Back in a Flash

I've been out of town for several days and just returned home late Sunday night. Normal service will resume shortly. Did you miss me? Did you notice? Do you care?

Never mind, I'd rather not know the answers.

. . .

As a public service, I've been asked to mention that there has been a rash of vandalism incidents up in Christy Park. Several homes --- apparently mostly vacant ones --- have been broken into and trashed.

If you live in the area, keep an eye on the neighborhood and call the cops if you notice something suspicious.

Not to make light, but I came home to a house that was trashed, too. Not by the burglars, but by the slob who lives here (namely me). If burglars did break in and wreck the place, I'm not sure I could tell the difference.

. . .

In other news, the Tribune-Review and its sister papers (including the great, not-so-gray lady of 409 Walnut St.) are hosting what's billed as a "town hall meeting" at 7 p.m. Wednesday in the auditorium of McKeesport Area High School to discuss the Mon-Fayette Expressway.

Panelists include Joe Kirk, executive director of the Mon Valley Progress Council, which boosts the construction of the expressway; state Rep. Joe Markosek of Monroeville, chairman of the governor's transportation committee; Andrew Quinn, director of community relations for Kennywood and a strong supporter of the expressway; Chad Amond, president of the Monroeville Chamber of Commerce and another expressway backer; and Joe Brimmeier, executive director of the state Turnpike Commission.

I don't mean to imply that the panel is a little bit biased, but to paraphrase Gene Weingarten: Asking these guys if you need a new expressway is like asking your kid if you need a puppy.

The chances are 100 percent that every single panelist is going to enthusiastically back the MFX, which begs the question: Why even host the discussion? It's not a debate, it's a pep rally.

Anyway, with the price of gas nearing $4 a gallon (premium hi-test is already over $4 in the Mon-Yough area), I think these folks ought to be challenged on whether building a new highway is sustainable, let alone desirable.

Perhaps the $3 billion they're trying to raise would be better spent on improvements to the network of surface roads in the Mon Valley: Route 837 through Homestead, Whitaker, West Mifflin and Duquesne; Lysle Boulevard in the city; Lebanon Church Road in Dravosburg and West Mifflin; Braddock Avenue in Braddock and Rankin.

All of those roads are already served by public transit. Widening them, adding new sidewalks and bike lanes, creating pull-off areas for buses, and timing the traffic lights to reduce congestion would provide immediate benefits to the surrounding neighborhoods.

It also wouldn't saddle the state with additional new, expensive infrastructure that would need to be maintained.

I suspect that Braddock Mayor John Fetterman (an outspoken opponent of the expressway) would rather have a four-lane, tree-lined boulevard (like Ardmore Boulevard) going through Braddock than a highway zipping over Braddock.

Now if you'll excuse me, I think I hear the washing machine calling my name. My vacation socks aren't going to wash themselves ... although judging by the smell of them, they may be able to march to the laundry on their own.

Feedback on “Back in a Flash”

:)

Should be fun! I’ll be there, most definitely.

Andrea
Andrea Boykowycz (URL) - May 19, 2008

Welcome back, you old coot!
Prof. Windbag - May 19, 2008

And more’s the point, why the hell is the Trib hosting a pro-MFE roundtable, when they’ve come out against it time and time again?
Vince - May 19, 2008

Well, Vince, last month, the Trib also endorsed Hillary Clinton for the Democratic presidential nomination.

This is either a sign of a tradition of openmindedness and fairness, or of rapidly approaching senility, I can’t remember which.
Webmaster - May 19, 2008

Jason,

It was getting lonely in the Mckeesport Blog-o-sphere…. ;)

I hadn’t heard of the rash of Christy Park. We definitielt do need to pay more attenntion to crime and quality of life issues in McKeesport while we also focus on economic development. There was a a letter discussing this in last week’s Post-Gazette South which Mr. Scaife doesn’t own:
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08136/881..

Not surpised to see my friend Andrea comment on the Mon Fayette, she works for Penn Future which promotes an alternative plan.

I believe it will take a Private/Public partnership to complete this much needed toll road. I also agree that we need significant investment in expanding other local infrastructure. I don’t believe that the two need to be mutually exclusive. The blocking of the MFE 40 years ago doomed our Valley economically to the point we are at now. As gas prices rise, we become further and further removed from being a good area to do manufacturing in.

McKeesport is a mocrocosm of Allegheny County’s woes:

We need to be more:

1) Tax Fiendly
2) Business Friendly
3) Home Owner/Citizen Friendly

We need to take on all three of these fronts simultaneously.

For example, as we atract new families to the valley, businesses will pop up to service their needs. As we bring in employers, folks will move here to be closer to work.

We certainly need to make our tax structure locally better for business and homeowners. Higher taxes discourage progress on both fronts.

The tax structure of PA hurts our economy and our population. We have to become more ceompetitive on those fronts. Locally, we need to be tax competitive or better than our neighbors to be more attractive.

Paul
Paul "Sluggo" Shellly (URL) - May 20, 2008

I don’t think the MFX will do much to spur the local economy. And with the emminent demise of the automobile, who’s going to use it? I think the money should be used for improving our local roads and mass transit that makes sense. Like extending the “T” to the surrounding areas using the abandoned railbeds instead of the 5 or so bicyclists that use it every day (the rest I see still riding on local roads annoying drivers). Don’t worry, when the cars are gone you can ride on the steets all you want To this day I still can’t understand why we don’t have intercity trains like Europe and Japan.
The Dude - May 20, 2008

“The blocking of the MFE 40 years ago doomed our valley economically to the point we are at now.”

Paul — what is the basis for your assertion?

Consider that the steel strike of 1959 led to increased sales of foreign steel to domestic manufacturers. That, coupled with short-sighted management decisions, led to the demise of domestic steel production and the loss of local jobs. Other manufacturing moved to lower-wage areas of the U.S. and overseas. How would the building of a highway have prevented that?

It’s clear that the mandate of any business, municipal planner, or municipal official is to do more with less. Your statements on tax policies imply as much. Is a new highway really the best way to spend tax dollars?

At $3.8 billion (and rising) how many new living-wage jobs will we realize? Will they be sustainable in the future economy? Where is the data that says that building a new highway is preferential to increased regional cooperation or consolidation and upgrading existing infrastructure?
Strisi - May 20, 2008

I sincerely hope there is plenty of attendance from opponents. I hate pep rallies, be they school board meetings or “town halls” as that term now has become really strained.
Does it matter? - May 21, 2008