Commissioners Approve Funding for Middle and Wildcat Turf Project

As many of you have already heard, last week the Commission approved a plan to allocate $650,000 towards the installation of artificial turf on Middle and Wildcat Fields. This has been a long time in coming and I appreciate those of you that have taken the time over the last 18+ months to attend public meetings, meet with your Commissioner personally, write emails and letters, sign petitions and generally offer your suppoprt for this effort. The Commission commented that the support in favor of this proposal widely surpassed those who were opposed.

The work is not done.

As you might expect, $650,000 will not cover the entire project cost. We must fill the gap, and we must continue to raise the funds that will be needed to replace the turf at the end of its useful life. I know that many of you have already expressed a willingness to contribute and that is appreciated. Over the next few months you will be hearing more about this project and how you can help. I anticipate that the fundraising will utilize a variety of methods, much like Relay for Life. The efforts to raise money will only be limited by your imagination and creativity. It will indeed be a community effort!

Sports Advisory Board

The Mt. Lebanon Commission is seeking resumes or letters of interest from residents interested in serving on the municipality’s newly formed Sports Advisory Board. There are two at-large positions available. The board will be established this spring and the board term is for three years. The purpose of the board is to advise the Commission on how to improve sports programming and facilities available in Mt. Lebanon.

Residents interested in this volunteer opportunity should submit a resume or letter of interest along with a Volunteer Interest Form (available of the Muniicpal website) explaining his/her interest and background to Marcia Taylor, Assistant Manager, 710 Washington Road, Pittsburgh, PA 15228 by February 1, 2013.

For purposes of these at-large positions, a candidate should not currently hold an office or board position with one the existing sports associations in Mt. Lebanon.

Turf Petition

For reasons that I can't quite comprehend, I have been criticized by opponents of the turf proposal for not including a link to the turf petition on this website. Similarly, they have suggested that I am not sharing the "other side" of the story, including the Fraasch proposal that includes an alternative plan to add grass fields in Robb Hollow and along Cedar Blvd. In the intest of full disclosure, Commissioner Fraasch has presented a proposal for a comprehensive Rec bond. I published her proposal here the day she emailed it to me, and I have since stated on numerous occasions that I support most of what is in her proposal. Where we disagree, is on how best to solve our field issues. I support a turf proposal and Comm. Fraasch has her plan for Robb Hollow and Cedar. Long term, I believe that a weather proof, turf facility is a better option given our current situation, including our inability to maintain our current inventory of grass fields and our growing number of youth athletic programs.

If you care to sign the turf petition, it can be found here:

http://www.change.org/petitions/mt-lebanon-commissioners-approve-a-plan-to-install-synthetic-turf-on-middle-and-wildcat-fields?share_id=JQTxKWFUxF&utm_campaign=mailto_link&utm_medium=email&utm_source=share_petition