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Another month, another heated city council meeting.

McKeesport Mayor Michael Cherepko and Councilwoman V. Fawn Walker-Montgomery traded sharp words last night, with Cherepko accusing Walker-Montgomery of "smirking" and laughing during his remarks, and Walker-Montgomery accusing Cherepko of being disrespectful.

The exchange came after a long, heated discussion between council, the mayor and city Controller Ray Malinchak over the public works department's disposal of scrap vehicles and its policy for purchasing tires.

Unlike last month's meeting, no one was ejected by police, though Walker-Montgomery did excuse herself for a few minutes. The fractiousness seems to be a legacy of last year's superheated political climate, but has clearly begun to wear on everyone involved.

One official lamented privately last night, "Five months into the year, and we haven't yet discussed any city business at a city council meeting."

Cherepko, who has called Malinchak's questions politically motivated, compared the meetings to the movie "Groundhog Day": "Every month, we discuss the same issues, over and over again."

. . .

During a public comment portion of last night's meeting, Malinchak asked Cherepko and council about preliminary findings from the city's auditor. Malinchak claims that the auditor has raised questions about the city's cash-handling procedures --- specifically, how it tracks money paid by scrap dealers for abandoned vehicles and other material.

Malinchak, a frequent opponent of Cherepko and previous mayoral administrations who challenged Cherepko in November's election, has asked Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen Zappala Jr. to investigate whether any city employees were engaged in wrongdoing.

City Solicitor J. Jason Elash said the scrap-handling procedures have been the same for more than 30 years. Money received from junkyards for vehicles and other scrap was being kept in the public works department for public works purchases, Elash said, but the practice has been discontinued.

"There are new procedures in place now, and we are keeping a paper trail of every transaction," Elash said.

. . .

But Malinchak, unsatisfied, asked the mayor's office to press Zappala on whether his office has concluded its investigation. "I'm not going to call the man and tell him how to do his job," Cherepko replied.

On the city's purchase of tires for police cars, fire trucks and public-works vehicles, Malinchak asked why tire purchases are not being advertised for competitive bids.

Elash said it's a legal "gray area" whether the bidding process applies to tire purchases --- vehicles use a variety of different tire sizes and tires are purchased only when needed, not in bulk, so the cost of tires being purchased at any given time is well below the level where competitive bids are legally necessary.

In that regard, tires are like office supplies, which are purchased as needed, and are not subject to competitive bids, Elash said, adding that he could find no evidence that McKeesport ever in history has put tires out for bid.

Cherepko argued that it's futile to advertise for bids on tires since the prices rise and fall based on the cost of oil. "It would be a very onerous bidding process," Elash said. "We have 50 different sizes that we're buying, and most vendors will not give you a discount when you're not buying in volume."

. . .

The city purchases its tires from A.W. Rhome Tire Service in Bovard, Westmoreland County. Malinchak and Council President Darryl Segina asked why the city isn't buying its tires through the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's cooperative purchasing program, known as "COSTARS."

Rhome has consistently beat the COSTARS price on every tire, Cherepko said, and delivers them for free.

"I have reviewed every single tire purchase in this city for the past three years," Elash said. "Every single tire purchased for the city of McKeesport in the past three years was below the COSTARS price." Purchasing tires through COSTARS instead of sourcing them from a vendor such as Rhome would have cost the city an additional $25,000 in 2011, he said. Backhoe tires alone would have cost the city $4,000 more through COSTARS.

. . .

But the tire issue wasn't dead. At the end of each council meeting, the city controller recommends that council approve payment of the previous month's invoices.

Malinchak recommended payment of the bills, but after council voted, acknowledged that the bills he presented to council did not include an invoice for more than $2,000 from Rhome Tire.

Council Members Dale McCall and Dan Carr made a motion to pay the Rhome Tire invoice. Instead, Segina adjourned the meeting without calling a vote on Carr and McCall's motion.

As the room erupted in arguments, Cherepko's voice could be heard above the noise: "So, now we're not going to pay a vendor? Unbelievable."

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