The problem begins with all of us.

This letter to the editor comes from reader and frequent commenter, Charlotte Stephenson.

Elaine,

Since I originally composed this letter to the editor a few days ago, there have been numerous comments posted that may make this seem a bit redundant. Nonetheless, I am willing to post it anyway. Here is goes:

We really do have a problem in Mt. Lebanon and the problem begins with all of us. It’s true that we should feel angry and upset over the way our elected officials choose to spend our money without demonstrating an understanding of the impact of their decisions.

Money for turf may satisfy some families here, but the cost will impair others because the money will come from the taxpayers and the ongoing cost of this project does not appear to be fully understood. How can we be paying for turf when we don’t have enough money for our entire road repair or other infrastructure needs? The uncollected sum of $800,000.00 in parking violations among other chunks of dough that have fallen through the cracks according to Dave Egler demonstrate completely irresponsible fiscal management by someone and yet we do not really know much loss there has been or exactly how it happened. We have seen that the decision to overspend on a high school renovation project has already cost more to the taxpayers due to a recent change order and a fundraising feasibility study and at the same time we are cutting service to our students. Oh, and did or didn’t the YSA live up to their end of the bargain? The school district claims they have, but the IRS tell us differently. So if the payments weren’t made, who has been paying for all of the field maintenance? You know who has! How about the perpetual audits, we all know that a change in players from time to time is a good idea, but why hasn’t that happened?

What about the basic Sunshine Law? When I became frustrated for not getting information about the School District’s decision to conduct a feasibility study relative to the donor as we were promised by Board President Josephine Posti, I eventually filed a RTK. I am including the documentation here, but what is disturbing to me is the obviously blatant effort being made to keep our residents out of the loop as the directors and administration conduct business that we pay for.  Go ahead and read it, see what you think.

The situations discussed on this blog are concerning and frustrating, but venting our frustrations is not going to make any difference because anyone who has approached these authorities with their logical concerns has seen first hand that the sitting elected majorities (not everyone) are entrenched, inflexible and frankly incapable of changing their minds on these and other highly controversial issues. It’s politics at best, or worst around here depending on where one sits in the fiscally conservative department. So, what can we do?

If people really want to make a difference, it’s time to start recruiting potential candidates for the next election cycle for the open Commissioner and School Board seats. (Make sure they understand that a sitting official will stop at nothing to impair their campaign including authoring a slanderous letter under a fictitious name for illegal distribution throughout the community). Form an election committee and start soliciting donations NOW. Finally, keep a list of the egregious actions we continue to observe of those who will be running next time. The only way anything will change will be when new and motivated candidates who really want to serve the community and not their own agendas are sworn into office. Be sure to add some time in to motivate voters to actually go to the polls!

This community is learning the hard way why being an informed active voter makes a difference. If anyone can appeal to the Commissioners as to why spending a huge amount of money for artificial turf is irresponsible, good luck. It's about special interest politics plain and simple. The decisions the School Board made to spend too much on the high school, among other items and those that the Commissioners are making on turf will have far-reaching impact for a long time to come. These people may feel they are serving the next generation, but what they are really doing is ensuring that the next generation won't be able to afford to live here, one poor financial decision at a time. Everyone should be careful what he or she wishes for!

Finally, where have our other local representatives and senators been? Quite honestly, Elvis has left our building. How many times have any of them reached out to those of you who have made your concerns known? When I was featured as “A Newsmaker You Should Know” regarding the petition effort, I received a note and copy of the article from Matt Smith, but he never offered to talk further and see what he could do to help. Tim Murphy’s office has been an impenetrable fortress. They always ask for my donation and vote when the time comes, but there is obviously little interest in trying to deal with our local situation. Sure, local votes and local money matters, but beyond that these issues appear too hot to handle. It’s time for change all the way around, so who is willing to get started? We must remember, if we always do what we always did we'll always get what we always got!

-Charlotte Stephenson