A Community With Character[s] Part 2

On the Municipal side of Mt. Lebanon government, we have five commissioners, each representing their Ward.

Lame duck President is Kristen Linfante. Kristen has taken the commission to a whole new level. Once respectable, the commission meetings have become a three ring circus with Kristen at the helm. Threats to shut down the meeting, lies, and personal attacks toward constituents and their employers are just some of Kristen's signature moves. A self-proclaimed environmentalist, Kristen is in favor of artificial turf, killing all the deer, and igniting people. My all time favorite piece from her blog, Real Lebo, is an attack toward me. My Mother Taught Me Never To Lie  Kristen wrote, "There are two things that I just can't tolerate - mean people and liars." My commissioner was projecting all the way back in 2010. She will tell you that I ran against her and lost, but she still doesn't understand that she ran unopposed in the 2011 Primary. I ran against incumbent Joe DeIuliis and lost. Kristen's term ends in 2015. Not soon enough.

President Elect John "The Refiner" Bendel ran unopposed in the 2011 commission election, after his opponent pulled out of the race. I understand John is not real popular with his constituents in Ward 1 in the area of sidewalks, traffic calming, and artificial turf. John is the commission liaison to the Sports Advisory Board and went to the SAB in October and asked them how they wanted to spend the pot of gold, otherwise known as the unassigned funds. Bend It With Bendel vetted FieldTurf partner, Dr. Andrew McNitt before the June 12 turf project presentation held at Mellon Middle School. John is seeking reelection and may not be the only Ward 1 Democrat running in the 2015 Primary.

Kelly Fraasch is my adopted commissioner. Kelly is the epitome of elected officials. She listens to constituents and tries to seek common ground with critics. A hard worker, Kelly is dedicated to serving Mt. Lebanon residents in a fair and professional manner. I don't always agree with Kelly, but she does have my utmost respect. Kelly's term ends in 2015 and I hope she seeks reelection.

Steve Silverman is the commission newbie. As commissioner elect, Steve hit the ground running with the turf project, asking for a corporate sponsorship from Dick's Sporting Goods. My late husband, account executive and on the food broker advisory board for Gatorade, would have appreciated Steve's efforts to build Gatorade sales through artificially turfing a field. Steve's term ends in 2017.

Commissioner Dave Brumfield introduced the idea of turfing Mellon Middle School Field during the February 28, 2012 Joint Discussion Session. Don't ask him the definition of "fair." Not a Dave Brumfield fan. We're stuck with Dave for two more years with his term ending in 2017.

Manager Steve Feller reports to the commissioners but manages the various departments within the municipality. He is also the Open Records Officer responsible for granting or denying Right To Know Requests by taking the full 35 days, rather than five, for legal reviews every time. Screwing up the pool bid opening, the Public Safety Building, and approving the first change order for the turf project without the commission's approval are just some of his many accomplishments.

Andrew McCreery is our new director of finance. Andrew stepped up to the plate when I asked a member of the PIO for her assistance (and was ignored) with the 102 year old resident who was being recognized. However, Moody's did downgrade our rating since he took over.

Tom Kelley is retiring soon. Tom kept Rockwood Park in great shape and declared a cease fire in Rockwood Park after many phone calls to him. I will never forget that.

Susan Morgans is the town diva. As our Public Information Officer, editor of mtl Magazine and Community Relations Board staff liaison, Susan has a unique perspective on our fine community. A 1965 Lebo graduate, Susan Fleming Stroyd Morgans feels that she owns this town. Her biggest fans, Laura Pace Lilley and Merle Jantz, report to Susan. Hide your recorders when you see Susan.

Keith McGill, our municipal planner, has been involved with the Zamagias fiasco since Day 1. Keith informed the Planning Board about the turf project, saying that there is no need for their input. According to Marcia Taylor, Keith and Steve Feller have lunch with Marcia monthly. It is nice that they keep in touch.

Gateway Engineers' Dan Deiseroth is our municipal engineer. Dan is a financial supporter of the toxic turf project and bills Mt. Lebanon for his work on the project. It's a great gig. No conflict of interest there. 

David Donnellan is our director of recreation. A dedicated employee, David built the climbing wall at the swimming pool. Concerned with loss of revenue, David wanted to keep the golf course open during the archery hunt. David also rushed the swimming pool construction in order to open on Fathers Day. A non-voting member of the Sports Advisory Board and member of the super secret Turf Project Task Force, David was instrumental in making the toxic turf project a reality.

Mt. Lebanon Police Chief Coleman McDonough took charge of the now suspended archery program. I have a lot of respect for Coleman, but question his judgment to keep the golf course open during the hunt.

Nick Sohyda is the chief of our award winning fire department. A great guy.

Eric Milliron is Mt. Lebanon's Economic Development Officer and manager of the Commercial Districts Office. There's no drama with Eric, one of Mt. Lebanon's greatest assets. 

Phil Weis is the Municipality's solicitor. I like Phil, but he has to do what he has to do. 

Marcia Taylor retired from the Municipality earlier in 2013 as assistant manager and finance director. Marcia ruled with an iron fist. Talk to her about police pensions.

The puppet masters behind this cast of characters are the following:

Barbara Logan, master gardener and former commissioner, wants deer dead in the worst way. She donated to Kristen Linfante's political campaign.

It is said that Carolyn Byham, another gardener, former commissioner and deer hater, is willing to pay for an entire deer cull. The commission should talk to her about funding the $68,000 dedicated to deer management for 2015.

Dave Franklin is legen (wait for it) dary. He likes to let everyone know that he is an attorney every chance he can. Dave's legal opinion on the safety of synthetic turf and the EPA is documented here on Lebo Citizens. Dave's dedication to the turf project fundraising is full time. Dave is a part time member of the Parks Advisory Board, but full time Parks Advisory Board Liaison to the Sports Advisory Board. He is a non-voting member of the SAB, but through his super secret Turf Project Task Force and being married to a voting SAB member, Dave gets the job done.

David Reese, one of the trolls here on Lebo Citizens, wrote a letter to the editor of the PG on 09.01.11 explaining that he is not tax averse and wants to pay higher taxes. You should have a conversation about that at your next family gathering, Dave. 

What can I say about the member of the super secret Turf Project Task Force, Chip Dalesandro, who came to my door unannounced? Not much.

He Who Shall Not Be Named - see above.

I hope this Municipality Who's Who guide is helpful. I may have inadvertently left out someone, so this list may be updated. Since 2015 will be a year of change with elections for five seats for school board directors and three seats for commission, I am optimistic that the majority of our local government will be a positive change in direction for Mt. Lebanon.

Happy New Year.

A Community With Character[s] Part 1

People generally reflect, while preparing for the new year. At least I do. 2014 was a record year for this blog. Thanks to Mt. Lebanon's own Genius Bar, the School District and Municipality,  Lebo Citizens readership is at an all-time high. New readers often tell me that they need a lesson in Who's Who so that they can follow along. While the Municipal website calls Mt. Lebanon, Pennsylvania "A Community With Character," I thought that I would provide a quick tutorial of Mt. Lebanon, A Community With Characters.

Starting with the Mt. Lebanon School District, here is a brief synopsis of each character, starting at the top.

Dr. Timothy Steinhauer a.k.a. Timmy, Super Tim, or super Super, is Mt. Lebanon's superintendent. He is fixated on construction, pizza lunches, tweeting photos of covers of concert and play programs, bathrooms, and shiny water fountains.

Janice Klein is the financial director for Mt. Lebanon School District. Jan Klein is famous for her fake budgets, double counting, manipulation of change order amounts, an advocate for keeping the same outside auditing firm for over twenty five years and winner of the prestigious Association of School Business Officials International's Certificate of Excellence in Financial Reporting Award for the thirtieth year. This award costs taxpayers around $900. We pay for this award. As long as all the parts of the report are submitted, you win the award. Table of contents? Check. Meet the criteria and you win! So double counting and fake budgets are permitted.

Tom Peterson, an attorney with Tucker Arensberg, is our school district solicitor.  Enough said.

Jeanine Szalinski is Timmy's administrative assistant and the Open Records Officer who handles Right To Know Requests. Jeanine works hard at making Timmy look good. The school board directors would make her job so much easier if they were more transparent with the community. I feel sorry for Jeanine.

Our school board consists of nine school board directors. Each one brings a uniqueness to the board.

Larry Lebowitz is our new school board president. Larry is our in-house cheerleader. He is always excited about something. Whether it is about our fundraising efforts, excited about Tom Celli being excited during a Construction Update, Pay for Participation fees online, or excited to be the new president, we can count on Larry being excited. Larry's expertise is in outsourcing and how to skirt the law. He was a youtube phenomenon. Almost 500,000 hits on YouTube! Larry's term ends in 2015, but will most likely seek re-election.

Mary Birks is our newly elected school board vice-president. Mary has been known to roll her eyes at residents and make snarky remarks during public comment. It will be interesting to see if Mary continues to blame Harrisburg for everything, now that Tom Wolf is our newly elected governor. Mary, our resident Harrisburg aficionado blamed Corbett for everything. Mary's term ends in 2017.

Elaine Cappucci just completed her second term as school board president. As co-chair of the high school renovation project, Elaine would answer any questions about the renovation by snarling at residents.  An excellent time keeper, Elaine would watch the clock instead of listening to constituents speak. Elaine's term ends in 2015, and will probably run again.

Ed Kubit was president of the school board during the high school turf project. (See John Ewing.) Ed had a nervous habit of looking at his watch during school board meetings when his critics spoke during residents' comments. He also gave me the gavel when private citizen Kristen Linfante was heckling me during the residents' comments portion of the April 2010 school board meeting. It was fun to agitate Ed and watch him ramble. Ed's term ends in 2015, and it is doubtful that he will run again.

Dan Remely's campaign promise was to bring in the high school project under $95 million. As co-chair of the high school renovation project, Dan did vote against the $74,000 trophy case, which was moved to Capital Projects. Dan also ran against Dan Miller in the State Representative race. Dan's term ends in 2017.

Bill Cooper made his mark on the school board when he advocated for the full proposed .54 mill increase, comparing it to “two large pizzas” on a $100,000 house. Bill's term is up in 2015 and it is doubtful that he will run again. Bill was one of Timmy's initial Key Communicators:

Al Frioni
Andy Rhodes
Betsy Dillon
Bill Cooper
Blaise Larotonda
Corey Polena
Dan Goff
Dave Reese
Deb Smit
Diane Wainwright
Elaine LaBalme
Elizabeth Glantz
Frank Baker
Frank Hines
Gail Sieg
Hugh Beal
Joe Polk
John Schrott
Kim Ressler
Kristen Linfante
Larry Lebowitz
Mary Ellen Schmidt
Rob Gardner
Rob Papke
Ruth Foltz
Sheldon Campbell
Sue Fretterd
Sue Simmons
Tom Moertel

Scott Goldman, last of the good guys, always voted with a conscience. Not a popular guy on the board, I believe he was set up one summer evening, but that's not a tale for discussion. Scott's term ends in 2015. I hope he considers running again, but it is doubtful.

I have never met Bill Moorhead. I stopped going to school board meetings before he took office. Bill doesn't appear be a yes man by voting for everything that comes along. Bill's term ends in 2017.

I remember Mike Riemer as "Officer Riemer" who would visit the kids at school. I'm not a fan of Mike's since he claims that my blog is trash. Everyone is entitled to his opinion, but he allegedly has never read Lebo Citizens. Mike's term ends in 2017.

There are others in the School District's cast of characters.

Cissy Bowman is the District's Public Information Officer, Director of Communication. Cissy has a cake job. Timmy is her photographer and the Mt. Lebanon Public Information Office writes all her stuff for mtl Magazine. 

Tom Celli, architect from Celli-Flynn Brennan, and Tom Berkabile, construction manager from P.J. Dick, are usually seen at the high school construction updates. I'm too tired to write about these guys. Do a search here and you will learn more about these cast members.

David Huston brought transparency to the school district with his trusty recorder. David has been recording all the school board meetings for five years now. He taught me everything I know about Right To Knows. Thanks, David for your dedication.

John Ewing's claim to fame is his classic line about artificial turf to Ed Kubit, "You didn't look at it, Ed." John also coined the phrase "Deadbeat Athletic Supporter." Don't dare criticize Timmy or say anything negative about fundraising. It will set him off. If you want to get on John's good side, start bad mouthing the teachers' union. They're to blame for everything.

A blast from the past includes:

Josephine Posti, former school board president, was the plagiarism expert and authority on bending school board policies. Jo was a carrier of School Board Disease. Symptoms of School Board Disease include, but not limited to:

• Disrespect of public thought
• Listening only to those who agree with you
• Illegal executive sessions protected by lawsuits against moms
• Rejection of other board members’ viewpoints
• Groupthink
• Unity Voting – the most deadly symptom

James Fraasch was definitely last of the good guys. He was head of the Audit and Finance Committee and was the most level headed school board directors that I knew. James was always a threat to the other school board directors. They circled their wagons and attacked James at every opportunity. James ended up resigning and was replaced by Larry "I'm excited" Lebowitz.

John Allison was superintendent prior to Timmy's arrival. I didn't know Mr. Allison, even though I have a photo of him handing a diploma to my son. Mr. Allison's parting gift to the school board was a stern warning about going overboard with the high school renovation. Needless to say, we would have been better off had the school board listened. Mr. Allison went on to bigger and better things in Wichita, Kansas. 

I hope Part 1 of the Mt. Lebanon School District's Who's Who guide is helpful. Part 2 includes the characters from the Municipality.

No Need For A LeboALERT

A Lebo Citizens reader sent me this Lebo[Citizens]Alert:

Just an armed robbery of First National Bank on Greentree Road.. the suspect fled in the direction of the VA Manor Giant Eagle
http://www.thealmanac.net/article/20141231/NEWS/141239985


Then there is the armed (semi automatic weapon) robbery of two women leaving South Hills Village on Monday...
http://www.thealmanac.net/article/20141231/NEWS/141239984

Then there was the armed robbery at the Bethel Park PNC…
http://www.wtae.com/news/bethel-park-bank-robbed/30357618


Sincerely… no need to be concerned… shop and bank your way into the New Year, Lebo!

Game Commission Requires Archery? UPDATED

Yesterday morning, I sent the following letter to the commission.

According to your website, Kristen is saying that the Game Commission is requiring archery to be included in any plan. Is that a true statement? I have asked this question before and got no response. 

Elaine Gillen            

I finally heard back from somebody. I received a response from the solicitor, Phil Weis. Here is what he sent:

Elaine, that is a requirement as the Municipality applied for two Deer Control Permits.  Below is the applicable section of the State regulations that is relevant to this topic.  Subsection (c) contains the requirement.

§ 147.322. Application for deer control permit.

(a)  An application for a deer control permit shall be completed in conjunction with the Commission and submitted by an authorized officer or employee of the political subdivision, homeowners association or nonprofit land-holding organization in the form required by the Director and contain the information requested by the Director.

 (b)  An application for a deer control permit must contain the following information:

   (1)  A complete map showing the boundaries of the area being considered and indicating the land use within the area, cover types, huntable areas, damage areas, deer concentration areas, all safety zones and proposed control areas within the proposed boundaries.

   (2)  A deer management plan shall be submitted with each application which provides deer management goals and requesting the number of animals to be removed.

   (3)  Each application shall substantiate the background and scope of the deer problem and include alternative approaches to the problem and propose what action is recommended to be taken under the permit.

 (c)  Public land within the proposed boundaries shall be open to lawful public hunting unless otherwise prohibited under this title or as otherwise authorized by the Director. Private land within the proposed boundaries may be closed to public hunting at the landowner’s discretion. However, if closed, deer control activities may not occur thereon.

Source

   The provisions of this §  147.322 adopted July 29, 1994, effective July 30, 1994, 24 Pa.B. 3716; amended December 19, 2008, effective December 20, 2008, 38 Pa.B. 6928. Immediately preceding text appears at serial pages (320730) and (297379).

Philip J. Weis

Buchanan, Ingersoll & Rooney

301 Grant Street, 20^th Floor

Pittsburgh PA 15219

(412) 562-3937

philip.weis@bipc.com

Still confused, I answered with:

Thanks, Phil, for the clarification, but this is where it gets confusing to us. Does Subsection (c) specifically require archery? 

I remember Gary F. from the Game Commission saying that there must be hunting done on public property if or when the sterilization permit is to be granted. Who is the Director? Steve Feller? Is public hunting prohibited in our parks? Is that why it was only open to municipal employees? And finally, since the archery program was "suspended," when will it resume?

(c)  Public land within the proposed boundaries shall be open to lawful public hunting unless otherwise prohibited under this title or as otherwise authorized by the Director.

I heard nothing else, so I looked for answers on Kelly Fraasch's blog. Sure enough, Kelly updated her blog with Little did we know....

It appears that I am not the only one looking for clarification.

Update December 31, 2014 3:18 PM On mtl Magazine's Facebook page, Tom Moertel did some fact checking which I thought would be appropriate to include with this post.

Tom Moertel The risks of deer in Mt. Lebanon have been greatly exaggerated, especially by Commissioner Linfante. Yes, deer can and do hurt people in Mt. Lebanon. But such cases are rare. In the nearly 4 years that Mt. Lebanon has been tracking deer-related incidents, there have been only 6 reports of actual injury, all through car accidents. That’s about 1.5 cases per year, on average.
To put into perspective just how small that number is, consider this: According to police reports, there are on average over 100 car accidents per year in which someone is injured or killed in Mt. Lebanon. Deer – characterized by Commissioner Linfante as a “major public safety issue” – account for less than 2% of those accidents. Further, if Linfante’s culling plan goes into effect and achieves its stated goal of reducing deer-related car accidents by half, your chances of being injured or killed in a car accident in Mt. Lebanon will be reduced by less than 1%. *Less than 1%.*
If the solution to a major public safety issue makes you less than 1% safer, is the issue really a major public safety issue?
There are legitimate arguments to be made for reducing Mt. Lebanon’s deer population. If you want to argue that deer damage gardens, cause car accidents that require costly repairs, or contribute to the spread of Lyme disease across the country (although the research makes it doubtful that culling deer is an effective remedy), go ahead.
But why invent a public-safety scare about something that causes virtually nobody in Mt. Lebanon to be injured or killed? Why play up the fact that there have been over 700 reported “incidents” but neglect to inform the public that virtually none of them have anything to do with people getting hurt by deer? Why spend 3 years developing a solution that, even if it achieves its stated goal, will prevent less than 1 incident per year in which someone actually gets hurt?
Couldn’t we have prevented many more injuries – and quite possibly deaths – by investing that same 3 years in fighting Mt. Lebanon’s larger public-safety problems?
So why didn’t we?

"No response is required." UPDATED

12.29.14

12.29.14

12.29.14

12.29.14

A Right To Know was filed with the Allegheny County Conservation District on November 20, 2014 concerning the technical deficiencies they found with the Turf Project. This is not to be confused with the technical deficiencies the DEP found with the Turf Project in this document dated August 27, 2014 or Gateway's response to the DEP in their September 4, 2014 letter addressing technical deficiencies. Or the DEP's response to Mt. Lebanon residents here.

The Allegheny County Conservation District sent a letter to David Donnellan on July 1, 2014 with a list of technical deficiencies. Gateway responded to ACCD on July 3, 2014 with this terse reply.

Correspondence from the ACCD continued as late as September 25, 2014. Reading the arrogant response from Dan Deiseroth on September 29, 2014 makes me wonder why the ACCD and DEP granted the NPDES permit. My team was professional and respectful with the ACCD and DEP.

Update January 3, 2015 6:15 AM From Steve Feller's January 2, 2015 Administrative Report:

New petition forwarded from Coach Griffin

Happy Holidays everyone.

 
A few of you have expressed interest in keeping up to date on any new news as far as Synthetic Turf goes. So far, not much but continued interest is always good. This was sent to me and I thought I would forward along to you. RE : Petition to remove crumb rubber in the White House grounds. 

WE PETITION THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION TO: Remove the Carcinogenic and Toxic Tire Mulch from the White House Playground & Replace with Wood Chips or Wood Mulch.

Amy Griffin

amygriff65@gmail.com
Twitter: GKCoachGriffin
FBook: UW Women’s Soccer

About those non-municipal funds...

To bring any new Lebo Citizen readers up to speed, Mt. Lebanon commissioners made an agreement with the Sports Advisory Board concerning the funding of the toxic turf at Wildcat and Middle Fields. 75% municipal funds and 25% non-municipal funds. The financial proposal was never put in writing in any commission minutes. It was stated in the mtl Magazine article, field fundraising underway, that the non-municipal share would be $250,000, not 25% of the project as originally proposed. Donations were held by the Mt. Lebanon Community Endowment for a small fee. The identity of the donors were never made public.

Earlier this week, Mayor Peduto came under fire when anonymous donations were made on a recent episode of "Undercover Boss."  'Boss' gifts to Pittsburgh employees from Peduto raise questions

“They should disclose the donors to reassure the public that (donors) won't end up getting grants and contracts based on their benevolence.

We know that Gateway Engineers made out well by donating at least $4,000 to the turf project. That's for another post. Stay tuned.

Peduto promises to disclose identities of "Undercover Boss" donors 

Barry Kauffman, executive director of Pennsylvania Common Cause, said Peduto is obligated to share the information in the interest of transparency. Even though the money is coming from private donors, it's being funneled through a public agency.

Lebo Citizen readers were made aware of missing Mt. Lebanon sports organizations' 990's in these posts about 990s.  I called for better transparency. I see that I am not alone. Watchdogs call for better transparency of nonprofits' IRS filings 

So, President Elect John Bendel and Sports Advisory Board commission liaison, when are you going to share the information in the interest of transparency?

Merry Christmas

Lebo's Lost Its Luster

In a recent PG poll, Mt. Lebanon isn't perceived as prestigious as some would like to believe.

Anyone care to guess why? I would like to take a little time off from blogging and hope that Lebo Citizen readers take a crack at it.

Thank you for being loyal readers. Happy Holidays! 

Elaine

Commissioners did not actually vote on the archery component

Finally, something truthful from our commission president. Mt. Lebanon calls off controlled deer hunt

Commissioners did not actually vote on the archery component, Ms. Linfante said.

Kristen is on a roll. A major, major roll.

“This is a major, major safety issue we’re dealing with,” Mt. Lebanon Commission President Kristen Linfante said.

The PG article continues with:

Since 2011 there have been 765 reported incidents involving the herbivorous menaces in the municipality, ranging from dead and injured deer to deer stuck in fences to deer “tearing up” a yard, according to an online tracker.

The "765 reported incidents" is a fictitious number. Deer sightings are being included as "reported incidents." For some unknown reason, I am included as one of those residents who reported an incident. That is a goddam lie. I NEVER REPORTED ANY INCIDENT!  How do I get that removed?

Kristen continues on Facebook.

Where the hell did 600 deer in Mt. Lebanon come from, Kristen? If deer are such a "major, major safety issue" in Mt. Lebanon, and there are "765 reported incidents," shouldn't you be reporting a negative number of deer? When filing Right To Knows, Lebo Citizens, please keep in mind that social media communication is to be included. That is why I ask for ALL communication, but Mr. Feller never includes that. Seriously, why do we have mtl Magazine on Facebook?

Kristen continues with the PG reporter by throwing Kelly Fraasch under the bus with another lie.

“On one hand I really hold some of my colleagues responsible who were resistant to coming up with any kind of deer plan at all,” Ms. Linfante said. “At least one of my colleagues is very happy that this thing fell through. I find that unfortunate.”

That colleague would be Ms. Fraasch, who favors a sterlization [sic] approach and said she had proposed a plan in 2012.

“I’ve obviously had concerns about doing anything lethal in Mt. Lebanon because of the density of the population, so I thought this was actually a bit of a relief,” Ms. Fraasch said. “I think it’s good for Mt. Lebanon to take a moment and make sure this is the right way to go with dealing with our deer-management issue.”

From Kelly Fraasch's December 7, 2012 blog posting, Deer in Mt. Lebanon,  Kelly met with over 30 people (some pro-cull, some anti-cull, and some in-between) trying to find mid ground. This year, Kelly has been working with six communities to institute a regional deer management plan to include sterilization. Kristen is well aware of that.

Many residents have concerns about doing anything lethal in Mt. Lebanon, especially on the golf course and in passive parks adjacent to elementary schools. The golf course was to remain open for business during the archery program, in hopes to collect additional revenue. In addition, the golf course attracts many families, who enjoy sled riding there, when there is snow on the ground.

What about our Public Information Officer?

Ms. Morgans said she “knew nothing about it.” She added that she learned Friday afternoon from the municipal manager about the lack of licenses. It is not clear why it took a week after the news release announcing the hunt for the municipality to learn that no licenses were available.

And the question we have all been asking, "Wouldn't the municipal staff who volunteered be licensed archers already?"

Some Mt. Lebanon employees who planned to volunteer for the bow hunt might already have licenses.
But, Chief McDonough said, “just because of the very small number of deer tags available we decided it wasn’t worth taking four or five.”

It's a Christmas miracle!

The archery program has been canceled. 

Pay no attention to what is on the Mt. Lebanon website home page as of 11:47 AM. 

No LeboAlert. 

The Trib's Matt Santoni published this today, December 22, 2014 at 10:06 AM. Archery hunting in Mt. Lebanon called off for now

The Post-Gazette published this December 22, 2014 at 10:24 AM Mt. Lebanon cancels deer archery cull

Lebo Citizens Blog:

Well, this is another fine mess.
Elaine

December 21, 2014 at 10:21 PM

Update December 22, 2014 12:05 PM Ahh, there it is.

Update December 22, 2014 12:06 PM All is calm. All is bright on the municipal website.

Update December 22, 5:04 PM The Almanac published this today, December 22, 2014 at 11:39 AM.  Lebo deer management hunt cancelled 

Chief McDonough said despite the cancellation of its Deer Management Archery Program, the township still has some options to reduce its deer population – including Capture and Bolt, a harvesting program, or a sterilization program. He declined to go into detail about either plan and said the issue will likely be addressed at the Jan. 14 township meeting.

“It does not mean the commission is stepping back,” from the deer problem, said Susan Morgans, a township spokesperson. “There was only a short period of time to get this together.”

And that is her story and she is sticking to it. Chief McDonough did get it together in time. In addition, the commission meeting is on January 13, not January 14, 2015.

Senator Introduces Bill to Investigate Turf Safety UPDATED

New bill calls for study of crumb rubber turf safety

SAN FRANCISCO -Artificial turf made from recycled rubber tires may save water, but there are growing health concerns among parents, activists and now legislators about these athletic fields that could pose a health risk. 

Senator Jerry Hill (D-San Mateo) will introduce legislation on Wednesday calling for a new, more comprehensive study of crumb rubber synthetic turf amid growing concerns that the material is linked to cancer.

This won't stop the toxic turf project on Cedar Blvd. already protested TWICE here in Mt. Lebanon, but may impact the school district's plan to turf the Rock Pile and Franklin's desire to turf Mellon.

Another unhappy camper may be the EPA. According to the EPA's website, the Resource Conservation Challenge (RCC) Scrap Tire Workgroup formulated an action plan in 2007 to promote increased use of ground rubber made from scrap tires. See pages 7-10.

Calvin Young, Chairman of the RCC, is still selling crumb rubber! Grant Program Overview Tire-Derived Product (TDP) Grant Program The EPA is pushing this through grants as late as August! August 19, 2014 Presentation.

Between exposing children to toxic turf and the possibility of the children witnessing the killing of God's creatures, it is very difficult for me to be in the Holiday spirit. Thank you, Commissioners, for your personal agendas. Happy Hanukkah and Merry Christmas.

Update December 20, 2014 11:09 PM Yet another article about turf safety. Here is a bedtime story for you to read, Dave, Kristen, John, and Steve. Scrap Tire Playgrounds Lighten Landfills, But Raise Cancer Fears

In the wake of the recent alarm, some schools and municipalities have canceled plans to install crumb rubber turf. Lawyers, such as Connecticut's Ed Jazlowiecki, who called crumb rubber "the next asbestos," are collecting names for class-action lawsuits. And citizen-advocates are pushing their local governments to change policies.

Countdown to Culling UPDATED

Attention Parents, PTA, Golfers, and Residents (and Non-Residents) who enjoy walking through our passive parks. An archery program, open to Municipal employees only, is to begin on December 26, 2014 through January 24, 2015 in Robb Hollow Park, Bird Park, McNeilly Park, and the Mt. Lebanon Municipal Golf Course. The golf course will remain OPEN.

A public protest is being organized with details to follow. For more information, email Anya at Anyalasko@gmail.com



Email exchange between Chief McDonough and a Mt. Lebanon resident:

From: Coleman McDonough [mailto:cmcdonough@mtlebanon.org] 

Sent: Wednesday, December 17, 2014 4:11 PM
To: Mt. Lebanon Resident
Subject: Re: ML deer docs

The golf course will remain open but it will be posted to advise golfers and others that hunting activities may be taking place during the time frame you noted in your email.  

PA Game Laws require: " . . . Any person who wounds any game or wildlife shall immediately make a reasonable effort to find and kill the game or wildlife."  This requirement is irrespective of municipal boundaries.   

In regard to insurance issues, the archers will be engaged in voluntary, lawful hunting activities. As such, insurance requirements are no different for these individuals than for hunters engaged in lawful hunting activities anywhere else in the Commonwealth.  

On Fri, Dec 12, 2014 at 1:00 PM, a Mt. Lebanon resident wrote:

Mr. McDonough,

A few quick questions if I may:

The golf course is open year round and I suspect that golfers will take any given day to hone in on their skills. Even a brisk day doesn’t stop some people. Will the golf course remain open or be shut down for the 26th thru the 24th?

Looking at the maps, a rather sizeable portion of Robb Hollow park is in Upper St Clair. Will the bow hunters be allowed track any deer in that portion of the park? If allowable and if a bow hunter does get hurt on the USC side of RH park, or god forbid a wounded deer runs across the street and causes an accident with a motorist, whose insurance covers any such accident?

Thank you sir,
A Mt. Lebanon resident

Update December 18, 2014 9:25 AM A comment cross posted:

If you witness a deer related hunting or trapping incident - media contacts

If you witness a wounded deer related hunting or trapping incident, and you have a cell phone, take pictures and/or video to document the incident, and call the news desks of the TV stations listed below to report the incident, and ask if they will send out a TV crew to film and report the incident. Also, call the Post-Gazette and The Almanac editors to report the incident, and ask if they will send out a reporter to report on the incident. If we want to stop this reckless and dangerous hunting program, and inhumane trapping program in our parks and neighborhoods, we need to document the incidents, and get the media to report the incidents.

WPXI
News Desk: 412-237-1100
Desk@WPXI.com

KDKA
News Desk: 412-575-2245
newsdesk@kdka.com

WTAE
News Desk: 412-244-4444
Send cell phone picture
ulocal@wtae.com

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
Kim Leonard, Editor
kleonard@tribweb.com

Matthew Santoni, Reporter
412-259-3406 Cellular
msantoni@tribweb.com

The Post-Gazette (South)
Virginia Kopos Joe (Ginny) South Editor
412-263-1414
vkjoe@post-gazette.com

The Almanac
Katie Green, Editor
724-949-1190
kgreen@thealmanac.net

Update December 18, 2014 10:59 AM To encourage even more activity at the golf course:

This is an important notice from LeboALERT.


GIFT CARDS FROM MT LEBANON GOLF COURSE MAKE GREAT STOCKING STUFFERS! CALL THE GOLF SHOP AT 412-561-9761 FOR MORE INFORMATION

Update December 21, 2014 9:03 AM Municipal Archery Program Hunting Maps

Bird Park
Golf Course
McNeilly Park
Robb Hollow Park

Another Lebo [Citizens] Alert

The traffic lights are out at the intersection of Terrace and Connor Roads. I understand there is a power failure in the Foster School area. Please stop at this intersection when the traffic lights are out.

Keep in mind that there was no LeboAlert for Sunday's water main break on Castle Shannon Blvd.

From the PIO:

From: LeboALERT <noreply@mtlebanon.org>

To: EGillen476 <EGillen476@aol.com>

Subject: LeboALERT: Mt. Lebanon Communit...

Date: Tue, Dec 16, 2014 9:24 am

“This is an important notice from LeboALERT.
Mt. Lebanon Community Endowment offers gift cards which donate $25-$100 to the local charity of the giftee's choice. Details:rkang@mtlebanonendowment.org”

Timmy alerts parents about archery program

The following email was sent to parents today:

From: "Dr. Timothy Steinhauer" <noreply@mtlsd.net>
Date: December 15, 2014 at 3:30:24 PM EST
To: Mt. Lebanon Parents
Subject: Municipal Deer Management Program Information
Reply-To: "Dr. Timothy Steinhauer" <noreply@mtlsd.net>

Dear Parents,

We have been notified by the Mt. Lebanon Municipality that they will conduct a deer management archery program that will run December 26, 2014 to  January 24, 2015 in Bird Park, Robb Hollow Park, McNeilly Park and at the municipal golf course.

Please see the Deer Management Archery Program description on the municipal website for further information http://www.mtlebanon.org/

Sincerely,

Timothy J. Steinhauer, Ed.D.
Superintendent of Schools
Mt. Lebanon School District

What did you do today to improve the life of a child? 

As a parent wrote to me:

So this came out. It is so utterly devoid of info, warnings or recommendations from the superintendent. Even the link that it sends you to is too much. How about clear and concise statements with specific warnings for parents?!!..." 

The Almanac came out with this article today.  Mt. Lebanon to harvest deer (Harvest. Sounds so much better than Kill, right?)

“We have an overabundance of deer in Mt. Lebanon,” McDonough said. “The number of car crashes related to deer is also under reported."

Dumb question, but how does the chief know that the number of car crashes related to deer is under reported?

 

Goodbye, high school football

James Bukes, a former Pittsburgh federal administrative law judge and Mt. Lebanon resident explains how legal liability for long-term injuries and other challenges could kill football.

Is this the end of football?

I have heard stories about football participation dropping here in Mt. Lebanon.

Potential players and their parents are taking notice. According to the journal Neurotrauma, Pop Warner youth football participation dropped 9.5 percent between 2010 and 2012. In some of the wealthier suburbs of Pittsburgh, such as Upper St. Clair, more and more parents will not allow their sons to go out for football. Even President Barack Obama has said that if he had a son, he would not allow the boy to play football.

Here is a little bit more back story on the subject: How One Lawyer’s Crusade Could Change Football Forever

We need a lawyer crusader in Mt. Lebanon.

Something completely different

Here's a super-easy way to get around Keurig 2.0 DRM restrictions

 

Just when the prayers were kicking in

On February 28, 2012, former school board president, Josephine Posti told me that she was praying for me. Apology To Josephine Posti It took some time for her prayers to kick in, but they did. Early this morning, I mailed Holiday Greetings to Timmy, various school board members past and present, my favorite commissioners, and members of the Sports Advisory Board. Lo and behold, a water main break occurred at the post office on Castle Shannon Blvd this morning.

TRAFFIC ADVISORY 12/14/14 11:01

(MT LEBANON TOWNSHIP - 460.625) FIRE DEPARTMENT WITH MAJOR WATER BREAK, POST OFFICE AND SEVERAL VEHICLE IMPACTED, REQUEST PAWC [PEN084]

Josephine Post, spokeswoman for Pennsylvania American Water was on the scene. Jo, were you able to salvage my greeting cards?

Mt. Lebanon water main break to result in 'significant' damage to garage
Here is a video of the flooding.

Timmy, Mary, Elaine, Eddie, Kristen, John, Steve, Dave, Dave, Dave, Dave, Dave, Dave, (can never have too many Daves) He Who Shall Not Be Named, and Jo, Merry Christmas and Happy Hanukkah. My card was in the mail. ;)

Commissioners: I hate what you are doing to this town

Dear Commissioners:

I abhor what you have done to this town. If it isn't about subjecting us to seeing deer killed before our eyes and our children's eyes, and later when the game commission issues the permit to allow you to torture deer, it is forcing us to pay for the installation of toxic turf and expecting parents to make difficult choices concerning their children's participation in field sports.

Commissioners, you took us down the same path with both subjects by ignoring documentation that your constituents sent to you, shutting down public comment, humiliating those with opposing views, lying to our faces, and doing back room deals with the puppet masters who are pulling your strings.

I get much criticism from your anonymous minions of Gozer when Lebo Citizens readers disagree with them. Yet, you have no problem attacking residents during Citizen Comments after they give their names and addresses during public meetings. You're despicable.

Parents are worried that their children might want to sled ride after a snow fall between December 26 and January 24, 2015. Do they permit them to go to the parks or golf course? Building snowmen in their own yards could get dicey. What about golfers, if there is no snow? Will your municipal staff be calling "Fore" before shooting their arrows?

Today, I received two emails about turf which I will share here. I had sent an email to Coach Amy Griffin and would like to share her response.

From: Amy Griffin <xxxxxxxx@xxxxx>
To: egillen476 <egillen476@aol.com>
Sent: Fri, Dec 12, 2014 3:55 pm
Subject: Re: Artificial turf
Elaine,
After the NBC Crumb Rubber story, my INBOX grew quite a bit.  I cannot remember if I returned your email, but since it is in my inbox, I am assuming I have not.  Thank you so much for reaching out, sharing your struggle with being unable to stop the influx of more fields with that crap in it. :)
I saved your document and email and will let you know if and when something moves forward on this topic.
I hope your holidays are off to a great beginning. 

Respectfully, 

Amy Griffin 

xxxxxxxxxxx@xxxxx
Twitter:  GKCoachGriffin  

FBook:  UW Women’s Soccer

On Oct 16, 2014, at 7:08 PM, egillen476@aol.com wrote:
Dear Coach Griffin, 

I want to thank you for sharing your story with NBC. I am a community blogger in Mt. Lebanon, a suburb of Pittsburgh, PA. I have been trying to stop our toxic turf project for several years. You may have seen lebocitizens.blogspot.com since I do get visitors from the University of Washington.
Today was a sad day for Mt. Lebanon. The Department of Environmental Protection granted a permit to begin our toxic turf project. I am attaching the letter from the DEP which includes a comment/response section. Please read Comment #14. It is heartbreaking.  

I am just sick that our commissioners have rejected all our resources. I sent them the NBC investigation piece that you did with them. No response from the four commissioners pushing the project. They all have children who participate in field sports and are hoping for scholarships.  

Here in Mt. Lebanon, we are ruled by the sports cabal. I hope other communities have better luck than we did. 

Keep your message going, Coach. Thank you for your courage. 

Elaine Gillen

Email Number 2 [which was forwarded to me]:

From: Nancy Alderman Sent: Dec 11, 2014 2:31 PM To: undisclosed-recipients@null, null@null Subject: To the Media - Recommendations to parents and students who are in schools where there are synthetic turf fields. 

Contact Information
Nancy Alderman, President
Environment and Human Health, Inc.
203-248-6582
December 11, 2014 - North Haven, Connecticut

Environment and Human Health, Inc., a group of 10  physicians and public health professionals, sends this advisory.
Because most synthetic turf fields contain ground up rubber tires that contain a myriad of toxic chemicals;
Because there have now been reported over 90 cancer cases among students who have played on synthetic turf fields;
Because most of the cancers reported are lymphomas.
Environment and Human Health, Inc. is recommending the following:
1. Children and students should be discouraged from playing on synthetic turf fields that contain ground-up rubber tire infill.
2.  If children and students must play on these fields, they should shower immediately after leaving the field, as well as changing their clothing, including their socks and shoes. This is because the tiny rubber crumbs and the rubber crumb dust gets into socks, shoes, hair, ears etc. from the field's rubber tire infill.
3. 20% to 30%l of rubber tires are made up of carbon black, and carbon black is just one of the carcinogens in rubber tires.
4. Every synthetic turf field has 40,000 ground-up rubber tires in it.  This is a lot of toxic material to expose our children and students to.
                Environment and Human Health, Inc. (EHHI)
                North Haven, CT   06473
                (phone) 203-248-6582
                http://www.ehhi.org
EHHI receives none of its funding from businesses or corporations. Below are the people who run EHHI.
 Susan S. Addiss, MPH, MUrS. Past Commissioner of Health for the State of Connecticut; Past President of the American Public Health Association; Past member of the Pew Environmental Health Commission; Vice-Chair, Connecticut Health Foundation Board; Director of Health Education for Environment and Human Health, Inc.
Nancy O. Alderman, MES. President of Environment and Human Health, Inc.; Past member of the Governor's Pollution Prevention Task Force; Past member of the National Board of Environmental Defense; Recipient of the CT Bar Association, Environmental Law Section's, Clyde Fisher Award, given in recognition of significant contributions to the preservation of environmental quality through work in the fields of environmental law, environmental protection or environmental planning, and the New England Public Health Association's Robert C. Huestis/Eric Mood Award given to individuals for outstanding contributions to public health in the environmental health area.
Andrea Gottsegan Asnes, MD, MSW. Associate Professor of Pediatrics at the Yale School of Medicine; Associate Director of the Yale Child Abuse Programs and Child Abuse Prevention Programs; Co-Director of the third year clerkship in Pediatrics, and an Associate Director of the MD/PhD Program.
D. Barry Boyd, MD.   Clinical Professor of Medicine, Yale University School of Medicine, Oncologist at Greenwich Hospital and Affiliate Member of the Yale Cancer Center. Research areas include environmental risk factors for cancer as well as cancer etiology, including nutrition and the role of insulin and IGF in malignancy. Dr. Boyd is the Founder and Director of Integrative Medicine at Greenwich Hospital - Yale Health System. Russell L. Brenneman, Esq. Connecticut Environmental Lawyer; Co-Chair of the Connecticut League of Conservation Voters; Chair of the Connecticut League of Conservation Voters Education Fund; Former chair of the Connecticut Energy Advisory Board; Co-chair of the Connecticut Greenways Committee; Adjunct faculty in Public Policy at Trinity College, Hartford; Past President of the Connecticut Forest and Park Association.
David R. Brown, Sc.D. Public Health Toxicologist and Director of Public Health Toxicology for Environment and Human Health, Inc.; Past Chief of Environmental Epidemiology and Occupational Health at Connecticut's Department of Health; Past Deputy Director of The Public Health Practice Group of ATSDR at the National Centersfor Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, Georgia.
Thomas F. Harrison, Esq. Connecticut Environmental Lawyer;  Past Assistant Attorney General in the New York State's Attorney General's office;  Past Regional Counsel in the largest U.S. EPA Office,  Region 5; Past Senior Corporate Council to the BFGoodrich Company; Past Partner at the Hartford law firm of Day Pittney LLP; Served on Connecticut's  Board of Contracting Standards and Review;  Served on the CT Council of Environmental Quality and was the Past Chairman of the Environmental Section of the CT Bar Association.
Pinar H. Kodaman, MD, PhD.  Assistant Professor of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences, Division of Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, Yale University School of Medicine; Director of the Early Recurrent Pregnancy Lost Program at the Yale Fertility Center.
Robert G. LaCamera, MD. Clinical Professor of Pediatrics, Yale University School of Medicine; Primary Care Pediatrician in New Haven, Connecticut from 1956 to 1996 with a sub-specialty in children with disabilities.
Hugh S. Taylor, M.D. Anita O'Keeffe Young Professor and Chair of the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences and Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, Yale University School of Medicine;Chief of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Yale-New Haven Hospital.
John P. Wargo, Ph.D. Tweedy Ordway Professor of Environmental Health and Politics, Yale University's School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, and Professor of Political Science. Author of Green Intelligence: Creating Environments That Protect Human Health published by Yale Press.  The book won the Independent Publishers Award of Gold Medal in the field of "environment, ecology, and nature" for 2010.  It also won the 2010 Connecticut Book Award in non-fiction. It was chosen as one of Scientific American's favorite books for 2009. Also author of Our Children's Toxic Legacy, which won the American Association Publisher's competition as best scholarly and professional book in an area of government and political science in 1997.
--
Nancy Alderman, President
Environment and Human Health, Inc.
1191 Ridge Road
North Haven, CT   06473
(phone) 203-248-6582
(Fax)     203-288-7571
http://www.ehhi.orghttp://ehhijournal.org

As families prepare for Hanukkah or Christmas, whatever happened to Peace on Earth, Goodwill Toward Men? You have turned Mt. Lebanon into a battle ground, all because of your personal agendas. You have no regard for facts or opinions other than those who agree with you or those who control you. Whether it is deer or turf, it is all the same.