decision on the property as soon as possible because of the debt the borough is incurring through its continued vacancy.

“I don’t want to continue to settle on this and have the taxpayers continue to make a monthly payment on the property that we need to get out from underneath of,” Campbell said.

Council also heard from a consultant regarding the borough’s comprehensive plan that Pugh said has been in the works for several months with help from a grant from the Local Government Academy.

Council heard from consultant Denny Puko, who had the members brainstorm the needs of the borough and prioritize them in order of importance. At the top of the priority list was infrastructure needs and adding opportunities for community engagement and growth.

Pugh said council has hosted several meetings with Puko, and the borough is considering hiring a consultant to complete the necessary organizational work for the plan. Pugh said there are pros and cons to bringing on a consultant and asked council to consider the progress borough administrators have made on the plan.

“We are already a quarter of the way down this road, and I am fine if we don’t get a consultant,” Pugh said. “However, I believe that a consultant is going to bring things to the table that we won’t necessarily be there to provide.”

Pugh said the borough is planning to have more meetings regarding the comprehensive plan, and administrators are trying to finish it by the end of the year. He also said the borough could apply for a grant to hire a consultant, if council motions for it.

Council agreed to include a number of voting items on next week’s meeting agenda.

Topics of interest included updates to a solicitation ordinance, a resolution regarding “vaping” in recreational areas in the borough and turning Maltby Avenue to Cooper Street into a two-way road.