Getting a Right To Know request granted in the Municipality of Mt. Lebanon is becoming a joke, at the requestor's expense. A RTK was filed for all 2016 block party applications received from June 11, 2016 through July 20, 2016.
The 30 day extension was applied so that personal information could be redacted. Typical.
The requestor was charged 25¢ per copy and had to be paid up front, even though it would have been $5.00. Not so typical. Most agencies waive the fee if it is under $25.00. To pay less than $5.00 upfront is ludicrous. Only Mt. Lebanon does that.
Fee was paid, but the RTK was not available after the thirty days. Not typical, in fact, illegal. It was MIA. A letter had to be sent to the manager, commissioners, and Open Records Officer (ORO) questioning the process. Not the first time this had to be done.
The information was emailed, even though it was requested in hard copy. Again, not typical. Commissioner Brumfield objects to scanned copies, when it suits him.
Finally, the information was released and available here.
Reviewing the RTK, I was happy to see that Rudy caught the one scheduled for Halloween and rejected it. Not typical. Last year, there was one in Mission Hills. Our former police chief had advised that all Halloween block parties not be permitted for safety concerns.
I do see that one application was reviewed and accepted for a collector street. They even requested a barricade for a Castle Shannon street. Sadly, this too, is typical. A Sleepy Hollow resident appeared at my door last year and told me to mind my own business regarding their two block parties.
State Representative Dan Miller's Right To Know event on September 15, 2016 can't come soon enough. I just hope that representatives from the Municipality of Mt. Lebanon attend Dan's event.
Howe school blocks off the area in front of the school for the Halloween Parade every year. It's not even during trick or treat hours. I guess the teachers will be forming a human chain to keep the kiddos safe.
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