Glassport, Pennsylvania
News Articles
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McKessport Daily News 3-1-2000
Rumored Glassport Rehab Center Opposed
Mar 1 2000 11:43AM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
Residents are concerned over a statement that appeared on a Glassport newsletter website about an alleged request to use a former church as a drug rehabilitation center.
During a special meeting last night, residents confronted Glassport Council members about the statement that appeared on the website: www.users.telerama.com/~urichard/glassnl.html.
Statement concerned St. Cecilia’s Church, which has been vacant for at least five years. It read:
“It was reported to council by the zoning officer that a drug and alcohol rehab home has requested a conditional use for the old St. Cecilia’s buildings to be used as a drug rehab center and living quarters.”
Councilman John D’Angelo, who was responsible for placing the statement on the site, said he wrote down the exact words Glassport Zoning Officer Eugene Tacik used in a report to council early last month.
Tacik confirmed he was approached by a lawyer representing the current owners of the church property about their interest in obtaining a conditional use permit, but would not confirm the permit was for a drug rehab center.
Currently, Tacik said, the property is zoned “residential.”
According to Tacik, a conditional use permit authorizes construction of a building other than a residence.
Council President Anthony Pepe also denied implications council has made any decisions concerning the potential use of the vacant church.
D’Angelo said he is “adamantly opposed to a drug and alcohol rehab center being put into the neighborhood.” His remarks were met with applause from residents.
Pepe agreed.
“I’m against anything like that,” he said. “I don’t think anyone behind this desk is in favor of anything like that.”
Pepe said there have been several possibilities considered for future use of the church property.
Borough Secretary Nancy Piazza-Whabby said she heard the church might be converted into a women’s shelter.
The matter was supposed to be addressed during a meeting last week, but Pepe said the meeting was postponed because he did not have enough information at that point. He also wanted more time to distinguish legitimate plans from rumors.
“That’s what I would do if I were in your position,” D’Angelo said.
Council plans on addressing the St. Cecilia’s situation further during its regular caucus March 13.
In other action, council unanimously hired Clairton Ambulance and Rescue as the ambulance service provider for the borough for the next three years.
Ambulance Committee Chairman Angelo Schinosi said Transcare Ambulance, which currently handles the duties in the borough, agreed to stay on through Monday, if necessary. Council and Clairton Fire Chief John Lattanzi said they are optimistic the new service will be in place by then.
Schinosi first made a motion for Guardian Angel Ambulance to become the provider because he was “concerned about the response time” of an ambulance from another community to emergency calls at Glassport residences. The motion was not seconded.
Councilman Edward Mihoces backed the Clairton service, calling it “a quality outfit.”
Recently, Mihoces said, during a personal experience with Clairton Ambulance, an EMS crew took only six minutes to appear. Once they arrived, he said he was impressed with the professionalism and care of the crew.
Lattanzi cautioned council about “growing pains” that might arise initially with the new service. He also reminded council the borough has the right to dismiss Clairton Ambulance if it is unhappy with the service after a 90-day probation period.
Pepe said of the departing Transcare service, “They were good. I hope Clairton continues” the level of service.
©The Daily News 2000
McKessport Daily News 3-14-2000
Glassport Mulls Rehab Facility
Mar 14 2000 12:59PM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
Representatives of Pyramid Healthcare met with Glassport Council to directly answer questions that have been swirling around a proposed plan to transform old St. Cecilia’s Church into a 25-bed drug and alcohol rehabilitation center.
Council wanted to be armed with information when they faced an expectedly anxious public at council’s regular monthly meeting tonight at 7:30.
Rumors about the facility — and the type of element it would be bringing into the community — have surfaced, and council, serving as the voice of borough residents, grilled the Pyramid group with numerous questions.
Much of the resistance to the plan arises from the stereotypes attached to the sort of individuals who require treatment at rehab centers. But, as Council President Anthony Pepe and Mayor Tom Urbanski pointed out, anyone can fall prey to addiction, regardless of how much money they have or where they live.
“It’s a disease,” Pepe said last night.
“If someone’s an alcoholic, they’ve got to get help somewhere,” Urbanski said.
“Just like a hospital” was a phrase reiterated throughout the session by Pyramid Healthcare Chief Operating Officer Jim Vernarsky.
A written statement prepared by the group read, “If Pyramid purchases the former St. Cecilia facility, the Glassport program will be licensed and monitored by the Pennsylvania Department of Health’s Division of Drug and Alcohol Programs.”
Vernarsky said Pyramid also will be seeking accreditation from Joint Commission for the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, which would further legitimize the facility as a professionally run healthcare unit.
Pyramid Healthcare was formed last June, and this would be its first treatment center in Allegheny County.
The only other Pyramid-run center exists in Altoona, which troubled Urbanski. He said, ideally, council would like to visit the facility and the people within the surrounding communities to get a first-hand take on the operation. A group trip to Altoona is a logistical improbability.
Vernarsky offered examples of operations that are more familiar and nearby, such as Greenbriar Treatment Center, which, while not managed by Pyramid Healthcare, is an illustration of what he plans the Glassport center to mirror.
Council brought up the prevailing safety issues concerning possible interaction between the treatment facility’s patients and Glassport residents.
Vernarsky told council the facility is an inpatient operation, not an outpatient one with a revolving door through which unlawful or degenerate addicts continuously pass.
According to Vernarsky, the average stay for a patient generally would be two to six weeks. “It would be very much like a hospital. People would come in and get treatment,” Vernarsky said.
The physicians would be “family practitioners with an understanding of addiction,” Vernarsky said. A nursing staff would be present 24 hours a day.
“This is not a methadone clinic,” Attorney Robert Wratcher said.
Vernarsky added, “Hostile or violent patients are not appropriate for this facility.” Because it is an inpatient operation, he continued, those who come in for treatment are more genuinely committed to getting real help for their addiction.
He did, however, acknowledge the reality of legal problems that can be attached to those who wrestle with addiction.
“Generally, there is some pressure (from loved ones or legally) to go into treatment... No one likes to enter treatment,” Vernarsky admitted.
He also said the proposed center is “not one that interfaces a whole lot with the community.”
The group’s Altoona operation, which has more than 100 beds in multiple facilities, has a 60 to 80 percent indigent patient population, according to Vernarsky. When they are done with treatment, they are released to the next lower level of treatment.
He spoke of smaller scale centers — a 17-bed, all-male facility in Mifflin County Amish country, for example — which Pyramid founders had a hand in forming while working for another employer that have generated no complaints from nearby residents.
It would not be a completely secure building, Vernarsky said, in that the patients would not be locked in like a prison. Doors would be locked to prevent outsiders from entering.
“I’m not concerned about what our patients are going to do,” Vernarsky said. He did say he had some concerns about what others who opposed the center might do to them or the facility, however.
Pyramid representatives stressed the need to be viewed as a plus in the community it enters. “We can’t be successful in an atmosphere where people don’t see us as a positive,” Vernarsky said.
Along those lines, Pyramid’s prepared statement was headlined with, “Fifty Local Jobs Could Be Reached by Western PA Behavioral Healthcare Firm.”
Urbanski referred to a local rehab “club” that was not technically a treatment center, but had people who visited to discuss addiction problems. Those connected to the club do their small part to help the local economy, i.e.
“They all smoke and eat a lot of candy bars,” Urbanski said.
Pyramid expects an architect to come in over the next week to 10 days to assess the structural situation. Architecturally speaking, the group is still unsure what physical changes would occur.
Whatever changes are made will be on the inside, the group said. “It will always look like a church.”
In fact, the Altoona facility was converted from a church, as well.
Environmental testing for lead and asbestos must be done before any brick is touched. The group has until December to receive and accept those results, to obtain licensing and approvals from local and state governing bodies, and to finalize its purchase.
The actual purchase price is still unknown, even by Vernarsky himself.
“There’s a lot of renovation that will have to take place,” he said.
Tonight will be the first of two opportunities for the public to be heard on the matter. There also will be a public hearing with council March 23 at 7 p.m.
McKessport Daily News 3-15-2000
Glassport Residents Respond to Rehab Proposal
Mar 15 2000 12:27PM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
Glassport Borough Council members got what they expected — a roomful of concerned residents who were less than thrilled with Pyramid Healthcare’s proposed drug and alcohol rehabilitation treatment center.
Council members reassured residents last night no decision has been made yet. In fact, they still have 90 days from next Wednesday to make a final decision. That’s when the borough planning commission will have a public meeting with representatives from Pyramid Healthcare.
From that meeting, commission members will have 45 days to give to council their recommendation on whether the proposed plan should move forward.
Then, once council members officially receive word from the now seven-member commission — Joe Novakowski was voted in unanimously last night — they, too, have 45 days to give their final say-so.
Next Thursday, a scheduled meeting at which the public will hear from Pyramid for themselves has been moved by Council President Anthony Pepe to the American Legion along Monongahela Avenue to accommodate the expected turnout.
Last night’s audience was too big for the relatively small council chambers, with people lining the hallway into the room.
As residents began to relay their thoughts to council, Mayor Tom Urbanski reminded them council members should be aware of their feelings at all times on such important matters.
“This community belongs to all the people, not just to council or the mayor,” Urbanski said. “The more help we get, the better decision we can make.”
“So, if we tell you we don’t want (the proposed treatment center), then you’ll vote against it?” resident Cindy Barnes asked.
“We represent you,” Police Committee Chairman Angelo Schinosi said in response.
Resident Amy Komondor was worried officials had already approved the facility in their own minds because of a quote from Urbanski that came out of Tuesday night’s meeting with Pyramid representatives.
During a discussion about addiction, Urbanski commented on the necessity for drug and alcohol addicts to seek help somewhere because quitting is so difficult.
“That’s your interpretation (of what the mayor’s quote implied),” Schinosi told Komondor.
Reed Barnes, who is on the planning commission, said, “We’ll see what happens. I’m going to go to that meeting next week and listen to what they have to say.”
The meeting eventually moved onto other matters, with Urbanski making an impassioned statement about young “hoodlums” who continuously vandalize the youth center at Seventh and Delaware Street and the Ninth Street ballfield.
Because of the constant window-breaking, shingle-ripping, bathroom-wrecking activity that has occurred, Urbanski said he and Police Chief Eugene Skerkoski have decided to lock the gates at the ballfield. Urbanski said it is not a financially sound strategy to keep repairing things that are broken, knowing they will have to be repaired again.
A once-new kitchen unit at the youth center now is garbage, the mayor said. Also, an $800 garage door was ruined and a hole big enough for a child to fit through was created in the youth center roof.
Urbanski said even glass block windows were broken. “Every single one of them,” he said disgustedly.
Counciman Edward Mihoces said Tuesday he actually has observed kids flinging shingles like Frisbees.
“It’s a shame,” Assistant Borough Secretary Andrea Foster said. “My kids go up there to play hockey at those tennis courts all the time,” and will not be able to do so now.
Urbanski said frustrated police patrol the area, but can’t be there all the time to catch the criminals. “Our police are trying very hard, I will say that,” Urbanski said.
Urbanski begged residents to provide information to police if they ever know who is causing the destruction. doing
“Somebody’s got to pay,” Urbanski said. “There has to be a stop to this.”
In other business:
* Council approved making a $155,000 second payment to Nicassio Corp. for the ongoing Washington Boulevard sewer project which, according to engineer Scott Hilty of EADS Group, is approximately 40 percent complete.
The first payment was for $211,000, bringing the bill thus far to approximately $366,000.
Urbanski questioned Hilty about sewer inspectors hired by EADS Group who were working on the project. Urbanski wondered if the borough would be better served if qualified Glassport people served as inspectors on the project.
Also, while on the topic of additional charges arising in the form of change orders, Urbanski said he would appreciate it if charges were taken off the cost of the project whenever work was not done or materials were not used that were supposed to have been.
Hilty assured the mayor EADS was looking out for the best interest of the borough, and gave an example of talking down Nicassio Corp. on the unit pricing for some project materials.
* Schinosi happily reported the new ambulance service provided by Clairton has been working well thus far. Less than a month into its contract, Schinosi said of Clairton’s service, “Response time has been excellent.”
* Parks and Recreation Committee Chairman Jim Uziel announced the receipt of a $25,000 grant to be used toward repair of fencing running parallel to the railroad tracks.
The borough only would have to pick up the engineering costs and fees, Uziel said.
McKessport Daily News 3-17-2000
Proposed Rehab Center Seeking Glassport’s OK
Mar 17 2000 12:05PM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
St. Cecilia’s hasn’t gotten this much attention in years. But the abandoned church has worked through Glassport’s rumor mill lately because of Pyramid Healthcare’s proposed use of the building as a drug and alcohol rehabilitation facility.
Speculation began when the prospective buyers applied for a conditional use permit, which is necessary for a building that will be used as something other than a residence.
Zoning Officer Eugene Tacik informed council of the application, and, in turn, Councilman John D’Angelo wrote on a Glassport newsletter website, “a drug and alcohol rehab home has requested a conditional use for the old St. Cecilia’s buildings to be used as a drug rehab center and living quarters.”
Word spread through the borough that a methadone clinic was coming to Glassport.
During Monday night’s executive session, representatives from Pyramid met with Glassport Council face-to-face to answer questions about the type of facility they hope to operate.
The next night, curious and anxious residents attended council’s regular meeting to ask questions of their own and to gauge the feelings of council members.
Wednesday, planning commission is scheduled to meet with Pyramid Healthcare in a public hearing and Thursday, Pyramid will meet with concerned residents.
Due to the limited seating capacity of council chambers, Council President Anthony Pepe has moved Thursday’s meeting to the American Legion along Monongahela Avenue to accommodate the expected turnout.
After Wednesday’s meeting, planning commission will have 45 days to give a recommendation to council, which has another 45 days to make its final decision.
The following is the written statement, entitled “Fifty Local Jobs Could be Created by Western Pa. Behavioral Healthcare Firm,” provided by Pyramid Healthcare to Glassport Council at Tuesday’s executive session:
“Pyramid Healthcare is proposing the development of an in-patient drug and alcohol treatment facility for adults in the former St. Cecilia’s Church and School in Glassport. The Western Pa.-headquartered firm has until December to accept the results from environmental tests for lead and asbestos, to obtain licensing and approvals from local and state governing bodies and to finalize its purchase.
“If the sale is completed, the remodeled building will serve approximately 25 clients in Pyramid’s in-patient treatment program. About 50 new local jobs will result, in addition to other economic benefits such as taxes, money spent locally by clients and employees and Pyramid’s expenditures to buy the community’s goods and services.
“Clients will come primarily from Allegheny County. However, some others will be from contiguous counties, such as Westmoreland and Washington. Pyramid’s multi-disciplinary treatment team will include physicians, 24-hour nursing care, trained addiction counselors and a host of support staff.
“The treatment program is designed to deliver lectures, group, individual and experiential therapies and includes the 12-Step Program, Alcoholics Anonymous meetings and numerous individual assignments. Pyramid will offer a self-contained therapeutic facility with high administrative and staffing standards.
“The company has earned a reputation as an experienced, professionally run organization that provides competent and compassionate treatment programs. Pyramid works with local leaders and residents to become an integral part of and an asset to the community.
“If Pyramid purchases the former St. Cecilia’s facility, the Glassport program will be licensed and monitored by Pennsylvania Department of Health’s Division of Drug and Alcohol Programs. Approval from the state’s Department of Labor and Industry, from the planning commission and from Glassport Council also will be solicited.”
McKessport Daily News 3-17-2000
Glassport Weather Plan Helps Shut-ins
Mar 17 2000 5:03PM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
Just because it’s nearly April, that does not mean winter still can’t hit with an ice storm and/or dangerous windchills. Sometimes, that nasty Mr. Snow Miser isn’t completely gone until May.
In fact, the area could get an example of winter’s staying power this weekend.
Because Glassport’s large senior citizen population is affected by the severity of winter weather more than others, borough Police Lt. Ron Benoit has done something to help them in their time of need.
Benoit visited some prominent community businesses and organizations to secure cooperation in developing Citizens Emergency Plan.
“I’m not very good at coming up with creative names,” he admitted later.
What Benoit lacks in creativity, he makes up for in humanitarianism.
The basic idea behind the plan is to offer assistance if at all possible to those Glassport residents who need it most when the weather turns ugly.
Those who have agreed to help will respond to calls from residents whenever the weather makes it impossible to help themselves.
Aid may come in the form of delivering groceries or medicine or the simple clearing of an icy sidewalk or massive snowdrift.
One of the central participants in the program is Foodland. Owner Joe Spagnola was more than willing to offer assistance when the lieutenant approached him about the idea last year.
“Community involvement has always been our goal,” Spagnola said. “I try to be a good neighbor.”
Naturally, a concern that arises when speaking about the notion of emergency relief is the different interpretations residents might have of the word “emergency.”
Benoit said there is no official document governing the program, but he’s relying on the common sense of Glassport residents not to abuse the plan.
Four to 6 inches of snow was the ballpark figure Benoit offered as justification for emergency situations for residents. Also, extremely cold temperatures or dangerously icy conditions would qualify.
Spagnola said: “I’m a grocer. I never turn anyone down.”
Rite-Aid also gave a verbal agreement to be involved in the plan. A spokesperson for the store said, while it is not Rite-Aid’s policy to deliver items to customers in general, special exceptions could be made to real emergency cases.
Because employees know most of the customers, there is usually little question as to who needs assistance.
If there were a real problem, the spokesperson said an employee would deliver to a customer in need — even if it meant taking the item(s) home and delivering once the employee left work.
Spagnola explained he “feels out” callers who ask for special favors to make sure it is an emergency.
His precaution should not be confused with a lack of generosity, however. It’s just each charitable act takes an employee away from the store, he said.
The Rite-Aid spokesperson said the store would “play it by ear” in terms of dealing with possible requests from customers and added the store has “a pretty good rapport with the residents.”
“We do what we can,” the spokesperson added. “We didn’t have any problems last year” with putting the plan into effect.
Spagnola said: “I’ll give an employee the keys to my car and they’ll run and deliver the food” if a customer cannot get to the supermarket.
Regardless of whether an employee is available to make a run, the Rite Aid spokesperson said: “Normally, I do it myself.”
Spagnola said he has “a half-dozen to a dozen employees” who have volunteered their involvement in the emergency plan.
Cub Scout Pack 954 also has committed to participate in assistance efforts.
Scoutmaster Reed Barnes, who heads the organization with help from wife, Cindy, said residents have been fortunate not to need help from them yet.
If and when hazardous conditions arise, however, Barnes said he will “get on the phone and call kids to go and clean off sidewalks and driveways for the elderly people that are shut in.”
Barnes said since chances are good the kids would already be off from school if conditions get bad enough for them to be called into action, his scouts will traverse the community streets on foot.
Benoit said he hopes the generosity of all participants will give the plan a strong chance of becoming the status quo in the future.
Then again, Benoit added, he hopes Glassport’s residents never need to use it.
McKessport Daily News 3-23-2000
Rehab Facility Not Welcome in Glassport
Mar 23 2000 1:28PM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
The future doesn’t look bright for Pyramid Healthcare’s proposed drug and alcohol rehabilitation treatment facility in Glassport after last night’s meeting with borough planning commission.
Residents who are not in favor of the center coming to town are making borough officials aware of their disapproval. Not one person — resident or official — has gone on record as being in favor of Pyramid’s proposed transformation of the old St. Cecilia Church into a rehab facility.
Last night, representatives from Pyramid — attorney Robert Wratcher and Director of Project Development Pat McHail — described answered questions from concerned residents. Unfortunately for Pyramid, the answers weren’t what some residents wanted to hear.
The main stumbling block is not Pyramid’s qualifications to operate such a facility — although planning commissioners requested various inspection, licensing and incident report materials.
Instead, there is some question as to if the building is safe enough for Pyramid to occupy. Wratcher assured the commission the structure is OK.
“Pyramid is not interested in buying a building that’s going to fall down,” he said.
A handful of borough officials — including Mayor Tom Urbanski, Council President Anthony Pepe and councilmen John D’Angelo, Bob Stefanic and Jim Morningstar, also a member of planning commission — were intermingled with residents in attendance to hear more from Pyramid and to get a hint of what tonight’s public meeting at the American Legion will be like.
A large turn-out for the 7 p.m. meeting is expected.
Pyramid likely will have to answer many of the same questions it faced last night, such as:
* “Will this be a glorified methadone clinic?”
In an attempt to put rumors and fears to rest, McHail addressed this issue at the beginning of his presentation.
“This is not for methadone treatment or methadone detox,” he insisted.
When D’Angelo asked if it would ever become a methadone facility, he was told it would not.
* “What type of security will be provided to insure the safety of surrounding residents?”
Because the proposed center would not be a psychiatric facility, McHail said: “By law, we can’t lock all the doors” to keep unwilling patients in.
McHail said Pyramid has an Against Medical Advice team composed of counselors, medical staff and loved ones of the patient who will attempt to intervene with unhappy patients.
If a patient wanted leave under his or her own power at any time, Pyramid officials admitted they could not prevent the patient from doing so.
* “What type of person would be a patient in the facility?”
Violent and/or dangerous patients, in general, would not be the appropriate type of patient in the facility, McHail assured.
D’Angelo asked if heroin addicts would be present, and McHail said “no.”
However, McHail acknowledged the possibility of cocaine addicts entering the facility, which bothered D’Angelo.
“Violence and drugs are related,” he said.
The councilman, along with others, sought a guarantee no patient could leave the facility and wander Glassport streets when rehabilitation becomes unbearable.
“I would love to stand here and give you guarantees, but I can’t,” Wratcher said.
* “How will the existence of a drug and alcohol rehab center affect the value of property?”
Residents voiced concerns about Glassport property values dropping due to the proximity of a rehab facility.
Wratcher said he believes there is no direct correlation between the presence of a Pyramid-type facility and dropping property values.
“I know that you probably all disagree with me,” he added.
* “Will the financial gain of selling the old church to Pyramid be enough to make up for the stir it will cause in the borough?”
One woman asked planning commissioners if the financial gain of selling the building is enough to upset so many Glassport residents.
While the actual sale price has not been released, Wratcher said, without certainty, it is more than $100,000.
As the meeting drew to a close, Zoning Officer Eugene Tacik said: “I feel it’s imperative we view (a similar Pyramid facility)) in Altoona.”
Throughout last night’s meeting, Urbanski and D’Angelo said they were opposed to allowing the facility to be located in Glassport.
A highly emotional resident was even more adamant.
“If this goes through, I’m moving,” Lois Marini said.
McKessport Daily News 3-24-2000
Glassport Hearing Delayed Due to Lack of Stenographer
Mar 24 2000 1:37PM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
An unexpected delay caused the postponement of a scheduled public hearing between Glassport Council, Pyramid Healthcare and borough residents about a proposed drug rehabilitation facility.
Council members did not bring a stenographer.
Therefore, Bob Wratcher, an attorney representing Pyramid, stepped to the microphone and politely said: “At this time, I would like to object to these proceedings in the absence of a court stenographer.”
Pyramid is seeking a conditional use permit from council to transform the former St. Cecilia’s Church building into a rehab facility. Residents have been adamantly opposed to the idea and last night’s hearing was to allow all parties to state their cases.
The large crowd inside American Legion Post 443 became agitated — mostly at borough officials — when the hearing was postponed. It is tentatively rescheduled for Monday.
Councilman Anthony Pepe apologized to the residents, especially senior citizens, who made the special effort to attend.
George Gobel, who acted as legal counsel for the borough in Solicitor Charles Lopresti’s absence, attempted to explain to the increasingly restless crowd why the meeting had to be rescheduled.
The stenographer, of course, provides an official record of a hearing. In case of an appeal by either party, the transcript is essential.
“And there is a high probability that this will end up in a common pleas court,” Wratcher said. “If we were converting a Wendy’s into a McDonald’s, no one would care.”
If there was a later appeal and no official transcript, a judge would have no choice but to force the parties to hold another hearing, Wratcher explained. In legal terms, the hearing without a stenographer would not exist.
Wratcher said it is the borough’s responsibility to provide the stenographer.
Gobel said the law states the borough has 60 days from the time an application is made to hold a public hearing for conditional use. If that does not happen, then a “deemed approval” goes into effect, Wratcher added. Yesterday was day No. 56.
Monday, when the hearing has been rescheduled for, is the Day No. 60.
“That’s bingo night!” some outraged residents shouted.
After huddling briefly with Gobel, Wratcher announced Pyramid would waive the 60-day requirement, giving council until April 11 to convene a public hearing.
McKessport Daily News 4-6-2000
Glassport Planners Reject Proposal for Rehab Clinic
Apr 6 2000 12:16PM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
Glassport’s planning commission has said “no” to Pyramid Healthcare.
Five of the seven commissioners were present at last night’s meeting — Zoning Officer Eugene Tacik and Commissioner Jim Morningstar were unable to attend— and they all voted against the company’s proposal to build a rehabilitation center in the borough.
Chairman Bob Bednar cited the following Glassport ordinance in announcing the commission’s recommendation:
“The proposed use shall not involve any element or cause any condition that may be dangerous, injurious or noxious to any other property or persons, and shall comply with the performance standards of Section 405,” Bednar said.
The “performance standards of Section 405” deal with rules regulating fire protection, electrical disturbances, noise, vibrations, odors, air pollution, glare, erosion and water pollution.
As Bednar pointed out, however, the commission focused more on the part of the ordinance about the proposed plan being dangerous or injurious to others.
“It wouldn’t be a lock-down facility,” Bednar said, and that fact has been a splinter under the fingernails of borough residents and officials from the start.
Though Pyramid has called its proposed center an “in-patient facility,” representatives admit they would not be able to detain a patient unwilling to stay, even after trying to intervene with professional counseling.
Residents have expressed concern about addicts who don’t want treatment any longer roaming Glassport streets — especially since the proposed center would be located in a residential area.
The planning commission’s recommendation will be forwarded to Glassport Council. Council is the governmental body that must make the final decision on the conditional use permit for the property at Eighth and Ohio avenues.
Council rarely goes against the recommendation of the planning commissioners, though it has the authority to do so.
Council’s next regular meeting is Tuesday, and a rescheduled public hearing with representatives from Pyramid is scheduled for Thursday.
If council rejects the conditional use application, Pyramid still has some options. The company to appeal council’s ruling. Maintaining an accurate record of the proceedings in case of appeal is why Pyramid Attorney Bob Wratcher objected to a scheduled public hearing two weeks ago. No stenographer was on hand, leading Wratcher to request a postponement.
Wratcher said if the matter shifts to the legal system, a judge would need an official stenographic record of the public hearing.
After the planning commissioners voted against the center last night, those in attendance applauded.
“I want to thank the planning commission for voting in the best interest of the people of Glassport,” borough resident Tony Spagnola said.
Tribune Review
Pittsburgh News - April 12, 2000
Street corner fight
Residents want to block a proposed drug and alcohol rehab center from moving into their neighborhood
By Rose A. Domenick TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Some residents of Glassport fear the idea of a drug and alcohol rehabilitation center taking over a street corner that once was the epitome of goodness.
The former St. Cecilia Church and School is being considered for the second facility operated by Pyramid Properties, an Altoona company that provides inpatient services for people with alcohol or drug dependencies.
Patients are not kept against their will, and residents fear those leaving the building will increase crime in the neighborhood, head for the state liquor store two blocks away or create a danger for children walking in their bathing suits on the way to the nearby community swimming pool.
"Things changed since our initial meeting," Glassport Mayor Thomas Urbanski said at the March 22 planning commission hearing. "We were told there would be 24-hour security with a part-time police officer, and that no way would patients be leaving the building."
Upset residents, and some council members, also spoke against a recommendation to give approval for the rehabilitation center to operate at the corner of Eighth Street and Ohio Avenue.
Already, there are rumblings of a court appeal. And council has yet to have a required public hearing.
On April 5, the planning commission recommended that council deny permission for the center. A public hearing before council is scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday at the American Legion Post on Monongahela Avenue.
The first council hearing March 22 was canceled by Pyramid Attorney Robert J. Wratcher, because a stenographer was not on hand to record statements.
"The borough has to provide a stenographer for these types of hearings," said Wratcher, of the Downtown law firm of Sittig, Cortese & Wratcher. "I believe they surmised a tape recorder was adequate.
"If anyone appeals a decision in Common Pleas Court, the first item the judge looks for is a transcript for the record," Wratcher added. "There's a good probability there will be legal action. Municipal planning code is very, very precise - you want to stick to the requirements. No one wants to do (the hearing) over again."
But Glassport Council President Anthony Pepe has another theory.
"I think they stalled," Pepe said. "Pyramid saw all those people and didn't want to have the meeting."
Pepe said council members will wait until after the public hearing to decide whether to tour the first Pyramid facility in Altoona, which opened about a year ago.
"We're waiting until after the meeting," Pepe said.
The former school was in the church basement of the two-story brick building, which was constructed in the early 1900s, according to officials. The Roman Catholic church and school was closed "a good six years" ago and eventually purchased by a trio of businessmen.
The sale is contingent upon approval by borough council.
"The planned 25-bed residential facility is not a methadone treatment center and never will be," said Pat McHale, head of project development for Pyramid.
Rather, the facility would provide about 14 to 20 days of treatment - including a 24- to 72-hour rigid detoxification period - using the Alcoholics Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous 12-Step program. Outpatient counseling also would be provided for as long as one year after the initial treatment.
"The program is heavily laden with AA philosophy, which has proven to be the most effective treatment for alcohol and chemical dependencies," McHale said.
Most of the referrals for the center would come from a family member or an employer in Allegheny County, McHale said. Some referrals could come from those on probation choosing rehabilitation rather than jail time. And referrals could come from surrounding counties.
The borough's zoning ordinance allows a hospital or clinic in that residential area but specifies that the use must not pose any danger to others or their property.
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McKessport Daily News 4-12-2000
Glassport Looking For Second Auditor
Apr 12 2000 12:00AM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
Usually, residents ask council members questions at monthly meetings. Last night, however, while council was on the subject of Glassport’s general fund audit, Councilman Angelo Schinosi looked into the audience and said, “Anyone wanna be an auditor?”
Council realized it might have needed another signature on the audit it submitted to Department of Community and Economic Development.
Only one name, that of current borough auditor Mary Ann Geary, appears on the report, which was submitted before the April 1 deadline, and two might be the magic number they needed to have.
Solicitor Charles Lopresti and council discussed what should be done since they essentially were approving a report that might not be approved by DCED.
Therefore, council went ahead and approved the audit submitted by Geary pending approval of DCED, which underscored the need for someone who will be qualified to put a second X on the line in the future.
“I’m not signing it,” Lopresti joked.
Something council finalized was the transformation of the section of Ohio Avenue from Second Street to Ninth Street into a one-way passage in the southbound direction.
“It’s been a long time in coming,” Schinosi said. Council’s third reading of the change last night meant he and Mayor Tom Urbanski now were able to peg April 25 as the day of implementation.
Schinosi said South Allegheny School District’s recommended to Glassport to make that segment of Ohio Avenue one way for the safety of Glassport Elementary School children approximately three months ago.
Schinosi said extra police will be present there that day to make the transition “go as smooth as possible.”
Robert Paoletti, a borough resident, addressed council regarding his clean-up efforts. He told council about the frequent visits he has received from police officers responding to calls from residents who are complaining about his activities in the woods along Erie Avenue.
“I’m trying to benefit this town” with clean-up work in the woods, Paoletti said. He said he has been cleaning up natural and unnatural debris from the area to beautify it.
He informed council he was not cutting down living trees like he thought complainers suspected.
Councilman John D’Angelo asked Paoletti if he would consider leaving trees that were dead, but still standing, alone and uncut to pacify nearby residents.
“People like to throw garbage in the woods, and I can’t stand that,” Paoletti said. He and the mayor wished more people took and active role as he did.
Paoletti said the only reason there haven’t been any complaints about him in the last two weeks was because he has stopped, not because residents are starting to support what he is trying to do.
When Councilman Jim Uziel discussed widening the portion of Allegheny Avenue between Sixth and Seventh streets from the approximate 24 feet that it is to approximately 40 feet, the group realized there would be two trees that would have to be dealt in that change.
“I’ll cut ‘em,” Paoletti volunteered.
In other business, council:
* Selected Allegheny Energy as its source of power for the borough. Urbanski also gave an unofficial recommendation to residents to do the same.
* Announced the Washington Boulevard sewer project is approximately 40 percent complete. D’Angelo said they are still on track to be complete by June 30.
* Approved looking into costs for a new five-ton dump truck. Councilman Bob Stefanic described the current vehicle as “driveable.”
Urbanski hoped the truck the borough has now would last them through the year, but Stefanic said, “I really don’t think that old truck’s gonna make it to the end of the year, Mayor. It might not make it to the end of the week.”
McKessport Daily News 4-13-2000
Pyramid Withdraws Glassport Request
Apr 13 2000 12:00AM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
Pyramid Healthcare has withdrawn its application for a conditional use permit to operate a drug rehabilitation clinic in Glassport, according to Borough Solicitor Charles Lopresti. Lopresti received a letter from Pyramid Attorney Robert Wratcher, stating Pyramid representatives will not be attending tonight’s public hearing scheduled for 7 at American Legion Post 443.
“We couldn’t be happier with the results,” resident Cindy Barnes said. Barnes appeared at Tuesday night’s council meeting with signatures of 695 residents who were against the rehabilitation facility locating in the borough.
The facility was being considered for the property better known as the former St. Cecilia’s Church at Eighth and Ohio.
Glassport Planning Commission members already held their hearing with Pyramid, and officially recommended to council April 5 to reject the application for the permit.
Residents who attended that meeting applauded when commission chairman Bob Bednar read the group’s ruling.
Pyramid’s intentions were made known at council’s regular meeting Feb. 8, when concerned residents questioned something they had read on a Glassport Web site.
Councilman John D’Angelo said he wrote the blurb in response to what Zoning Officer Eugene Tacik reported to council.
A conditional use permit is required for property that is to be used for purposes other than residential. Pyramid had plans of transforming the former church into a drug and alcohol rehabilitation treatment facility.
Over the last two-plus months, rumors have spread about the nature of the facility. Some residents were worried it would turn out to be a glorified methadone clinic.
Pyramid officials attempted to convince council it would not.
A public hearing was scheduled for March 23 in the American Legion in order to accommodate an expected large number of concerned residents, who apparently intended to object to the idea of the facility setting up shop in their community.
That meeting was postponed, however, when council did not provide a stenographer to keep a legal record of the hearing.
Wratcher said he had to object to the hearing because if his clients chose to appeal the final permit ruling given by council — which all involved thought ultimately would be a denial — a judge would need to refer to a stenographer’s record of the hearing proceedings.
Lopresti said tonight’s meeting is not canceled; council members still intend to appear to read the letter publicly to anyone who is interested in showing up to hear it.
McKessport Daily News 4-15-2000
Pyramid Explains Pull Out
BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
No more public hearings will be scheduled to consider Pyramid Healthcare's application for a conditional use permit to operate its proposed drug and alcohol rehabilitation facility in Glassport.
Twice in the last 23 days, a hearing had been scheduled for council to handle its phase in the permit-approval process. The first phase was the planning commission's moment in the spotlight.
In an April 5 meeting, chair- man Bob Bednar announced he and the rest of his fellow com- missioners recommended council deny Pyramid's application, because the proposed facility would be "dangerous" and "injurious" to surrounding residents.
However, that recommendation merely put the ball into council's court, because it is the ruling body that has the final say.
An initial hearing with council, Pyramid and the public was scheduled for March 23 at American Legion Post 443 council chambers was too small to fit the expectedly large turnout of concerned residents, but that hearing got postponed before it started.
A stenographer had not been provided by council, and Pyramid Attorney Robert Wratcher politely refused to continue with the proceedings with no way of having a legal record of what transpired.
Borough Secretary Nancy Piazza-Whabby said she was surprised when Wratcher said his clients may appeal a decision of rejection, which is why the lack of a stenographer was such a stumbling block.
The second attempt at a public hearing was Thursday, when all parties were to reconvene at the same time and location.
However, that fell apart, as well, when Wratcher dropped the bombshell that Pyramid had withdrawn its conditional use application and would not be attending.
Lopresti and fellow attorney George Gobel decided to hold the meeting regardless to speak directly to residents who still wished to show up.
"We certainly didn't want to leave you (the residents), on be half of council, stranded at the door wondering what happened," Lopresti said. "And so we felt it was in your best interest, as well as council's, to appear before you tonight to announce the news that you've all been waiting for."
Lopresti said public opposition is not what drove Pyramid to withdraw its application, however. He said, after discussions with Wratcher, Pyramid now thought the cost of transforming the old building into a legally compliant in-patient treatment facility was "prohibitive to them going forward."
Pyramid confirmed that sentiment in a press release it prepared Thursday, as did Wratcher, himself.
"The purchase of the church and development of this facility was contingent upon satisfactorily competing testing of the building for asbestos and lead, and evaluation of the property in regard to renovation costs," Pyramid's release read in part. "Ultimately, our evaluations showed that this property was not suitable, and was costprohibitive for our intended use."
According to Wratcher, the borough had no legal ground for the action, but added Pyramid could be successful in getting a denial overturned in court. That option, however, was overridden by the looming financial aspect, he said.
Glassport has a code of ordinances "that you can drive a truck through," Wratcher said.
The team of architects and engineers hired by Pyramid to do a preliminary evaluation of the cost of all the work necessary on the old. church building reported soe high prices early on, Wratcher said.
However, he explained how common it is for figures to be inflated at the initial stages of assessment. Unfortunately for Pyramid - and fortunately for many Glassport residents "some numbers came down and some didn't" after closer, more in-depth, inspection.
As for the feelings of Glassporters, Wratcher understood where they were coming from.
Wratcher said that, for approximately the last 10 years, he has specialized in land-use cases just like Glassport's Pyramid scenario. Therefore, he is used to hearing, "Not in my backyard."
"What I typically find," Wratcher said, "is that there's never a persistent problem (with the surrounding community because) these types of facilities are never as bad as they think they're going to be. People adapt to it when they find out there's not going to be a problem.
"Opposition doesn't go away," Wratcher noted, "but opposition lessens."
Wratcher said he was slightly disappointed by public perception because Pyramid, he, said, was "committed to working with people in the neighborhood and proving that they would be a good neighbor."
Pyramid still is looking for new places, Wratcher explained, but he doubts Glassport would be the best place to continue the search.
In light of public resistance, Wratcher said, "Maybe we need to take our show on the road."
McKessport Daily News 4-25-2000
Glassport Paper Carrier Takes Work in Stride
Apr 25 2000 12:00AM By BY HARRY BRADFORD Daily News Staff Writer
Thirteen-year-old Tony Foster, a seventh-grade student at South Allegheny Middle School, has two “jobs.”
He delivers newspapers during the afternoon and also has a spot on the South Allegheny track team.
Those dual responsibilities caused some subscribers to The Daily News to receive their newspapers one hour late, Tony’s mother, Andrea Foster, says.
His brother, John, managed the route until late March when he got a regular job. He also participated in hockey.
“Each boy had a route,” Andrea Foster says. “If there is a track meet, John will deliver the papers.”
After customers began to call to find out where their newspaper was, Tony devised a clever new system.
“The first day he was late he would do it at 5 p.m.,” the mother says. “He was regimented and they would know when he would be there.”
He devised a system where notes were given to customers when the newspaper was delivered one hour later than usual.
In the note, he explains the procedure will continue for nine weeks because of his track duties. Tony’s plan went into effect at the end of March.
“The customers were receptive to it,” Andrea Foster says. “He said he would do it at 5 p.m. and they knew when he would be there.”
He encourages customers to leave money in an envelope with their addresses and how many weeks they would be paying for if they are not home.
The system calls for money to be left in an envelope so he can pick it up while delivering newspapers.
“There have been no complaints,” his mother adds. “I can’t see why he can’t do both. If it interfered, he would have to make a choice.”
If a track meet interferes with the paper route, the back-up plan calls for John to deliver newspapers when available.
Ironically, Tony has placed second or third place in every meet since he joined the track team.
He also participates in hockey during winter months. Since most games and practices are during the evening, there are no conflicts with the newspaper route.
©The Daily News 2000
McKessport Daily News 4-25-2000
Glassport’s CHC No. 1 Gets Grant, Seeks More
Apr 25 2000 12:00AM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
Ten thousand dollars doesn’t go as far as it used to.
Just ask Citizen’s Hose Co. No. 1 President Mike Komondor. The company recently received a $10,000 grant through the help of state Rep. Ken Ruffing, D-West Mifflin to aid in the purchase of equipment needed by the Glassport volunteer fire department.
What did all the cash buy, exactly?
Komondor said he was able to obtain three self-contained breathing apparatus air packs, three spare high-pressure compressed air bottles and eight additional face pieces.
That’s only 14 items, but the items are much more expensive than the general public would guess, he said. It gives everyone an idea how much money it takes for a fire department to operate, Komondor added.
“Each firefighter has their own mask now,” Komondor said.
He said he is relieved firefighters no longer must use face masks previously worn by someone else. He remarked not only is it a nuisance and a hassle, but it is much healthier not to have to rotate face pieces.
Komondor said the day after the check came in the mail, the money was spent. Total bill for the equipment ordered was $9,945, he said.
So, what happens to the $55 left over? Can firefighters at CHC No. 1 use it to purchase something small, but no less important, for the station?
“We may have to give that portion back to the state,” Komondor allowed.
In the application for the grant, Komondor said the equipment for which the requested funds would pay had to be listed specifically. The near-complete usage of the grant was no coincidence as Komondor had the numbers figured out prior to placing the order.
Grant funding cannot be used toward anything not listed on the grant application, Komondor said.
McKessport Daily News 5-10-2000
Development Ideas Aired in Glassport
May 10 2000 12:00AM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
Construction and demolition projects are taking center stage in Glassport.
Last night, Glassport Engineer Scott Hilty asked council to give him five community project ideas for which the borough will seek federal funding. Deadline for submitting requests is May 26.
Hilty said he preferred council limited the number of projects to five so he and his co-workers can prepare quality proposals before the deadline.
More detailed plans would have a better chance of being selected, the engineer reasoned.
Earlier in the meeting, Sewage Chairman John D’Angelo discussed two sewer-related items for which council should seek funding. The first is a belt filter press for the treatment plant along Harrison Street and the second a sewer extension branch project to the Washington Boulevard project to bring five houses into the system.
Council exchanged ideas to fill out the remaining three slots before reaching a decision.
One project agreed upon was the Ninth Street steps to the pool, which need immediate attention.
Another project is the paving of Naomi Street. That decision furrowed a few eyebrows in the audience because, according to residents and members alike, there are other streets that need work, too.
However, council pegged Naomi as a priority and no one disputed the decision.
“It’s really bad,” D’Angelo said. “It’s tortured.”
Fifth item put before Hilty is renovation of the youth center.
Hilty guided the group’s decision-making process, saying it was more likely for projects that affect the community as a whole to be funded than specialized ones.
Council members said they should have discussed the potential projects in executive session, rather than having come up with them on the spot.
Hilty told council he received a letter about the deadline May 4 and sent word to the borough office the next day.
Building Inspector Terry DiMarco reported on buildings in the borough he thinks should be demolished.
Glassport Mayor Tom Urbanski said he has heard the owner of 711 Indiana Ave, is “trying to sell it and have it rehabbed, but I think that’s an old story.”
DiMarco said he has communicated with the owners of 711 and 621 Indiana about their commitment to rehabilitate the buildings, but their lack of improvements “leads me to believe their commitment is not very strong.”
Council President Anthony Pepe said there’s room in the budget for two buildings to be torn down.
DiMarco said if he had to pick two, he would choose the Indiana Avenue properties.
“Those two properties definitely should be No. 1,” the mayor said.
D’Angelo reminded council of a verbal commitment made to tear down another dwelling along the 900 block of Vermont Avenue about a year ago. Despite the reminder, council is moving ahead with condemnation proceedings for the Indiana Avenue structures.
The vote was 4-3 with D’Angelo, Councilman Jim Morningstar and Pepe opposing.
Solicitor Charles LoPresti said if the residences had “latent defects and dangerous conditions” as reported, the borough should consider marking them as such to keep off the property.
Resident Tom Borucki complained of how the re-routing of the Washington Boulevard sewer project affected his property.
Borucki said it wasn’t right for his yard and trees to be ravaged. He also complained about a manhole near his house.
Urbanski sympathized with Borucki, saying if the damage had been done to his own property without him being informed of it, “the borough would have been in a lot of trouble.”
“I think we messed up a little bit there,” the mayor admitted.
Hilty assured Borucki the manhole can be capped, covered with dirt and seeded.
“We’ll make it look like (it used to) so that you’re happy with it,” Hilty said.
In other business, council:
* Announced Washington Boulevard Sanitary Sewer Extension is 60 percent complete and the project should be complete by the end of August.
* Approved a two-year contract for Police Chief Eugene Skerkoski.
Deal includes an annual 5 percent salary increase.
* Announced borough police voted by majority decision to join Teamsters Local No. 205.
* Passed a resolution to commemorate former council member, committee member and constable Andrew Slafka.
* Released the EMS call report for the month of April.
Fire, Ambulance and Water Committee Chairman Angelo Schinosi said Clairton EMS responded to 37 calls with an average response time of 3.5 minutes.
McKessport Daily News 5-11-2000
Glassport Residents Revive Pyramid Issue
May 11 2000 12:00AM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
Some Glassport residents aren’t ready to let the Pyramid Healthcare situation fade away.
Last month, Pyramid sought a conditional use permit from the borough to transform the abandoned St. Cecilia’s Church into a drug and alcohol rehabilitation facility. After resident protest, the company withdrew its request.
Cindy Barnes attended Tuesday’s meeting to find out why council waited until the last day of the extension period granted by Pyramid to hold a public hearing at the American Legion.
The permit application process called for a public hearing — first with the planning commission and then with council. After their hearing with Pyramid, planning commissioners recommended to council the permit application be rejected.
Council’s public hearing with Pyramid had to be rescheduled after a stenographer failed to attend the original hearing. Pyramid Attorney Robert Wratcher objected to the proceedings continuing without the stenographer.
Wratcher granted the borough a 21-day extension to conduct another public hearing.
“We suggested (to council the rescheduled hearing) occur six to seven days before the deadline,” Glassport Solicitor Charles LoPresti said.
Due to scheduling conflicts, however, the hearing was set for the final day of the deadline.
“As lawyers, frankly, we’re used to waiting until the last day on things,” LoPresti added.
Ironically, no hearing was needed on the April 13 deadline after Pyramid announced earlier in the day it was withdrawing its request.
Barnes also was concerned about a quote attributed to Wratcher in an article in The Daily News stating Glassport has an ordinance code “you could drive a truck through.”
She asked what will prevent potential undesirable agencies from moving into Glassport.
“We averted a big disaster,” Barnes said. “But who’s to say what will happen next time if we don’t have all our ducks in a row?”
“We’re updating the ordinances,” Council President Anthony Pepe assured her.
“I’ve been hearing this since last November,” Barnes replied.
In other business, council:
* Announced fencing at Ninth Street ballfield will be replaced using community development block grant funds.
* OK’d acquisition of a five-ton dump truck for the street department on a lease-to-buy basis.
* Reid Barnes, resident and Cub Master of Cub Scout Pack 954, presented Mayor Tom Urbanski with a certificate of appreciation for his help with community projects the scouts have undertaken.
“The mayor helps us out immensely,” Barnes said.
©The Daily News 2000
McKessport Daily News 5-18-2000
Glassport Lawsuit Awaiting Decision
May 18 2000 12:00AM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
No decision has been made yet by Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board after hearing testimony from three Glassport police officers in a hearing for an unfair labor practice charge filed against the borough in February.
The hearing took place at the State Office Building in Pittsburgh yesterday morning at approximately 10 a.m., but no one showed up to represent the side of Glassport.
The original charge was filed on behalf of the borough’s police by Teamsters Local Union No. 205 Feb. 1. It states:
“Commencing on or about January 10, 2000 and continuing to the present time, the Mayor (Thomas Urbanski) and President of Council (Anthony Pepe)... have threatened various police officers with loss of employment if they vote for union representation.
“Further, these officials of Glassport Borough have threatened to dissolve the police department if the union received a majority vote; and further, they have threatened to reduce the hours of work and status of police officers if the union receives a majority vote.”
Both Urbanski and Pepe adamantly denied the allegations.
Since the filing, officers from Glassport Police Department joined Local No. 205 via an “election” held May 9 at the borough building, and Pepe served as a witness for those proceedings.
LoPresti said he was in Harrisburg yesterday morning and was physically unable to attend yesterday’s proceedings.
According to LoPresti, the fact that police already had joined the union made the hearing pointless.
“There was no need to even have that hearing,” LoPresti said. “They have their union now.”
Teamsters Attorney David Greenberg said he never had been involved in a situation like the one that unfolded downtown yesterday with one side missing.
Greenberg said after the hearing officer attempted to reach LoPresti, as well as attorneys George Gobel and Tom Berry — who sometimes handle solicitor duties for LoPresti — the officer said he had been informed none of the three would be appearing.
LoPresti confirmed he said he would not be attending the hearing when the officer contacted him by phone.
Greenberg said the hearing officer proceeded to hear testimony from three Glassport police officers, even though Glassport’s side was not present to refute anything, they said.
“The hearing officer said he has never seen anything like this before,” Greenberg said.
LoPresti said, “Mayor Urbanski and Mr. Pepe in no way attempted to prevent the union from coming in...They absolutely did not commit an unfair labor practice.”
LoPresti went on to say neither he nor the mayor and council president have ill feelings toward the borough’s police officers.
“We’ll negotiate a contract (with police) that’s fair and equitable,” LoPresti said.
Greenberg said he doesn’t expect it to take a long time for the final ruling to be handed down. After all, he added, “The hearing only lasted about 15 minutes.”
McKessport Daily News 5-19-2000
SA Approves $11M Project
May 19 2000 12:00AM By BY STEVEN SINGER Daily News Staff Writer
South Allegheny School Board is seeking public comment on its $11 million plan to build a new elementary school and close two old ones — after the measure has already been approved.
Board voted 6-2 last night to build a new elementary school at a site adjacent to the high school campus and to close Glassport and Port Vue elementary schools.
School Directors Dianne Rosche and Dino Difelice voted against the measure. Arlene Schinosi, John Matyasovsky, Walter Hibner, Russell Geary, Thomas Dudeka and Vicki Morningstar voted in favor.
Director Luke Riley was absent.
Though the measure has been passed, Superintendent Patrick Risha said, “If there’s support against it, the board has the right to do whatever it wants.”
Presentations explaining the board’s decision will be given June 14 at 7 p.m. at Port Vue school and June 15 at 7 p.m. at Manor elementary. Tours of the facilities will be given at 5 p.m.
Under the plan, Manor elementary will remain open but with grades kindergarten through first. The new school will house children in second through sixth grade.
This replaces an alignment in which each elementary school had grades kindergarten through six.
In addition to authorizing the project, the board took other action moving it forward.
Board authorized architect N. John Cunzolo and Associates to write a feasibility study for the project at a cost of $120,000.
The solicitor also has authorization to proceed with eminent domain proceedings to purchase the proposed site of the new elementary school — a more than 15 acre property in Williams Heights.
Property has been assessed at $85,000, Risha noted.
Though negations have been conducted on the property, the superintendent is afraid the owners will build on it causing its value to rise before a deal is struck with the district.
Even if the board hadn’t decided to build a new school, the property would be useful for additional athletic fields, Risha said.
In addition, board approved utilizing Ron Brown of Grogan, Graffam, McGinley and Lucchino as bond council to help fund the new school project.
Council’s fee is to be negotiated by the superintendent.
Since March 2, a building committee made up of board members, administrators and residents from Glassport, Liberty, Lincoln and Port Vue has met regarding the new school issue. Board was acting on their recommendation last night in approving the project.
One of the considerations involved was price.
Cost of the project is estimated at $11,158,000.
Cost of renovating the two elementary schools would be approximately $7,480,000.
Even though these figures put the new project $3,677,000 more expensive than renovating, many board members think renovating would be more expensive in the long run.
The renovation cost does not include building additions to the structure. It only includes fixing the present areas.
The board noted one of the problems with the buildings is lack of space. Since the enrollment statistics are increasing, this is a particularly recalcitrant problem.
Port Vue school is especially in bad condition, observed Risha.
When it comes to air circulation, that school would have to be gutted, he said, to get within compliance with state codes.
Another problem with renovating would be the disruptions it would cause in the schools under construction.
Since so much would have to be done to Port Vue and Glassport elementaries to bring them up to speed, the cost may be much higher than building the new school.
This was, itself, a consideration Risha remarked.
Since approximately half the residents of the school district are senior citizens on fixed incomes, the board was aware whatever it did, it couldn’t afford to raise taxes, he said.
The new project can be accomplished without raising millage, Risha noted.
There are many benefits of the new elementary, especially in how it unifies the campus.
Having the elementary and high school so close together allows for simplified management, maintenance and better safety, Risha noted.
Expeditious action was due to rising costs, the superintendent said.
Renovations of some sort were first addressed in 1997, he added. If the board had acted then, it would have saved $2.2 million, he said.
“The longer we wait, the less we can do for our kids,” he said.
“I want the best we can afford.”
When it comes to raising taxes, the board isn’t just giving lip service to keeping millage the same.
Board unanimously approved a balanced preliminary budget of $15,915,036 for the 2000-01 school year.
If given final approval at the June 22 meeting, taxes will remain at 90.875 mils.
This would be the ninth straight year without a tax increase.
A total of $1.3 million is included in the proposed budget to help fund the new school and establish a budgetary reserve contingency.
Approximately $545,000 is set aside for operating costs such as increased salaries, benefits and staffing needs.
©The Daily News 2000
McKessport Daily News 5-26-2000
Glassport Battles Youth Crime
May 26 2000 12:00AM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
Whenever Mayor Tom Urbanski reads from reports prepared by Police Chief Eugene Skerkoski and Juvenile Officer Lt. Ron Benoit at council meetings, one can detect his disappointment.
The mayor’s hope for Glassport’s future lies in the youth of the community, and it visibly upsets him to read such a detailed report on criminal activity performed by borough juveniles.
From Benoit’s March report, Urbanski read accounts of 14 citations made to juveniles, one youngster who was referred to juvenile court and 10 others who were involved in incidents “handled locally.”
April’s report included 10 juvenile citations, two juvenile incidents handled locally and two juveniles turned over to a probation officer.
Skerkoski says “handled locally” simply means police, parents of the offender and the victim(s) work together without pressing formal charges, perhaps to make “out-of-pocket” restitution for damages incurred.
“If at all possible, we try to handle things locally,” Benoit says.
The juvenile officer says he works extensively with minors and their parents to come up with alternative solutions to the court system.
For instance, according to Benoit’s juvenile report, $250 in restitution was paid to the owner of a vehicle damaged by a 10-year-old last month.
“We look to preserve the family unit,” Benoit says. “Only as a last resort would we take a kid and refer (him/her) to juvenile court.”
The lower end of the age range of minors involved in incidents disturbed Urbanski; kids as young as 6 were mentioned in criminal mischief-type incidents.
“The younger they are, you want to pull out all the stops in handling the situation,” Benoit says. “If there’s something different I can do, then I try to do it.”
Benoit says many times, a “strict and stern talking-to ... steers (juveniles) on the straight and narrow.”
Unfortunately, mere words from a friendly officer don’t always affect a youngster, Benoit says. When that happens, he becomes a little more, well, unfriendly.
“If I see a kid is taking it lackadaisically, I might get a little louder with my speech ... to show them I’m not playing around and I mean business,” he says.
Of course, even then there are kids who don’t get the message. That’s where South Allegheny District Justice Ed Burnett comes in.
“If we can’t (get through to a youngster), then we have to take the next step,” Benoit says.
Benoit says he believes Burnett punishes juvenile offenders fairly, but not too harshly ... unless he is forced to. Usually, the court experience itself — being face-to-face with a magistrate — tends to be more effective than a visit from an officer.
When juveniles make the journey from Benoit-ville to Burnett-ville, they find similar philosophies: “Every case is handled differently,” Burnett says.
Unfortunately, the district justice admits it’s impossible to achieve total success in turning kids around.
“We have a 90-percent success rate with the South Allegheny Adolescence Alcohol Awareness Program,” Burnett says. “I think that’s very good.”
Juveniles who appear before Burnett because of drug or alcohol violations might find themselves attending a one-day program at Mon Yough Drug and Alcohol Rehabilitation Center.
Repeat offenders of such violations must receive an assessment from Mon Yough counselors and complete a six-night program: one class a week for six weeks.
In addition to drug and alcohol violations, Burnett sees offenses on all levels of seriousness and treats them accordingly. His punishments range from house arrest to fines, different types of community service and referrals to juvenile court.
“The last thing we want to do is send them to juvenile court,” Burnett says. “I don’t like to fine them because that’s taking bread and butter off the table.”
Besides, fines usually punish parents more than the children who have committed the crimes, he adds.
Though they weren’t the ones caught drinking in an alley or throwing a rock through a window, parents should assume some of the responsibility for their children appearing in his court, Burnett says.
Often, he says, he’s frustrated by the attitude of parents of troubled youths. They sometimes think they’re doing everything right, but their kids simply are unreachable.
Attitude, in general, plays a major factor in the punishments Burnett hands out. First-time offenders who are cooperative and demonstrate genuine regret may get a minimal community service sentence, like washing and waxing a police car. On the other hand, kids with bad attitudes might get up to 40 hours of service
He has been known to assign juveniles to do work at Citizens Hose Co. No. 1 in Glassport. He also says it’s not unusual for youngsters to become actively involved with the fire company when they’ve fulfilled their court-appointed obligations.
“The last two that he’s sent over ... have become members,” CHC No. 1 President Mike Komondor says. “We give (juveniles) something to do to keep them off the streets.”
Sometimes, he admits, kids can be bad, but “if you show them that you care, maybe you can make a difference in their lives.”
Burnett also makes it a practice to “move the court to the school” and hold proceedings there whenever he has to deal with offenses committed in school. He sets up shop in South Allegheny’s auditorium or chorus room.
School District Police Lt. Chris Kircher says not only is the court experience at SA the same as regular proceedings held by Burnett, it’s much more convenient for the students and teachers involved.
“The students don’t have to miss school that day,” Kircher says.
And if any teachers or other district personnel have to provide testimony, they’re already there.
Some of “the most common offenses (at SA) are compulsory school attendance violations, disorderly conduct, theft, trespass, criminal mischief,” Kircher says.
Burnett says — and Kircher remembers it well himself — an extreme case in which a child missed an excessive amount of school. He sent the mother to Allegheny County Jail for five days and placed the child in a temporary foster home.
“She never wants to see Allegheny County Jail again,” Burnett says.
The child hasn’t missed a day of school since.
“We have a magistrate who doesn’t put up with (repeat juvenile offenders),” Kircher says. “He’s sympathetic when he has to be, but he doesn’t play games.”
©The Daily News 2000
McKessport Daily News 6-3-2000
Glassport Head Start Program Closing Doors
Jun 3 2000 12:00AM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
Glassport kids who normally would have participated in the Head Start program for 3- to 5-year-olds now will have to go outside the borough to do so. The Head Start classroom located in St. John Lutheran Church, Seventh Street and Vermont Avenue., will not be open next year. Teacher Donna Kopchak said declined attendance is a major factor.
“The phone always rings off the hook” from parents who want to sign their kids up for the next year, Kopchak said. “This year, the phone wasn’t ringing off the hook.”
Kopchak said children will be able to attend one of four locations in nearby McKeesport. She, too, along with assistant Beth Hudock and child care aid Cheryl Trumpie, will be taking her act to McKeesport.
“We’ll all be getting separated,” Kopchak said sadly.
Kopchak has been working with children for the last 15 years in Glassport and says she will miss the community very much.
“I was sad for a week, and I cried a lot” when she learned she would be saying good-bye to the borough, Kopchak said.
“I live in the City of Pittsburgh,” she said. Glassport has “a different kind of bonding. I hope the people in that community know how wonderful the community really is.”
Kopchak has seen so many little Glassporters through the years that she has lost count. All she could say was, “I served a lot of children.”
At South Allegheny’s Kennywood school picnic earlier this week, Kopchak said she saw many of those kids — who are now young adults — and most of them remembered and recognized her.
“The fact that they remembered me after all those years ... it was very sentimental,” she said.
Even though she will miss Glassport, Kopchak is looking forward to beginning a new tenure in McKeesport. Her sadness about leaving turned into optimism when she realized there would be plenty of kids there for her to teach and influence positively.
“I’m going to make an impact wherever I go,” she vowed.
Kopchak said there is no real deadline for registering tots for the upcoming school year. She suggested anyone who was interested in registering their child or who wanted additional information should call Early Childhood Family Support Service Head Start at the McKeesport regional office at 412-673-4826.
©The Daily News 2000
McKessport Daily News 6-9-2000
SA Student Nets Honors
Jun 9 2000 12:00AM By BY THE DAILY NEWS
U.S. Achievement Academy has honored South Allegheny High School’s Erica Danko.
Erika, who will be attending University of Pittsburgh to study in the pre-medical curriculum, has been named a national award winner in science.
Erika also has received the President’s Education Award, the U.S. Navy Science and Mathematics awards and the National Leadership and Service Award.
Erika is the daughter of Michael and Mary Sue Danko of Glassport and the granddaughter of Charles and Helen Danko, also of Glassport.
McKessport Daily News 6-13-2000
Memorial Fountain Operating
BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
After extensive repair and modification, the fountain at Glassport Memorial Park is again operational.
"The fountain is working better than it ever has," Glassport Zoning Officer Gene Tacik said.
Recent repairs are the first major work done to the fountain since 1980, when the original motor-driven, cam-operated valves were replaced by an electronic solid-state sequencing system designed and installed by members of Glassport Lions Club, Glassport Zoning Officer Gene Tacik said.
A second sequencing system controls the lights, which are not synchronized with the valves so the water jet and lighting combinations are not repeated, Tacik explained.
Tacik said the most visible change now is the lining covering the inside of the reservoir that will eliminate seepage problems that have plagued the fountain over the years. The material used to line the fountain normally is used to leakproof nuclear reactor cavities in nuclear power plants during refueling, he added.
In addition to sealing the fountain, Tacik said all wiring conduit and plumbing have been replaced and relocated to make them more accessible for any future maintenance that may be necessary.
"We've also had the grouting repaired on the bricks," Tacik added.
Tacik took the time to recognize those responsible for the repairs to the fountain.
"All work was performed by the Glassport Lions Club with the assistance of the Glassport Public Works Department," he said.
In an effort to protect the revamped borough landmark, Police Chief Eugene Skerkoski said, "Anyone caught defacing the fountain will be prosecuted to the fullest."
That is not to say borough officials want to dissuade people from enjoying the fountain up close. In fact, Tacik said he wouldn't mind if people went up to it and tossed in large amounts of change.
McKessport Daily News 6-13-2000
SA’s Class of 1987 Gets Help Via Web
Jun 13 2000 12:00AM By MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
Which is weirder: a 13-year class reunion or someone helping to organize it from the Czech Republic?
OK, so South Allegheny High School Class of 1987 having a reunion after a total of years not divisible by five might seem strange at first glance, but it really isn’t.
And neither is Michael Yurich’s involvement in planning the reunion, which is set for Saturday at 6 p.m. at Liberty Borough Fire Hall.
“We skipped the 10th, and the 20th would be too long to wait,” Yurich says.
Yurich, a SA graduate, is a management consultant working in Prague. He hopped on the Internet one day back in February and found a message out of the blue from high school chum Traci Ero-Gergley, who lives in Versailles.
“She got my e-mail address from my brother’s girlfriend,” he says.
Yurich and Ero-Gergley eventually got around to the topic of a reunion. They decided they should try to throw one together for this year, even though 13 years is not the “normal” time for a reunion.
“Traci did some initial interviews to see if there was any interest” in the idea from fellow classmates, Yurich says. She found out there was.
Because neither was a class officer, the duo followed protocol and ran their idea by three of the four officers they were able to contact. The response was more than encouraging, Yurich says.
“This is great,” and “Thanks for doing this,” were some of the comments they received. “Once we got their support, we took off with it,” he says.
The pair decided the best way to get in touch with people would be by diving into the Internet. After all, if e-mail connected two people who live several inches from each other even on a small map, then certainly it could connect them with everyone else.
Yurich drafted a letter and e-mailed it to Ero-Gergley, who, in turn, e-mailed it to everyone else.
“She’s managing all the communications; the planning, the networking ...” Yurich says.
“I’m just doing all the leg work because I’m here,” Ero-Gergley says humbly. “He’s the mastermind behind all this.”
Yurich created http://sites.netscape.net/elroycz/homepage, a Web site for alumni to “sign the guest book for the reunion,” he says. Visitors to the page also can leave messages if they cannot make it to the reunion.
“We’ll have a bulletin board at the fire hall ... to put up e-mails and photos people send in,” Yurich says. That way, they still can “participate in spirit.”
Ero-Gergley says people can contact her at pero10369@aol.com.
So far, she has been able to reach other graduates who have scattered themselves all over the place. North Carolina, Arizona, California and Germany — not to mention Prague — are just some of the locations of classmates with whom Ero-Gergley has communicated.
“Isn’t that something?” Yurich exclaims. “We organized the whole reunion by e-mail ... Without computers, we never would have been able to reach these people.
“E-mail ... that’s the key.”
“I’m getting e-mail from people I haven’t heard from in years,” Ero-Gergley adds excitedly.
“Traci is the main point of contact,” Yurich says.
She says she’s enjoying the project and sees the reunion as a reward at the end of her task.
“I haven’t seen anybody in so long,” she laments.
She insists on deflecting praise from Yurich.
“He designed the Web page,” she points out. He made the notice that Ero-Gergley says she’ll post “wherever I get permission to put them.”
“He’s put his whole heart and soul into this,” she says.
Yurich even spent his own money for the reunion checking account Ero-Gergley opened at PNC Bank in McKeesport.
“The woman at the bank was great,” Ero-Gergley says. “I told her what we were doing and she just zipped me through.”
Yurich says they settled on the fire hall because they wanted a more casual, family-friendly location for the reunion rather than something fancy and formal. He says it will be a chance to “meet each other, bring the kids and catch up.”
Yurich says reunion tickets are $20 for singles and $40 for couples and families.
As the date draws near, the pair wonder what their e-mail project will produce.
“I told Mike we’ll define success as the two of us sitting across from each other,” Ero-Gergley says.
Then they’ll be able to enjoy actual face-to-face spoken communication ... just like they did it in the old days.
McKessport Daily News 6-14-2000
Glassport Council Approves 2 Officers
Jun 14 2000 12:00AM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
Glassport may have lost one police officer, but it plans on adding two more.
Council President Anthony Pepe read the resignation letter of Officer John Milos at last night’s council meeting. Milos has accepted a job with Baldwin Police Department starting June 16.
“Certainly, he gained experience and knowledge here,” Police Committee Chairman Angelo Schinosi said.
“He will be sadly missed,” Pepe added.
However, council voted to begin civil service testing to add two officers to the force with the help of COPS Fast grant funding.
Schinosi set a wishful date of the third Saturday in July for testing to take place.
As for the police that currently work for the borough, Solicitor Charles LoPresti said work on a new contract will begin soon. Now that police are Teamsters members, LoPresti, Pepe, Schinosi and Mayor Tom Urbanski will meet with Teamsters Local Union No. 205 Business Agent Joe Greco to iron out the details.
Also, council authorized the purchase of a new truck for the sewage plant. This purchase follows last month’s, when the street department also got a new truck.
Street and Light Committee Chairman Bob Stefanic said the $52,016 2000 Ford F-650 4X2 dump truck was acquired on a five-year lease, with annual payments of $12,042, and the option to purchase the truck at the end of the lease for $1, “Which we will probably do,” he added.
The sewage plant truck will be a 2000 Ford F-250 4X4 pickup with a plow and hitch, totaling $25,649. Payments will be made in four annual installments of $7,151, with the same $1 purchase option at the end of the lease.
The vote to make the purchase was a unanimous one, except for Council Member John D’Angelo, who was absent. He underwent eight-and-a-half-hour quintuple bypass surgery at St. Francis Medical Center yesterday morning.
McKessport Daily News 6-15-2000
SA Board Listens to Building Concerns
Jun 15 2000 12:00AM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
When does an hour-and-a-half public meeting take three and a half hours? When the topic of discussion is the closing of community schools.
Such a meeting took place last night within the confines of Glassport Central Elementary School. It is one of two elementary schools within South Allegheny School District — Port Vue Elementary is the other — that face being shut down if the district’s proposed plan to build a new $11 million elementary school complex becomes a reality.
According to the plan, the new school would be in close proximity to the junior/senior high school and house grades two through six, while Manor Elementary would become an early childhood center for children in kindergarten and first grade.
A handful of residents voiced their concerns about losing the schools in their neighborhoods. However, dissenters probably were outnumbered by supporters of the plan. But those who spoke made sure they were heard.
Before they got their turn behind the microphone, though, the district made its pitch in the form of a video overview of the current conditions of both schools and testimony from a panel of teachers and administrators.
The video pointed out numerous structural flaws in each building, many of which were common in both. Both schools, built approximately 70 years ago, were not designed with elementary students in mind: steps built for 15-year-old legs rather than 8-year-old legs, for instance.
Both schools were renovated to some extent around 1980, before the American Disabilities Act was born. Glen Shell, SA school psychologist, said the district would be vulnerable to legal action if a student in a wheelchair were to enroll at Port Vue Elementary.
He said the cafeteria is below the last floor of the elevator, and there are no ramps within the building to gain access to the dining area. Shell explained the inconvenience a physically disabled child would have to endure by having to exit, then re-enter, the building to get to where all the other students are eating ... especially during winter.
Other problems include: Cracked walls, undersized classrooms, leaky ceilings, lack of proper ventilation, school offices not conducive to visitors, inadequate storage space, antiquated paging systems, handrails not at appropriate heights (nor are they continuous), inadequate nursing stations, obsolete fire alarm systems, lack of emergency shutdown button on boiler room, dangerous student drop-off conditions for school buses along public roads, necessity to use rooms for purposes for which they were not designed.
Jim Jackson, principal at Glassport and Manor, admitted he was bothered at first by the idea of closing Glassport, but he went on to say he fully supports the new school.
“Change is hard,” Jackson said. “I think there’s some fear (in those who oppose it).”
He said a larger building with a bigger pool of teachers would be a welcome luxury for a principal.
Bernie Kalocay, Port Vue’s principal, said there is one nurse who floats among the three elementary schools of the district, as well as St. Joseph Regional School. The lack of a permanent nurse in his school has been a major obstacle in his attempt to perform his duties.
“I’ve become a doctor,” he said.
Kalocay said the school also needs six to eight more rooms. “We need room, room, room.”
Ed Ghetian, instructional support teacher at Port Vue, said he understands the sentiment behind community schools and the fear of transition. He added, though, “If your child’s needs are being met, your concerns will evaporate.”
And Ghetian said he feels the new school will meet those needs. “I think this new building program is going to move us forward,” Ghetian said.
Ghetian also said, “With the proximity to the high school, we can utilize all the facilities of that high school.”
Jerry Spanbauer, who has been a teacher for 34 years, said his first reaction was to ask his own children, who were SA students, what their thoughts were about closing the schools in Glassport and Port Vue.
He said they told him they were from SA, and specific borough lines didn’t matter much. Spanbauer felt the new school would be an ideal way to ensure that community feeling would grow stronger.
During the early years is “where kids make their socialization progresses,” Spanbauer said. Putting them together would be a positive move, he felt.
He also touched on the chance to have a larger group of younger children who can be coached in sports or music at a much earlier age, which could only improve the quality of each and produce more stand-outs.
Other district personnel pointed out inadequacies with libraries, elementary GATE program, integration of a larger student body and the better utilization of the district’s team-teaching program.
Architect Dick Jaynes, of N. John Cunzolo and Associates, presented images of the plans of each building, and the untrained eye could focus on giant red areas — which were pegged as “inadequate areas” — that appeared on the pictures frequently.
Financial Advisor Scott Bossing, of Public Financial Management, was confident “a millage increase is not necessary for this project ... We feel very strongly this project can be funded within the current structure of the budget.”
SA Director of Business Affairs and Services Sharon Miller outlined the busing needs that would accompany the new school. She estimated a maximum of five more buses would be needed. Currently, Miller said, the cost of busing is approximately $710,000, and $490,000 is funded by the state.
“(Additional) busing cost should not be a real issue to this district,” Miller said.
Ron Chavis of Liberty wondered if it was a racially motivated decision to acquire the land on which the new school would sit. Chavis implied there were black families who would be displaced by eminent domain proceedings the school is prepared to enact.
However, Solicitor Tom Berry said he simply did not understand the argument. Berry and Superintendent Pat Risha explained the 15 acres has no inhabited homes on it, but an approximately one-acre piece of land SA wants to buy and use as additional athletic fields and/or facilities does house a black family.
Berry said through eminent domain proceedings, the family “probably would get more money than they would get on a regular sale.” However, Berry said, understandably, the family is reluctant to sell their home.
Terry Dozzi of Port Vue gave a passionate defense of community schools. “We all respect each other (in the communities of SA), but we would still like to keep our community schools.”
Dozzi said to the school board, “It is a travesty you allowed these schools to get this way in the first place.” She also referred to the video as “propaganda,” making things look as bad as possible.
But teachers who worked within the schools insisted they were that bad.
Doris Bailey, from Glassport, said “Even if I thought we needed a new school, you don’t deserve it” because of the deterioration of the current ones. Bailey showed up with a petition of more than 1,000 signatures on it.
A voice from the back of the room cried out, “It’s a done deal already.”
And that is the root of much of the dissent ... the way residents feel they have been given no say-so in the decision.
“I feel like somebody’s pulled one over on me,” said Port Vue resident Dan Robertson.
“I just feel they went about it in a very bad way,” Dozzi said later.
McKessport Daily News 6-15-2000
Street, Sewer Projects Eyed in Borough’s List
Jun 15 2000 12:00AM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
So many roads, so little time and money.
That’s the cry of Glassport Council in response to irate citizens who want their roadways fixed.
“There’s nothing you can tell me that I’ll disagree with,” Parks and Recreation Committee Chairman Jim Uziel said to residents who took turns speaking their minds at Tuesday’s council meeting.
Resident Ralph Stanzak rose to complain about the after effects of work done along Naomi Avenue involving the Washington Boulevard sanitary sewer extension project. Stanzak alluded to tree damage and rocks and gravel showing up on the street and in lawns. He wondered what was being done to ensure the contractor would return the site to its original condition or better.
Resident Dennis Frost commented about the condition of Edmonson Drive and how work on the sewer project was affecting that street — which he said was not in the greatest shape in the first place — and homes along it adversely. Frost, too, called for a closer watch on how the contractor maintained the area in which they worked.
Borough Engineer Scott Hilty, of EADS Group, Inc., said payments made to Nicassio Corp. throughout the course of the sewer project that is temporarily inconveniencing residents have 10 percent withheld. At the end of the job, if any problems still exist that have not been addressed, then the final payment of all owed funds may be withheld as well until they are indeed taken care of.
Councilman Bob Stefanic said he and Hilty set a meeting for today to discuss the responsibilities of the contractor regarding how construction affects surrounding residents.
Resident Sylvina March said she has heard promises for years that Juniata Drive “is next on the list” of streets to be paved.
“I think this council is committed to fixing roads,” Uziel said. “We know the problems. We know the roads are horrible ... It’s time to start (repairing roadways) on the hill.”
Also, in an effort to appease disgruntled Glassporters, Stefanic spoke of plans to enter into an agreement with PennDOT via the Agility Program through which certain borough streets would be tarred and chipped. In return, the borough would maintain roads outside of its normal realm of responsibility.
However, Frost felt such action would be wasteful. “You want to pave on top of that?” Frost asked. “It’s not going to hold!”
Hilty said later in the meeting the sewer project is approximately 70 percent complete. “The entire project is anticipated to be completed by the end of August,” Hilty reported.
In other business, council:
* Submitted a list of projects for Community Development Block Grant funding:
Harrison Street Pavilion, Naomi Avenue road reconstruction, sewage treatment plant belt filter press, Naomi Avenue sewer extension, youth center renovations and Ninth Street steps replacement.
Uziel felt the pavilion idea has the best chance of receiving monetary backing. The structure would be built at the end of Harrison Street, atop the riverbank, adjacent to the tennis and basketball courts.
* Heard a complaint from “resident” Jim Uziel — who stepped out from behind the table to address council — about alleged poor service from Rome Disposal, the borough’s contracted garbage collector. The company’s contract runs through February 2002.
* Entered into a three-year contract with Clairton Emergency Medical Service starting July 1, based on impressive response times from the ambulance service thus far.
* Chose Walker Construction to install a new fiberglass gasoline tank at the borough garage. Stefanic said the move was made in an effort to be more cost efficient.
* Placed 737 Delaware Avenue on the demolition block at the end of August or the beginning of September on the advice of Building Inspector Terry DiMarco. A resolution concerning the building’s fate referred to its “blighting influence on the community.”
On the other hand, DiMarco reported the owner of 315 Fifth St. would begin rehabilitation of the property that he estimated has been uninhabitable for two years now.
* Suggested changing garbage pick-up to 5 a.m. No official change was made, but one is forthcoming, Council President Anthony Pepe said.
“I’ve had too many complaints (from residents who) want it to be 5 a.m.,” Pepe said.
* Announced the borough’s fountain is again operational. Uziel asked parents to try and keep youngsters from tampering with the landmark.
McKessport Daily News 6-16-2000
More Voice Disapproval For SA Plan
Jun 16 2000 12:00AM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
For the second time in two days, South Allegheny School Board members heard the angry voices of residents about the board’s recent vote to approve a new elementary school building program.
Angry residents, including some members of Port Vue Council, showed up at Port Vue Elementary School last night. Residents in Glassport were given a similar chance to voice concerns at a meeting Wednesday night at Glassport Elementary School.
As a re-sult of the proposed $11 million educational modernization plan, Glassport Central Elementary and Port Vue Elementary schools would close in approxi-mately two to three years, and one new building would be con-structed for grades two through sixth.
Manor Elementary, which currently houses kinder-garten through sixth, would be-come an early childhood center for kindergarten and first-grade students, according to plan.
Many residents were upset that they were not con-sulted before board members voted 6-2 to approve the pro-gram at the May 18 board meeting.
Members Dino DiFelice and Dianne Rosche were the dissenters. Director Luke Riley was absent.
“I didn’t know this (building pro-gram) committee existed until May 18,” an angry Dan Robert-son, of Port Vue, said.
Bill Betzner, vice president of Port Vue Council, said he felt the board was “sticking-up” resi-dents with a gun.
A calmer Mark Tortorice, council presi-dent, simply said, “I wish we would have heard about this a little sooner.”
Tortorice also suggested the board place a ref-erendum on the ballot to let the residents decide if they want to pay more taxes to repair the old ones or construct a new one.
Port Vue Mayor Orlando DiMarco said neighborhood schooling “is very, very impor-tant ... Come up with a school in Port Vue.”
Glassport residents Doris Bailey and Port Vue resi-dents Terry and Eugene Dozzi presented board members peti-tions signed by more than 1,200 residents opposing the pro-posal.
In an effort to repre-sent the taxpayers in the four communities in South Allegheny School District, there are 16 residents out of 25 people on the district’s Building Program Committee.
The committee has met since earlier this year to discuss the program and make recommendations on the build-inng program.
Committee members said their decisions were not simple ones.
SA Su-perintendent Patrick Risha noted 75 percent of committee mem-bers were in favor of keeping neighborhood schools when they first were faced with the idea.
“That’s a fair estimate,” said Henry Herold, one of the Glassport residents on the committee. Herold also says he was one of those nay-sayers.
Herold has two chil-dren and lives “a stone’s throw from Glassport Elementary.” He, too, would be a parent whose children would be bussed to the new facility, which is slated for construction adjacent to the junior/senior high school.
Last night, residents once again sat through a pres-entation from the district: a video illustrating the deficiencies of the Glassport and Port Vue schools and testimony from a panel of seven educators outlin-ing the many educational bene-fits in a new school.
The video, along with explanation from architect Dick Jaynes, of N. John Cunzolo and Associates, stressed the lack of space in each school and their failure to meet educational stan-dards.
However, rTerry Mar-tin, administrative aide and third-grade teacher at Manor Elementary, who has worked in all three elementary schools in the district, said the increase in size of her classroom at Manor has caused her to become a better teacher. She was able to teach differently and more ef-fectively.
Sixth-grade Port Vue teacher Debbie Pliska said disagreed. She noted there is an enormous difference between teaching a class holding 24 stu-dents as opposed to 18.
However, some residents in attendance did not believe a room alone could improve qual-ity of education.
Judy McCormick of Port Vue, said, “I don’t see the new building itself as making this happen.”
She also raised concerns about hav-ing so many teachers in one school: “A new building is not going to make them all work to-gether.”
In the past, however, several educators said such a situation is benefitonal for teachers beacuse it gives them an increased opportunity to communicate and share ideas and techniques.
Tortorice also wondered if building new schools in each borough would be an option.
“Building (two new elementary) schools is eco-nomically impossible,” Board Member Walt Hibner said.
Financial Advisor Scott Bossing, of Public Financial Management, said the proposed construction plan could be funded “within the current structure of the budget” and without a millage hike.
Bossing added SA “anticipated a reduction in ex-penditures over the next three to five years.”
Port Vue resident Frank Cortazzo, who also at-tended Wednesday’s meeting, worried that other schools in the district would be neglected both financially and in terms of focus and attention.
Jackson, how-ever, said the middle school and high school would not be over-looked as a result of a new ele-mentary school.
Bossing said the financial option that made “the most sense” was a bond is-sue, with payments running through 2028, and requiring SA to tap its reserve fund for $1 million. Bossing said this “wrap-around debt” would keep the district’s overall debt level throughout the life of the bond.
Also, the plan required the smallest increase in “millage equivalents.” .
Other resi-dents said they wouldn’t mind a tax hike if it meant keeping their community schools.
“There is no objection to any renova-tions,” Bailey noted after Wednesday’s meeting. “We’re darn near giving them a blank check. Just keep the schools in town.”
Another Glassport resident asked the board to “Buy what each school needs” be-cause she was willing to pay more taxes.
On Wednesday, Board member Vicki Morning-star noted the renovat-ing/addition plans do not take into account temporary place-ment of students during the process.
Morningstar said students would have to go to school in trailers rented by the district, and those learning conditions would not be ideal.
Port Vue resident Russ Wooster asked, “Will this meet-ing make any difference or is this just a formality?”
Risha said the school board has the right to change any decision it makes.
Eugene Dozzi added, “This isn’t what the borough wants for its children ... You could have saved a lot of money (on financial and architectural studies) if you talked to the people first.”
Another Port Vue resident said she felt “like this meeting was an after-thought ... Why didn’t you have a town meeting before you de-cided to do this?”
Board member Tom Dudek told the audience, “Nothing’s ever a done deal.”
©The Daily News 2000
Current Opinions I attended South Allegheny High School in the late 80's, along with Manor, Lincoln, and again Manor when Lincoln was closed. I have been teaching in Maryland for six years and believe that the purposed idea of a new elementary school would be great for the South Allegheny community. I would give all the communities a chance to come together before the seventh grade when students attend the high school. In last nights article, it was stated that it would students a chance to come together and work on music and sports within one building. I also disagree with the notion that in one building all the teachers would not work together. If anything, I feel it would only bring them closer in providing the best education possible to SA students. The only question that concerns me would be the staffing of the new building. How would those teachers in the current building be placed? Name: Ken Brinkman E-Mail:brink1359@home.com
McKessport Daily News 6-19-2000
CSX, Glassport Deal Expected
Jun 19 2000 12:00AM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
The money CSX is dishing out is flowing into Glassport. Just as Elizabeth received a check for $150,000 from CSX last month, Glassport officials soon may close a deal with the railroad for $90,000.
As a result of a joint application to the federal Surface Transportation Board by CSX and Norfolk Southern to acquire Conrail, certain conditions had to be met, said Steve Thienel, CSX regional vice president for state relations.
One of those conditions dealt with noise impact on communities through which railway traffic travels.
Federal guidelines maintain a residential structure within 91 feet of a railroad track is subject to a “negative impact” from train noise. These buildings are referred to as “receptors.”
Thienel said the parties arrived at the $90,000 figure after a federal study determined there are nine receptors in Glassport. Again, CSX agreed to allot the “negotiated figure” of $10,000 per receptor to the borough, just as it did with nearby Elizabeth.
Glassport Council President Anthony Pepe said he, Mayor Tom Urbanski, Police Chief Eugene Skerkoski and Council Vice President Angelo Schinosi met with Thienel about two weeks ago. Like Elizabeth Mayor Gerald LaFrankie before him, Pepe praised Thienel for his cooperative nature.
Pepe said, however, borough officials thought there were more than nine, which, of course, would have entitled Glassport to more money.
Thienel explained the number of receptors was not something CSX proposed. Rather, an STB consultant came up with the total from aerial photographs of the area.
Thienel said in some cases, it’s possible to misconstrue information from such photographs. For example, rooftops getting blocked out by trees or garage/pavilion rooftops being mistaken for residences.
Regardless, “We’ve taken the numbers as they are,” Thienel said, realizing there are communities that might have gotten more money than deserved, as well as some who might have gotten less.
He said CSX has chosen to accept whatever the STB determines, because it would be “tough for us to be a neutral party” in deciding how many homes exist within the specified distance from the tracks.
Thienel said no one would believe the company if it were to claim less homes fell within the parameters of dangerous noise conditions; after all, a smaller number would mean CSX pays less.
When the company got the ruling as to how many receptors exist in Glassport, it sent two letters to the municipality — one accepting and one rejecting the $90,000 offer from CSX.
All the borough must do now is choose which letter it wants to sign and send it back to the company.
Thienel said CSX, in turn, will forward it to the STB for approval, and, “(if approved), we cut the check.”
He said the railroad entity has submitted 20 letters of acceptance from towns near its tracks to the STB. To date, the STB has OK’d every letter CSX has sent its way, Thienel added, and he said he doesn’t anticipate any problems for Glassport.
Elizabeth is still undecided on how they will utilize their money. LaFrankie said borough council “is working on a plan with the borough engineer” for the best usage of the CSX funds. Hopefully, a decision will be made in the near future, LaFrankie added.
Belle Vernon, another area community receiving CSX monies, chose to use its $40,000 piece of the pie to purchase heavy equipment for the borough.
Thienel said once CSX sends the money, each borough decides the best way for it to use the funding.
Pepe said a possibility for Glassport is installation of trees and/or fences and walls. Whatever the decision, he said, the borough will oversee how the money is used.
McKessport Daily News 6-20-2000
Glassport Lions Name Officers
Jun 20 2000 12:00AM By BY THE DAILY NEWS
Glassport Lions Club has announced its slate of officials for 2000-01. Officials include:
President, Carl Zupi; first vice president, Steve Posa; second vice president, Carole Schmotzer; third vice president, Richard Antoncic; treasurer/recording secretary, Pat McGhen; financial secretary, Tony DeJulius.
Other officers are: Tail twister, Pennie McGhen; lion tamer, Tony Babral; membership committee, Ed Burnett, Elmer Kruzek and Tony Campano; one-year directors, Judy Steudler, Joseph Spagnolo, Richard Ziemianski, Edward Wojciehowski, James Morningstar, Ted Street and Gene Tacik; two-year directors, Jim Jones, John Palmiero, Ray Wolf, Bill Kiser, Andy Hrehocik, Tom Urbanski, Edward Corbin and Scott Finney; permanent directors, Judge John P. Hester and Tony DeJulius.
McKessport Daily News 6-23-2000
Construction Concerns Overshadow SA Budget
Jun 23 2000 12:00AM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
It’s not often a school board OKs its operating budget with few in attendance paying attention.
But that’s what happened at last night’s South Allegheny School District Board of Directors meeting. Instead, the hot topic was the proposed new $11 million elementary school project.
Meanwhile, the district’s $15,915,036 budget was unanimously approved. For the ninth straight year, there will be no tax increase.
Residents have questioned how the district can finance an $11 million school without raising millage. But board financial advisor, Scott Bossing, of Public Financial Management, said the proposed construction plan can be funded “within the current structure of the budget” and the district “anticipated a reduction in expenditures over the next three to five years.”
Bossing said the financial option that makes the most sense is a bond issue running through 2028 and requiring SA to tap its reserve fund for $1 million, which would help reduce the size of the bond. Bossing called it a “wrap-around debt” that would maintain the district’s overall debt level throughout the life of the bond.
“I’m not saying there won’t be an increase in mills,” Bossing said. “I’m saying a millage increase is not necessary for this project.”
The idea of a new school for second- through sixth-graders, however, hasn’t gone over as well as the board hoped.
In community meetings last week at Glassport and Port Vue elementary schools, teachers and administrators attempted to highlight the educational benefits a modern facility would provide. They also discussed the outdated and obsolete nature of the two existing schools.
Many residents object to the part of the plan closing the two neighborhood schools while Manor Elementary is transformed into an early childhood center for kindergarten and first-grade students.
Residents said a neighborhood school is why they moved to their respective boroughs in the first place. One Port Vue resident referred to the borough’s elementary school as “the heart of the community” at a town meeting Wednesday.
Also, many are angry because they claim the board OK’d the plan as recommended by a 25-member building program committee — consisting of the nine board members and 16 SA residents — without soliciting their input.
School Director Dino DiFelice said he voted against the new school project, citing the economic impact on the two communities, both of which would lose a valuable asset.
A special Port Vue Council meeting was held Tuesday to send a letter to the school board requesting an additional meeting between itself and the board. On behalf of its residents, council asked to meet with board members to discuss possible alternatives to closing down the schools.
Before the public comment portion of last night’s meeting, Board President Russell Geary informed the audience — a standing-room-only crowd — the board “will be discussing the information shared during the question-and-answer period of the community meetings held in Glassport and Port Vue ... and additional options will be explored and considered.
“The board intends to release additional information to the community within the next few weeks,” Geary continued. “An advertising notice of this meeting will appear in The Daily News.”
Geary also read the Port Vue letter to the crowd and he and his fellow directors set a tentative meeting with the borough’s council for Thursday.
Overall, the board’s display of cooperation seemed to please residents. Last week, district residents expressed concern that the plan is “a done deal,” with the town meeting simply a formality.
In a related move, the school board approved by a 7-1 margin — with DiFelice dissenting and School Director Dianne Rosche on vacation — to initiate eminent domain proceedings on the 15-plus acres near the junior/senior high school on which the new school would be built.
Solicitor Tom Berry explained, however, such action does not mean SA is forging ahead with the building project. He said the reason for acquiring the land is “future expansion” — and not specifically for a new elementary school.
He said the land is attractive to the district because no one lives there and future work would not uproot or inconvenience anyone. It could be used for other expansion purposes, such as athletic fields, if the building plan was aborted, the solicitor added.
Berry said the owners of the property “have made us an offer through the estate’s attorney” and the two sides are in negotiations.
Berry said SA is not looking to acquire an additional parcel of land near the aforementioned plot because a family lives there. Berry said the family is understandably reluctant to leave their home and insisted the district has no plans to force them out.
McKessport Daily News 6-24-2000
CARL ZUPI
BY THE DAILY NEWS
Glassport Lions Club has announced its slate of officials for 2000-01.
Officials include:
President, Carl Zupi; first vice president, Steve Posa; second vice president, Carole Schmotzer; third vice president, Richard Antoncic; treasurer/recording secretary, Pat McGhen; financial secretary, Tony Dejulius.
Other officers are: Tail twister, Pennie McGhen; lion tamer, Tony Babral; membership committee, Ed Burnett, Elmer Kruzek and Tony Campano; one-year directors, Judy Steudler, Joseph Spagnolo, Richard Ziemianski, Edward Wojciehowski, James Morningstar, Ted Street and Gene Tacik; two-year directors, Jim Jones, John Palmiero, Ray Wolf, Bill Kiser, Andy Hrehocik, Tom Urbanski, Edward Corbin and Scott Finney; permanent directors, judge John P. Hester and Tony Dejulius.
McKessport Daily News 7-7-2000
Seniors Merge Onto Information Superhighway
Jul 6 2000 12:00AM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
Vegetarians and a pig roast. Teenagers and polka music. Senior citizens and...computers?
Nowadays, however, that last pair might go together more than one might think — especially within South Allegheny School District.
The district is doing its part to bridge the gap between grandparents and the technological tools with which their grandchildren work almost daily. A computer course offered for area senior citizens recently came to a close, leaving those who missed out eager for the next one.
Meanwhile, those who didn’t miss it want to take it again. At least, that’s what course instructor Debbie Pliska, a Port Vue Elementary sixth-grade teacher, says.
“The people who took the class (as well as the ones who didn’t get a chance to) asked if we were going to have more classes,” she says. “We appeased them by telling them we would offer more classes in the fall.”
At May’s SA school board meeting, the board approved offering the courses with “a minimum of 10 persons needed to hold class.”
Little did board members know SA would receive an abundance of phone calls — 43 in total — from senior citizens interested in taking the classes.
“People have been calling here for weeks,” says SA High School Guidance Secretary Wendy Horne.
Slots for prospective students were filled on a first-come, first-served basis, Pliska says.
“We filled them up too quickly,” she says. “I had so many people signing up, I started to have a waiting list.”
The unexpected demand both surprised and pleased her.
At June’s meeting, the school board announced the two classes it originally planned to offer were filled and a third had been added to accommodate residents on the growing waiting list.
Now, there were two classes with 15 participants each and one with 13 students.
Pliska says there are nearly 10 more people on a new waiting list — and the number is growing.
The course cost $25 and consisted of four three-hour classes that ran four consecutive days from noon to 3 p.m. in Glassport Central Elementary School’s computer lab, located within the school’s library.
Pliska says all three South Allegheny School District elementary schools — Glassport, Port Vue and Manor — have 24 computers for students to use and each has Internet access.
“We have these computer labs in the elementary schools that just sit here,” she says. “(And) they’re not being used during the summer. Now, we’re using them.”
Pliska says Glassport’s lab was chosen as the site for her class, however, because its library is air-conditioned.
Because computers tend to intimidate beginners, much of the course involved teaching her students the basics — using disks, installing software and using Windows — “so they’re not afraid to actually use (a computer),” Pliska says.
Students also learned how to do some word processing, via applications such as Microsoft Word and Microsoft Works.
But learning to use the Internet was the big attraction, Pliska admits. She estimates most of her students fell within the 50- to 70-year-old range — “I didn’t really ask them their ages, though,” she says — and they wanted to learn how to send and receive e-mail and surf the Web.
“A lot of people have children and grandchildren that live in other places,” Pliska says, and e-mail is a cheaper, more-efficient way to keep in contact with them.
One of her students, Glassport resident Betty Charney, has a daughter in Guam and because of the class, Charney now knows how to e-mail her.
One can sense the gratification Pliska derives from giving her students the ability to form a stronger connection with loved ones far away.
Unfortunately, Charney says she does not have a computer at home. How will she keep up with her e-mailing?
“My two daughters are trying to talk me into buying a Web TV,” she says.
In reality, Pliska says many of the students who took the course do not have home computers. However, she adds, “Maybe after this, they’ll get themselves one.”
Pliska says the idea behind the class came from her own experience with her mother, Port Vue resident Helen Thomas, a computer novice.
In fact, “They’re mostly all beginners,” Pliska says of her students. “Blank slates.”
Pliska says her mother and father own a computer, but her father already can find his way through the computer jungle thanks to classes he took through Community College of Allegheny County, South Campus.
“All (my mother) could ever do was play solitaire,” she says. “And my father had to (open the program) for her ...
“My mother would say to me, ‘When are you going to teach me how to do this?’”
And Pliska’s response?
“We’ll just have a class, and you can come to that.”
“One lady (in the class) had a computer for six months, and she didn’t know how to use it,” Pliska says.
That lady — Edna Ashton of Glassport — says she did not purchase the equipment herself.
“One nephew (in California) sent me one part, and the other nephew (in Massachusetts) sent me the other part,” she says.
In addition to the monitor and the hard drive, Ashton says, “I got a printer and a scanner ... I got the whole works.”
Unfortunately for Ashton, purely possessing computer hardware does not lead to immediate acquisition of computer know-how. Therefore, Ashton’s equipment doubled as glorified knickknacks.
Now, thanks to the SA classes, she’ll finally be able to use them.
Pliska says there were even some husband-and-wife tandems that took the course, “and I didn’t have anybody fight.”
Overall, her pupils were eager and cooperative, she says. She didn’t have to worry about spreading herself too thin because “they helped each other out.”
“(The students) were all very excited,” Pliska says with obvious pleasure. “I’m really happy this went so well.”
McKessport Daily News 7-12-2000
Glassporters Argue Sewer Line Work
BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
Some Glassport residents are fed up with the effects of sewer project work on their properties.
A handful of residents showed up at Glassport Council's monthly meeting last night to complain that trenches and rocks now exist where green lawns once grew.
Naomi and Pennsylvania avenues residents charged the contractor of the Washington Boulevard sewer extension project, Nicassio Corp., with not doing a sufficient job of restoring lawns to their original look's before the project started.
Specifically, they wondered' how such allegedly "shoddy" work could be done with a cite inspector continuously present. Questions also were directed at Borough Engineer Scott Hilty, who residents said should "police" the contractor's work more closely.
Hilty claimed that duty was the task of the inspector, and it was unnecessary for him to be directly involved, unless, when the entire project was completed and lawns were in disarray. If so, Hilty said, payments could be withheld until the contractor restored lawns to their previous conditions.
Mayor Tom Urbanski said he would call for a meeting tomorrow with all concerned parties to address numerous resident complaints. Urbanski wanted council members, the contractor, himself and the engineer to be present for the meeting.
Hilty, however, said he did not feel he had to be involved in such a meeting. The mayor disagreed.
After council resumed the meeting following a 10-minute break, Hilty was no longer present.
Later, council had to table a motion to approve payment to Nicassio Corp. in the amount of $112,751.84 because Hilty was not there to make a recommedation to pay the bill.
In other business:
Mayor Tom Urbanski stepped down as Glassport's Mon Valley 911 representative; Councilman Bob Stefanic was approved as his replacement.
Council approved beginning demolition proceedings on properties at 7? 1 Indiana Ave., 621 Indiana Ave. and 918 Vermont Ave.
McKessport Daily News 7-13-2000
SA’s New School Remains Bitter Pill to Some People
Jul 13 2000 12:00AM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
Opposition to South Allegheny School District’s proposed plan to build an $11 million elementary school is not going away quietly. Glassport resident Doris Bailey showed up at Glassport Council’s monthly meeting earlier this week to urge council to take a more active role in the process that has died down a bit over the last two weeks.
The last public forum where the topic of the new school was addressed was the June 22 SA monthly school board meeting. Before that, there were community meetings in Glassport and Port Vue.
The purpose of those community meetings was for district officials to:
* Explain why it felt a new elementary school was needed;
* Lay out what it thought the benefits of a new school would be;
* Show why the existing schools in both boroughs should be closed down;
* Field questions and hear complaints from residents who were against the plan.
All along, the closing of the neighborhood schools has been the major obstacle for dissenters.
Bailey was impressed with the role played by Port Vue Council at the community meeting in its borough, pointing out several officials actually attended, unlike the meeting in Glassport, where no borough officials were in the audience.
Glassport councilman Bob Stefanic did attend the meeting in Port Vue, however.
Bailey also alluded to Port Vue Council’s request for a special meeting with the school board to be more informed and to take to the board some of the concerns of its residents.
“Port Vue Council and the mayor were very pro-active,” Bailey told Glassport council members.
“I’m disappointed Glassport didn’t do something similar,” resident Regis Wolf said.
Council President Anthony Pepe said there are pros and cons to getting involved.
Mayor Tom Urbanski said he personally would like to see Glassport Central Elementary continue operating.
Bailey felt council should do more to represent the people in the matter, especially since she said she had 1,400 signatures on a petition against such a plan.
“You do have a role,” Bailey said. “You have a large role.”
In other business, council:
* Awarded the job of installing fencing at Ninth Street playground to Allegheny Fence Co. The amount of the bid was $9,967.
* Approved County Hauling to take over the contract of Rome Disposal as the borough’s garbage collector. The contract County Hauling inherits expires Feb. 5, 2002.
McKessport Daily News 7-19-2000
Port Vue Mulls Resident Concerns With SA’s Plan
Jul 19 2000 12:00AM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
Some Port Vue residents still aren’t ready to stop fighting against South Allegheny School District’s proposed $11 million elementary school plan. Just as Glassport residents do not want to see Glassport Central Elementary School closed, Port Vue residents do not want see Port Vue Elementary shut down.
In response to the many concerns its residents had about the school plan, Port Vue Council called a special meeting last month to approve sending a letter to the school board requesting a meeting between council and the board for a more in-depth question-and-answer session.
This request came after two community meetings in Glassport and Port Vue wherein directors and school officials tried to explain to the public why building a new school was necessary and to address residents’ concerns.
At last night’s monthly council meeting, residents grilled council about its meeting with SA. Residents were told council had many of its questions answered thoroughly, though Council President Mark Tortorice admitted the board should not be blamed completely for some holes in their explanations since council did not present SA with a list of questions prior to allow them to prepare complete answers.
But council said there were no statistical materials provided to them backing district claims that a new school would be an educational benefit.
Vice President Bill Betzner wondered if any of the teachers who spoke so passionately about the need for a new school ever complained to school officials about the “deplorable” conditions within the Port Vue and Glassport structures.
Resident Terri Dozzi asked if options to building a new school from the ground up truly were being explored by SA. Many residents would like to see the current schools renovated rather than closed completely.
Tortorice told Dozzi the board now “was looking at an alternate location” for the new school, instead of one adjacent to the SA Junior/Senior High School.
Still, one resident complained, children would have to be bussed to a location different from the existing elementary school.
Tortorice stated, “Our number one issue is to keep the school in the borough of Port Vue. We’re going to keep fighting.”
Councilman Isador Steiner said he was delivered an emotional blow when, at council’s meeting with the board, he allegedly was told, “It’s no longer Port Vue School. It’s South Allegheny.”
Steiner added, “It was like telling us, ‘We’ll make the decision for you.’” He also said he came away from the meeting with a feeling that the plan for the new school “was like a done deal.”
One resident then asked, “If this is a done deal, then how are we going to undo it?”
Solicitor Duane Dudik replied: “Go to your school board and ask them, ‘Is it a done deal?’”
Dudik told residents it would be appropriate to take additional comments directly to the school board to get more complete answers if they still were dissatisfied with the responses from council.
McKessport Daily News 7-21-2000
SA Residents Not Happy With New School Plan
Jul 21 2000 12:00AM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
South Allegheny School District officials faced more concerned residents who are unhappy with plans to look at a different location for a proposed new elementary school. The location of the $11 million “mega-school,” as some residents call it, originally had been slated adjacent to the high school.
At last night’s school board meeting, members voted 6-2 to authorize the solicitor to enter into negotiations for acquisition of another site located in Port Vue and Glassport boroughs, along Washington Boulevard.
Board members Dino DiFelice and Dianne Rosche dissented, while Tom Dudek was absent last night.
The district’s architect told members the proposed new site “is buildable,” said Board President Russell Geary.
Geary added the board would meet with the building program committee to finalize a decision after core samples were conducted “to determine if it is a cost-effective, justifiable site.”
Prior to the vote, residents once again expressed anger at the announcement of a proposed new location, and at the possibility the measure still could result in the closing of Glassport and Port Vue elementary schools.
Two residents — Doris Bailey of Glassport, and Terri Dozzi of Port Vue — accused the board of misrepresenting the SA voters.
“They voted you in to vote for (residents),” Bailey charged. “You don’t get it, do you?”
Bailey and Dozzi said they now have approximately 1,400 signatures on petitions against the new school.
You said you would look at another option,” Dozzi said, adding the only “option” she wanted was one that would keep Port Vue and Glassport elementary schools operating.
Dozzi asked if there was a “true option” to renovate/add onto the existing schools.
“We want to be given the choice,” Dozzi said. “We don’t want you just to sell us a new school ... maybe (you could arrange) a mail-in vote or voters could come to the school and vote.
“I’d like you to at least try to keep our small schools,” Dozzi added. “You need to listen to the people. Why aren’t you listening?”
Throughout the emotionally charged process of a proposed new school, the board has taken the stance that renovating and adding onto the schools not only would be costly, but dangerous considering the existence of asbestos within the old buildings. It also would be an inconvenient to students who would have to attend classes in rented trailers during construction.
In community meetings in Port Vue and Glassport last month, SA members also attempted to show residents the educational benefits they said a new elementary school would provide.
However, Bailey was frustrated by the lack of hard numbers to back the idea that children would get a better education at a new facility.
In other business, the board:
* Approved a change order from Garner and Pope in the amount of $7,950 for two new inlets for a paving project, and from N. John Cunzolo and Associates for $2,000 to widen the javelin area of the track at the high school.
* Paid capital project invoices for July, totaling $113,384.79, for items such as the maintenance garage, security system, parking lots, construction documents and track-related services.
McKessport Daily News 7-24-2000
Glassport Baby’s Death Investigated
Jul 24 2000 12:00AM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
Questions still surround the weekend death of a Glassport baby. According to Allegheny County Coroner’s Office, 1-year-old Joseph Donavon, of Oak Alley, died in his home at approximately 1 p.m. Saturday. Manner and cause of death still are pending.
Glassport Police Chief Eugene Skerkoski said a call came into police about a child, approximately 18 months old, found not breathing in his home. Police say the child was found by his mother.
Skerkoski said Clairton Emergency Medical Services was dispatched, and paramedics pronounced the toddler dead at the scene.
A Clairton EMS spokesman said paramedics worked on the child, but were unable to revive him.
The coroner then was called in, as is standard operating procedure, Skerkoski said.
An autopsy has been performed, but the results could take up to “a couple weeks,” said a coroner’s office spokesman.
McKessport Daily News 8-9-2000
Sanitary Sewer Extension Project Still Causing Woes in Glassport
Aug 9 2000 12:00AM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
Glassport’s Washington Boulevard sanitary sewer extension may be a good thing in the long run, but it’s causing its share of problems with residents now. Recent council meetings have featured residents who are angry because of the effects of the project on their property, and last night was no different.
A handful of residents showed up to inform council of the damage their parts of the world have sustained. Common complaints were large rocks — not mere gravel — lying in lawns, large ditches and chewed up roadways from truck usage.
Residents have criticized everyone from the construction workers, the site inspector, borough engineer and ultimately council for Nicassio Corp.’s alleged state of apathy.
Solicitor Charles LoPresti advised residents to list formally the “breaches of contract” being done on the project by workers so he and council can, first, see if those things indeed are being done and second, compare such actions to what the contract stipulates to detect any breaches.
As for the state of roads “on the hill,” Sewage Committee Chairman John D’Angelo — back from a lengthy layoff from quintuple bypass surgery — told residents, “We’re well aware the end of the (paving) season’s coming.”
He announced Second Street and Naomi Avenue — “the most heavily traveled roads in the project area and the ones damaged the most” — would be graded and rolled and finished off with a two-inch leveling course.
D’Angelo added, what exactly will be done to other roads is still “up in the air.”
He said that he, Mayor Tom Urbanski, a representative from Nicassio Corp. and the borough engineer would meet today to discuss “how to handle restoration of roads (affected by) the project.”
Engineer Scott Hilty, of EADS Group, told residents, “A letter has been sent to Nicassio about unsatisfactory work done in certain areas.” He also said, “We are withholding about $115,000 from Nicassio and he has a maintenance bond for a year.”
D’Angelo explained the maintenance bond meant the contractor still would be tied to project-related issues for a period even after work was complete.
Hilty added he has a “punch list” of 20 to 30 items that must be satisfactorily handled before the project was officially complete.
Hilty told D’Angelo he expected residents would be able to tap into the new system before Nov. 1.
In other business:
* Resident Doris Bailey, who told council a group called Save Our Schools has been formed, asked for council’s support in the quest to block South Allegheny School District’s proposed plan to build a new $11 million elementary school. The most feared side effect is the closing of Glassport Central and Port Vue elementary schools that would result.
D’Angelo spoke out, saying his “knee-jerk reaction” was to keep the neighborhood schools up and running, referring to them as “the backbone of the community.”
After Bailey was hesitant about answering questions about the plan, — saying she did not want to speak on behalf of SA — Urbanski suggested, “I think we should meet with the school board like Port Vue did. I can’t make a decision based on rumors.”
No formal action was taken on the following items:
* The street department was commended for their work on cleaning out catch basins in the community, a preventative measure that greatly alleviated water damage during this weekend’s heavy rains.
Urbanski said Detroit and Harrison hollows escaped major problems because borough workers made it possible for the water to have somewhere to go.
* Council announced some last-minute repairs to Steel Valley Trail will be completed before the arrival of Allegheny Trail Alliance Friday.
©The Daily News 2000
McKessport Daily News 8-16-2000
Port Vue, South Allegheny Talk Alternate School Site
Aug 16 2000 12:00AM By BY MATT SULLIVAN DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
The topic of South Allegheny School District’s proposed new $11 million elementary school is still a popular one in Port Vue. The crux of talks has shifted slightly, though. The focus, now, is on a new site the district is considering for its ambitious educational project. The plot straddles the border lines of Port Vue and Glassport.
Last night, council gave its approval for the district to conduct testing on the 10.3-acre property to see if it is even a feasible option — in terms of engineering — to the area adjacent to the high school, as was specified in the original plan.
The borough line separates the property from another 25 acres of Glassport property, which also will be tested. The area is located along Washington Boulevard, across from O.C. Treat ‘n Eat.
One concern from residents was the ability of council to sell the land even if it wanted to, since it was acquired through grant money for recreational purposes. Solicitor Duane Dudik acknowledged that is how the land indeed was obtained, but the borough could sell it, with certain stipulations:
* Either the buyer or borough would have to ensure an equal-sized chunk of land could be “substituted” in place of that land, or;
* The original purpose for which the land was acquired is no longer needed.
Dudik added ultimate approval would have to come from Harrisburg.
Council Vice President Bill Betzner said he felt the move toward closing Port Vue and Glassport Central elementary schools — the most unfortunate side effect of the new plan for most in opposition — was growing more and more inevitable. Betzner feels if a new school is going to be built eventually, then at least this newest site option is more geographically acceptable for borough residents who would otherwise have to drive their children or have them bused up to the high school if the original plan is the one SA were to choose.
Council President Mark Tortorice announced a “town meeting” has been scheduled for Monday, 7 p.m., downstairs in the municipal building. The purpose of the meeting is to inform residents of the school district’s newest shift in activity and to gauge public sentiment on the topic.
McKessport Daily News 8-18-2000
Safety Concerns Now SurfaceIn SA Proposed Building Plan
Aug 18 2000 12:00AM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
Before the proposed new $11.9 million elementary school be-came the hot topic at South Alle-gheny, school safety and security was the popular conversational piece in the district. After all, occurrences like the infamous 1999 killing spree that resulted in 15 deaths at Columbine High School in Colorado and a 6-year-old Michigan kindergarten boy’s murder of a female classmate in March of this year served to thrust the school safety topic into the limelight nationwide.
The issue reappeared at Thursday night’s board meeting, when Safety Committee Chairman Luke Riley was asked if any headway had been made in decid-ing about security measures within the schools of the dis-trict.
Riley, who also is Lib-erty’s chief of police, said no new developments have occurred in terms of safety issues in the buildings.
“We’ll be starting school with the same status (as the end of the 1999-2000 school year),” he said.
Earlier in the meeting, while discussion cen-tered on the proposed new ele-mentary school, Board Member Dino DiFelice managed question the safety issue. He said one of the reasons he opposed the plan to construct a new school was his fear the existence of a 750-student facility would increase the risk of violence. He felt such a risk is smaller in smaller schools.
Back in February, the board voted to expand the dis-trict’s police presence, allowing for one part-time police supervi-sor and five part-time offi-cers.
Also, “for the safety of the students and the faculty,” the district has secured “emergency radio communication equipment and state-of-the-art video surveil-lance equipment (through) a Safe Schools Grant (which) covers 100 percent of the cost,” said Lt. Kris Kircher, head of SA’s police and security. The equipment was in use by the end of the school year, he added.
The district has not gone so far as to arm its police personnel, however.
At the end of March, Sgt. Dan Burns of Duquesne Police Department ad-dressed SA administrators and staff about the possibility of school violence.
“Every single person has the ability to commit an act of violence,” Burns told educators.
At the end of his talk, Burns endorsed the idea of having armed officers patrol the halls, saying, “If they’re police, they should have a firearm be-cause they have the training to use that firearm.”
The 25-member safety committee — comprised of school district and community representatives — first met at the end of March to discuss just what direction SA’s police philosophy was headed. At the time, officials had hoped a decision about whether police would carry weapons would be made by the end of May.
Thursday, however, Riley pointed to the committee’s inability to get outside speakers and safety experts to meet with the group as a major reason why nothing has unfolded.
Riley did say that a handful of people on the committee, including him-self and Kircher, were scheduled to attend a Safe Schools sympo-sium in Harrisburg Sept. 15, though.
In other business, the board:
* Recognized six of it own with certificates of achieve-ment for participation in various Pennsylvania School Boards As-sociation programs, such as school board academy, the statewide conference, annual summer workshop and other workshops and semi-nar.
Receiving certificates were Riley, Thomas Dudek, Walt Hibner, John Matyasovsky and Patrick Risha.
* Approved a $6,100 add-on to the middle/high school parking lot paving project for the installation of guard-rail.
* Read a letter of con-gratulations from ASSET Inc. re-garding the excellent test scores of students on the ASSET fifth-grade science test.
“The test scores were super high,” Hibner said.<
McKessport Daily News 8-21-2000
Glassport Fire Chief Takes to State Role
Aug 21 2000 12:00AM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
Mike Komondor's daughter's favorite firefighter is her daddy, of course. Her second favorite firefighter, though, is Johnny Gage.
For those of you who don't recall, Johnny Gage was a fireman from the popular 1970s television series "Emergency."
Komondor - the current president of Glassport's Citizens Hose Co. No. 1, who also became president of Western Pennsylvania Firemen's Association last week - insists little Claudia, who will turn 3 next month, does watch her share of Barney and the like.
However, "At 8 o'clock every night, she's watching 'Emergency' with her daddy," he says proudly. "She likes to go to the fire hall, too."
To say firefighting plays a big role in Komondor's life is an understatement. He loves to talk about all things fire-related and he even goes into on-line chat rooms about firefighting.
Perhaps that undeniable passion is why he was elected president at the 107th annual WPFA convention last Wednesday, held this year in Somerset. The duration of the term is one year.
Komondor says interest in Glassport hosting a convention is what drove him to start attending monthly WPFA meetings in the first place "so we could get a feel for what we needed to do to host a convention."
The borough last hosted the WPFA gathering in 1992, which was the 99th annual event. The memorial service was held outdoors at Glassport Honor Roll, a rarity Komondor says. Next year, Glassport gets another crack at playing host.
This latest excursion to Somerset was not quite as extravagant as Komondor would have liked for the convention that would mark the beginning of his presidency. He says "Tent City," the remote area where many of the fire companies camped out in trailers and tents, was transformed into "Mud City" by the approximately 200 to 300 companies (out of the estimated 400 comprising WPFA) that were represented at the convention. It was a firefighter's Woodstock.
Wednesday, after the official vote took place - Komondor estimates 2,000 voters cast ballots - "a presidential bash, so to speak" took place, as well as closing ceremonies. Thursday was the day of the "gigantic" parade that lasted approximately three hours.
Becoming president is the culmination of a journey that began in June 1980, when Komondor joined CHC No. 1.
Fast-forward to 1994, when he was elected onto WPFA's law and legislative committee. Members sit on the committee for a term of two years. They can stay on if they successfully go through the election process again, which Komondor did in 1996 - and which fellow CHC No. 1 member (and chief) Dan Kolick did this year.
That two-year term was cut short, however, when he was elected to serve as third vice president of WPFA in 1997.
Then, as Komondor explains, he "worked his way up through the chairs," becoming second vice president in '98, first vice president in '99 and, of course, president this year.
Being president means he will be "opening up the ceremonies at the 108th convention next year in Glassport." In addition, CHC No. 1 will celebrate its 100th birthday in 2001.
It might be a little more than a coincidence that everything meshed together so perfectly for Komondor and Glassport. Komondor acknowledges foresight might have played a part in his being elected at just the right time so he could be the standing president when Glassport got the opportunity to host a WPFA convention the same year as CHC No. 1's centennial.
However, Komondor also says, "Believe it or not, I feel I am a very well-respected within the organization. I must be doing something right."
Komondor doesn't feel his new role will take away from his life at home with Claudia and his wife, Barb, or his other family, CHC No. 1. After all, he says, he's been attending WPFA monthly meetings for a long time now ... "but it does help to have a supportive wife."
Komondor says sometimes, to avoid being away from his family, the trio will turn jaunts to other towns "into a weekend trip for the family." In that sense, his ties to WPFA give him multiple opportunities to take mini-vacations with his loved ones.
After 20 years of faithful service to Glassport and CHC No. 1, Komondor has managed to gain "lifetime member" status in the company. That moniker may bring to mind the image of an elder statesman who's more of a figurehead for the department than someone who gets in and fights fires.
That's not Komondor, though.
"Even though I'm a safety officer and I should be on the outside (of a blaze) looking out for unsafe conditions," Komondor says, "I still consider myself an interior firefighter (who will) put the gear on, put on the mask and go in to fight the fire if need be. I'm still a firefighter first."
While Komondor still feels as young on the inside as when he first started fighting fires, he knows his body might disagree with him at times.
"But that's why we have younger guys," he says. "Not that I'm in all that bad of shape."
McKessport Daily News 8-22-2000
PV Council Hears Views of SA Project
Aug 22 2000 12:00AM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
Port Vue Council held a town meeting last night to get a more solid understanding about the public’s attitude toward South Allegheny School District’s proposal to build a new elementary school. During the meeting, residents expressed the same concerns that have been circulating the district for months now: Many residents want to keep the current Port Vue Elementary School open.
Residents of Glassport also have voiced the same suggestions concerning Glassport Elementary School.
Mayor Orlando DiMarco gave spirited encouragement to residents to keep fighting against the plan in the face of its apparent inevitability.
“It’s not a done deal unless you give up,” he said to boisterous applause.
DiMarco urged residents to call on the county election board to see about getting a referendum on the new school idea.
Mark Wolosik, elections division manager for Allegheny County Department of Elections, said this morning a referendum could be placed on the ballot if it dealt with an issue concerning costs of school building projects “(exceeding) the standards specified in the law.”
He was unsure, however, of those standards.
“This is an area that is not cut and dry,” Wolosik added.
Wolosik said before the referendum could appear on the ballot, a copy of the resolution and the form of the question must be submitted to the county board of elections “at least 45 days before the election.”
Deadline would be Sept. 25.
Last night, Terri Dozzi, a resident who has been at the forefront of the fight to keep Port Vue and Glassport elementary schools up and running, said, “If I’m fighting a losing battle, then I’m going to fight it. So be it.”
Council Vice President Bill Betzner, who assumed the role of president last night in the absence of Mark Tortorice, told residents the meeting’s purpose wasn’t to take any official action, but simply to gather residents’ views on the proposal.
Betzner said the newest site option for the theoretical school — along Washington Boulevard, straddling the Port Vue/Glassport border — came from SA’s architect as a result of public outcry against the original idea to build adjacent to the high school.
But residents aren’t welcoming the new site with open arms, either, saying their objections are to the very concept of the 750-student school — not just its location.
The proposed school would not be the same type of “neighborhood school” the community has now.
Residents told council if a new school had to be built, then they would want it at the new site instead of the first option.
Resident Sherry Starinsky said, as a matter of safety, she was opposed to having young children so close to older high-school students as in the original plan.
“God forbid a Columbine would happen (at the high school),” she said.
“Of course everyone likes ‘new,’” former school board member Jim Blaha said, recalling the excitement people felt when the high school was built. However, he added, “The high school had to be built. This (elementary school) doesn’t have to be.”
Dozzi expressed her disdain for the way SA’s building program committee has endorsed the new school idea.
Dianne Rosche, a SA school board director who attended last night’s meeting, said she receives much literature on education.
“Everything I read says smaller is better,” she said. “And here we are ... we’ve already got a small school, and now we’re going to go big.”
As for the latest site option, the borough has not sold the 10-plus acres on its side of the border line to SA yet. It, however, has given permission to the district to conduct testing at the location to see if building even is a viable option.
Councilwoman Kim DiBernardo cautioned residents who favored the preventative measure of not selling the borough property to the district in the first place. She said if the borough decided not to sell, and a referendum failed to do what opposers hoped, it would lose out on any school — big or small — because the new school definitely would go up near the high school.
Residents were hesitant to approve of council members selling the land because doing so would imply the community favors the idea.
Betzner reminded residents if testing on the grounds indicates there are underground mines too near the surface, then the option to build there would die anyway.
“Everybody’s hoping those core samples won’t be (favorable),” a voice shouted from the crowd.
McKessport Daily News 9-1-2000
Glassport Welcomes Pennsylvania Coil LTD
Sep 1 2000 12:00AM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
Glassport may have about 75 more people contributing their occupation taxes to borough coffers by the beginning of 2001. When Pennsylvania Electric Coil LTD officially moves into the former Siemens Westinghouse Power Corp. site near Glassport Stadium, it will bring with it more employees than any other business in the borough.
"We became the largest employer in the community all of a sudden," said General Manager Les Zupon.
Leapfrogged by Penn Coil in the size category were borough companies such as Tube City Inc., Plotkin Bros. Plumbing Supplies and Spagnola's Foodland.
Both Glassport and Penn Coil - which manufactures and rebuilds electric motors, generators and coils - are excited about the prospective transition. The move became official today when the company completed its purchase of the building and the equipment that goes along with it.
Zupon said the site is approximately 20 percent larger than Penn Coil's existing space, located along the Saw Mill Run Boulevard stretch of Route 51 near Liberty Tunnels. Zupon said the crane capacity of the new site is five times as large.
Glassport Mayor Tom Urbanski might be looking forward to Penn Coil's arrival more than anyone else, since no one has mourned the departure of Siemens Westinghouse more than he.
When the Siemens plant was running, Urbanski said employees "would buy their gas here, get their cars fixed here ... they would spend their money here in the community."
At a luncheon Aug. 24 at LaRomana restaurant along Monongahela Avenue, Glassport rolled out the red carpet to make its newest resident feel at home.
Urbanski, state Rep. Ken Ruffing, D-West Mifflin; state Sen. Albert Belan, D-West Mifflin; South Allegheny District Justice Ed Burnett; Twin Rivers Council of Governments Executive Director Rosemary Bradley; and West-to-West Coalition's Steve Pholar, as well as representatives from South Allegheny School Board, Lions Club and the borough's zoning board and planning commission attended.
I was so excited (about the event) I couldn't sleep," Urbanski says. "I enjoyed it more than they did probably."
"They did a very nice job welcoming us to the community," Zupon noted. "The mayor even kissed (Penn Coil CEO) George Roller."
"I gave George a key to the community and I don't give too many of them out," Urbanski said. "He's the nicest guy you'd ever want to meet ... a 'Class A' individual."
Urbanski credits Siemens Westinghouse for selling to Roller's contingent.
"I think Siemens made a terrific choice," he said.
Zupon said expansion is the driving force behind the move. Since the company changed ownership three years ago, business has boomed.
Zoning Officer Eugene Tacik said Penn Coil has been "champing at the bit" to move into its new home, and the new space should be "a perfect fit" for the company.
Zupon agreed the size of the Glassport site suits Penn Coil well, since it plans on getting bigger.
"We have plenty of room to grow within the confines of the new facility," Zupon stated. "We've expanded our client base. We don't anticipate any reduction in business."
Zupon said Penn Coil hopes to bring in 15 new employees within the first year of their move to Glassport.
Urbanski presented to Penn Coil a list of Glassporters the company should consider bringing into the fold.
Tax Collector Carol Pasinski said residents becoming Penn Coil employees would benefit the borough in that half of a 1 percent wage tax deducted from each of their paychecks would go to Glassport, with the other half going to the school district.
"We're going to make every effort to hire local people," Zupon stressed.
The Ohio Avenue site was abandoned early last year when Siemens Westinghouse relocated operations to Charlotte, N.C. Still, Tacik said, "It's been very well-maintained."
Nevertheless, Zupon said renovations must be done to accommodate Penn Coil's arrival.
"We have to utilitize the plant for our equipment," Zupon said.
Also, before Penn Coil can settle in fully, Zupon said painting, roof repairs and installation of locker room and bathroom facilities for the company's female employees must be completed.
Penn Coil has targeted the first of the year as when it would like to be fully operational in Glassport. Zupon admitted the task of moving is a daunting one.
"We have a lot of heavy equipment," he said. "It's not like unplugging a radio and plugging it back in somewhere else."
Urbanski will wait eagerly no matter how long it ultimately takes for Penn Coil to get situated.
"I'm still excited over it," Urbanski said. "It's a big help to our community. It's one of the greatest things that's happened to us in the last four or five years."
McKessport Daily News 9-7-2000
SA Communities Ready to Hear District’s Plans
Sep 7 2000 12:00AM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
Liberty, Lincoln and Glassport officials have an opportunity to learn more about South Allegheny School District’s new elementary school proposal. Last night, Liberty officials said SA has invited all three councils to an in-depth informational meeting tonight about the proposed $11.9 million project.
Port Vue, the other borough in the district, already had its council members attend such a meeting with school officials approximately two months ago after council wrote a letter to the district requesting one. An onslaught of concern from Port Vue residents — coupled with the inability to answer some resident questions — spurred the governing body to learn more about the plan from the school district.
In an effort to inform the public about specifics of the ambitious move and the reasons it felt it was necessary in the first place, the school district originally held community meetings in Glassport and Port Vue on successive June evenings at each town’s elementary school. As a result of the project, each of the schools would be closed. Those meetings, which lasted almost four hours each, fueled the passion of objectors to the plan.
A handful of Port Vue council members attended the meeting in its borough — and were vocal during it as well — while Glassport councilors stayed distant from the proceedings in their town.
After Port Vue had its meeting with SA, the district came up with a second site option for its new 750-student elementary school. The alternative would sit on land along Washington Boulevard straddling the border between Glassport and Port Vue. The original site was adjacent to the high school in Liberty.
Still, some Port Vue residents wanted their elected officials to fight for keeping their neighborhood school in tact and oppose the proposed new school, wherever the location.
Council President Mark Tortorice told residents at July’s meeting, “Our No. 1 issue is to keep the school in the borough of Port Vue.”
However, as the days passed, council members said they felt the proposal to build a new school — and close Port Vue Elementary — was a “done deal.” They were pleased SA offered a new Washington Boulevard site option that would put the school closer to home.
Last week, Port Vue Council voted to transfer its portion of the Washington Boulevard site to the school district.
All along, SA officials have contended nothing is a “done deal.”
McKessport Daily News 9-8-2000
Bible School’s Lesson of Caring Is in the Bag
Sep 8 2000 12:00AM By BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer
Isn’t it great to see children helping other children? Organizers at last month’s Glassport Assembly of God’s vacation Bible school did their part to instill selflessness and good will in children who took part in the four-day program. For Operation Kid-to-Kid, youngsters filled bags with basic hygiene items to send to their counterparts overseas.
According to church member Gina Muscante, more than 50 children from Glassport and surrounding communities attended vacation Bible school this summer at the church, located at Fifth Street and Ohio Avenue.
“There were about 55 kids who helped fill bags, and they filled them ... with more than $300 worth of stuff,” Muscante said.
The items, such such as soap, toothbrushes, toothpaste, wash cloths, bandages, combs, brushes, etc., were donated by the children and their families.
Muscante credits youth director Patti Bickerton as the catalyst behind the philanthropic process.
“She decided to bring Operation Kid-to-Kid to vacation Bible school this year,” Muscante said.
The products in the bags eventually will find their way to Albania and other such economically deprived countries, Muscante added.
McKessport Daily News 9-13-2000
Glassport: New School Meeting Elicits Little Development
BY MATT SULLIVAN, Daily News Staff Writer September 13, 2000
Glassport council members said no major developments arose from an informational meeting they had with South Allegheny School District — as well as representatives from Liberty and Lincoln councils — last week. A common thought among council members at last night’s meeting was the district’s proposed new $11.9 million elementary school is “a done deal,” and nothing they heard last week served to change that perception, Councilman Jim Morningstar said. During the session with district personnel, SA focused on the newest site option it offered — along Washington Boulevard straddling the border between Glassport and Port Vue — in response to public outcry after officials initially presented the idea, Morningstar added.
The site originally was eyed near SA High/Middle School.
Morningstar said SA made no statement about when testing of core samples at the site — which must be done before any building gets under way — would be done. In fact, Morningstar was pessimistic the testing would give favorable results, pointing to past mining in the area.
Both Morningstar and Councilman John D’Angelo said they also doubted the ultimate price tag for the project would be only $11.9 million.
The pair said normal cost overruns — like Glassport has seen pop up during its own Washington Boulevard sewer extension project — likely would send the final total skyward.
As for the aforementioned sewer project, council approved two change orders presented by Nicassio Corp., the company handling the job. The changes resulted in $56,860 more the borough has to shell out.
“We’re going to see if we can get reimbursement for some of this through PennVEST,” D’Angelo said. PennVEST is a state agency that provides financial assistance to municipalities for projects such as Glassport’s sewer extension.
Borough Engineer Scott Hilty, of EADS Group, said the end of the project is in sight now. He said all that remains to be done is electrical and fencing work at the pump stations at Naomi and Century avenues, as well as dealing with a “punch list, which contain most of the (resident) complaints” that have surfaced throughout the project.
Most notably, some residents have been upset by shoddy restoration efforts they claim workers have made — or failed to make — on property directly affected by digging.
In other business, council:
* Read a resolution pertaining to an intergovernmental cooperation agreement with McKeesport. The agreement, Councilman Angelo Schinosi said, was precipitated by McKeesport Police’s recent need to house an excess of prisoners in Glassport Police’s holding cells.
The agreement, however, does not just focus on police issues.
Michael Moser, standing in for Solicitor Charles LoPresti, called it a “foundation agreement” for other future events and/or activities.
* Announced the sign near the Honor Roll will be used to announce “milestone events,” such as 50th anniversaries, or 100th birthdays.
* Warned residents police are ticketing vehicles parked along the west side of Allegheny Avenue. No Parking signs already are in place in the area.
* Announced free parking will be available at Ninth Street field for upcoming events. This option is offered as an alternative to residents and visitors who do not want to pay parking fees to private entities near Glassport Stadium.
McKessport Daily News 9-14-2000
South Allegheny Benefits From Glassport’s Generosity
BY MATT SULLIVAN, Daily News Staff Writer September 14, 2000
Glassport Council has a generous side, and South Allegheny School District is the beneficiary. At Tuesday’s monthly meeting, council agreed to turn over an engineering survey already prepared by Glassport’s own engineers to school board-hired engineers HRG Inc. at no cost. SA Director of Business Affairs Sharon Miller said the school board contracted HRG to perform surveying services on a 36-plus-acre site along Washington Boulevard the district has proposed for its new $11.9 million elementary school.
However, EADS Group, borough engineer for Glassport, already has done such surveying — which engineer Scott Hilty said includes costly aerial photography — for the early stages of the borough’s nearly finished Washington Boulevard sewer extension project. Hilty estimated the cost of his company’s surveying work to be approximately $5,000.
He told council members it was up to them if they wanted to charge a fee for the materials. They saw no need to.
Council did see the need to send letters to state Rep. Kenneth Ruffing, D-West Mifflin, and state Sen. Albert Belan, D-West Mifflin, in support of House Bill 2094.
A letter from Dolores Weinstein, Pennsylvania Council of Governments president and White Oak Council’s Twin Rivers COG representative, gave an overview of what the bill would accomplish. In the letter, Weinstein wrote the bill “will strengthen COGs’ standings in eyes of state agencies, giving COGs the ability to secure grants and loans, as municipalities do, without having to rely on our municipalities to take lead roles as sponsoring agencies.”
“It’s not fair to the municipalities to have to (apply for grants on behalf of COGs),” Glassport Councilman and TRCOG representative John D’Angelo said. “White Oak has been doing that repeatedly.”
D’Angelo felt one town sponsoring a grant request on behalf of all the communities within a COG meant that town might be “sacrificing” its chances at other grants designed specifically for its own residents.
D’Angelo also brought up the subject of dumping that allegedly is occurring at the Harrison Street river access area, saying sewage plant employees told him they have had confrontations with individuals who dump trash there. Therefore, he wanted to re-institute the policy of hooking up a cable across the top of the ramp leading to the river bank during nighttime hours.
He also suggested cement barriers be put up to prevent vehicles from “backing in there where they can’t be seen.”
Councilman Edward Mihoces felt there was not as much dumping happening as D’Angelo had suggested. He said the cables would be a hassle to fishermen who pull their cars down closer to the bank.
No official action was taken, however, and the matter was placed into the laps of Street and Light Committee Chairman Bob Stefanic and Parks and Recreation Committee Chairman Jim Uziel.
“The bottom line is we shouldn’t be polluting that river,” D’Angelo said.
In other business, council:
* Voted to make a counter-offer to a resident who offered to purchase a pie-shaped piece of property near 2227 Washington Blvd.
On the other hand, council voted to reject an offer made by an individual on a 12.75-acre piece of property bordering Coursin Hollow.
* Discussed a letter dated July 9 from Metricom Inc. — a company dealing in wireless and mobile Internet access networking and technology — requesting right-of-way from Glassport in order to provide the service to the borough’s residents and businesses.
The letter detailed how Glassport would benefit by allowing the company to place transmitters atop light poles throughout town. The borough also would be eligible for a franchise fee and $1,000 bonus.
However, the letter stated Glassport would get the bonus if it signed the agreement within 60 days.
“I’d hate for us to lose this,” D’Angelo said. “It’s free money.”
No official action was taken by council on the matter.
McKessport Daily News 9-20-2000
Alleged Stalker Gets 90-Day Continuance
BY MATT SULLIVAN, Daily News Staff Writer September 20, 2000
An Elizabeth woman accused of stalking police in Glassport and Lincoln will have 90 days to make a behavioral turn-around. South Allegheny District Justice Edward Burnett ordered a 90-day continuation of the preliminary hearing for 28-year-old Cher Moser, who was charged with stalking officers by Glassport and Lincoln police last month. Burnett referred Moser to “strict counseling.” She will receive help with “stress management and behavior shaping,” according to the court-appointed counselor.
Moser has faced such charges before from both police departments since last December. She has been accused of stalking and harassing law enforcement personnel and private citizens.
Moser’s half-sister, Lee Ann Bailey, 21, also of Elizabeth, was with Moser in the early morning hours of Aug. 12 when the duo was arrested and also faced similar charges yesterday. Bailey, however, had her charges reduced to two counts of disorderly conduct and was fined $375.50 plus court costs for each count.
“You have 90 days to pay,” Burnett warned Bailey before she left, “or we’re going to have a red designer suit for you.”
Later in the afternoon, police and Assistant District Attorney Larry Mitchell would not consider reducing Moser’s charges, which amounted to three counts of stalking with intent to cause substantial emotional distress, three counts of stalking with intent to place in reasonable fear of bodily injury, three counts of criminal conspiracy and two counts of aiding in criminal conspiracy.
Also included yesterday were additional charges against Moser of harassment and false statements in connection with an incident last year in which she is accused of filing a false statement about an automobile accident that never occurred.
Once it was apparent no deals would be struck between Mitchell and Moser’s attorney William Difenderfer, the preliminary hearing began, but not before a collection of officers who crowded the courtroom were sequestered.
Lincoln Police Lt. Kevin Sisley testified first. He told what happened during the early morning hours on the date Moser was arrested. His testimony was followed by similar accounts from Glassport officers Shawn Deverse and Shane Countryman, and Lincoln officer Scott Schmeltz.
Generally, the defense did not dispute the picture police portrayed:
As Sisley and Deverse sat at a convenience store along Monongahela Avenue in Glassport around midnight, Moser and Bailey drove by in a rental vehicle numerous times. Police in unmarked cars observed and videotaped the women’s journeys throughout Glassport and into Lincoln.
Then, Moser and Bailey continued to pass back and forth by Sisley and Deverse when the officers relocated to the parking lot of a business in Lincoln.
Officers told Difenderfer that Moser never made threatening gestures or stopped when she was driving past them, except to obey traffic laws.
When Difenderfer asked Sisley if it was “unlawful” to drive along a public road as Moser had done that night, Sisley replied, “It’s not normal.”
Sisley said he started to feel like, “I couldn’t properly do my job ... It was starting to be stressful.”
Deverse said Moser’s “tendency to be everywhere” upset him as well. The week before, Deverse claimed he seemed to be the target of similar behavior from Moser, causing him to wonder “why she picked me to follow.” At that time, he said, he trailed Moser’s vehicle until she got out of town and across the Clairton Bridge.
Officers said they did not know Moser had a sister who lived in Glassport and muttered to each other they’d never seen Moser there.
During his testimony, Sisley denied ever having lengthy phone conversations with Moser while he was at the police station, and fellow officer Schmeltz said he never knew of such conversations either. However, he did say, “more than three months ago,” she had come up to the Lincoln police station.
Sisley also denied being romantically involved with Moser or ever having sexual relations with her.
Then, Difenderfer attacked evidence offered by police: a piece of paper with Sisley’s pager number written on it, as well as another Lincoln officer’s home phone number, found in the glove compartment of the vehicle in which Moser was traveling around.
First, Difenderfer said the piece of notepad paper matched notepads found in Lincoln’s police station. Second, he said Sisley’s pager number was written in Sisley’s handwriting.
When Difenderfer asked if Sisley didn’t give the piece of paper to Moser, then how would she have come into possession of it, Schmeltz said he did not know.
Burnett then called for a side bar, then gathered everyone involved in the case into the courtroom.
He announced he was going to continue the hearing for 90 days, ordering Moser to successfully complete counseling. If she did not, he warned, then he automatically would hold Moser for court on all of the charges she faced.
“You have disrupted two police departments, plus you have taken up my court and the DA’s time,” Burnett told Moser.
He also suggested it might be in her best interest to avoid Glassport and Lincoln in the interim.
McKessport Daily News 9-29-2000
Heart Attack Claims Glassport Councilman
BY MATT SULLIVAN, Daily News Staff Writer September 29, 2000
Glassport Council President Anthony Pepe hasn’t missed a single meeting — special, regular or caucus — in 32 years as a member of the governing body. His relentless dedication to the position and perfect attendance were recognized by his peers during their Sept. 12 meeting. Sadly, that celebration also proved to be Pepe’s council swan song. Pepe, 70, died just before dawn yesterday after suffering a heart attack at a Glassport convenience store. Paramedics were unable to revive him. “Certainly, the whole town will be saddened by his passing,” Council Vice President Angelo Schinosi said. “He contributed a lot of time to the borough over the years.”
Schinosi goes back a long way with Pepe. The two graduated from Glassport High School together in 1948 and were stationed together at Opa-Locka Air Base in Miami in 1952 while serving in the U.S. Marine Corps.
Pepe is one of only three men to serve as Glassport Council president since the early 1980s. Schinosi and Councilman John D’Angelo are the others.
“His vote put me in as council president from 1993 to ’94,” D’Angelo said.
He said Pepe told him it was only right D’Angelo should serve as president considering all his years on council.
Pepe, who was president before Schinosi and D’Angelo took their turns, has led the governing body ever since.
Borough Secretary Nancy Piazza-Whabby said Pepe had been involved in council for such a long time, the late councilman wasn’t even sure how long he had served as president.
Pepe was no stranger to accolades.
In July, outgoing state Sen. Albert Belan, D-West Mifflin, presented Pepe with a Board of Directors Award from Pennsylvania State Association of Boroughs for his years of service.
At the aforementioned Sept. 12 meeting, Michael Moser, who stood in as solicitor that night, read a citation from the state Senate highlighting Pepe’s service to Glassport and, more specifically, his perfect attendance at regular and special meetings and caucuses.
Borough officials took turns saying kind words to Pepe since they realized more than anyone else how impressive his streak was.
Pepe accepted the compliments graciously. After a few of his peers spoke kindly of him, he turned to the rest of council and asked if anyone else wanted to say anything. The comment elicited a few chuckles from those on hand.
“I was born in 1970,” Moser told Pepe. “For you not to miss a meeting is incomprehensible.”
Councilman Jim Uziel joked it was an amazing feat “to have your sanity after 32 years.”
Schinosi told Pepe his constant re-election to council was a testament to the way the borough felt about him.
“I don’t think anybody will do what I did,” Pepe said that night. “I’m not bragging or anything, but 32 years without missing a meeting ...”
D’Angelo recalled the rocky times — especially during “the early ’80s when (Glassport’s) industrial base disappeared” — he and Pepe endured.
Through the years, D’Angelo said, he and Pepe were often on opposite sides of the fence. However, he never questioned whether Pepe had the best interest of Glassport in mind.
“We were at odds on a lot of issues,” D’Angelo admitted. “But I’ll miss him. He always did what he thought was right for the borough. Tony always meant well.”
“I’ve known Tony for 25 years, maybe longer than that,” Uziel added. “He really didn’t have any enemies. Even his political opposition held no malice toward him.”
Councilman and former Police Chief Ed Mihoces, who saw Pepe the night before he died, said he was shocked by the sudden passing.
When asked what it will be like not having Pepe at council meetings, Mihoces simply said, “It’ll be tough.”
Please see obituary, Page 19.
McKessport Daily News 10-6-2000
Baby’s Death Is Deemed Accidental
BY MATT SULLIVAN, Daily News Staff Writer October 06, 2000
No charges will be filed in the July death of a 19-month-old Glassport baby. An Allegheny County Coroner’s office spokesman called Joseph M. Donovan Jr.’s death accidental. Compression of the trunk has been ruled as cause of death. “The baby was sleeping on the couch with his mother,” the spokesman said. He said the nature of the tragic accident will not lead to charges being filed by authorities.
Police said they received a call about a baby found not breathing in his home shortly after noon July 22. Paramedics were dispatched immediately, but were unable to revive the child. The infant was pronounced dead at 1 p.m.
Results from the coroner have been pending for almost 10 weeks because, according to the coroner’s office, “In infant deaths, they do a lot of different tests — toxicology, histology ...” as standard operating procedure to be as certain as possible of the cause of death.
McKessport Daily News 10-18-2000
DiMarco Fills Vacant Glassport Seat
BY MATT SULLIVAN, Daily News Staff Writer October 18, 2000
Building Inspector Terry DiMarco is the newest member of Glassport Council. Last night, DiMarco beat out the only other nominated candidate, Planning Commission Chairman Bob Bednar. DiMarco received the nod from council members Bob Stefanic, Jim Uziel, Angelo Schinosi and Edward Mihoces, while councilmen John D'Angelo and Jim Morningstar voted for Bednar. The two candidates were picked out of a list of seven prospective individuals who sent letters to council indicating their interest in filling the void left by the death of former Council President Anthony Pepe last month.
With a full complement of individuals once again, council then listened to complaints from residents concerning the nearly completed Washington Boulevard sewer extension project.
Residents were frustrated by what they called unsatisfactory clean-up efforts by workers on the site, as well as borough workers who showed up to give the area a more thorough clean up.
D'Angelo and Engineer Scott Hilty, of EADS Group, assured the audience there is a "punch list" of issues the contractor must address before the borough signs the job off as "completed."
Uziel suggested council go to the specific residences of those individuals who have registered complaints to get a better feel for just how bad roadways have become and how many rocks are left in yards affected by digging.
Pennsylvania Avenue was one specific road brought to council's attention. Resident Jim Borucki wondered, "Is this the way the road's going to be for the winter?"
D'Angelo agreed the road was in a state of disrepair, but said the reason it has not been paved was because "PennDOT pulled the plug" on the project.
Stefanic said PennDOT's involvement was secured through Twin Rivers Council of Governemnts' Agility Program.
However, D'Angelo said, "They called me on my cell phone the morning they were supposed to start and told me they weren't going to show."
D'Angelo asked Stefanic what he thought the chances were of the road getting some last-second paving before winter.
"Slim to none," Stefanic said, citing lack of funding as the major reason.
Council also granted a 60-day contract extension to Nicassio Corp. for completion of electrical connections to the pump station.
Hilty said Nicassio thought the full 60 days would not be necessary.
In other business, council:
* Voted to make Shane Countryman, Daniel Pici and Philip Larcinese full-time police officers in response to letters of resignation received from former officers Jeffrey Egan and Michael Peairs.
* Announced three properties - 737 Delaware Ave., 918 Vermont Ave. and 621 Indiana Ave. - were first on a list of nine properties set for demolition through a Community Development Block Grant secured through TRCOG.
DiMarco said the first building could be razed within a month.
McKessport Daily News 10-18-2000
Glassport Pays Homage to Pepe
BY MATT SULLIVAN, Daily News Staff Writer October 18, 2000
Glassport Council honored its late president Anthony Pepe one more time in its first regular meeting since his death last month. Last night, friends and family of Pepe gathered in borough chambers a half hour before the regularly scheduled start of the meeting to pay tribute to the long-time borough official. "For all the sacrifices he made and all the time he's given to the borough," Council President Angelo Schinosi started off by reading a lengthy resolution that praised the efforts of Pepe. Then, the floodgates opened for almost everyone in the room to take his/her turn at a brief eulogy:
"There wasn't a more honest or dedicated man that ever walked the face of this earth," Councilman John D'Angelo said.
"Glassport was his family," Councilman Jim Uziel said. "He was content to be here ... He had a very easy manner about himself, but he was very strong in his convictions."
Referring to Pepe's knowledge of Glassport, as well as his longevity, Councilman Bob Stefanic said, "He knew me before I knew him. When I was 8, he'd see me ... and say, 'Hey, little Stefanic.'"
"He had Glassport in his mind," Councilman Jim Morningstar said. "It was always Glassport first."
"He never said a bad word about anybody," Councilman Ed Mihoces said of the gentle Pepe.
"He was like my best friend," Borough Secretary Nancy Piazza-Whabby said. "He was good to children, very loyal, a good listener ..."
"He taught me a lot about dedication," said newly selected Councilman Terry DiMarco.
American Legion member and friend Nick Martino said the seat where Pepe always sat at Post 443 "will be mighty hard to fill."
"He was set in his ways, but he was very fair," former councilman Richard Tyszkiewicz said.
Referring to Pepe as "Mr. Glassport," Tyszkiewicz added, "He did honestly love this town. A tribute like this would have meant more to Tony than anything in the world."
"He would have been very proud of the words that came out of the council members' mouths," said Pepe's nephew Robert Kerns.
And Pepe was indeed proud when similar kind words did come from his colleagues' mouths at last month's meeting. Councilors took advantage of the opportunity to pay Pepe an impromptu tribute after Solicitor Michael Moser read a citation from state Sen. Albert Belan, D-West Mifflin, commemorating Pepe's perfect attendance at regular and special meetings and caucuses over a 30-year period.
Before last night's salute concluded, Kerns suggested that when council members find themselves faced with a difficult decision in the future, "Think about what Tony might say."
Then, when Schinosi called for a moment of silence in memory of Pepe to conclude the affair, the room became so silent that an accidentally jingled key in someone's pocket clanged like a bell.
DiMarco Fills Vacant Glassport Seat
BY MATT SULLIVAN, Daily News Staff Writer October 18, 2000
Building Inspector Terry DiMarco is the newest member of Glassport Council. Last night, DiMarco beat out the only other nominated candidate, Planning Commission Chairman Bob Bednar. DiMarco received the nod from council members Bob Stefanic, Jim Uziel, Angelo Schinosi and Edward Mihoces, while councilmen John D'Angelo and Jim Morningstar voted for Bednar. The two candidates were picked out of a list of seven prospective individuals who sent letters to council indicating their interest in filling the void left by the death of former Council President Anthony Pepe last month.
With a full complement of individuals once again, council then listened to complaints from residents concerning the nearly completed Washington Boulevard sewer extension project.
Residents were frustrated by what they called unsatisfactory clean-up efforts by workers on the site, as well as borough workers who showed up to give the area a more thorough clean up.
D'Angelo and Engineer Scott Hilty, of EADS Group, assured the audience there is a "punch list" of issues the contractor must address before the borough signs the job off as "completed."
Uziel suggested council go to the specific residences of those individuals who have registered complaints to get a better feel for just how bad roadways have become and how many rocks are left in yards affected by digging.
Pennsylvania Avenue was one specific road brought to council's attention. Resident Jim Borucki wondered, "Is this the way the road's going to be for the winter?"
D'Angelo agreed the road was in a state of disrepair, but said the reason it has not been paved was because "PennDOT pulled the plug" on the project.
Stefanic said PennDOT's involvement was secured through Twin Rivers Council of Governemnts' Agility Program.
However, D'Angelo said, "They called me on my cell phone the morning they were supposed to start and told me they weren't going to show."
D'Angelo asked Stefanic what he thought the chances were of the road getting some last-second paving before winter.
"Slim to none," Stefanic said, citing lack of funding as the major reason.
Council also granted a 60-day contract extension to Nicassio Corp. for completion of electrical connections to the pump station.
Hilty said Nicassio thought the full 60 days would not be necessary.
In other business, council:
* Voted to make Shane Countryman, Daniel Pici and Philip Larcinese full-time police officers in response to letters of resignation received from former officers Jeffrey Egan and Michael Peairs.
* Announced three properties - 737 Delaware Ave., 918 Vermont Ave. and 621 Indiana Ave. - were first on a list of nine properties set for demolition through a Community Development Block Grant secured through TRCOG.
DiMarco said the first building could be razed within a month.
Glassport Cops Looking for Robber
BY MATT SULLIVAN, Daily News Staff Writer October 24, 2000
Police are investigating an armed robbery of a Glassport business.
According to police, the crime took place at approximately 7 p.m. Sunday when a white male entered the business, located along the 700 block of Monongahela Avenue, and threatened a female clerk by wielding a knife. Reports indicate the suspect arrived at the door of the business just as the clerk was closing the store. The suspect asked the clerk to let him in to make a last-second purchase before she locked up and she admitted the would-be burglar. Once inside the shop, police said, the man took out a "big knife," and demanded the clerk give him all the money in the store. The man allegedly went behind the counter and removed all the bills from the register. Then culprit exited through the front door and fled on foot, police said. Allegheny County Police have been called in to assist with the investigation - particularly to help analyze video surveillance footage of the entire incident. The man was not wearing a mask, police noted.
SA School Project Concerns Linger
BY MATT SULLIVAN, Daily News Staff Writer October 27, 2000
All it takes is one hot issue to keep residents of South Allegheny School District talking ... and talking. That was the case at last night's meeting. Almost two hours after the board opened the floor to the audience, members finally started plowing through the agenda. Before it got to voting and approving all it had to, the board listened to more thoughts from residents about the district's proposed new elementary school project straddling the border between Port Vue and Glassport along Washington Boulevard.
In addition to those concerns, residents expressed their regret over a situation that occurred at last month's meeting. At that gathering, Board President Russell Geary had officers escort past school director James Blaha out of the packed band room because he felt Blaha was causing a disturbance in the meeting.
Former director and Lincoln resident Marilyn Ashoff called it "an insulting display of power," to which Geary answered, "I gave him a warning, and he kept going and going and going."
Residents and board members alike ultimately agreed it was an unfortunate scene that did not make anyone look good and was counterproductive in building a positive relationship between directors and residents.
Even in his absence from last night's meeting, Blaha was a focal point again when Board Vice President Walt Hibner took some time to address a letter Blaha wrote to The Daily News. He said Blaha's misstatement of facts was misleading to the public.
First, Hibner defended the district's idea of looking at Charleroi School District as a comparison for what SA was considering for itself.
Blaha wrote, "Charleroi ... (proved) to be an unfair comparison since they represent only their municipality with no ties to other communities."
"There are seven different communities that go to Charleroi," Hibner said.
Blaha also wrote, "(Before consolidation, Charleroi) previously had three old elementary schools located in the downtown area with little or no room for expansion."
Hibner clarified the district combined four elementary schools, two of which were in Charleroi.
Hibner also had a problem with Blaha's claim that the "district and taxpayers would immediately experience a substantial loss of equity, and a combined conservative figure being $12 million" if Port Vue and Glassport Central elementary schools were closed as a result of the project becoming a reality.
Hibner said the combined "book value" of both buildings was approximately $6.9 million - $4.2 million for Glassport Central and $2.7 million for Port Vue.
Hibner added money would have to be spent on necessary repairs to make the schools worth that much.
"I have no idea how he arrived at that ($12 million) number," Hibner said.
As for business on the agenda, the board acknowledged receipt of PLANCON Part A project justification for the school project from Pennsylvania Department of Education.
PLANCON is a step-by-step process by which school districts present a plan to the state for school construction, renovations and/or additions.
In other business, the board:
* Approved a resolution authorizing a change of purpose with respect to certain proceeds related to a 1997 bond issue.
Director of Business Affairs Sharon Miller explained what the board did was add projects to the original bond issue that were not stated specifically three years ago.
* Approved hiring Kris Kircher as full-time school police supervisor at a salary of $18,720 for the remainder of the 2000-01 fiscal year, prorated to the effective date of Nov. 1 of this year.
SA Building Plan Takes New Twist
BY MATT SULLIVAN, Daily News Staff Writer October 30, 2000
For months now, a pattern has developed at South Allegheny School Board meetings. First, the board opens the public comment portion of the proceedings, and residents talk about why they feel there should not be a new elementary school built. Then, directors tell those angry residents why they think the district indeed needs the school. However, at Thursday's board meeting, a few new points were raised as discussion about SA's proposed new $11.9 million elementary school raged for more than 90 minutes. Port Vue resident Judy McCormick questioned the scenario the district has set up for the usage of Manor Elementary school as an early childhood development center for kids in kindergarten and first grade, while the new school would house grades two through six.
McCormick said she felt it might be overwhelming for youngsters just getting acclimated to the school environment - and to a certain school in particular - out of their comfort area and place them in a brand new scene.
"It doesn't make sense to relocate them," she insisted.
Instead, McCormick felt it would be better to use Manor for fifth- and sixth-graders and the new school for kindergarten through fourth grade.
And, Director Vicki Morningstar thought McCormick's argument had some merit. In fact, she "thought it was a very good idea."
Morningstar said she first heard of McCormick's set-up in talking with her one-on-one Sept. 21 at an informal informational town meeting in Glassport on the topic of the proposed new school. She then took what she heard to some of her peers.
"I talked to two other board members, (Superintendent Patrick) Risha and (Port Vue Elementary School Principal Bernie) Kalocay," Morningstar said. "They're seriously considering it."
Another point getting little attention thus far in discussions about the project is the make-up of the proposed site for the project.
Director Dianne Rosche talked about the terrain of the property and the slope of the land there. She worried about possible subsidence and/or landslides and general shifting of earth if a new building was constructed at the location.
"I'm concerned about how to make the ground stable for this sort of a big building," she said.
Rosche added, when she asked her husband what he would do with a plot of land like that, he said he would "put cows on it."
Another interesting comment came from Glassport resident Doris Bailey in defense of an effort she has helped organize to get signatures on a petition against the new school. In response to the notion that the 1,600 names on the list is not truly representative of all district residents, Bailey pointed out only approximately 2,300 votes are what got some of the directors into their positions.
The "1,600-plus" signatures are from only two of the district's boroughs, and not all four, as were the vote totals, she added.
In other business, the board listened to a report from Glenn Shell, school psychologist and special education liaison, about violations uncovered at Port Vue Elementary by the state Department of Education's Bureau of Special Education.
Shell said in May of last year, BSE conducted a routine monitoring of the schools in the district and found Port Vue to be in violation of the fair share law. Shell said the law calls for all educational services being offered within a school to be located "in the normal flow of traffic."
However, "Because we have no space in Port Vue," he said, speech and language classes were being held in the girls' locker room, while gifted and talented education classes were being conducted in a small Title I reading room.
Now, to better accommodate students in those classes, teachers are forced to hold sessions in the larger art room.
Shell said receiving approval from BSE for SA's corrective action plan - in which it was explained the district is in the midst of a plan for school construction - "allows us to go on with this musical classroom schedule.
"But it's not a long-term solution," Shell insisted.
CSX Agreement Money Use in Limbo
BY MATT SULLIVAN, Daily News Staff Writer November 15, 2000
Glassport is sitting on money it received from an agreement with CSX during the summer. The borough got $90,000 from the railroad company as a result of a pact approved by the federal Surface Transportation Board. CSX was busy throughout the summer months cutting checks to municipalities because of noise problems caused by trains as they travel through towns. Check totals were based on the number of homes within a certain distance from the tracks. Federal guidelines indicate a residential structure within 91 feet of a track be considered subject to negative impact from train noise. These buildings are referred to as receptors.
The parties arrived at $90,000 because a federal study indicated there are nine receptors in Glassport and CSX agreed to allot $10,000 for each one.
However, borough resident Bob Kerlin, who lives along the 400 block of Monongahela Avenue, showed up at last night's council meeting to question the claim there are only nine receptors in Glassport.
Kerlin presented a petition listing seven additional homes that allegedly sit within 91 feet of tracks.
"This noise has been going on," Kerlin said. "You can't sleep at night."
"We tried very hard to get more funding," said Council President Angelo Schinosi, who agreed with Kerlin's claim that there are more than nine receptors.
Schinosi said he will contact CSX to try to get the company to reconsider its position.
Solicitor Charles LoPresti told Kerlin, CSX "never meant for the money to go to residents directly" because that would be akin to a damage settlement.
He said residents can acquire their own legal representation if they feel compensation should be made to them directly by CSX.
Councilman John D'Angelo asked residents for suggestions about what the borough can do to curb the noise impact on affected homes. The most popular response was to have the trains slow down as they pass by, but D'Angelo is pessimistic about that possibility.
"We can't tell the railroads how to do their business," he said.
Police Chief Eugene Skerkoski confirmed the speed limit for trains and street vehicles alike at railroad crossings is 25 mph. However, he said homes along the 400 block of Monongahela Avenue are not directly next to such crossings, which means trains don't have to be traveling 25 mph as they pass those homes.
"Obviously, they're not going to stop coming through," Council Vice President Jim Uziel said.
No action was taken on what council will do with the money.
In other business, council:
* Will send Mon Valley 911 representative Bob Stefanic to a special meeting of Mon Valley 911 member communities to vote in favor of Glassport joining a county-wide emergency dispatch. * Announced dilapidated structures at 621 Indiana Ave. and 737 Delaware Ave. have been demolished.
Councilman Terry DiMarco said Select Dismantling Systems made quick work of the tasks. He said the building at 918 Vermont Ave. should come down sometime next week.
The demolition projects were paid for by a grant from Twin Rivers Council of Governments.
No One Hurt in Glassport House Blaze
BY MATT SULLIVAN, Daily News Staff Writer November 17, 2000
Fire strikes again; this time, in Glassport. A home at 417 Iowa St. was ripped by flames yesterday morning shortly before 8:30.
Glassport Police Chief Eugene Skerkoski and Sgt. Howard Kifer were cruising borough streets when they spotted a large amount of smoke coming from the direction of Iowa Avenue.
The officers drove to the area and observed smoke escaping from an upstairs vent of the residence. They made a call to get firefighters on the scene, and contacted utility companies.
Fortunately, Skerkoski and Kifer found no one home at the time. The pair proceeded to get neighbors in the immediate vicinity of the house to evacuate their homes.
Despite the response of fire personnel, the home was hit hard by the flames.
"The damage is substantial," one officer said. "The roof was basically burned off. The fire gutted the whole house."
Cause of the fire is undetermined at this time.
Residents of the house included a mother, her two young daughters, ages 3 and 7, an uncle and two cats.
Grandmother of the victims - whose house is where mom and daughters are staying, while the uncle is staying with other family members - said one cat still is missing, and the other one is safe, though "he had a lot of smoke inhalation."
After the smoke cleared, the Glassport community quickly sprung into action to lend a hand.
Glassport Thrift Store offered the family anything they would need to make it through this difficult time.
Cub Scout Pack 954 is doing its part, too. The group is accepting any donations - clothing, household items, money - to give to the displaced family. Anyone who would like to help can contact the scouts at 412-673-7211.
Already, as of last night, the family started to see clothing donations begin to trickle in.
"The Glassport community has been outstanding," the grandmother said. "We've had people call to find out what sizes the girls wear."
Unfortunately, she added, her daughter had much of her Christmas shopping done already, and a lot of it was lost in the fire.
However, the family is thankful it located one very expensive gift it had tucked away.
"We think that's salvageable," the grandmother said hopefully.
Glassport: Sewer Project Fears Coming to Surface
BY MATT SULLIVAN, Daily News Staff Writer November 17, 2000
Now that the Washington Boulevard sewer extension project almost is complete, some Glassport residents are getting worried workers will disappear once the work is done, leaving lasting scars behind them. At Tuesday's council meeting, resident Ralph Stanczak said what he would like is to meet face-to-face with a Nicassio Corp. representative to discuss concerns he had about property damage issues.
Councilman John D'Angelo told Stanczak he informed Nicassio via Borough Engineer Scott Hilty, of EADS Group, to meet with Stanczak about his problems.
"I'm going to call them ... and ask them why they didn't come up and talk to you," D'Angelo said.
D'Angelo insisted residents ultimately would have their concerns addressed by the contractor. Hilty and he referred to a punch list of items council and the engineer compiled that Nicassio must address before the borough will sign off on the project.
"If he doesn't do it," D'Angelo said, "he's not going to get paid. It's as simple as that."
D'Angelo assured residents the project is not over, and they would not be stuck with unsatisfactory conditions on their properties when it is.
"If it was over, we'd be tapping in and getting revenues," a frustrated D'Angelo said.
In other business, council:
* Heard complaints from resident Doris Bailey concerning what she perceived as a lack of involvement on the part of council concerning the hot topic of South Allegheny School District's proposed new $11.9 million elementary school.
Bailey, a staunch opponent of the new school, said it would be appropriate for council members to reflect the opinion of the voters who elected them by resisting the district's plan - which would lead to the existing elementary schools in Glassport and Port Vue being closed down - more actively.
* Voted to purchase new international building and fire code books.
"We're still using the BOCA code," D'Angelo said. "You want to be enforcing the right codes."
Glassport Budget Set for Council's Approval
BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer December 13, 2000
Glassport is a little closer to having its budget in place for-next year.
Council unveiled the 2001 spending plan in its preliminary form at last night's monthly meeting. Council members agreed nothing about the budget makes it notably different from its predecessor.
"It looks like we're in pretty good shape going into next year," said Council President Angelo Schinosi.
At this point, total expenditures have been set at $1,719,070, with total revenues projected at $1,742,953.80.
The most noteworthy aspect of the budget is the $23,883 surplus the borough expects. However, Schinosi said the extra money will be used to pay for expected costs connected to arbitration proceedings with borough police.
"Most of that excess will be eaten up by that," he admitted.
No tax increases are built into the new budget, though the new millage rate will be 6.25 mills after Allegheny County-wide reassessments. The revaluation will make the figure drop from its current 16.25 mills, though this doesn't equate to a lowering of taxes.
Council Vice President Jim Uziel said residents shouldn't see a change in their taxes because 1 mill carries a different value.
Currently, 1 mill generates a little more than $16,000 for the borough. Under the new format, 1 mill will equate to more than $66,000.
Uziel said millage is not set in stone since "certification of market value of borough property will come in the second week of January."
As for this year's borough finances, councilmen John D'Angelo and Jim Morningstar said they've begun processes to collect large sums of money due from residents. Uncollected garbage fees total about $58,000, while uncollected sewage fees stand at approximately $20,000.
"We have quite a few deadbeats out there," Schinosi said. "We can't operate without revenue."
Mayor Tom Urbanski made an informal plea to those who owe. He said everyone paying what they owe will help prevent future fee increases.
Uziel said residents were very generous with donations to help put on the "production of the recent light-up night in the borough."
The councilman said some residents wondered why the borough didn't take a more active approach toward raising funds.
"It's almost like they were offended that we didn't ask them (for donations)," he added.
In other business, council:
9 Reported on a recent meeting with South Allegheny School District Superintendent Patrick Risha to discuss possible future usage of Glassport Central Elementary School.
The school would be closed down according to the district's proposed new elementary school construction plan.
D'Angelo said, despite the majority of councilors opposing the closing of the school, he got the impression the district is committed to the plan. Because the closing of the school seems inevitable, D'Angelo and Urbanski said borough officials should consider possible future uses for the building.
State Rep. Ruffing Nets Grant for Glassport Cops
BY MATT SULLIVAN, Daily News Staff Writer December 14, 2000
The individuals whose job it is to look out for the community are receiving some help from the state. Glassport Police Department is the beneficiary of a $10,000 grant obtained through state Rep. Kenneth Ruffing, D-West Mifflin. Mayor Tom Urbanski said the borough applied for the grant last year and the check came earlier this week. "Every year, (Ruffing) gets the borough something for the fire companies or the police department," Urbanski said. As for this latest installment of state funding, Urbanski said he and Police Chief Eugene Skerkoski are considering ways to use it.
"The chief and I are looking into things we need for the police department," the mayor said.
"My suggestion was to purchase a digital camera, a new computer, a new shotgun and some general office equipment," Skerkoski said.
A big need is a new crop of portable radios.
"We're pricing some portables because we're going to be going into the new (Allegheny County) 911 system," Skerkoski said.
Because of the 911 changeover, the department needs to upgrade from its present 550 megahertz radios to units that are 880 megahertz.
In other business, council:
* Announced receipt of a check from the auditor general totaling $41,702 to help defray the costs relative to police and non-uniformed pensions.
* OK'd a $350,000 tax anticipation loan from Three Rivers Bank.
Interest rate for the loan is 4.6 percent with no origination fee.
* Announced parking along Monongahela Avenue from Fifth to Eighth streets will be free for two weeks, starting Monday.
Glassport Family Homeless From Fire
BY MATT SULLIVAN, Daily News Staff Writer January 02, 2001
John Farally, 13, huddles with Samanta Colon, 6, in a neighbor's kitchen after their home was destroyed by flames Saturday. A Glassport family of six is facing the new millennium without a home. The rear residence at 414 Iowa Ave. was destroyed by flames shortly after noon Saturday when a candle-maker, a Christmas gift, caught fire while on the kitchen stove, said displaced resident Dennis Moon. Flames spread quickly up the walls. Moon lived in the house with Diane Farally and four children. One of the children, 13-year-old John Farally, first noticed the fire and alerted the rest of the family. Fortunately, they, along with two visiting cousins, a dog and a ferret, were able to escape unharmed. Unfortunately, a small family of cats did not make it out in time.
Nearby neighbor Joe Capozoli provided temporary shelter for the fire victims in his Euclid Avenue home.
"The kids ran down here to call the fire department," said Capozoli's daughter Linda Semian. "They had no shoes or socks. The neighbors brought them."
"People we don't even know were bringing clothes," Andy Semian added.
By 3 p.m., firefighters had concluded the majority of the fiery battle. The scene appeared surrealistic as icicles grew all over the charred, smoking building.
Firefighters had to deal with the cold as much as the fire, as "air packs froze up right away," Citizens Hose Co. No. 1 Chief Dan Kolick said.
A glaze of ice coated face shields everywhere, and one firefighter said he went through three different pairs of gloves because they kept getting soaked and frozen.
"The whole house is gone," a coatless and gloveless Moon said as he stared at the terrible sight. His face was blackened by the smoke, his face was singed by flames.
"Everything is gone," he said, while maintaining a tight grip on one particular item of value firefighters managed to recover: an urn containing an uncle's ashes.
Chief Kolick concurred with Moon's assessment that the house was unsalvageable.
"Tear it down and start over again ... that would be the best thing to do," Kolick said.
Quick response by a conglomerate of fire companies from Glassport, Dravosburg, Liberty, Jefferson Hills and Clairton prevented any substantial damage to surrounding homes. Fire companies from Port Vue and West Mifflin were on standby, as well, Kolick added.
Also on the scene were the Salvation Army, Southwestern Pennsylvania American Red Cross and Port Authority Transit. One PAT driver parked his bus on Iowa Avenue as a shelter for cold and weary firefighters.
"The Port Authority guys have been fantastic," a Clairton EMS paramedic said. "They'll rotate guys through (while they fight the fire). It's a great service."
A home along Iowa Avenue also provided shelter, as well.
The paramedic added, despite the quick response from firefighters, "The house was fully engulfed" when they arrived.
"The firefighters did an amazing job," the paramedic continued. "They jumped on this fire from three different angles."
After young John got his attention, Moon said, he ran down into the kitchen only to see the flames growing larger by the second on the kitchen walls. By then, it was already too late for him to stop it, he added.
"I never knew fire could break glass," John said.
The family members now are staying at homes of different relatives in the area.
Those interested in helping the family may contact the Salvation Army for more information at 412-673-6627.
Capt. Robert Bender said 100 percent of the donations will go to helping the victims.
"We'll be there for them," he added.
Suspicious Glassport Fire Put Out Easily
BY MATT SULLIVAN, Daily News Staff Writer January 10, 2001
A suspicious fire in the basement of a facility across from the Glassport borough building was not as serious as it might have appeared. In fact, building tenant Pizza Outlet was up and running again shortly after firefighters wrapped up their efforts at the Monongahela Avenue location yesterday. "It wasn't a big fire, but we had all the troops out," Citizens Hose Co. No. 1 Fire Chief Dan Kolick said.
"The troops" included both Glassport fire companies (CHC No. 1 and Reliance Hose Co. No. 2), Liberty and Clairton fire departments, West Mifflin No. 3, White Oak No. 1 and Jefferson 885's rapid intervention team.
A call came in at 5:38 p.m. for a structure fire. A Pizza Outlet employee smelled smoke and went into the back of the shop to investigate, Kolick said.
Then, the employee heard the smoke alarm activate.
When firefighters arrived, they observed "a couple small fires ... of suspicious origin" in the basement, Kolick said, which took less than 10 minutes to extinguish.
"The crew extinguished the fire right then and there," Kolick said. "We didn't have to shut the power off in the basement."
The building also has five apartments located above the pizza shop, three of which are occupied, Kolick pointed out. Everyone was evacuated by the time fire personnel arrived.
"No flames got up into the upper floors," Kolick said.
Smoke, flame and water damage was minimal.
Allegheny County Fire Marshal's office is investigating the fire. Those officials could not be reached by presstime.
Glassport Council Buys Town Elementary School for $1 From S. Allegheny
BY MATT SULLIVAN, Daily News Staff Writer January 10, 2001
The margin was slim, but Glassport Council approved taking over control of the Glassport Central Elementary School building when South Allegheny School District eventually has its new elementary school up and running. Council Vice President Jim Uziel made the motion at last night's meeting to draft a letter telling SA officials it would agree to acquire the building for $1, provided the district repaired the existing roof. The motion passed 4-3. Voting in favor of taking the building were Uziel, Bob Stefanic, Terry DiMarco and Angelo Schinosi. Against the move were John D'Angelo, Jim Morningstar and Ed Mihoces.
Assuming the new elementary school pegged for a Washington Boulevard location is built, both Glassport Central and Port Vue elementary schools will be closed down.
Uziel, who has talked about the need for one building to house many different borough offices and organizations for some time, said it was an ideal opportunity to use a building in existence to fill such a need.
Each councilman was furnished with a feasibility study compiled by Randy Skrinjorich, SA supervisor of accounting. The study outlined the possible usage of the school building as a "community complex."
The report defined potential utility costs to the borough if it indeed used the school to house the following: administrative borough offices; council's executive chambers; mayor's office; executive conference room; police department; community library; youth center; and senior center.
A concern about consolidation is overall utility cost to the borough, Uziel said. He referred to Skrinjorich's feasibility study, which states SA's current annual utility costs (electricity, sewage, gas and water) to operate Glassport Central equal $60,716.
The study then compared that figure to what it is costing annually to maintain borough offices, the police station, public works garage and library, combined with youth center and senior center utility costs. Overall, the report states, total combined utility cost would be $22,795 higher.
"The net difference could be absorbed by other organizations renting space in the complex," the study adds, "plus gymnasium, auditorium and dining area rentals."
The report also suggests "combining all of the existing facilities ... would allow for the application of county, state and federal grant money (which) could be used for site improvements and perhaps operations."
The report did not offer a figure, however, for cost of various "site improvements" and renovations that would have to take place, D'Angelo pointed out.
Schinosi said the borough could use the money generated through the sale of the youth and senior centers to help fund renovations.
D'Angelo also said he thought council was moving prematurely by voting to take the school. Both he and Mayor Tom Urbanski said they felt council should have a public hearing to gauge residents' thoughts on the subject of taking the school and converting it into a community complex before making a decision.
But Stefanic said such a hearing, in reality, would not be about what to do with the school building at all. Instead, it inevitably would turn into a meeting about the very idea of SA building a new school and closing the existing schools in Glassport and Port Vue, he said.
After the motion passed, Morningstar made the motion that the borough hire an independent solicitor to handle the legal work involved in the transfer of the building from SA to Glassport, since Charles LoPresti is solicitor for both sides. Council voted against doing so 5-2.
Michael Moser, LoPresti's associate who attended last night's meeting, told Morningstar he took no offense to his motion. In fact, Moser said, the same thing crossed his mind as well.
A motion for council to plan a public walk-through, followed by a public meeting, some time in the near future carried 6-1, but no specific date was set.
Glassport Sewer Work Nearing Project's End
BY MATT SULLIVAN, Daily News Staff Writer January 11, 2001
The long winding journey that has been the Washington Boulevard sanitary sewer extension project is just about over. Both Councilman John D'Angelo and Borough Engineer Scott Hilty, of EADS Group, said the time when residents will be able to tap in is very near. Nicassio Corp., the project's contractor, has been told it needs "to complete this work ASAP," Hilty added.
Hilty said Nicassio has addressed some of the items on a punch list compiled by the borough and the engineer, along with disgruntled residents. The list must be dealt with sufficiently before the borough will consider the project completed. The borough already is withholding payments from the contractor until the job is officially done.
"We have 60,000 of his dollars right now," Hilty told residents.
D'Angelo said residents "will be given plenty of notice" as to when they can tap in. He said thorough details will arrive in the mail when the job ultimately is finished. Also, residents will have 180 days to tap in once the system is ready.
But D'Angelo, himself, is not waiting that long.
"As soon as they let me, I'm tapping in," he said.
Now that the project nearly is behind them, Mayor Tom Urbanski took a moment to reflect on the rocky road down which Glassport has driven.
Both he and Hilty - who have been at odds at times as a result of the frustration the lingering sewer work has caused - agreed communication could have been better throughout the life of the project. Hilty suggested he meet with council more to keep it better informed, and Urbanski relished the notion.
Urbanski also requested a thorough breakdown of the total cost connected to the project, covering items such as engineer and contractor fees, loans, grants and any extras added in by Nicassio along the way. Hilty said he would provide what he could.
In other business, council:
* Reported it has learned the borough needs to come up with $18,000 to put into its police, uniform and non-uniform pension funds.
HDH Group Inc., the administrator for the borough's non-uniform and uniform pension plan, sent a letter to the borough last week informing it of the news.
The borough has used state aid in the past to put into the pension funds, Borough Secretary Nancy Piazza-Whabby said.
Schinosi added if the borough had known sooner it needed to contribute its own money, it could have budgeted for it. Instead, the recent letter "blind-sided" council, Schinosi said.
* Received a $22,000 Community Development Block Grant from the state Department of Economic Development for construction of a pavilion at Harrison Street's Riverfront Park.
* Announced it needed "some good people to serve on the Steel Valley Authority."
The borough needs three representatives, Schinosi said.
Interested parties can contact the borough secretary at 412-672-7400 for more information.
* Donated $500 to the auxiliary police.
'Character' Is the Word at Glassport Elementary
BY MATT SULLIVAN, Daily News Staff Writer January 27, 2001
Ask anyone at Glassport Central Elementary School, and they'll brag about how wonderful the children who go to school there are. And to try and ensure they stay that way, the South Allegheny School District has decided to implement a character education program at the school. "We're piloting it here in Glassport to see if it will be something we will want to do in all our (school) buildings (in the district)," Glassport principal James Jackson said. Glassporter Will Donofrio, president of the marketing firm Your Environment Inc., created the program he hopes will serve as a valuable supplement to the existing educational system.
At a kick-off event yesterday afternoon in South Allegheny High School's auditorium, footage from a television news story about the success of the program in an Ohio school was shown.
In the clip, the school's principal testified to the effectiveness of the program and why he felt it was necessary in the first place.
"The kindness that students are supposed to have," he said, "many times they don't."
"The intent of the program is to restore a lot of the old values that (society) used to have," Jackson said.
Yesterday marked the end of the first official school week the character education program was in place in Glassport Central. Judging by the gaggle of youngsters whom Jackson beckoned onto the stage to speak, it seems to be a success so far.
The mixed audience of grown-ups and kids listened to fourth- through sixth-graders talk about generosity, which was the inaugural "word of the week."
"You don't have to give money to be generous," said fourth-grader Amanda Forkey.
Expecting something in return for generosity, she added, "is selfish and greedy."
There are different ways to be generous, other than giving money, fourth-grader Chantel Wank said.
"Listening to people, helping them with homework ... even lending someone a pencil ..."
A group of sixth-graders also put on a short skit to illustrate the positive effect being generous in a social situation can have on the benefactor of the act of kindness. The quick performance portrayed "a group of cool girls that bought some things and are checking them out" as another group wanted to see them as well.
Fifth-grader Cara Giannandrea offered her spin on the idea of generosity, saying, "I live in a family of seven, and if we're not generous, a fight will break out.
"We should be generous to everyone," she added, "rich or poor, good or bad, dirty or clean ... no matter who they are."
Fellow fifth-grader Michael Bell told the audience, "I can be more generous by sharing food with the less fortunate and spending time with people I know and elders."
The heart of the program, the word of the week, is focused on by students for 10 to 15 minutes a day in their homerooms. Also, signs containing the word are posted throughout the school building.
Next week, art teacher Kate Kosewicz will go to work taking down all the "generous" signs and replacing them with "cooperative" signs.
"The word is all over our school," said Glassport Secretary Kerry Blythe.
Other words administrators hope to burn into the minds of students include tolerance, loyalty, perseverance and sportsmanship, just to name a few.
Since one of the words in the upcoming weeks will be "patriotism," the high school flute and clarinet choir, under the direction of Karen Kadar, was on hand to perform patriotic songs for the crowd.
Program Coordinator Ruth Pastor managed to lure a collection of influential adults to the assembly to lend support to administrators and students embarking on their new educational path.
Keeping in the "generosity" theme, state Attorney General Mike Fisher thanked the crowd for their "generous applause."
Fisher commended the district for allowing the program to be integrated into Glassport's operations.
What's important for you to learn," Fisher told students, "is character counts."
Not only does strength of character "hold you up, but other people look to it and admire it," he said.
Appearing on behalf of U.S. Rep. Mike Doyle, D-Swissvale, Eric Schultz also stressed the importance of building character.
Implementing the "worthwhile program makes school a more conducive area for learning and succeeding," both in school and in one's personal life, he added.
State Sen. Sean Logan, D-Monroeville, showed students he could be generous by keeping his address brief, considering it was a late Friday afternoon.
Then, Logan and Allegheny County Clerk of Courts George Matta II promised if students allowed the program to succeed in Glassport, they would return and throw a giant pizza party, "just for being nice to each other."
Not wanting to be outdone, County Council President John DeFazio, who was representing County Chief Executive Jim Roddey, told the youngsters in attendance he, too, would return if the program succeeded. However, he added, he would give each student a $100 bill!
"I'd like to be generous myself," he quipped.
On a more serious note, DeFazio recalled his own school experiences and the tendency to forget definitions of words.
"With this program," he said, "you're never going to forget these words."
Capt. Bob Brasso of Allegheny County Sheriff's office explained how, in his line of work, he deals with "good" and "bad" every day.
"These words are to make you good," he said.
Pastor said simply, "This is a good program. It's needed."
"All of you are good people," Fisher said, "and we want to see you stay that way."
Glassport Adjusts New Budget
BY MATT SULLIVAN, Daily News Staff Writer January 30, 2001
Glassport Council has tinkered with both its millage rate and operating budget. Last night's special meeting was supposed to be about setting the adjusted millage rate for 2001. The borough received a certified value for borough property from Allegheny County Office of Property Assessment just 2*** weeks ago. However, council threw a curve when it announced some changes to the budget, as well.
First, the new millage was chopped down to 4.35 mills from the 6.25 mills council figured on last month. The reason for the reduction was the $105,983,987 certified value Glassport received. The 6.25-mill total was based on a preliminary figure of $119 million.
Now, 1 mill should generate more than $94,000 in revenues for Glassport, as opposed to the $16,000 generated by 1 mill a year ago, said tax collector Carol Pasinski.
"Certainly, we don't want to overtax the citizens," Council President Angelo Schinosi said. "We pay enough in taxes."
Council also announced some unexpected expenditures that forced the alteration of the budget.
Schinosi said the borough learned of an additional $20,000 requested for Mon Valley 911 Center "closing off their business down there." Then council learned it had to contribute another $19,000 to the borough's uniform pension plan.
As a result, total expenditures for the 2001 spending plan are $1,770,597, up from last month's projected total of $1,719,070.
The expenditure increase exceeds the $39,000 that fell into the borough's lap. However, Schinosi said that extra amount was built in "in case we take a hit on the reductions" in assessed property value after the appeals process is over.
"That's going to go down for sure," Councilman Jim Uziel said of the property value certified by the county. "The (expected) reduction is built into the millage rate."
A couple reasons council believes reductions are imminent lie in mistakes it feels were made by assessors. Councilman Jim Morningstar said when he visited the county's Web site at www.county.allegheny.pa.us, the image and information connected with a particular piece of property did not match.
Specifically, a 10,800 square-foot parcel with a house on it that is supposed to be in the process of being rehabilitated was categorized "undeveloped land" and valued at just $1,200.
Also, a less-than-prime pie-shaped piece of property along Washington Boulevard - which the borough was in the process of selling to a private owner for a paltry $1,000 - was listed at $38,000.
"That's what they claim it's worth," Morningstar said. "But it's not worth that."
"We're not going to find anybody to pay $38,000 for it," Schinosi added.
In addition to the expenditures increasing, the revenue column also saw an increase to $1,793,634 from $1,742,953.
When asked what inflated the figure, Uziel admitted council probably used incorrect numbers for last month's budget ordeal.
"The first time, we pretty much guessed," he said.
Like so many towns unsure about the outcome of assessment appeals, Schinosi said council was flying through the new millage process "by the seat of our pants."
In other business, council:
* OK'd paying $7,200 for National Pollution Discharge Elimination System whole effluent toxicity testing at the sewage plant.
Testing is mandatory every five years to renew the NPDES permit.
* Learned from Councilman Bob Stefanic the borough probably will have to do some more street renaming for 911 mapping purposes.
Glassport Seeks Candidate for Planning Board
BY THE DAILY NEWS February 08, 2001
Glassport Council is seeking volunteers to serve on the borough planning commission because of the resignation of Reed Barnes. Candidates must be registered voters and borough residents with a good civic interest and a good moral character, Borough Secretary Nancy Piazza-Whaby noted. Volunteers also are sought on the Steel Valley Authority Board of Directors. Terms to be filled are as follows - a one-, two-, and three-year term.
Letters of interest can be mailed to the secretary at 440 Monongahela Ave.
In other borough news, council will hold the following meetings:
An executive session is planned Monday at 7 p.m. in council chambers.
The regular meeting will be Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. A public input hearing will proceed the meeting a half hour earlier so residents can comment on the demolition of the structure at 711 Indiana Ave.
Feb. 19, borough offices and street department will be closed in observance of Presidents Day.
Recycling pick-up will be done on the week of Feb. 19 on residents regular garbage collection day. Residents are reminded to have their recyclable items placed at their curb the night before pick-up.
SA School Plan Raises Residents Ire (Again)
BY MATT SULLIVAN, Daily News Staff Writer February 13, 2001
Though officially an Act 34-mandated public hearing, in many ways the latest chapter in the battle between South Allegheny School District and residents opposed to the proposed new elementary school resembled other meetings on the matter. A slight variance in what took place at last night's forum in relation to past school board and special public meetings was its venue. The middle/high school auditorium hosted the largest gathering of residents to date to address the $11.9 million elementary school project.
A total of 24 residents from Port Vue, Glassport, Liberty and Lincoln stepped to the microphone to voice their opinions. All but two opposed the district's plan to build a new school on a hilly piece of property along Washington Boulevard that straddles the Port Vue/Glassport border.
The new school would force closure of Port Vue and Glassport Central elementary schools.
Prominent voices on the side of the Save Our Schools faction included Port Vue Mayor Orlando DiMarco, Lincoln Council President Ron Rosche and former school directors Marilyn Ashoff and Loria Galiyas.
Ashoff and Galiyas were board members who played a part in the district's decision to renovate Liberty's Manor Elementary less than a decade ago. Throughout the process, Manor has been the measuring stick against which Glassport Central and Port Vue's physical condition and learning environment have been measured.
"Manor was deplorable," Galiyas said afterwards. "Look what they did there."
Ashoff said whenever she was involved in similar hearings, she and her peers faced the crowd. Last night, however, board members sat in the audience, while individuals on the stage included Solicitor Tom Barry, Tim Sullivan and Dick Jaynes from the architectural firm N. John Cunzolo Associates Inc., financial advisor R. Scott Bossung, SA Director of Business Affairs Sharon Miller and Superintendent Patrick Risha.
There was less interaction between district officials and residents than in past meetings.
"This is a hearing," Barry said at the outset. "This is not a time to cheer or jeer."
One by one, those who took the stage spoke of the different facets of the project.
Risha gave an overview of six options from a feasibility study commissioned last year to analyze current conditions within the schools and their ability to support educational programs. The options dealt with various combinations of new construction, renovations and/or additions to existing schools, building closings and reconfigurations of current building set-ups.
The building program committee - which included district administrators, educators and staff, as well as residents - ultimately opted for the plan that called for building a new school, closing Glassport Central and Port Vue schools and converting Manor to an early childhood education facility housing kindergarten through grade 2.
In October, PLANCON A and B, as submitted by the district, were approved by the state Department of Education. PLANCON is a step-by-step process by which school districts present a plan to the state for school construction, renovations and/or additions.
"For everyone involved in the process, it truly was a difficult decision," Risha said. "We feel we are giving you the best we can for the money that is available."
Some residents disagree. Opposition has focused on the desire to maintain "neighborhood schools." Closing the existing schools and building a larger facility, some maintain, will adversely affect the education and safety of the children.
In addition, some said closing the buildings equates to ripping out the "heart" of the communities where they've long been located and will bring down property values in the boroughs.
After Risha, Jaynes and Sullivan offered specifics behind the maximum building construction cost ($9,427,060) and maximum project cost ($11,947,374), set by the school board last month, they spoke briefly about site plans.
Later, Glassporter Nicki Maizer called Glassport Central, where her child goes to school, "a dump." She said those calling for the district to renovate the school "want to put a Band-Aid on cancer."
Bossung also discussed the financial gymnastics needed to make the project financially possible. As he did at a town meeting in Port Vue Elementary's auditorium last year, Bossung insisted there will be no millage impact to residents as a result of the way SA has set up the financing.
Miller said the district estimated indirect savings from the new building at $111,000. The figure takes into consideration additional transportation costs combined with the alleged savings in the areas of personnel, utilities and maintenance costs.
Port Vue resident Robert Erkel later said, "It sounds like fuzzy math to me."
Before the hearing ended, Barry reminded residents they can submit written comments to the district until noon on March 14. Remarks should be delivered to the office of the superintendent during normal business hours or mailed to: Office of the Superintendent, 2743 Washington Blvd., McKeesport, 15133.
Glassport Releases Demolition List
BY MATT SULLIVAN, Daily News Staff Writer February 15, 2001
Glassport Councilman Terry DiMarco might have to change his name to Terry DeMolition. DiMarco, who also serves as the borough's building inspector, has been on a mission to rid Glassport of as many architectural eyesores as he can. Last year, with the help of Twin Rivers Council of Governments and its executive director Rosemary Bradley, he managed to have three structures leveled. At Tuesday's council meeting, DiMarco gave a list of five more buildings he has his sights on for this year: * 711 Indiana Ave.
* 728 Ohio Ave. ("The old gas company," as DiMarco described it)
* 704 Maryland Ave.
* 407 Arch St.
* 518 Eighth St.
DiMarco submitted the wish list to Twin Rivers COG in hopes of getting funding to raze the structures through the Safe Neighborhood Demolition Program.
"All the paperwork is done on them," he said.
The worst-case scenario will have only the Indiana Avenue property cleared, DiMarco said.
"That is absolutely coming down," he said. "It's been a thorn in everybody's side for three years."
Proof of how prickly the blighted lot is came in the number of residents who showed up at a public hearing prior to the council meeting.
One woman who attended to represent an individual who claimed to own the property told council the lot's in the process of being sold. She argued against it's demolition.
She was heavily outnumbered, though.
"She got beat up," DiMarco said figuratively. "It was pretty crazy."
DiMarco insisted the structure was going to be demolished, especially since the man who was attempting to sell the lot is not its official owner.
As for the rest of the list, Bradley could not promise him, of course, that all will knocked down, DiMarco said. She asked him to prioritize the list.
Indiana and Ohio avenue properties were targeted as the top priorities.
"Hopefully, they're going to come down this year, later in the fall," he said.
The Maryland Avenue site, DiMarco said, has a potential buyer who plans to tear the building down if the sale goes through. The condition of the building, however, is such that it might fall on its own, he added.
DiMarco also pointed out a home in the rear of Iowa Avenue that was wrecked by fire Dec. 30 has been razed. Unlike in the past, when a charred house might have been left to rot, DiMarco said new legislation prohibits such action (or lack thereof).
Keeping with the fire topic, DiMarco announced purchase of two devices for police officers to wear when they arrive at the scene of a blaze.
"Cops are usually the first ones on the scene," DiMarco said.
The instruments weigh in at 7 ounces, he explained, and they clip onto one's shirt. If the person wearing the device is motionless for 15 seconds, it will emit a sound enabling others to locate the officer.
The idea for the precautionary equipment came after he, Mayor Tom Urbanski and Police Chief Eugene Skerkoski met with representatives of Citizens Hose Co. No. 1 and Reliance Hose Co. No. 2.
"They may never have to use it," DiMarco said. "But it might save a life."
Cost for the instruments are $161 each and came out of the police budget, he added.
Parents Challenge SA Actions
BY MATT SULLIVAN, Daily News Staff Writer February 16, 2001
It's the philosophical question that's haunting South Allegheny School District: Do elected officials use their own judgment in casting a vote on an issue, or should they simply reflect the will of those who elected them? Throughout last night's monthly board of directors meeting, both sides of the issue were highlighted. Early on, Port Vue resident Terri Dozzi related a recent experience while in Port Vue Elementary school, which, along with Glassport Central Elementary School, would be closed if the district's proposed new $11.9 million elementary school becomes a reality.
Dozzi said she thought it was interesting to see on the wall of the elementary school a listing of the "chain of command" of the educational system. At the top, she said, were the electors, and below them was the school board. Dozzi and others said directors are not obeying the people with their support of the new school plan.
In fact, nearly all of the 24 residents who spoke at Monday night's ACT 34-mandated public hearing on the matter were against building the new school for one reason or another.
Board Member Dino DiFelice even went as far to make a motion not to consolidate the elementary schools based on what took place at the public hearing. That motion was defeated 7-2, with DiFelice and Director Dianne Rosche voting in support of the action.
Director Tom Dudek said he did not feel, however, the ratio of dissenters to those who favored the district's plan was indicative of the district as a whole. He and fellow board members Vicki Morningstar, Walter Hibner and John Matyasovsky said they have heard nothing but positive response to the new school idea from residents.
Later in the meeting, Matyasovsky, however, noted, "We were elected to do what we feel is best."
Also last night, the board approved a salary adjustment in the amount of $7,000, retroactive from July, for Superintendent Patrick Risha. The motion passed 6-3, with Morningstar, DiFelice and Rosche voting no.
"It's too high," Morningstar said simply, especially since Risha has been on the job "only after a year and a half."
Built into Risha's contract is a 4-percent annual salary increase, coupled with a yearly cost of living increase.
But his salary is relatively small compared to other superintendents in Allegheny County school districts, Rosche said. Risha's $85,000 starting salary is at the very bottom of a salary list she produced at the meeting.
The action, Rosche said, also was not unprecedented. The board made a similar move to give Middle School Principal Janet Sardon an adjustment while still at the beginning of her tenure, Rosche added.
Teachers Show Math Can Be Fun
BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer February 20, 2001.
Kids love recess.
Kids love candy.
Kids love cartoons.
Kids love math.
Wait a second ... math? Since when do kids love math?
Maybe love is a strong word, but Glassport Central Elementary School Title I math teacher Sally Podvasnik said she hopes some of her students at least hate math a little less these days.
Earlier this month, Podvasnik & Co. - fellow Glassport educators Michelle Finneran, Rose Eckman, Aimee Jackson and Donnajo Couch, along with South Allegheny Title I Coordinator Lori Kline - put aside a couple hours to gather with students and parents for a non-traditional event they called an "I Love Math" party in the school cafeteria.
The goal of the Glassport teaching crew was to have an educational night where students learned about estimation, measurement, computation, problem-solving, geometry and mathematical communication skills in an informal and relaxed atmosphere.
The room was decorated with banners created by art teacher Kate Kozewicz and heart-shaped helium balloons provided by National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, to which Podvasnik belongs.
Attendees of the educational party were Title I students in grades one through three and their
parents. Podvasnik describes the students as being "at risk in mathematics. They're not having success in the classroom."
That's where the Title I program and its teachers and aides come in. Podvasnik says the lessons are "more intense" and taught at a slower pace, allowing children to be exposed to different ways to tackle problems.
"We keep it as difficult as the other classrooms," she says. "But we give them alternative strategies."
To further encourage involvement of parents in their children's education, each student had to be accompanied by a parent for the event. Nearly all of the 25 eligible students signed up to attend.
The brunt of the cost of the math party was covered by a $500 Parent Involvement Grant.
"It's from the national government," Podvasnik explains. "But its funneled through the state for disbursement. We got the maximum amount."
However, Podvasnik adds, "I even used more (money)."
During the first 30 minutes, for example, food was served to all attendees. According to Podvasnik, "The food got out of hand."
Podvasnik says Kline was in charge of making arrangements for the food, and in preparation for the night, she figured, "We have to feed them well so they come back again."
Although the cost of the food put a dent in the funds for the evening, Podvasnik says, "I spent most of the money on materials that the children get to take home and keep."
Podvasnik admits the lure of a free "bag of stuff' was the "kicker" that piqued the interests of the students.
Whatever the reasons for the kids wanting to go to the party, Podvasnik says she was tickled by the way students anticipated the night as the party neared.
First-grader Steven Polk, in particular, illustrated the type of enthusiasm that every teacher dreams of.
Podvasnik says Steven did not come to school the day of the party because he was sick. However, his mother called to say Steven was crying because he thought his absence might mean he wouldn't be allowed to attend.
"He missed school, but he was determined to come," Podvasnik says.
Among other things, the materials each parent/child tandem received included a calculator.
Podvasnik says a calculator can be a valuable learning tool - as long as it's used as an aid and not a replacement for a student's own thought processes.
The Glassport teaching contingent was sure to show parents the difference between use and abuse of the powerful device.
For example, they teach children how to use the "constant" key, Podvasnik says, because "extensive adding gets cumbersome" for many youngsters.
"By using the constant key on a calculator, a first-grader can tell you how many quarters are in $4," she remarks. "That's something a first-grader normally can't do."
In that sense, she says, a calculator "extends their math power."
Also packed in each student's "bag of stuff' were triangular flash cards, rulers, clocks with movable parts and special 12sided dice.
"You have to use these with another person," Podvasnik says of the materials ... and what better other person than a parent?
The math party turned also was a hit with the parents, who are better prepared to help their kids in school.
"It'll give them more ideas," says Lisa Waggett, who attended with her third-grade daughter, Katie.
"It's a great idea," adds Ken Brownfield, father of Kelly, a third-grader.
SA Philanthropists Come To Cancer Research Aid
BY MATT SULLIVAN, Daily News Staff Writer March 02, 2001
Leukemia is a predator that doesn't care whom it attacks. However, a run-in with the disease can prove to be a valuable life-changing experience for survivors and their families and friends. Such has been the case with Manor Elementary School kin-dergartner Julia Harris and her mom Laura Harris. Julia currently is traveling down remission road after her own tussle with leuke-mia. Throughout their ordeal, Laura has seen the good pour out of sympathetic outsiders. What she appreciates most is the sup-port she and her daughter have received from residents, students, teachers and staff within South Allegheny School Dis-trict.
"I'm overwhelmed with the way (SA) has responded," Laura says. "They have a big heart, and they really support the community."
Because of the philanthropy SA has proven it can exude, Laura came up with the idea for a "Bandanna Day" in the district as a way to raise funds for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
"This came about be-cause people had been so gener-ous to us," Laura says, "and I wanted to do something to help somebody else.
"You can't imagine how scary it is," she adds. "It takes everything you have physically, mentally and fi-nancially to do what you've got to do (while facing leuke-mia)."
As Julia endured treatments for her illness, she lost her hair, her mother says, and a bandanna was part of her ward-robe for a while. Naturally, she stood out from the crowd since no one else was making the same fashion statement, particularly because of dress code restric-tions.
Hence, the idea for Bandanna Day was born.
Yesterday, SA students were given the green light to wear blue and gold bandannas, for which they paid $2 each.
"It's just an extremely creative idea," says Lauren Henzler, LLS cam-paign coordinator for school and youth programs. "That's why the kids like to wear them (in school) ... because they're not al-lowed."
As Henzler explains, her job is to recruit schools to raise money for LLS. However, in this case, Laura and SA ran Bandanna Day on their own and recruited LLS, which made the event doubly good in the eyes of LLS because it incurred no costs that cut into the amount raised.
Henzler showed up yesterday at Manor to pick up the bandanna sale proceeds. Laura estimates everyone's efforts re-sulted in a profit of more than a $1,500.
"That's fantastic," Henzler says. "This (money) goes directly toward patient aid and re-search."
The reason the total Laura offers is an approximation is because she isn't quite sure how many bandannas were made in the first place, let alone sold.
"I quit counting after 750," she says.
Laura says she is thankful for the generosity displayed by Hancock Fabrics in Bill Greene Shopping Center and Jo-Ann Fabrics in Southland Shopping Center, both along Route 51. The businesses gave her discounts on fabric for the bandannas, which allowed the profit to be higher than it other-wise might have been.
Before the daunting task of transforming cloth into bandannas was under-taken, Laura admitted, "I got kind of panicky at first" because of all the orders that were coming in, "but I had a lot of volun-teers."
Once they got the yards and yards of fabric, Laura says Barb Jones (Julia's kinder-garten teacher for the first part of the year), Port Vue Elementary secretary Kim Carson and Port Vue sixth-grade teacher Debbie Pliska and her students all were instrumental in the initial phase of cutting it.
Pliska "actually worked it into the curriculum, which was educational as well as fun," Carson says.
By cutting the cloth into various pieces, "We did a geometry lesson on paral-lelograms and triangles and find-ing their areas," Pliska ex-plains.
Once the fabric was cut, Laura then got help with countless hours of sewing from her mother Rose Brletic and longtime friend Becky Vogt.
"We really appreciate (their) time and effort," Henzler says. "It's above and be-yond."
The finished products then went off to the different schools in the district.
"I'm not sure how many were sold, but it was a lot," says High School Secretary Linda Cava-naugh.
"The elementary schools did very well," Glassport Central Elementary School Secre-tary Kerry Blythe says. "Teachers and staff bought them, as well."
The same held true for the grown-ups at Manor.
"This is a very coop-erative staff and administration," says Tricia Stuparitz, secretary at the school.
Stuparitz, too, had her "hair squashed into a ban-danna," despite a dinner engage-ment later that night. "But any-thing for (LLS)."
Henzler is not surprised by the way SA youngsters offered their support for LLS's cause. After all, Manor and Port Vue already participate in hop-a-thons to raise funds for the organization.
Pliska adds there is a special reason why she, personally, was gung-ho about Bandanna Day.
"I wanted to help with fund-raising for (LLS) because I had leukemia," she says. "So there's a method to my madness."
With her bone marrow transplant getting further in the past each day, Pliska says she recently had her "five-year check-up, and everything's just fine," she says. "There are no signs of leukemia any-where."
And speaking of be-ing healthy, Laura is happy to say Julia, too, is "great. We're very fortunate."
After Julia was di-agnosed with the disease at the age of 4, Laura says, "she went into remission about six months (later) and she remained in re-mission."
"Her hair all came back now," too, Laura adds.
Port Vue Council Sells Land to SA for New School Site
BY MATT SULLIVAN, Daily News Staff Writer March 09, 2001
Port Vue council approved selling a 10-acre piece of land to South Allegheny School District for $10,000, as a site for a new elementary school. Members voted 6-0 for the sale. Councilman Ken Hresko was absent from last night's special meeting. The property along Washington Boulevard is part of a larger site where SA plans to build a new $11.9 million elementary school.
The majority of the property - approximately 26.5 acres - sits on Glassport's side of the border. The land is privately owned.
SA officials currently are in the process of finalizing a sale with the owner, said Sharon Miller, SA director of business affairs.
If completed, the new facility would result in the closing of Glassport Central and Port Vue elementary schools.
The controversial new school once again brought out residents who spoke out against the idea of a new school, and asked council members to vote against it.
Council once again reiterated its hands were tied in the matter, and noted SA members have been firm on the idea of building a new school, instead of renovating existing buildings.
Council President Mark Tortorice said if the district doesn't build the new school along Washington Boulevard, it simply would revert to its original plans of building adjacent to the existing middle/high school in Liberty.
Tortorice said he and other council members want Port Vue to be part of the new school.
"I would like Port Vue to be identified with a school, even if it's just 10 feet of it," Councilman Isador Steiner said.
Tortorice added: "I'm not losing (the proposed new school) to a neighboring borough. I'd rather see (Port Vue) kids at Washington Boulevard."
Councilwoman Kim DiBernardo said she was approving the property transfer because, "I don't think elementary school kids have any business being that close to high school kids."
Still, residents are holding on to the hope that a refusal to sell to SA would force the district to reconsider renovations and additions.
Tortorice said, however, "That is not in the school board's mind to do that."
Nevertheless, resident Jacob Sobczak urged council not to sell the borough land to SA to "see what they do. It's the worth the gamble."
Tortorice, however, said the borough can't make the district do anything.
"We can't gamble on the future of the kids in the borough. Once they build (a school) outside the borough, we know (another Port Vue school) is not coming back," he said.
Council Vice President Bill Betzner said he already has been told by an SA representative, "You cannot stop the school board from building."
"What choice do we have?" Steiner asked rhetorically.
Tortorice added voting against the sale merely would "stop them from putting (the new school) in Port Vue."
Resident Jim Blaha expressed his disappointment council "gave up so easily ... I think you have more clout than you think you do."
Before the vote, Solicitor George Gobel summarized the conditions of the sale.
Before construction begins, Port Vue's zoning hearing board must grant zoning variances for the project. Construction would have to begin within three years of the sale's finalization.
The district would have to provide "complete egress, ingress and access to the Port Vue Athletic Association complex," Gobel said.
Also, SA would have to cover various costs connected to the venture, including closing costs and demolition of Port Vue Elementary and subsequent removal of materials.
Eventually, "The borough will end up with the title to all the school property along Romine Avenue," Gobel said.
Gobel added the borough also would be permitted to tap into utilities installed by the district.
"There are a lot of conditions that still have to be met," Gobel said.
One other condition might be the need for Port Vue to repay a grant it received for the land for planned development of a throughway to PVAA. That road was not installed by the borough. South Allegheny might have to pay Port Vue should Port Vue have to refund that grant.
Also last night, council:
* Voted to hire the firm of Dodaro, Kennedy & Cambest as solicitor for the zoning hearing board.
* Changed the day of its monthly meetings. Effective immediately, council's regular meeting will take place on the third Wednesday, while caucus will be scheduled for the preceding Monday.
* Approved a cable service agreement with AT&T Broadband through September 2012.
Glassport Looking at Legal Solution
Sewer Work Deadline Missed Again
BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer March 14, 2001
Deadlines have been missed, residents aren't able to tap into an updated sewer system and Glassport Council is not happy.
Therefore, Solicitor Charles LoPresti has been given the go-ahead by the borough to begin the journey down the legal road to try to spark results, Councilman John D'Angelo said at last night's meeting, which highlighted the Washington Boulevard sewer rehabilitation project.
"He's planning on taking some action," D'Angelo said. "We're enforcing the contract on them now. It's a legal battle now."
The borough stands to receive a $2,000 fee for each tap-in, and according to Engineer Scott Hilty of EADS Group, 103 residences could connect to the system.
Also, as long as people aren't tapping in, Mayor Tom Urbanski said, the borough is losing the $38 quarterly fee customers would be paying. Every day that passes is just another day Glassport does not get the revenue it expected, he added.
"We're losing money every hour, every day," Urbanski said. "Something's got to happen."
Council is withholding a $53,000 payment to Nicassio Corp. because work has not been completed, D'Angelo added.
The money is due to Nicassio "only when he finishes the contract, which he hasn't done," he said.
The $1.6 million project was to be completed in October, Urbanski reminded residents. However,
council granted the contractor a 60-day extension to finish the project. That deadline was missed as well.
Then, Nicassio Corp. was sent a letter indicating the company had 10 days to complete its work. That time period ran out March 9, and as D'Angelo pointed out there are two pump stations along Naomi and Century avenues not operating.
Throughout the project, residents have been angered by the alleged lack of restoration to property damaged by digging and other side affects of the job. As a result, a punch list of items was presented to Nicassio, but the list will not be tended to until after the project is done, Hilty said.
D'Angelo said the list that used to be a top priority has taken a back seat to the job, itself, not being completed in the first place.
Borough officials said they are frustrated by Nicassio not giving the borough the OK at least to tap into the gravity portion of the system, wherein pumping is not necessary to create flow.
However, the mayor added, the engineer has advised council not to have anyone tap in until the work is done. The reason, D'Angelo explained, is to protect the borough and residents in case any system problems were to appear after it is operational.
D'Angelo said an impasse has been reached because council wants to have the contractor's OK to start tapping in, while Nicassio wants another extension - both of which are not happening.
Urbanski suggested council have a formal meeting with Nicassio to ask "just one question, that's it ... why he won't let us tap in."
Glassport Tackles Street Paving on the Town's 'Hill'
BY MATT SULLIVAN Daily News Staff Writer March 15, 2001
The streets "on the hill" in Glassport are not in pristine condition.
Unfortunately, many streets in the borough aren't, and that's why residents frequently appear at council meetings to voice concerns about need for attention for the roadways. However, most residents feel theirs should be a priority.
Sympathizing with the plight of Street and Light Committee Chairman Bob Stefanie, Council President Angelo Schinosi said, "When you're the chairman of the streets, everybody's after you."
Before council Tuesday was a list of five roadways in the borough, for which it awarded a paving bid to the Bridgeville company T.A. Robinson Asphalt Paving Inc. for the price of $28,605. The list included Edmundson Drive, a side street of Edmundson, High Street and Century and Pennsylvania avenues.
A few residents questioned council members as to why various streets in the borough were left off the list. Even Mayor Tom Urbanski wondered aloud why Juniata Drive and Summit Street, in particular, were not included.
Council members did not deny other streets also need work. Rather, they tried to explain their side of the story.
Stefanic said the borough does not have the money to pave all the streets that need it at one time, of course. What the borough is trying to do, instead, is "do little chunks at a time," he said.
"We only have so many dollars to stretch on streets," Urbanski said.
Councilman John D'Angelo said one's take on the borough's state of affairs concerning its roadways is relative. He tried to remind residents of past times when, "for about a decade there ... we didn't have the money to
patch potholes when the mills closed down."
Stefanie said the borough has tried to take care of the roads it felt were most in need. For instance, Monongahela Avenue got special treatment last year, he explained, because it is the town's main thoroughfare.
Stefanic did admit some smaller residential streets are deteriorated just as badly.
As for the roads on the hill, Councilman Jim Uziel said he and his peers have made a concerted effort "just since last year" to start tending to them.
"Basically, we totally abandoned them for years and years," he said.
Now, he said, it's a matter of council trying to appease different parts of town bit by bit.
Referring to the list of roads to be paved, Stefanic gave some hope to residents on hand, saying, "This might not be the end of it for the year."
In another street-related move, council voted to send a letter to Duquesne Light requesting the company perform overdue services on various street lights throughout the borough.
Some requests have gone unanswered for approximately four months, Stefanie said.
The borough requested a light be installed on a pole in the 800 block of Maryland Avenue, Borough Secretary Nancy PiazzaWhabby explained, but that has yet to happened.
Also, street lights located at the following locations are not functioning:
Scenic Street and Washington Boulevard
Sixth Street and Allegheny Avenue
Broadway Street and Cherry Alley
In addition, a light in the 700 block of Maryland Avenue and the lights along the ramp toward Mansfield Bridge are out, PiazzaWhabby said.
"That's quite a few," she added. "Usually, they take care of that pretty fast."
"It's a big safety factor," Stefanic contended. '
"Every month we get a bill for $7,000 for street lights," PiazzaWhabby added. "We shouldn't be paying for something that's not working. That's not right."
Page last updated March 15, 2001