City Council

CITY OF MCKEESPORT REGULAR MEETING WEDNESDAY 7:00 PM SEPTEMBER 4, 2024 The regular meeting of Council was called to order on the above-stated date at the above-stated time by Council President Richard J. Dellapenna after the Pledge of Allegiance and a Moment of Silence. The following members of Council were present: RC-1 Present: Vice President Nesbit Ms. Webb Mr. Barry Ms. Lape Mr. Evans Mr. Soles President Dellapenna APPROVAL OF MINUTES: President Dellapenna asked for a Motion to Approve the Minutes of the regular meeting of July 3, 2024. MOTION: MR. EVANS MOVED, SECONDED BY MS. NESBIT, “TO APPROVE THE MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF JULY 3, 2024.” RC-2 YEAS: Seven (7) NAYS: None (0) COMMUNICATIONS: Annette James reported that we received both the Fire and Police reports for the months of July and August 2024. President Dellapenna said thank you. MAYOR’S REPORT: Mayor Cherepko stated that all too often there is a perception that shootings and other incidents are taken lightly. This is a ridiculous allegation. He confirmed a shooting took place in McKeesport last week. “Every single time anything takes place in this city – whether someone is shot, whether there are shots fired, I can tell you from the chief’s and my standpoint, your heart sinks immediately. One of the best resources we have is ShotSpotter, but it’s probably the worst thing for my blood pressure. Every time there is an alert, my heart sinks. We are continuing to work not only from a policing standpoint, but from the community perspective as well. Whether its Keenon and the many hats he wears or what Keith (Murphy) as at the Healthy Village, and other entities as well, we will continue to do what we can on our end to try to curb this addiction to crime and violence. Anyone who thinks we can do it ourselves is absolutely wrong. We need the community. We need all hands on deck. We need to try to get into these homes. It does start all at home. We will continue to have afterschool programming. Our Lt. Governor Austin Davis was here a few weeks ago talking about how, for the first time in I don’t know how many years, they are putting funding into out-of-school-time activities. This is a big need in our community just as much, if not more, than most ... in order to continue to provide opportunities to build relationships, to build rapports, to help be guided to make the right decision, to have someone to lean on when it comes time to make a decision. We will continue to do things like this, but the reality of the world is you have parents who not only are they not trying to prevent their kids from getting into this ... you have parents who condone it and support their kids being into drugs. I’m not making excuses. We have a lot to do. We need the community involved as well. You’d be surprised by the amount of people who know what their kids are doing and rely on their kids to bring money home, knowing they are putting their lives at risk. I don’t want to harp on this issue. I just don’t want you to think you have an administration or a City Council who don’t care when this happens. I’m not going to lecture about why we do what we do, or why you are here in the audience. It’s because you care ... This is part of our lives. I know what I signed up for, and I’m not asking anyone to feel sorry for us. I’m privileged, as Mayor, to have an administration and Council that truly love this city, believes in this city, and has the best interest of the city at heart. Some might say, ‘Well, they should.’ What they should do and what people do in this world are two different things. There are many communities and many people in politics who don’t have that. It allows us to respectfully disagree on things. Just because we have a different opinion on something, I know that at the end of the day, we have the same goal. We want what’s best, and we can respect that we want to take different paths. When I speak, I’m speaking for this Council and this administration. If we have a shooting, one is too many. But then suddenly, people want to identify us with that being who we are as a community, and that couldn’t be further from the truth. There’s so much pride in this community ... the glass is half full to me all the time. The resilience that McKeesporters have is second to none. In this last (incident), our police did an incredible job in solving that. We literally had someone shoot someone in a car and dump them out along Lysle Boulevard. Our police very quickly got on the cameras, got a description of the car, tracked it from one camera to another ... and with the LPR, got a license plate. They found a car parked, and one of our K-9s tracked to a house where we found suspects and were able to get a warrant for the house. I want to commend Chief Steele and the men and women of his department who risk their lives each and every day for us. They make McKeesport a better place to live, a better place to work ... I’m thankful for each and every one of you up here. Ms. Webb has been an incredible asset here -- in less than a year, you’ve brought (so much) to this council as well. It truly is a pleasure working with each and every one of you. CITIZENS IN THE AUDIENCE: President Dellapenna called for Citizens in the Audience and stated that all parties have three minutes to speak: 1. Deborah Herriott, 1821 Butler Street Ms. Herriott spoke about vacant homes on her street. She referenced a storm in 2017 during which her car was damaged by a tree on a vacant property. She said there are still several vacant properties in the 1800 block of Butler that need addressed at this time. Also, raccoons are a concern. 2. Keenon Mikell, 2508 Riverview Street Mr. Mikell addressed the shooting that Mayor Cherepko addressed. In his community anti-violence work, he noticed a lot of empathy and mentioned the quick response by police. He also spoke about recruiting volunteers or community service workers to help board vacant structures. NEW BUSINESS: BILL #29 – INTRODUCED BY MS. NESBIT – RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF MCKEESPORT, ALLEGHENY COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA - DESIGNATING OCTOBER 1 THROUGH OCTOBER 12, 2024 AS RADICAL DAYS IN THE CITY OF MCKEESPORT. MOTION: Mr. Soles moved, seconded by Ms. Webb “to approve Bill #29.” President Dellapenna asked for questions or comments and there were none. RC-3 - YEAS: Seven (7) NAYS: None (0) BILL #30 – INTRODUCED BY MR. EVANS – RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF MCKEESPORT, ALLEGHENY COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA EXTENDING THE FRANCHISE BETWEEN THE CITY OF MCKEESPORT AND COMCAST CABLE COMMUNICATIONS MANAGEMENT, LLC. MOTION: Ms. Nesbit moved, seconded by Mr. Evans “to approve Bill #30.” President Dellapenna asked for questions or comments and there were none. RC-4 - YEAS: Seven (7) NAYS: None (0) BILL #31 – INTRODUCED BY MS. LAPE – RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF MCKEESPORT, ALLEGHENY COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA -- APPROVING A REVERSE SUBDIVISION REQUEST FROM KIERSTIN MOORE, 721 MONTEREY STREET, TO COMBINE LOT & BLOCKS 383-A-359 & 383-A-363. THE PROPERTY EXISTS IN A R-3 ZONING DISTRICT. MOTION: Mr. Evans moved, seconded by Ms. Webb “to approve Bill #31.” President Dellapenna asked for questions or comments and there were none. RC-5 - YEAS: Seven (7) NAYS: None (0) BILL #32 – INTRODUCED BY MR. BARRY – ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF MCKEESPORT, ALLEGHENY COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA -- AMENDING AND REPLACING IN ITS ENTIRETY, ORDINANCE #2398 OF 1967 ENTITLED “DISORDERLY HOUSES.” MOTION: Mr. Soles moved, seconded by Ms. Lape “to approve Bill #32.” President Dellapenna asked for questions or comments and there were none. RC-6 - YEAS: Seven (7) NAYS: None (0) BILL #33 – INTRODUCED BY MR. SOLES – RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF MCKEESPORT, ALLEGHENY COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA -- AUTHORIZING THE PROPER CITY OFFICIALS TO ENTER INTO SUB-RECIPIENT AGREEMENTS WITH WESTERN PA CONSERVANCY, TUBE CITY RENAISSANCE, ALLEGHENY CLEANWAYS AND THE STUDENT CONSERVATION ASSOCIATION, INC. IN REFERENCE TO EPA AWARD #95337601. MOTION: Ms. Nesbit moved, seconded by Mr. Barry “to approve Bill #33.” President Dellapenna asked for questions or comments and there were none. RC-7 - YEAS: Seven (7) NAYS: None (0) BILL #34 – INTRODUCED BY MS. LAPE – RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF MCKEESPORT, ALLEGHENY COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA -- AWARDING THE BID FOR THE MCKEESPORT RISING 2022 ACT 152 DEMOLITION PROJECT TO THE BETTERS COMPANY, AND AUTHORIZING THE PROPER CITY OFFICIALS TO EXECUTE ALL DOCUMENTS NECESSARY TO ENTER INTO AN AGREEMENT WITH BETTERS COMPANY FOR AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED ONE HUNDRED NINETEEN THOUSAND FIVE HUNDRED ($119,500.00) DOLLARS. MOTION: Ms. Lape moved, seconded by Mr. Evans “to approve Bill #34.” President Dellapenna asked for questions or comments and there were none. RC-7 - YEAS: Seven (7) NAYS: None (0) BILL #35 – INTRODUCED BY MR. BARRY – ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF MCKEESPORT, ALLEGHENY COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA -- ESTABLISHING REASONABLE ATTORNEY’S COSTS OF COLLECTION FOR DELINQUENT REAL ESTATE TAX ACCOUNTS, AND ALL MUNICIPAL CLAIMS, AND IMPOSING THE COST OF SUCH COLLECTION UPON THE DELINQUENT TAXPAYER. MOTION: Ms. Webb moved, seconded by Mr. Soles “to approve Bill #35 President Dellapenna asked for questions or comments and there were none. RC-7 - YEAS: Seven (7) NAYS: None (0) BILL #36 – INTRODUCED BY MR. EVANS – RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF MCKEESPORT, ALLEGHENY COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA -- APPOINTING KRATZENBERG & ASSOCIATES, INC. d/b/a KEYSTONE COLLECTIONS GROUP AS ITS CONTRACTOR FOR THE EXCLUSIVE COLLECTION OF DELINQUENT REAL ESTATE TAXES AND DELINQUENT MUNICIPAL SERVICE FEES. MOTION: Mr. Barry moved, seconded by Ms. Lape “to approve Bill #36.” President Dellapenna asked for questions or comments and there were none. RC-7 - YEAS: Seven (7) NAYS: None (0) BILL #37 – INTRODUCED BY MS. NESBIT – RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF MCKEESPORT, ALLEGHENY COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA -- AUTHORIZING THE PROPER CITY OFFICIALS TO APPLY FOR A GAMING ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT TOURISM FUND GRANT IN THE AMOUNT OF THREE HUNDRED THOUSAND ($300,000.00) DOLLARS FOR ELEVATOR MODERNIZATION AT CITY HALL. MOTION: Mr. Barry moved, seconded by Mr. Evans “to approve Bill #37.” President Dellapenna asked for questions or comments and there were none. RC-7 - YEAS: Seven (7) NAYS: None (0) BILL #38 – INTRODUCED BY MR. EVANS – RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF MCKEESPORT, ALLEGHENY COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA -- AUTHORIZING THE PROPER CITY OFFICIALS TO REQUEST FUNDING THROUGH THE ALLEGENY COUNTY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT FOR ACT 152 FUNDS FOR THE MCKEESPORT RISING: CULTURAL AND EDUCATIONAL SECTOR ENHANCEMENT PROJECT IN THE AMOUNT OF TWO HUNDRED FIFTY THOUSAND ($250,000.00) DOLLARS. MOTION: Mr. Barry moved, seconded by Ms. Nesbit “to approve Bill #38.” President Dellapenna asked for questions or comments. Ms. Webb asked to confirm that this project references the remaining buildings across from McKeesport City Hall. RC-7 - YEAS: Seven (7)  NAYS: None (0) BILL #39 – INTRODUCED BY MS. LAPE – ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF MCKEESPORT, ALLEGHENY COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA -- AMENDING THE PERSONNEL POLICY OF THE CITY OF MCKEESPORT TO PROVIDE DISCIPLINARY PROVISIONS FOR EMPLOYEES THAT FAIL TO ADHERE TO FEDERAL PROCUREMENT GUIDELINES. MOTION: Ms. Webb moved, seconded by Mr. Barry “to approve Bill #39.” President Dellapenna asked for questions or comments and there were none. RC-7 - YEAS: Seven (7) NAYS: None (0) ADJOURNMENT: President Dellapenna closed the Council meeting for Wednesday, September 4, 2024, and thanked the audience for attending. The meeting then adjourned at 7:33 PM. Respectfully submitted, Annette James City Clerk and Clerk of Council APPROVED: Richard Dellapenna President of Council