Filed Under: News || By Jason Togyer
Category: Announcements || By Some Guy
This is the last call for candidates for mayor, city council and school board to submit their campaign information to Tube City Almanac. You snooze, you lose!
Email jtogyer@gmail.com or write to Tube City Almanac, P.O. Box 94, McKeesport 15134. Complete rules can be found here.
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Category: News || By Jason Togyer
View New traffic lights in a larger map
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A $300,000 grant from the state Department of Transportation will allow the city to replace traffic lights at seven intersections with new ones that are safer, more reliable and which use less electricity.
Perhaps more importantly to local motorists, the signals also will be more "traffic-friendly," says Tom Rosso, city electrician.
"We're in the business of moving people through, not stopping them," he says.
. . .
The new lights will be installed on West Fifth Avenue at Rebecca Street, 10th Ward; Fifth Avenue at Market Street and Ninth Avenue at Walnut Street, Downtown; and on Walnut Street in Christy Park at Iowa, 26th, 28th and 30th avenues. Replacement of the signals is expected to begin later this year and should be wrapped up in 2012, Rosso says.
The grant, announced this week, is one of more than 100 paid for with fines collected from red-light enforcement cameras in Philadelphia, according to PennDOT spokesman Rich Kirkpatrick.
Under the state law that allowed Philadelphia to install red-light cameras, fines are divided between Philadelphia and the rest of the state, Kirkpatrick says. Municipalities submitted more than 300 applications for $68 million worth of projects.
. . .
Projects that were selected were chosen because they saved money for municipalities, were cost-effective and had a large impact on local and regional traffic, Kirkpatrick says.
Walnut Street in Christy Park serves about 14,000 vehicles per day, according to PennDOT traffic estimates, while the intersection of West Fifth and Rebecca sees about 21,000 vehicles daily.
"Since we don't have a highway, those are major arteries for people who live in Elizabeth Township, for instance, and work in Pittsburgh," Rosso says. The city is seeking additional funding from the Southwest Pennsylvania Commission to synchronize the lights along Walnut Street and move traffic more swiftly through the corridor, he says.
Many of the traffic-light controllers being replaced date to the early 1960s, are mechanically driven and prone to failure, Rosso says. When they do malfunction, especially due to shorted wiring, they can stop working in ways that are unsafe, such as indicating "green" on both streets in an intersection.
What's more, the signals along Walnut Street are no longer able to react to traffic on the side streets, because the sensors on the side streets no longer work, and can't be replaced. Instead, they cycle through red, yellow and green on a timer, stopping traffic on Walnut regardless of whether anyone is exiting a side street.
"If you upgrade the detectors, you need new controllers, and we've never been able to afford new controllers," Rosso says.
. . .
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Category: News || By Jennifer Sopko
By Jennifer Sopko
Special to Tube City Almanac
A standing room only crowd of parents, teachers and staff packed the board room at the McKeesport Area School District administration building on Wednesday night, anxious to hear from the school board on the district's 2011-2012 budget crisis.
However, the board did not introduce a preliminary budget or reveal more details about potential staffing and program cuts intended to offset an estimated $5.6 million budget deficit, which includes an almost $4.4 million reduction in state education funding.
McKeesport Area Superintendent Tim Gabauer confirmed that the board plans to take action on a final budget at their May 25 meeting, after continuing to study student enrollment trends, current curriculum offerings and staffing needs, in order to "figure out what's in the best interest of the schools."
. . .
At an open agenda board meeting on April 18, Gabauer revealed that the district is considering more than 90 layoffs, including 45 non-contractual employees (substitutes and tutors), 35 teachers, ten support employees and four administrative positions.
On Wednesday night, the superintendent acknowledged that a "drastic" decline in student enrollment over the past five years would factor into these proposed staffing reductions, yet declined to give statistics before confirming enrollment data with the Pennsylvania Department of Education.
The school board unanimously agreed to apply for federal Title I and Title IIA funding and approved the use of Title I funds to maintain the approximately $450,000 all-day kindergarten program, if Gov. Tom Corbett's proposed budget is passed and the district loses a $1 million Accountability Block Grant.
. . .
Gabauer said that board approval was required to allocate this funding to a program other than its intended use, which is to fund supplementary educational programs for children of low-income families as prescribed under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act.
According to business manager David Seropian, MASD received $2.5 million in Title I funding for the 2010-2011 school year, but will not find out if this year's amount is reduced for at least another week.
Despite the negative budget outlook, Gabauer told the audience during his opening remarks that "our voices are being heard at the state level" and called for residents to advocate the importance of public education by contacting their state representatives and urging them to minimize the impact of the governor's proposed budget cuts.
"Public education is the best form of education that we have and we need to continue to advocate it because we educate all [students] to the best of our ability," he said.
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One consolidated effort in the works is a "Rally for our Children's Education" scheduled for May 5 at 6:15 p.m. at the bandshell in Renziehausen Park, prior to a public town hall meeting with state representatives at 7 p.m. in the McKeesport Area High School auditorium.
Centennial Elementary kindergarten teacher Joan Burns said the crowd will march from the bandshell to the high school in order to convey a message to the governor and other state representatives that all children will be left behind if the proposed $2 billion education funding cuts are passed in the state budget.
"We're all in this together," said Burns. "It's not a union thing. It's not just a community thing. It's for the kids."
She added that all surrounding school districts are invited to the rally, with Sto-Rox, Steel Valley and Baldwin-Whitehall school districts planning to attend. Walkers are encouraged to wear red and bring bells or other noisemakers to the rally.
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Category: News || By Jason Togyer
Local boosters of the Great Allegheny Passage are considering a 10-kilometer race to boost awareness of the McKeesport-area sections of the hiking-biking trail.
At a meeting Tuesday, members of McKeesport Trail Commission said the race would promote use of the 6.2-mile "Loop" that links Downtown with Christy Park, Versailles, Elizabeth Township, Port Vue and Liberty. Trail Commission President Linda Brewster said the target date for the race would be mid-October.
But a number of issues need to be addressed, commission members said --- including the condition of portions of the trail in Port Vue and Liberty. The weather has left parts of the trail on the opposite side of the Youghiogheny River "in bad shape," with ruts and cave-ins, said one commissioner, the Rev. Brian Evans.
Pending construction on the Boston Bridge between Versailles and Elizabeth Township presents another challenge, commission members said. The bridge will be closed to motorized vehicles from June through September, and although bicycles will be allowed on the sidewalk throughout much of the construction project, that passageway is narrow.
"If we're going to (have a race), there's a lot of coordination that has to be done yet, and in reality, we don't have a lot of time," Evans said.
Some members of the board suggested that if a 10K race is out of the question due to bridge construction and other factors, it might be possible to hold a 5K race restricted to the McKeesport and Versailles sections of the trail. The commission expects in May to have a better idea of whether any race is feasible this year.
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Motorized Vehicle Ordinance Proposed: In other business, the commission may ask city council to consider an ordinance restricting motorized vehicles from the trail. Power wheelchairs and other mobility devices for the disabled would be allowed, but dirt bikes, all-terrain vehicles, go-carts, motor scooters and similar gas- or electric-engined vehicles would be banned.
Special exemptions would be made for emergency vehicles and for lawn tractors being used for maintenance along the trail.
Commission members said that although city police regularly patrol the trail, there is no law enabling them to enforce restrictions against motorized vehicles.
Under one proposed draft ordinance currently being studied, police would be able to cite violators and impound their ATV or dirt bike pending a hearing before a district magistrate. Magistrates would be allowed to fine operators up to $600 or sentence them to 30 days in jail.
Similar ordinances have been adopted by other communities along the Great Allegheny Passage, said Bob MacGregor, a volunteer trail monitor.
The commission will study the draft ordinance, Brewster said, and will likely present a formal proposal to Mayor Regis McLaughlin and city council later this year.
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Spring Spruce-Up Planned: Volunteers will descend on the areas of the trail near the McKees' Point Marina in June for a beautification project, commission members said. Details of the work are still being finalized and the name of the group is being withheld for privacy reasons.
In addition, trail commission volunteers will conduct a survey of trail users between 10 a.m. and 12 noon May 21, MacGregor said.
Also on May 21, a "Night at the Races" event is slated at the Palisades to benefit the McKees' Point Marina and the McKeesport Trail Commission, board members announced.
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Category: Cartoons, Commentary/Editorial, Sarcastic? Moi? || By Jason Togyer
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Category: Announcements || By Submitted Reports
Two local state legislators will host a "town hall meeting" to discuss Pennsylvania's proposed 2011-12 budget.
McKeesport area elected officials and the general public are being invited to the event, to be held from 7 to 9 p.m. May 5 at McKeesport Area High School. The meeting is being organized by state Rep. Bill Kortz of Dravosburg and state Rep. Marc Gergely of White Oak. Both are Democrats and have been sharply critical of the proposed budget submitted by new Gov. Tom Corbett, a Republican.
"We have invited local school boards, school superintendents, council members, mayors, other officials and constituents from both the 35th and 38th Legislative Districts," Gergely said. "We look forward to this opportunity to talk with the community about these important issues."
The budget includes $1.5 billion in cuts to public education, including $1 billion in direct cuts to school districts and $500 million in cuts to state-owned and state-related universities.
"We feel strongly that the public has a right to be informed about the potential effects and outcomes from this proposed budget," Kortz said.
For more information, call Gergely's White Oak office at (412) 664-0035.
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E. Fifth Ave. Work Begins: Work is beginning on improvements to East Fifth Avenue between Route 30 and the city's East End. The prime contractor is Derry Construction Co. of Derry Township, Westmoreland County, says Jim Struzzi, district spokesman for the state Department of Transportation.
East Fifth Avenue carries state Route 148 through East McKeesport, North Versailles Township, White Oak and the city. The 2.21-mile, $2.56 million project includes milling and resurfacing, drainage, repairs in three culverts, curbing, guide rail, traffic signals and the replacement of the bridge that carries Route 148 over Crooked Run, Struzzi says.
Long-term single-lane closures were scheduled to begin this week between State Street and continue through early June. One lane will remain open in each direction, Struzzi says. Overall work will conclude in late 2011.
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Category: Announcements || By Submitted Report
Scott Blasey of The Clarks kicks off this year's free summer concert series at the McKee's Point Marina.
The 8 p.m. June 11 show is the first of nine that will also bring Tres Lads, the Mudsharks and the Igniters to the edge of the Youghiogheny River, says Ray Dougherty, marina manager.
In related news, Dougherty says the marina is "completely sold out for the season," with no empty docks for boats or personal watercrafts.
In addition, the McKee's Point Cafe, located on the first floor of the Palisades ballroom, is now open weeknights and Saturdays until 10 p.m. and until 7 p.m. on Sundays, Dougherty says. "We added a pizzeria to the cafe, which allows us to stay open at night and offer delivery service," he says.
All of the outdoor concerts begin at 8 p.m. The summer concert lineup includes:
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Category: Announcements || By Submitted Report
The McKeesport High School Alumni & Friends Association once again is accepting nominees for induction into the McKeesport High School Hall of Fame.
Anyone may nominate, says Linda Croushore, president of the association. Candidates must have attended McKeesport schools, have graduated at least 10 years ago (if they completed high school here), and have gone on to lives marked by outstanding accomplishments in the public or private sectors.
Applications are being sought now for the 2011 class, to be inducted at the annual Alumni Recognition Night dinner and program in the fall. Deadline for submitting nominees for consideration is May 31.
This year marks the 23rd class of inductees, spokeswoman Ginny Dunsavage says. To date, 156 people have been elected to the Hall of Fame.
Over the years, Croushore says, several members have returned to the high school and shared their expertise and experiences with present-day students. "The honorees are great role models for our young people," she says.
Nominations must be made in writing and should include an up-to-date biography and photo of the nominee. Applications may be obtained at the association office, 410 Ninth Ave., Downtown; by calling (412) 678-9215; or by writing to McKeesport High School Alumni & Friends Association, P.O. Box 432, McKeesport 15134.
Applications also may be printed from the alumni association website.
Candidates are evaluated by a special steering committee of the alumni organization, and selections are announced in early summer.
The McKeesport High School Alumni & Friends Association is an initiative of The Consortium for Public Education.
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Category: Announcements || By Submitted Report
Ethnic art, crafts and collectibles will be on sale this Saturday at Homestead's historic Pump House.
Rivers of Steel National Heritage Area will hold a spring "Heritage Market" from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the structure, located in the Waterfront shopping district. Admission is free.
The ethnic artisan market is a means for the national heritage area to support and promote the diversity and cultural history of the Pittsburgh region, says Sherris Moreira, Rivers of Steel spokeswoman.
Items on display and on sale will include Bulgarian-Macedonian pottery, Moroccan purses, Native American beadwork and Irish collectibles. Crafts representing the Pittsburgh region's more recent green heritage include pop industrial art, handcrafted jewelry and baubles made from recycled materials, among others.
The event will also include a taste exploration of our region's diverse culture with foods representing Cuba, Bulgaria-Macedonia, England and Hungary, among others. Sample soups, teas and chocolate and purchase other foods, such as homemade cookies and breads from The Rise Above Bakery and Cafe or Easter treats from White Oak-based Dorothy's Candies.
Music will be provided by Mostefa Hnadi on the doumbeck drums in the morning and in the afternoon by Joe Grkman Jr. of the award-winning Slovenian Polka band Grkmania.
The pump house was the site of a key battle between striking steelworkers and Pinkerton guards during the 1892 Homestead steel strike. Today it's a trailhead of the Great Allegheny Passage via the Steel Valley Trail. Free short-term bike rentals will be available during the heritage market, Moreira says.
For more information, call (412) 464-4060 or visit the website.
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Category: Announcements, Shameless Horn-Tooting || By An Editor
Please welcome a new contributor to Tube City Almanac. Freelance writer Jennifer Sopko is a 2000 graduate of McKeesport Area High School and a 2004 graduate of St. Vincent College. She currently resides in Pittsburgh.
A history buff, Sopko's stories have appeared in the Latrobe Bulletin, Westmoreland History Magazine and the Ligonier Echo.
Friday's story was her first byline for Tube City Almanac. You can find more of Sopko's writing at her personal blog.
People interested in writing for Tube City Almanac can find an application and more information here.
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Category: News || By Jennifer Sopko
By Jennifer Sopko
Special to Tube City Almanac
With both federal and Pennsylvania state budgets in limbo as governing bodies struggle to eliminate deficits, reduce spending and avoid raising taxes, school districts are feeling the pressure from impending funding cuts in 2011-12 state budget proposed by Gov. Tom Corbett.
Of 42 districts in Allegheny County (excluding Pittsburgh Public Schools), McKeesport Area School District would suffer the highest overall deduction in terms of dollar amount, with a loss of almost $4.4 million.
That includes a $2.3 million reduction in basic education funding, plus the complete elimination of the district's accountability block grant, educational assistance program funding and charter school funding, according to an outline presented to school directors in March.
The comparison also shows that MASD would undergo the biggest loss by far in basic education funding, as the district is more dependent upon these funds money than others in the county, due to their low tax base, currently at 16.71 mills.
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In addition, the district's all-day kindergarten and tutoring programs are funded by supplementary grants, the loss of which threatens their operation next year, if the district is unable to come up with creative ways to generate revenue.
"It's been dominating more time, energy and effort trying to find a way to get out of the situation," McKeesport Area Superintendent Tim Gabauer told the Almanac.
According to a draft budget released in early March, Corbett proposes cutting overall state education funding by $2 billion. The projected budget includes a $550 million reduction in basic education funding for K-12 instruction in public schools and eliminates $484 million in accountability block grants and reimbursements to public school districts for students attending charter schools.
Over the past weeks the media has reported various program cuts, teacher layoffs and other means being considered by school districts through Allegheny County, which are projected to lose a total of $57.8 million in state education funding if Corbett's budget is passed.
Gabauer said the McKeesport Area district has been cautious in releasing specific information on what programs may be cut and how many staff members may be furloughed at this point because the situation remains complex and uncertain.
. . .
The lack of information has created rumors around the district about specific numbers of teachers being laid off. School board member Thomas Maglicco said that the board hasn't yet been presented with anything on paper and continues to work out the numbers, hoping to receive any extra state money available.
"Behind every single furlough, person, program, there are people," Gabauer said. "Behind every single person is a family that's affected. It's not only a professional obligation, but there's a personal side that becomes very challenging." He said he would speak with staff personally before any cuts became public.
The superintendent said that the board will have to make some moves internally but he could not elaborate on exactly how many at this point
"I can say, as we start to move through April, what people are affected, what programs are affected --- those will start to unveil themselves," he said.
. . .
Gabauer said he expects another big adjustment if the district loses its supplementary programs due to lack of funding because "90 percent of our total enrollment is probably affected by one or more of those programs."
A potential 15 percent reduction in the federal Title I program, which provides financial assistance for educating children of low-income families under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, could also create additional problems in the budget, he added.
School districts that would be hit the hardest by state budget cuts without sufficient local revenue means will have the most difficult time rebounding, Gabauer said. Documents from the House Appropriations Committee show that McKeesport Area School District has a 62 percent "poverty concentration," based on the number of students eligible for a free or reduced lunch.
The school board hopes to present a preliminary budget at the April school board meeting and have a final budget ready in May, regardless of any delays in the state budget's approval, Gabauer said. The state government has until June 30 to pass its budget.
. . .
Another possible impact of the state budget cuts could be a tax increase. When asked if the board was considering raising taxes next year, the superintendent answered that he did not know if the board would agree to do that, but that is it an option under consideration.
"I don't think there's anything whatsoever when it comes to generating revenue that is not under consideration," Gabauer said.
Yet under a state law passed in 2007, school tax increases are now tied to an inflationary index. Any increase over that amount either must be put to voters in a referendum, or districts must seek a waiver from the state Department of Education.
At 16.71 mills, the MASD tax rate generates $738,000 per mill for the district; McKeesport Area would have to hold a referendum to raise taxes more than the index --- about one-third of a mill --- which Gabauer says would generate less than $250,000 in additional income.
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In recent years, MASD has made improvements. Although past state-required standardized tests have shown MASD students' proficiency in math and reading ranking below the state averages, the State Department of Education has deemed the district as "making progress" and reaching their targets.
When asked if he believed that these cuts would hinder the progress that the district has been making, Gabauer was realistic about the challenges facing the district, but remained confident in the district's ability to persevere.
"We take pride in the quality of education we can provide," he said, although "every bit of that is going to be challenged."
Currently, the district is in the midst of expanding Francis McClure Intermediate School in White Oak and is building two new schools to replace George Washington Elementary and the now-demolished Cornell Middle School.
. . .
Facing an uncertain future that may threaten the strides that the district is making, Dr. Gabauer acknowledged the realistic impacts of Corbett's potential education funding cuts, yet remained confident that the school district will survive these financial woes, although perhaps through different means.
"It's a very resilient district; it's a very strong staff," Gabauer said. "Everybody feeds off of one another and finds a way to pull together and provide the very best for the students.
"We're going to find a way to grow," he said.
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Category: News || By Jason Togyer
Do you have treasure hiding in your attic? Bring your antiques and collectibles to the McKeesport Heritage Center this Saturday for a professional appraisal of their potential value.
For $5 per item, appraiser Jeff Poole will appraise all types of antiques, from furniture to photos and everything in between. Michelle Wardle-Eggers, executive director of the center, says items will be assessed on a first-come, first-served basis. Appraisals begin at 11 a.m. and continue until 3 p.m.
The fee is per item, she says --- a complete set of baseball cards, for instance, would count as one item, but three cards from different sets or eras would be appraised as three separate items. Likewise, a table and matching chairs would count as one item, but two dissimilar chairs count as different items.
All proceeds benefit McKeesport Heritage Center and the fundraiser is being organized by center volunteers. The center is located at 1832 Arboretum Drive, Renziehausen Park. Call (412) 678-1832 or visit the website for more information.
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'Run and Fun' Saturday: The American Cancer Society will hold its 10th annual Renziehausen Park five-kilometer run and one-mile walk on Saturday. (The run may cause some traffic delays for patrons attending the antiques appraisal at the Heritage Center, but we are informed that Arboretum Drive will be re-opened before 11.)
Registration begins at 7:45 a.m. at the "blue top" Jakomas Pavilion and the race begins at 9 a.m. Race day registration is $18, and T-shirts will be available on a first-come, first-served basis for race day registrants. Checks should be made payable to "American Cancer Society."
Awards will be given to the top three runners (male and female) in each age bracket and the first walkers (male and female) to complete the 5K. All fun-mile participants will receive ribbons for completing the course.
For more information, call Janice Boyko at (412) 885-2537.
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Routes 148, 837 Work Planned: Work will begin this summer on a $2.5 million project to improve Route 148 (East Fifth Avenue) between Hartman Street and Route 30. The project will includes milling and resurfacing, bridge repairs, guide rail and drainage upgrades and other improvements, says Jim Struzzi, district spokesman for the state Department of Transportation. The project will continue through late fall. Lane closures will occur.
McKeesport Mayor Regis McLaughlin says the city had hoped that PennDOT would also resurface Lysle Boulevard this year, but that won't happen as part of this project. Lysle carries Route 148 through the Downtown area.
In addition, PennDOT this year plans to upgrade traffic signals along Eighth Avenue (Route 837) near the Waterfront shopping complex in Whitaker, Munhall, Homestead and West Homestead, Struzzi says. The work includes the intersections between Neel Street in West Homestead and Whitaker Way in Whitaker. Periodic lane closures will occur.
The $220,000 project will continue through fall 2012.
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Category: Announcements || By Submitted Reports
(Political Candidates: Deadline for submissions to Tube City Almanac is May 2. Entries will be published May 9. Details below.)
. . .
Voter Deadline Monday: Allegheny County residents who wish to vote in the upcoming May 17 primary election must be registered by Monday, county spokesman Kevin Evanto says.
Registered voters who have moved or changed their name or party affiliation also must notify the Elections Division by Monday. Individuals must be registered in a political party in order to vote in that party's primary.
To qualify, potential voters must have been United States citizens at least one month prior to the primary, a resident of Pennsylvania and his or her election district for at least 30 days before the primary, and 18 years of age on or before the day of the primary.
Individuals who still need to register should apply in person from 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. at the Office of the Registration Commission in Room 609 of the County Office Building, 542 Forbes Ave., downtown Pittsburgh. The Elections Division will stay open until 5 p.m. Monday to accept hand-delivered voter registration forms, Evanto says.
Allegheny County residents who have questions or would like to verify their registration status should call the Elections Division at (412) 350-4510 or visit the county's website.
. . .
Free Ad Space for Political Candidates: As a public service, Tube City Community Media Inc. again will make available this space as a free, public outlet for local political candidates --- with strict rules attached.
If you know any political candidates, please let them know of this opportunity. Deadline is May 2; profiles will be published at Tube City Online on May 9.
Profiles received after the deadline will be published at the editor's option, time permitting.
Any candidate for a municipal or school board office in the Duquesne City, McKeesport Area, South Allegheny or West Mifflin Area school districts may submit a candidate profile for publication at Tube City Online.
For details and restrictions, see the complete list of rules published March 1 in the Almanac.
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Category: News || By Jason Togyer
CORRECTION, NOT PERFECTION: This story originally said that 12,000 tons of trash per month were being collected.
In an email to Tube City Almanac, City Controller Ray Malinchak notes that we misquoted the figure. The actual figure is 12,000 per year.
The error was the Almanac's. We apologize and will spend the rest of the day sitting in a Hefty bag.
. . .
City council will launch a formal investigation into bills being submitted by its trash hauler.
The probe comes after questions have been raised about the increase in the trash tonnage being collected by Nickolich Sanitation of Clairton. According to city officials, since 2008, when Nickolich assumed collection of the city's garbage from the previous hauler, Allied Waste Systems, the amount of garbage collected has gone up by more than 2,000 tons per year, to more than 12,000 tons per year.
An anonymous letter sent to council earlier this year claimed that Nickolich --- which also has contracts to collect garbage in several other nearby municipalities --- is not emptying its trucks completely before collecting trash in McKeesport.
City officials say they are not accusing Nickolich of wrong-doing, but do need to get to the bottom of the problem. Nickolich charges McKeesport $81.55 per ton for trash collection, while Allied charged $97.98 per ton. If the tonnage collected had remained the same, the city would be saving $164,000 per year, or nearly $14,000 per month. Instead, the savings are only $1,200 per year, or about $100 per month. (See correction, above.)
Nickolich has not made a public response to the allegations and last month did not return a call from Tube City Almanac seeking comment.
Public Works Director Nick Shermenti told council last week that his employees have found evidence of outside trash being dumped in the city from surrounding boroughs. In addition, says Dennis Pittman, city administrator, many single-family homes in the city have been subdivided into multiple-unit rentals, which generate more garbage.
But Councilman Darryl Segina, who asked for the investigation, says those factors wouldn't seem to account for a 20 percent increase in trash.
"There has always been dumping in the city," Segina says. "I don't understand how tonnage has increased so dramatically when the population has gone down. Something is definitely wrong."
. . .
Foundation Grants $100K for Demolitions: A foundation chaired by philanthropist Richard M. Scaife has given the city $100,000 for demolition of abandoned buildings.
The gift from Pittsburgh's Allegheny Foundation, announced last week, is the latest of several contributions from Scaife to benefit the city's blight eradication program. In the last four years, Scaife foundations have given $450,000 toward McKeesport's demolition programs.
According to its website, the foundation's mission includes historic preservation, civic development and education. It is chaired by Scaife, publisher of the Daily News and a chain of other newspapers, including the Tribune-Review.
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Category: Commentary/Editorial || By Jason Togyer
I'm glad this announcement was made on Friday, April 8. If it had been made a week earlier, no one would have believed it.
Actually, the news (broken by the Daily News this morning) that U.S. Steel will resume operations of the electric-resistance weld pipe mill in McKeesport is less surprising than you may think. Although the mill has been operated by the independent Camp-Hill Corp. since Feb. 1988, it's remained under a larger U.S. Steel umbrella.
If you went to U.S. Steel's website and looked for "tubular products," and then clicked on "manufacturing facilities," one of the plants that showed up was in "McKeesport, Pa." Camp-Hill has been shipping and selling pipe to U.S. Steel customers for years. And I'd hazard that many if not most of the steel coils being used at Camp-Hill were coming from U.S. Steel's Irvin Works.
Also, before we break out the champagne and parades, it's worth noting that about 150 people work at the ERW mill. National Works employed more than 7,000 in the 1970s. Absent some major expansion by U.S. Steel, the number of people being employed and the amount of taxes collected by the city won't change.
This is not a sign of booming prosperity to come. Not that much will be different inside or outside the mill gates on May 1, when U.S. Steel resumes control of the plant.
But please don't misconstrue my remarks. I'm not being negative. This is good news. I was on Market Street on Friday morning, and saw that the Camp-Hill sign was down, and the old U.S. Steel sign --- emerging like a ghost from the past --- made me smile. Time must heal all wounds, because I never thought seeing a U.S. Steel logo in McKeesport would make me happy.
(Of course, I also never thought I'd be a U.S. Steel shareholder, either, but in the interest of unbiased reporting, I should disclose that I am one.)
McKeesport should be very grateful to former National Works managers Pat Campana and A.L. Hillegass (a McKeesport High School grad), who kept the ERW mill operating for more than two decades, making good quality products and keeping hard-working people employed. Nothing can take away from the accomplishments of Camp-Hill Corp.
However: Most people weren't really sure what "Camp-Hill Corp." did. They know what "U.S. Steel" means.
Though it's much diminished in size, a major international manufacturing company is once again flying its flag over McKeesport. If you're trying to promote the Mon-Yough area (which Tube City Online does, sometimes shamelessly), having a Fortune 500 company in town isn't a bad talking point.
So, yes, this is a morale boost, not a financial boost. We'll take small victories when we get them. Thanks, Camp-Hill Corp. Welcome back, Big Steel.
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Category: News || By Jason Togyer
Editor's Note: The author of this story has a conflict of interest. Please read the note at the end of this story.
. . .
City council has decided to seek an outside legal opinion on whether former Mayor James Brewster is entitled to nearly $41,000 in deferred compensation.
Council voted 7-0 this week to table a resolution authorizing payments to 27 charities designated by Brewster, now a state senator representing the city and surrounding area. Brewster had asked for the donations, rather than having the city pay him the money personally.
The vote was triggered in part by a memo from City Controller Raymond Malinchak questioning the language in the ordinance that sets the mayor's pay.
It can also be viewed as the latest skirmish in a bitter and hotly contested Democratic primary for mayor which pits Brewster's replacement, former Council President Regis McLaughlin, against three current council members and former school director Lori Spando.
Malinchak also was considering a run for mayor, but is not registered for the primary, according to the Allegheny County Division of Elections.
. . .
Under the city's home rule charter, the mayor's job is a full-time salaried position. A 1996 ordinance sets the mayor's salary at the salary of "the city administrator/finance director, plus 5 percent."
Brewster has argued that because City Administrator Dennis Pittman has been serving as both administrator and finance director, the mayor's salary should have been 5 percent higher than the combined salaries for those positions, or approximately $67,000 annually. Brewster was paid $60,000 per year during his term in office.
But Malinchak argues that although Pittman may have been serving as the city's de facto finance director, that title isn't attached to his pay. Instead, Malinchak says, Pittman receives $57,000 in salary as city administrator, plus $10,000 in additional compensation which is budgeted for an "administrative assistant."
"The former mayor was never entitled to more than $60,000 per year," Malinchak told council in a letter dated Monday, and released to the media at the same time.
. . .
In December, Brewster said he had deferred part of his salary during his time in office. Rather than keep the money, Brewster asked that this compensation be divided among more than two dozen non-profits, including the Carnegie Library of McKeesport, the McKeesport NAACP, the planned Noah's Ark Community Center, Auberle and the Womansplace shelter.
No ordinance authorizes compensation of more than $60,000 to Brewster, wrote Malinchak, who called Brewster's request for deferred compensation "unauthorized and self-described."
If any money is being donated to charities, it should be donated "because of the benevolent spirit of the citizens of McKeesport" and not because of Brewster's request, Malinchak wrote.
. . .
Council President Michael Cherepko, who's running for the Democratic nomination for mayor with Brewster's endorsement, on Wednesday sharply criticized Malinchak for releasing his memo to the media at the same time it was sent to council.
Cherepko said the controller's opinions were almost always negative, sometimes contained errors, and were harmful to the city's image.
The news should be about how 27 local non-profits are going to receive gifts, Cherepko said. Instead, he said, "we've managed to take this event and turn it into a negative."
But Malinchak --- a frequent vocal opponent of Brewster, who at times has seemed to be campaigning against the former mayor --- accused Cherepko of "taking a page out of the former mayor's playbook and attacking the person who asks the question."
. . .
It's not clear who will provide the outside legal opinion, because McLaughlin and a council majority have not reached agreement on the appointment of a city solicitor.
Former City Solicitor J. Jason Elash, who since January has served as an unpaid outside counsel to the council majority, which includes Cherepko, has resigned from that post. In a letter of resignation, read at Wednesday's council meeting, Elash cited the "current political atmosphere" and "the character of certain elected officials" among his reasons for stepping down.
Those and other factors "make it impossible to protect the city's interests," Elash said.
Elash served as city solicitor and full-time head of its law department from 2004 until Dec. 31, when McLaughlin announced that Elash would not be reappointed.
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Category: News || By Jason Togyer
The "path to prosperity" unveiled last week by U.S. House Republicans looks more like the "road to ruin" to local officials in places like McKeesport.
If the budget cuts currently proposed in Congress take effect, the city would lose two-thirds of its community development money, or more than $800,000, says Bethany Budd Bauer, community development director.
That will translate directly into fewer police officers for "saturation patrols" of high-crime areas and fewer blighted houses being demolished. But it also will make it harder for the city to pay off debts incurred for a new fire engine and river-rescue boat.
. . .
It's a hit that the city's finances --- already precarious --- just can't take. "If that two-thirds went away, we'd have a major problem," says Dennis Pittman, city administrator.
City Councilman Darryl Segina says such a drastic cut would "grease the slides" to Act 47 municipal bankruptcy. He blames the shift in control in the U.S. House of Representatives from the Democratic Party --- which is generally more favorable to inner-city and urban needs --- to a Republican majority.
"I hope everyone remembers who they put in charge of our federal government," says Segina, a longtime Democrat. "Be careful when you vote, because every level of government affects you."
. . .
At issue is more than $33 billion (some sources say $34.5 billion) in spending cuts planned for the rest of the federal fiscal year. Some congressional Republicans are holding out for cuts of up to $62 billion this year.
In the short-term, a pending federal government shutdown on Friday could make it even harder for the city to pay its bills. Federal grant money promised for several purchases and projects hasn't yet been disbursed. Since January, Bauer says, the city has been subsidizing those costs from its general fund while it awaits those payments.
The community development money, awarded to financially needy communities by the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development, helps to pay for things like demolition of abandoned houses, subsidies for low-income home financing, police and fire equipment, and salaries for police officers, Bauer says.
Last year, community development grants also were used to retire debt on the Palisades ballroom and McKees Point Marina, she says.
. . .
A loss of community development money will also affect $350,000 in bond payments, Pittman says, which would have to be paid before any other obligations are satisfied.
McKeesport was scheduled to receive $1.3 million in community development block grants in 2011, representing about 7 percent of its $19.5 million budget.
City officials initially thought the community development budget cut would take effect in 2012. Instead, they're being told that the federal government would pull back on money already promised for 2011.
Pittman, Bauer and Mayor Regis McLaughlin recently participated in a conference call with U.S. Sen. Bob Casey Jr. and dozens of other municipal officials, but received little in the way of positive news.
. . .
With the House Republican leadership recommending $6.2 trillion in cuts to domestic spending --- especially for social programs --- over the next decade, political analysts say that virtually no area will be spared.
Even under a best-case scenario, Bauer says, the city's share of community development money will probably be cut 10 to 15 percent.
"Essentially, we are now flying blind, waiting to see what's going to happen," Bauer says. "We just don't know where this is going to land."
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Category: News || By Abrahm Lustgarten, ProPublica
By Abrahm Lustgarten
ProPublica News Service
Oil and gas inspectors policing Marcellus shale development in Pennsylvania will no longer be able to issue violations to the drilling companies they regulate without first getting the approval of top officials.
That's according to a directive laid out in a series of emails received by state Department of Environmental Protection staff last week and leaked to ProPublica, a non-profit corporation based in New York City.
The emails [1], [2] say the new edict applies only to enforcement actions related to Marcellus Shale drilling and that failure to seek prior approval "will not be acceptable"
The memos require that each of the hundreds of enforcement actions taken routinely against oil and gas operators in Pennsylvania each month now be approved by the department's executive deputy secretary, John Hines.
The memos are raising concerns that the state's environmental inspectors can no longer act independently and that regulations could be overridden by the political whims of the state's new governor, Tom Corbett.
"What this apparently is saying is that before any final action, the inspector must get approval by two political appointees: the secretary and the deputy secretary," said John Hanger, who headed the DEP until January under former Gov. Ed Rendell and worked to strengthen the state's oil and gas regulations.
"It's an extraordinary directive," Hanger said. "It represents a break from how business has been done in the department within the Marcellus Shale and within the oil and gas program for probably 20 years.
"It's on its face really breathtaking and it is profoundly unwise," he said. "I would urge them to rethink and rescind."
Corbett has made no secret of his support for drilling and has stated repeatedly that regulatory reforms can help spur job creation. Last month he gave C. Alan Walker, a former coal industry executive and longtime opponent of environmental regulations, authority to overwrite permitting decisions at the DEP in order to encourage economic development.
A spokeswoman for the DEP told ProPublica Wednesday that the initiative is not political, will not interfere with enforcement, and is intended to clear up confusion and inconsistency in the agency's regional offices. The spokeswoman, Katy Gresh, said there is no connection between the DEP directive and Gov. Corbett's economic initiatives.
"It isn't meant to be an interference," Gresh said. "It's meant to be a benefit to our constituents and would quite frankly streamline operations. There are times that NOVs (violations) have been issued when there is a pop can lying on a site. Yet maybe other things are being missed, thing that are truly detrimental to the environment that we want to take action on."
Hanger, however, says that DEP inspectors need to have breathing room to do their jobs and that forcing a senior review of their actions will only increase skepticism about their enforcement decisions.
"It will cause the public to lose confidence entirely in the inspection process," Hanger said. "The oversight process must be professional and independent. Inserting this level of review means the secretary, if he is going to take this seriously, probably has no time to do anything else.
"I do not believe this is coming from John Hines," Hanger said. "This is an enormous change in policy and it's impossible for something like this to be issued without the direction and knowledge of the governor's office."
Gresh disagreed. "The governor's office is not behind this," she said. "The governor charged (DEP) secretary (Michael) Krancer with bringing about consistency in his agency. This was a decision made at DEP in order to affect positive change."
. . .
This article is part of an ongoing investigation by ProPublica called "Buried Secrets: Gas Drilling's Environmental Threat." It is republished under a Creative Commons license.
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Category: Events, News || By Submitted Reports
Locally, McKeesport's Two Rivers Amateur Radio Club will hold its hamfest and swap meet from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday at the Boston Spectrum, 6001 Smithfield St., Elizabeth Township.
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