[0:40] Call in the meeting to order. This is a regular meeting of Allegheny County Council. Today is Tuesday, June 23, 2026. The time is 5 p.m. Again, we're calling the meeting to order. May we all please stand for the pledge of allegiance and then please remain standing for a moment of silent prayer or reflection.

[1:02] of the United States of America and to the Republic, for which it stands, one nation,

[1:08] under God, individual, liberty, and justice, strong.

[1:26] Thank you, maverick, roll call please.

[1:29] Mr. Adams.

[1:31] Perfectly present.

[1:33] Mr. Bada, here.

[1:35] Mr. Ketina.

[1:37] Here.

[1:39] Mr. Liyaji.

[1:40] Here.

[1:40] Mr. Fetolis.

[1:41] Here.

[1:41] Mr. Grisbeck, Ms. Hallam, Mr.

[1:47] Klein, Ms. Madonna Ammerling, Mr. Paul Mary, Mr. Paul Messina, Mr. Rose, Ms. Geiger-Schulman, Mr. Walton, President Akger-Adichakis, we have 14 members of the moment.

[2:03] Thank you.

[2:03] All right, first item is proclamations and the 13991-261, please.

[2:11] Reclamation recognizing Allegheny County entities and partners of the 2026 NFL draft who's.

[2:16] Amendment made it an extraordinary success sponsored by Council Member Fittultis, all other members of council and the chief executive.

[2:23] And

[2:26] before proceeding, please let the record reflect the Ms. Halema's numbers.

[2:41] Okay. Good evening, everyone. On behalf of all of County Council, we welcome all of our guests that are here this evening. Are you going to introduce all of our guests that are with us?

[2:56] It's a special opportunity for us to really acknowledge all of those who participated in the NFL draft this year.

[3:04] such a monumental occasion of which council had the all of the hard work that was done and

[3:11] we are grateful to all of you and wanted to acknowledge everybody's role so thanks for being

[3:15] here this evening. So with that Nick would you like to? Sure. Today we have from the Pittsburgh

[3:21] Steelers Dan Rooney Vice President of the Business Development and Strategies Cecilia Cagney Cagney

[3:29] I'm sorry, Director of Corporate Communications.

[3:32] Visit Pittsburgh, Jared Dacker, Michelle Fisher,

[3:35] Ryer, Vice President of the Communications,

[3:38] Community and Government Affairs,

[3:41] and we have a few more, I believe, don't we?

[3:45] From the Pittsburgh, I'm not sure.

[3:47] Just a two.

[3:48] Three hours closer.

[3:49] Okay, okay.

[3:51] And then for the B3R, we have Nate Switcher,

[3:56] Special Project Coordinator.

[3:58] Pittsburgh Regional Transit, Kathleen Kellman, there you are. CCAC, Dr. Stefan Wells,

[4:05] Chief and Academic Officer, is he here? There you are. Allegheny County Airport,

[4:13] Tyler Blokgren, Director of Corporate and Government Relations. By the way,

[4:18] you guys want to come on up while we're introducing you. It might be a good idea.

[4:22] Yeah, we got that part.

[4:25] Come on up.

[4:27] Sports and exhibition authority, Doug Striller,

[4:30] the project executive in the Sheriff's office.

[4:33] We have Commander Charles Rodriguez, Lieutenant Conor Mullin,

[4:37] the county police, Chris Kerns.

[4:39] Oh, no, he's here.

[4:40] Is he here?

[4:40] Oh, there he are.

[4:42] And the county emergency management department,

[4:46] Chief Matt Brown, I didn't see him.

[4:48] No, no, no, that's it.

[4:50] And he's here now. There you go. And we have the county health department

[4:54] representative from the department, which is Kim Joyce. I just happened to know

[5:00] her.

[5:03] Well, we filled the room up. So what I really want to do is personally just

[5:08] thank you who was responsible for inviting us to the NFL draft. It was such a

[5:14] great experience for all of our council members and you don't really realize what you see on television

[5:21] until you get there and see what it took to bring the NFL draft to the city of Pittsburgh.

[5:28] It was absolutely unbelievable. The hospitality was phenomenal. The transportation was phenomenal.

[5:35] The security, everything seemed to go perfect. To being the fact that I'm an old person, I guess you

[5:43] You could say that I felt that this was a once in a lifetime event for me and I don't

[5:49] remember the NFL draft ever coming to Pittsburgh before and it was such a monumental event

[5:55] that you see the logistics, how they build it, the tree removal, the guard rails, everything

[6:01] that was done was unbelievable.

[6:03] The years that it takes to put this on and then of course you invited us to the stadium

[6:10] and we briefed some more briefing and we got the sit in the locker room where the football players go and if we got the walk out of the tunnel and that was pretty special.

[6:21] You know not to make people get that opportunity so I just want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for that.

[6:26] Thank you. Michelle, we are going to read the proclamation.

[6:29] Okay, thanks Nick. So I'm my honor to read the proclamation and then Nick will be distributing them and then if anyone would like to share a few words please feel free to do that.

[6:39] We would love to hear from you, but what an opportunity to shine a light on our wonderful city, and we are also honored and privileged that it happened.

[6:48] So, whereas major sporting events have the power to unite communities, strengthen regional partnerships, stimulate economic growth, and showcase the unique character and hospitality of a region to a national and international audience.

[7:03] And whereas the Allegheny County and the city of Pittsburgh proudly served as the host of the

[7:08] 2026 National Football League draft that took place April 23rd to the 25th, 2026, welcoming

[7:15] visitors from across the nation and around the world, while demonstrating the region's ability

[7:20] to successfully plan and execute a national and historic sporting event.

[7:26] And whereas the 2026 NFL draft attracted a record-breaking 805,000 attendees over three

[7:35] days, including an all-time draft record with 320,000 fans and attendance for day one

[7:41] of the draft, making it the largest event in NFL history.

[7:46] Visitors represented 105 countries and approximately 43% traveling from outside of 50 mile radius

[7:53] and an estimated 55 million people worldwide watching the event on television,

[7:59] bringing positive attraction to Allegheny County and the Pittsburgh region.

[8:03] And whereas the success of the event was made possible through exceptional

[8:07] collaboration and dedication of Allegheny County entities and numerous partners,

[8:12] including the Pittsburgh Steelers, Visit Pittsburgh, P3R, Pittsburgh Regional Transit,

[8:18] Community College of Allegheny County, Allegheny County Airport Authority,

[8:22] Sports and Exhibition Authority, the Allegheny County Sheriff's Office, Allegheny County Police,

[8:28] Allegheny County Emergency Management, Allegheny County Department of Public Works,

[8:33] Allegheny County Marketing and Special Events, and the Allegheny County Health Department.

[8:38] These departments and partners help provide critical infrastructure, transportation,

[8:43] public safety, emergency preparedness, public health services, community programming,

[8:49] visiting, visitor support, and beyond that ensured the events smooth execution.

[8:55] And whereas the NFL draft generated substantial economic benefits with 92% hotel occupancy

[9:01] and downtown Pittsburgh and 85% occupancy countywide.

[9:06] The NFL draft source program enabled 164 local businesses to participate and awarded more

[9:14] than 100 contracts, with 63% of those contracts going to program members, generating 17.7 million

[9:24] in direct visitor spending. Overall, trivial direct spending is estimated about 115 million

[9:31] to 215 million. And whereas the NFL draft also highlighted Allegheny County's commitment

[9:37] to community service and environmental stewardship. Through the redistribution of nearly 60,000

[9:44] pounds of food to 15 non-profit organizations. Community fundraising efforts that generated

[9:50] more than 1 million to combat hunger in Western Pennsylvania, the packing and distribution

[9:56] of 1,000 shelter hygiene and first aid kits for individuals experiencing homelessness,

[10:02] the installation of 400 hanging flower baskets and 420 street planters, and commitments to expand

[10:10] and the region's tree canopy through the planting of hundreds of new trees.

[10:15] And whereas regional transportation and public service systems successfully met the demands

[10:20] of the historic event, with approximately 485,000 public transit riders utilizing Pittsburgh

[10:27] Regional Transit Services during draft week and 51% increase over average ridership.

[10:34] And whereas the event required an unprecedented level of public safety coordination, with

[10:39] local, county, state, and federal agencies working seamlessly together to maintain a secure environment.

[10:46] Resulting in no serious incidents reported during the weekend, while emergency responders,

[10:52] law enforcement, public works personnel, health officials, and countless staff members worked

[10:59] around the clock to provide a clean, safe, and welcoming experience for all.

[11:04] and whereas the engagement and collaboration among these organizations and departments were

[11:10] essential to the overwhelming success of the 2026 NFL draft and highlighted Allegheny County as a

[11:18] vibrant connected and welcoming destination that is well positioned to host future major national

[11:26] and international events while reflecting the dedication, professionalism and civic pride.

[11:34] of all those who contributed to its planning and execution.

[11:39] Now therefore, so therefore it resolved that I, McPhrytonis and

[11:45] County Council, and the chief executive, by the way, we would like to congratulate you and

[11:51] thank you for the 2026 NFL draft.

[11:55] Congratulations.

[11:58] We'll have a full week to speak on this while we're at it.

[12:01] Mr. Dan Rooney.

[12:03] Thank you.

[12:05] I think the proclamation says it all here, you know, the 2026 NFL draft in Pittsburgh was an incredible event that produced big time impact for our city, our county, our state and Steelers Nation everywhere.

[12:21] But, you know, we wanted to stop in here today as well and think that the members of the Allegheny County Council here without your guys help and support.

[12:30] This was not possible, that was the coolest part about the draft from our seat, how Pittsburgh and the county rallied together to put on an event of this scale.

[12:42] So just a really special opportunity for our region to show what we're made of, and we couldn't have done it without you guys in the room here.

[12:50] So really appreciate all the support and the team behind me made that event one to remember.

[12:56] And I think Pittsburgh and in our county is showing up on a national and global level that it probably wasn't before.

[13:04] So just again, thank you to everyone in the room and honored for the proclamation here.

[13:10] Thank you.

[13:16] Echo a lot of dance sentiment, certainly on behalf of the entire community.

[13:21] This is really a full circle moment.

[13:23] We started working on this probably three years ago at this point, and we obviously met with a lot of people here in County Council and across the entire community, so often throughout the planning process.

[13:37] But to be here today, to reflect on the fact that it's already happened, which also seems like a little bit of a dream.

[13:44] But the fact that it's already happened, it was such a success in so many ways, is such an extraordinary testament to how this community really rallied together.

[13:55] An event of this size is not perfect, and we've seen that. There's a lot of lessons to be learned as we come out of this for us as a community, for the NFL.

[14:04] But overall, it's resounded and looked at as a huge success. And that is in part because of the work and support that came out of this council.

[14:14] So, again, I'll echo Dan's sentiment, thanking all of our incredible partners.

[14:19] I think there are certainly case studies to be made for public transportation success,

[14:24] certainly public safety success, huge, huge opportunities for other destinations to learn

[14:32] on how to host an event like this successfully because of the attributes of public safety and public

[14:37] transportation. So, again, thank you so much. It's an honor to be here and we're so thankful.

[14:43] So,

[14:50] um, how's the crockpot?

[14:52] So, thank you, Council for giving us this opportunity.

[14:56] I have to thank the hardworking folks at pitch.

[15:00] Regional transit, operators, mechanics, road supervisors, customer service agents, Adam and Amanda who didn't see their family for four days because you'd think it would be faster. We could not have supported this community without the amazing team that we have. So thank you to all of my co-workers and it is a real pleasure to be here without talking about a sinkhole, a bridge, a derailment, a fire, or a flood. So thank you for all your support.

[15:36] Thank you very much.

[15:50] Thank you very much.

[15:51] Thank you for your contribution.

[15:52] I had the laugh when I came out tonight to receive this.

[15:54] I was like, what did community college contribute?

[15:56] compared to all of the amazing things that these people did.

[16:01] I think we did an excellent job of just getting the heck out of the way.

[16:05] Our main campus is right at the edge of the footprint of the event space

[16:09] and so we shut that down and then decided to also close down our other campuses and centers

[16:14] because we wanted to reduce public transit ridership,

[16:18] we wanted to reduce cars on the roads, we wanted to keep everybody out of the way.

[16:21] It was a tough time, it was about a week before finals

[16:23] And so students were very anxious and the faculty were very anxious, but hey, we're Pittsburghers and so we adapted and we overcame and we were proud to be in our little part, a part of this event that really showcased our region.

[16:38] So thanks very much.

[16:41] Thank you.

[16:41] So it's an exhibition authority.

[16:44] Clark Sparler.

[16:46] Thank you.

[16:47] Congratulations.

[16:48] Sports and exhibition authority just wants to thank you,

[16:51] County Council and the County Executive,

[16:53] our board member,

[16:54] Policina for all their leadership

[16:57] and bringing everybody together.

[16:59] And we appreciate the recognition,

[17:01] but that's not why we do this.

[17:04] We appreciate what's happened for Pittsburgh

[17:05] and the great event that was brought to our city.

[17:08] So, thank you very much.

[17:09] Thank you.

[17:12] Kim.

[17:13] Yeah, help.

[17:15] Does the old part open?

[17:16] Oops, sorry.

[17:17] Let's switch.

[17:18] What?

[17:19] Kim, your turn.

[17:21] Thank you so much.

[17:22] We're often told that the Health Department is the bureaucrat of all bureaucrats for the county.

[17:28] And so I just want to say thank you to everybody that was involved with the planning.

[17:33] I think we had a really successful initiative for our food safety.

[17:36] We know food outbreaks, thankfully, for any of the attendees.

[17:40] And then we really got to work with our new public health laboratory and getting everything up and running for the biohazard testing.

[17:48] And so that was a great initiative that really put us on the map for that process.

[17:52] So thank you.

[17:53] Thank you.

[17:57] Airports, there you go.

[18:00] Thank you.

[18:01] I just want to say thank you to County Council.

[18:03] Thank you to so many of you who came out to tour the airports during the construction.

[18:08] it's done, it served very well as the front door to the region.

[18:11] We were very happy to play the role that we did in the NFL draft

[18:14] and welcoming people from all around the world to Pittsburgh.

[18:17] So we look forward to having you back out to the airport sometime soon

[18:21] as we look to open up our air side and land side terraces coming up soon.

[18:25] So we'll see you there.

[18:26] Thank you.

[18:27] We'll see you guys.

[18:29] Quality police.

[18:31] You can tell the way you're dressed.

[18:33] Thank you.

[18:36] Thank you, thank you for the recognition.

[18:41] Thank you.

[18:43] She's from.

[18:44] She's from.

[18:45] Come on up.

[18:49] You're pretty often.

[18:50] Yeah, it's a big crowd.

[18:52] Thank you.

[18:53] Again, just briefly, thank you for all the support from County Council, the County Executive.

[18:58] It is a great partnership and certainly I think we were proud to represent Steelers Nation as well as the NFL from a public safety standpoint.

[19:06] and the partnership with City of Pittsburgh,

[19:09] our regional partners in public safety.

[19:11] It shines every day and it certainly shows itself here.

[19:14] Thank you again.

[19:14] Thank you.

[19:18] Sheriff's Department, we have anybody

[19:19] from the Sheriff's Department here?

[19:21] I'll accept that.

[19:21] There we go.

[19:22] Oh, there you go, Mike.

[19:24] Thank you very much, everybody.

[19:26] Thank you.

[19:27] Okay.

[19:28] Well, that just might cause a problem.

[19:30] Do you want to remind you that this was a county event,

[19:33] but I just want to remind everyone

[19:34] this was also people from the city.

[19:36] We're the city police and all of their public works and this was Homeland Security, State Police, FBI.

[19:44] I mean, you're talking a lot of people here so I just want to recognize them as well.

[19:48] Thank you.

[19:49] Picture, time for a picture.

[20:21] You were screaming, it was crazy.

[20:23] Oh yeah, I wore my concealer.

[20:24] You guys see my video, some boy.

[20:25] I used my colors crockpot.

[20:27] That's a scary part.

[20:28] I'm going to do a neighborhood.

[20:30] I'm going to see everything else.

[20:46] Ready?

[20:48] Group.

[20:49] All right.

[20:50] One, two, three.

[20:53] Couple.

[20:54] One, two, three.

[21:00] We got him.

[21:01] Yes.

[21:14] We're at your city for Thailand.

[21:25] Oh, these are the Thailand ones.

[22:08] The remaining proclamations will be right into the record.

[22:13] 13992-26 is a proclamation recognizing the 75th anniversary of the Society of Women

[22:17] Engineers of Pittsburgh sponsored by Council Member Paul Mary. 13993-26 is a proclamation recognizing the 5th annual

[22:24] amount 11 and pride celebration sponsored by council members Grisbeck and Vada. 13994-26 is a

[22:30] proclamation recognizing the Berthner House Restoration Society on their 50th annual Berthner House

[22:35] Strawberry Festival sponsored by council member Fittulis. 13995-26 is a proclamation recognizing Dr.

[22:41] James Walsh on his retirement from Bethel Park School District sponsored by council member Grisbeck

[22:46] and 13996-26 is a proclamation recognizing Munhall Borough on the occasion of its 125th anniversary

[22:52] every sponsor by Council member Adams.

[22:55] Public comment on agenda items?

[22:57] We have not.

[22:58] Okay.

[22:58] Approval of the minutes.

[23:00] Also not.

[23:01] Presentation of appointments.

[23:03] Also not.

[23:04] Unfinished business.

[23:06] So at the request of the primary sponsor, all three of these nominations will be held until

[23:11] our July 7th regular meeting.

[23:14] It's under the Committee on Appointment Review.

[23:21] It was not agenda.

[23:22] That's the end.

[23:23] At the end of the meeting.

[23:24] Thank you.

[23:39] next item on the agenda okay we'll take care of it at the end of the meeting thank you

[23:45] next item is 13952-26 an ordinance of the County of Allegheny commonwealth of

[23:50] Pennsylvania directing the referendum question regarding the repeal of Article 3

[23:54] Section 7-F, the Honorable Charter of Allegheny County, which limits the annual operating budget of the Office of County Council be placed on the November 3rd, 2026 General Election Ballot and further amending Article 3 Section 7, contingent upon passage of the referendum question, sponsored by Council Members Hallum, Bottom, Madonna, Emerling, Rose, Grisbeck, Katina, and Palmasina.

[24:15] Mr. Grisbeck, would you turn over to you please?

[24:19] Thank you very much, Madam Chair, on the June 9th meeting of the Committee on Government Reform.

[24:28] This bill was a firmly recommended to a full-of-the-counsel.

[24:31] I'd like to make a motion to approve.

[24:33] Second.

[24:33] Okay, motion has been made and a second.

[24:36] Is there a discussion?

[24:37] Yes.

[24:38] Yes, Council Member Walton.

[24:40] I have to share my opposition to this legislation.

[24:52] I hope the residents of Allegheny County, taxpayer,

[24:59] really understand what is about to take place.

[25:05] While I fully expect this measure to pass,

[25:10] I think that this is a real disservice to the residents of Allianne County.

[25:23] We, County Council, are allocated a specific amount of dollars based upon the revenue in the operating budget and the

[25:43] check of this and the following

[25:47] and piece of legislation will place a real burden on taxpayers across the county.

[25:55] We are facing legislation that are asking for an inquiry of reassessions, which will

[26:06] ultimately drive up the taxes that residents paid and out of the county.

[26:11] We're confronted with rising rates from alpha-sane, rising rates from decaying light, rising, rising rates from, um,

[26:23] the water, the pan-american water, and, um, the water authority of Pittsburgh.

[26:31] rates are going up. We are asking to take the cap off the budget.

[26:41] Council is

[26:43] allocating enemy that we had discussed in this issue. I asked the staff three

[26:53] different times and three different ways. Was there anything that needs to be done?

[27:00] that isn't being done. In every instance, in every question the answer was no. So that means

[27:08] we don't need more money, we don't need to have more staff,

[27:14] we don't need to create

[27:16] additional political features that these dollars will be used to create. I'm saying each

[27:22] and every one of them, I told you what I was going to do. I said I was going to oppose

[27:28] and I'm going to tell you that you will be held accountable. Each and every one of these will help you account,

[27:35] will be held accountable by tax pay, for wasting tax dollars, for grass, and tax pay, for people. I'm done.

[27:42] Thank you. Any other discussion? Council Member Filioji? Thank you very much, Madam President.

[27:49] And I want to respectfully urge my colleagues to reconsider the two ordinances before us today.

[27:54] That would remove current limitations on County Council's budget and benefits.

[28:00] It's very respectfully, but it is an urgent call.

[28:05] I do understand that Council needs the tools and resources to serve residents and perform

[28:10] its oversight role.

[28:12] But we also have to consider how this will look to the taxpayers that we represent.

[28:18] Even if these proposals do not immediately increase spending, eliminating the cap creates

[28:23] the appearance, the council is asking for open-ended authority over its own budget.

[28:30] That concern is heightened by the serious financial issues already facing the county.

[28:35] We have looming county-wide property reassessments.

[28:39] The pension fund modernization project that we just heard about will not may, will require

[28:46] roughly $90 to $100 million in additional annual funding to meet our obligation and

[28:53] And this is an obligation we already have and that we have committed to.

[28:57] It isn't one that we're just taking on.

[29:00] And finally, the consequences, the financial consequences that may occur for the paid parental leave in the form of hidden tax being thought of as a hidden tax by county residents and consumers.

[29:14] At a time when residents are facing uncertainty and higher costs, we should especially be cautious about any action that suggests

[29:21] Yes, Council is prioritizing its own budget flexibility.

[29:26] Our constituents expect restraint, transparency, and accountability.

[29:32] If there are specific needs for staff, legal supporter operations, we should identify them and

[29:36] clearly consider a more measured approach with appropriate limits.

[29:42] But removing the cap entirely at this moment sends the wrong message.

[29:46] For those reasons, I urge no vote today or at a minimum, a pause, so we can bring forward

[29:53] a proposal that better reflects the concerns of the residents and better reflects the actual

[29:58] needs of council.

[30:00] Thank you very much. Thank you. Other members of council? Madam President. Council member Rose. I absolutely agree that we have to consider how this looks to the tax payers, which is why I think it's important to talk about why this measure is a positive. So for all the reasons that the council member just listed, the county face is a tough financial prospect and it has for many years. That kids going back now, it's faced very significant financial barriers, including a period where we had $25 million in the bank.

[30:28] or literally days away from running afkath, right?

[30:32] And there's many, many reasons we can go into a long history about why all these things happen.

[30:35] But one of the consistent is this council has been unable to exercise effective oversight of the budgetary process and of the taxpayer's funds.

[30:43] And the reason for this is pretty straightforward.

[30:45] This is not a small operation.

[30:47] This county has a $3 billion budget in place 6,000 people.

[30:50] It governs 1.2 million citizens.

[30:52] That's larger than eight states.

[30:54] I know there's a romantic image of the citizen legislator, someone coming down to the

[30:58] core house once a month, the vote on some bills about how it should be, and then go

[31:02] on home.

[31:02] But like, once again, we run a larger operation than eight states.

[31:07] The state legislator Delaware is not trying to operate with three and a half staff members.

[31:11] For us to be able to, you know, provide effective oversight of the budgetary process, make sure

[31:17] the taxpayers dollars are being spent wisely in accordance with the general welfare.

[31:21] We need to treat ourselves seriously.

[31:23] We cannot just continuously try to put up this facade that we are doing our jobs when we're not giving ourselves the resources or ability to actually do that job.

[31:32] Like our staff is wonderful, but there's three of them at the moment.

[31:35] We used to have four. We used to have a few more. It keeps shrinking.

[31:38] And I don't think anyone's looking to like some of the higher 50 people.

[31:40] Like we're looking at like maybe like six or seven, right?

[31:44] Like these are very small increases that would allow councils, some basic tools to really start intervening in these processes.

[31:50] make sure these budgetary crises don't keep popping up.

[31:53] We just heard today from one of our, you know,

[31:55] other council members here that, you know,

[31:58] had no idea that this giant pitfall

[32:00] and our pension fund had been developing

[32:02] over this period of 15 years.

[32:03] Some basic staffing help

[32:05] couldn't prevent these situations from rising again.

[32:09] Thank you.

[32:10] Other members?

[32:10] Madam President.

[32:13] I believe that council member Klein would like to.

[32:16] Well, with these proposed ordinances, I think in many respects, what we are seeking here is something of a recent striking some kind of balance between the executive branch and as we are the legislative branch, our current model, you know, as devised, contemplated a strong executive and a tinkerbell of the executive branch.

[32:46] a legislature there but hardly there at all.

[32:50] Occasionally we would sprinkle some, you know, pixie dust and in fact it is the perception

[32:59] of many that this body is essentially window dressing, the illusion of a co-equal body.

[33:08] I think that what we're doing with this is we're looking to be liberated from the constraints

[33:13] grants in the home rule charter so that we can get closer to having a co-equal branch

[33:20] of government.

[33:20] My due counsel will be responsible for any actions that we ultimately take and will have

[33:28] to be accountable and respond to that in the event that our constituents are concerned.

[33:36] But what we're trying to do is suggest that with what is being proposed here today, we might

[33:43] I do something that gives council more of a voice, more authority for the purpose of giving us legitimacy that in many respects, we don't seem to have.

[33:57] Now, the real challenge here will be crafting language in a referendum, which is a real challenge that the public will actually understand in terms of what they are signing on for if they support or decide to oppose this.

[34:12] But what we're really trying to do here is we're trying to, we're going for a reset in terms of the balance between the executive branch and the legislative branch.

[34:23] Thank you. Did I see someone? Council member, if you told us?

[34:31] Well, as we've been reminded, this is a referendum question and the way things are going,

[34:38] all these questions that I see on the ballot and I'm not sure why we would want to put

[34:43] a question on the ballot that we know, I know that's going to go down in flames.

[34:50] There's no way that people are going to say, give you the opportunity to spend whatever

[34:55] you want in government there's just no way and it just fortifies the fact that people may look at

[35:02] county councilors. Why do you ask any questions? What's your goal? What's your motivation? What's your

[35:09] agenda? Because things like this don't need to be asked. They really don't and I just don't want to

[35:17] make us look like something that we're not to the public because things

[35:26] are tough enough

[35:27] And I'm going to be a no vote on this, so thank you.

[35:32] Thank you.

[35:33] Any other council member, Giger Schoen?

[35:36] Yes, I think I would echo some of the challenges that council member Klein discussed that this

[35:43] body is faced as well as some of the opportunities that council member Rose mentioned that this

[35:49] presents.

[35:49] I can say, I had a lot of hesitation initially about the idea of removing a cap and moving towards an unlimited situation where council could do this 50 staff.

[36:06] That said, I know it was discussed in committee, but I want to make sure for the public who's here, those listening tonight, that this still has to be legislated and

[36:17] associated with the executive by whether it's us or future councils.

[36:23] And that justification and accountability to the taxpayers will occur for any council that does make such an adjustment.

[36:31] And so I just want folks to be aware that first of all, this is putting it out to the voters to make a decision.

[36:37] And second of all, we will all be accountable for future decisions in budgets or legislation related to council's budget.

[36:45] Thank you.

[36:46] Any

[36:49] other comments?

[36:50] Okay. I would just like to say my concern is a timing concern because we have the Government Review Commission that is a body that works with us every 10 years.

[37:01] That's appointed by both the County Executive and this Council.

[37:05] And I would rather see this particular type of question turned over to that body for review and analysis.

[37:14] And I think it's a place suited for them to take into consideration while they're working with us for the 12-month period.

[37:22] This year our staff's budget was 1.5 next year it's projected to be 2 million and for me, I think it's a timing issue and I'd rather delay that.

[37:34] Okay, so with that said, may we have a roll call?

[37:40] All in the motion approved, Mr. Adams.

[37:44] No.

[37:45] Mr. Bada.

[37:46] Yes.

[37:48] Mr. Catena.

[37:50] Yes.

[37:52] Ms. Filiaji.

[37:53] No.

[37:54] Mr. Fithoulos.

[37:55] No.

[37:55] Mr. Grisbeck.

[37:56] Yes.

[37:57] Ms. Halm.

[37:57] Yes.

[37:58] Mr. Klein.

[37:59] Yes.

[37:59] Ms. Madonna Ammerling.

[38:00] Yes.

[38:01] Mr. Paul Mary.

[38:02] No.

[38:03] Mr. Paul Messena.

[38:04] Yes.

[38:05] Mr. Rose.

[38:06] Yes.

[38:07] Ms. Geiger-Scholman.

[38:08] Yes.

[38:08] Mr. Walton.

[38:17] And the next item on the agenda is 13953-26.

[38:23] In order to the county of Allegheny Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, directing the referendum

[38:26] question regarding the repeal of Article 3, Section 7, C of the Home Rule Charter of Allegheny

[38:30] County, which prohibits only county council members from receiving county funding for personal

[38:34] staff.

[38:34] District Office is in front of benefit to be placed on the November 3, 2026 General Election

[38:38] ballot and further amending Article 3, Section 7 contingent upon the passage of the referendum

[38:43] questions sponsored by Council Members Hallum, Bada, Madonna Emerling, Rose, Grisbeck,

[38:48] Katina, and Paul Messina. Council member Grisbeck. Thank you, Madam Chair. This bill was heard

[38:53] on the June 9th meeting of the Committee on Government Reform and affirmatively recommended

[38:57] to a full vote of Council. I'd like to make a motion to approve. Second. Okay, emotion has been made

[39:02] in a second is there any discussion on this particular bill? Absolutely. Council Member

[39:08] Walton.

[39:12] It doesn't take anybody with more than a kindergarten education to recognize.

[39:20] You just remove the cap on their spending. Now you're saying we want to have personal

[39:26] I don't understand. This was a look of I repeat. As the question is three times what is the word being done? Is there something that needs to be done that isn't getting done? The answer is, each answer is no.

[39:46] So I'll tell you, look, I'm not going to be part of this

[39:57] boom down, to hood clean

[39:59] folks. I can't hear knowing full well what the deal was and what the responsibility was.

[40:08] I made clear decisions that I was going to live within these parameters.

[40:16] I also said, I agree with President Nakarani Chapters.

[40:24] If you want to deal with this issue and not take accountability, it was possibility for me.

[40:32] Passing on to the Governor of Foreign Commission, there's going to come back to the report in the next several months.

[40:38] But, look, we came here with full knowledge of the challenges and asked to be legislated.

[40:49] It asked to be legislated, understanding full well how the system operates, what we

[40:57] need, what our limitations work, what our challenges work.

[41:00] And now we are going to waste taxpayers' money, I'm not poor back, I'm not with that, I'm

[41:08] I'm not going to do that. I will oppose it.

[41:12] I'll say this is the-

[41:17] Anybody else in, like, Council Member Grisbeck?

[41:19] Thank you very much, Madam Chair.

[41:20] I think understanding the full importance of why

[41:24] these pieces of legislation are beneficial

[41:27] to the county as a whole, not just to us

[41:29] individually as Council Members.

[41:31] It's pretty beneficial to go back to whenever I start on

[41:34] Council Member, my first year.

[41:36] The first big item that I had to tackle

[41:39] was a potential initially, I think it was 45% tax increase, increase in real estate taxes and not being 36%.

[41:48] But I think how that came about and how that occurred is really important.

[41:54] Over about a five consecutive year period, the council and the county as a whole was operating at an increasingly larger budgetary deficit.

[42:04] So, council who has budgetary oversight of the county executive's office was allowing us to pass a budget that was operating at a deficit year, after year, after year, after year, until eventually the year that I came on council, it ballooned to roughly $100 million in the red.

[42:22] I would say that a body that is properly resourced and has what they need to perform their duties would not allow for a hundred million-dollar yearly budgetary deficit.

[42:33] I would say that two Councilwoman Filiaji's point earlier, they would not allow a pension system to currently be in a $1.4 billion deficit.

[42:44] That, to me, reeks of a government body that does not have the resources that it needs.

[42:49] It is not appropriately situated to perform the duties that it is taxed of.

[42:55] So, to Councilman Rose's point, if we are able to increase those resources and

[43:01] better equip us as Council members to provide good fiduciary oversight to the county as a whole.

[43:07] That has the ability to, while it costs money in the short term, in the long term be beneficial to the taxpayers of Allegheny County.

[43:14] That's all I have. Thank you.

[43:17] Madam Chair.

[43:18] Council Member Vada.

[43:20] Thank you, President Nackarady Chapgis.

[43:23] Just to keep things very brief, I just wanted to mention the fact that

[43:27] a lot of my colleagues here are correct in saying that this is essentially a

[43:33] change in our county charter, which would enhance the

[43:39] influence for county council members to

[43:42] to have in helping members of their constituency, right?

[43:47] Apart from the at-large members, we each represent approximately 100,000 people in different districts across the county.

[43:54] And I find no better form of government than to put it in front of the voters so that they can directly have an influence over the decisions of our county charter.

[44:03] Again, this is not us dictating what we are going to do or what we're not going to do, this is giving the power to the voters to make that decision.

[44:10] And if they would like to see a better representation on county government, then so be it, and if they choose against it, then so be it.

[44:23] Councillor Neill Rose.

[44:24] Just to kind of answer Councillor Neill or Walton, you know, Councillor Neill or Walton has asked like, what are some things our staff is not doing right now, right?

[44:32] I think it's fair to provide some answers to that.

[44:35] So we have a wonderful staff, but they are small. They're small and mighty.

[44:38] So some things that I would love to see in the future for one.

[44:40] But this council has approval authority over, we don't know how many boards.

[44:45] The administration in this council is not aware of the full extent of the true number

[44:50] of boards and authorities that we appoint members to.

[44:53] So someone to figure that out and someone to review the applicants to investigate the applicants

[44:58] on behalf of council.

[45:00] Provide some independent qualifications and some independent review. Right now, we get like a one-page summary and maybe a resume from the administration, right? So someone to work on the appointments, which, I mean, these boards control a vast amount of authority over people's lives in this county, over all types of aspects of life, right? So something there. Our budget team, our budget director is amazing. She's one person. It's a $3 billion budget. There's 15 members of this council. There's no way she can sit there and craft, you know,

[45:29] So, single-handedly, put together a $3 billion document that takes into the needs and qualifications of all 15 members of this council as they decide their budget priorities, right?

[45:39] I would love someone to help with constituents services more, a more specialized person that can establish relationships at the different departments.

[45:45] I mean, at the state level, at the federal level, your representatives have vast staffs to form those relationships and get problem-solved through constituents services so we don't have that capacity.

[45:56] There's a lot this body could be doing to act as a true legislative body that we're not because we've decided to not

[46:02] Give ourselves the resources

[46:04] Thank you

[46:08] Councilmember if you told us. No, you've got to love me. This

[46:13] question

[46:15] It just reminds me of I mean, what can I say that this is like a Johnny Cash

[46:24] country song

[46:26] I'm gonna go on a burn on a ring of fire because this thing's gonna go down and a burning ring of fire

[46:32] How could you possibly ask a question to the people of this county?

[46:36] We want as much money as we want to take.

[46:38] We want to hire as much staff as we need.

[46:42] That's the way I see it.

[46:43] And anybody that votes for this, you've got to be out of your mind.

[46:47] Thank you.

[46:51] Okay.

[46:52] Does it look like there are any other comments?

[46:53] May we have a roll call please?

[46:55] On the motion approve, Mr. Adams.

[46:59] No.

[47:00] Mr. Bada?

[47:01] Yes.

[47:01] Mr. Catena.

[47:02] Yeah, Ms. Filiaggi.

[47:06] No.

[47:07] Mr. Fittolas.

[47:08] Big no.

[47:09] Mr. Grisbeck.

[47:10] Yes.

[47:11] Ms. Hallam.

[47:12] Big yes.

[47:13] Mr. Klein.

[47:14] Yes.

[47:15] Ms. Madonna Amerling.

[47:16] Yes.

[47:16] Mr. Paul Marry.

[47:17] No.

[47:19] Mr. Paul Messena.

[47:20] Yes.

[47:20] Mr. Rose.

[47:21] Yes.

[47:22] Ms. Geiger-Scholman.

[47:23] Yes.

[47:23] Mr. Walton.

[47:25] President Nackeredi-Chapkas.

[47:28] No.

[47:29] No.

[47:30] No sixes, the bill passes.

[47:32] Okay, next item on our agenda, liaison reports.

[47:35] Councilmember Helen.

[47:37] Thank you, President Nackarady-Chapkas.

[47:41] As the chair of Council's Housing and Homelessness Committee,

[47:44] I just wanted to give an update for folks for anybody

[47:46] who's not aware starting this weekend.

[47:51] The mayor of the City of Pittsburgh has decided to close down

[47:55] an entire section of this outside, okay?

[47:57] And now, while that might seem innocuous to some people, I just want folks to think about what that impact actually looks like.

[48:04] So the details of this are from now until September 12.

[48:09] So the entire summer, and then a little bit of fall two, from 10 p.m. till 2 a.m., 12 to 18th on Carson Street is going to be complete private area, okay?

[48:20] The privatization of a public taxpayer funded street, okay?

[48:25] there's going to be metal detectors at every entrance.

[48:28] There's going to be security drones.

[48:31] There's going to be triple the number of police presence.

[48:34] There's going to be eight foot barriers up on the streets.

[48:38] Folks are prohibited from bringing large bags or backpacks

[48:42] into this area.

[48:43] And there's a mandatory search of even smaller bags

[48:47] for anyone that goes through this area, right?

[48:51] anybody who lives in that zone that will be now closed down to the public and

[48:57] doesn't carry their ID with them everywhere they go won't be able to get in

[49:01] right you got to bring a utility bill let's say you have an expired ID you will

[49:06] not be able to get in this area you may not be able to get home let's say you are a

[49:11] family visiting your Duquesne University student who is 20 years old not quite

[49:16] 21. You guys have an 845 dinner reservation in that radius on the south side. Well dinner's

[49:22] not over by 10. Private security will have to escort your 20 year old students out of

[49:29] the area with them. And again, the reason I brought this up in the first place is what about

[49:33] our on-house populations, the people who live outside in our community, a large portion of which

[49:39] reside in the south side, they will be having every item that they own, which we know they often

[49:45] and have to carry with them everywhere they go

[49:47] to make sure it doesn't get stolen.

[49:49] Every item that they own is subject to search

[49:52] without a warrant, just for them existing

[49:55] in the south side on the weekends all summer long.

[50:00] I think anyone who doesn't know about this should look into this.

[50:03] I think we as a legislative body

[50:05] in which the entire city is within

[50:08] should really be looking at any actions that we can take

[50:11] to stop this unconstitutional practice

[50:14] to protect both the folks who live in Southside, those who want to, you know, explore the economy

[50:20] of the Southside, and are on house neighbors who very much exist, who very much need and

[50:26] deserve our protection, and who will inevitably be irreparably harmed as a result of this policy.

[50:32] And so I hope that we as a council, I know we go on recess soon, but hopefully over the next

[50:37] couple weeks before that happens, we can explore doing something to intervene to stop this from happening.

[50:43] So thank you very much, President.

[50:45] Thank you.

[50:46] Any other liaison reports?

[50:50] Councilmember Phileology.

[50:51] Thank you, Madam President.

[50:53] I just on a vastly lighter note.

[50:55] We have the Allegheny County Park Foundation.

[50:58] I was able to attend my first meeting

[51:00] on the Board of Directors.

[51:02] And I just wanted to convey to everyone in the county

[51:06] that this foundation, which I know everyone's familiar with,

[51:10] I want to urge everyone to accept the opportunity

[51:13] to go to the foundation twilight picnic in August, it really is fun, and it's also an opportunity to meet the people that are helping, that are partnering with the county to make the parks into the special place that we all believe they are.

[51:28] It was enlightening to be able to be there, and it was also happened to be the 2018-2026 strategic plan accomplishments that they rolled out and also moving into the strategic plan moving forward.

[51:43] and it is a well run organization that has long term plans to make and partner with the

[51:50] Allegheny County even further and just continue the gems that we have in this county. These are

[51:56] our greatest assets. So just wanted to give a positive note, shout out, and our directors,

[52:01] director Swedish from the parks, director Shanley from Public Works. They were there, they participated

[52:07] and are highlighting some of the good works going on

[52:10] from the sponsor by the county in the parks.

[52:13] So we look good, too.

[52:14] Madam President, yesterday, you and I

[52:20] had an opportunity to participate in a ribbon cutting

[52:26] for

[52:30] low income population

[52:36] in Turtle Creek.

[52:38] You indicated to me, and as part of our conversation,

[52:42] that she went to school there in that building as a child.

[52:47] I want to say that the work that Richard Stevenson

[52:52] is doing as executive director

[52:54] of the Albany County Housing Authority is phenomenal.

[52:59] Here's a terms of how he's trying to transform the business matter.

[53:03] How he's trying to bring as creating an environment

[53:07] that generates economic as well as social justice

[53:12] for those individuals.

[53:16] It was a continuation of the things

[53:20] that I think this county should be about,

[53:22] how we engage in practices that really transform people

[53:26] lives and give them an opportunity for real equity

[53:30] and opportunity to improve the property and the economy

[53:34] of their lives and the communities in which they live.

[53:39] And it was a powerful day, and it was a privilege for me to be part of that.

[53:43] And I say, Kudo, to Richard Stevens, and that would be the county house.

[53:49] And I would like to second that.

[53:51] Thank you for mentioning that wonderful opportunity that we all had.

[53:55] So just this background, this building used to be St.

[53:59] Coleman's school in Turtle Creek.

[54:01] It is a beautiful architectural building.

[54:04] They were able to preserve it, but also transformed it into 26 apartments now for

[54:10] those who are aging out of the foster system.

[54:12] So it's geared toward 18 to 24 year olds, again, 26 apartments that will be available.

[54:18] They'll have a case manager who's working on the social determinants of health,

[54:22] working with community partners in workforce development.

[54:26] And it is a fantastic example of how the housing authority is moving forward to self-sufficiency for individuals all across the county.

[54:36] And I agree Council Member Walton, it was an amazing day and I look forward to seeing the incredible work that continues under the Allegheny County Housing Authority.

[54:45] But thank you for mentioning that.

[54:55] Anybody else?

[54:56] Again, a Commonwealth of Pennsylvania authorizing the continued use of Allegheny County owned real property in White Oak Park by the White Oak animal safe Haven as a no-kill animal rescue rehabilitation and adoption center sponsored by the chief executive that will go to the committee on parks 13998-26, a resolution of the County of Allegheny Commonwealth of Pennsylvania supporting McGee Women's Hospital registered nurses and advanced practitioners who are advocating for national staffing standards and urging UPMC to work collaboratively with them to negotiate a fair union contract sponsored by council members Madonna Emerling

[55:26] Rose, Katina, Halem, and Grisbeck.

[55:28] That'll go to the committee on health.

[55:31] Sheriff, please add me that.

[55:33] Aaron wanted that.

[55:35] I'm sorry.

[55:35] Could you repeat that, Mr. Adams?

[55:38] Can you please add me to that resolution, please?

[55:40] Can do.

[55:41] Thank you.

[55:41] I may do.

[55:42] Please thank you.

[55:43] I may as well.

[55:44] Can I, too, please?

[55:51] Under new business, any motions?

[55:54] No.

[55:55] Notification of contracts?

[55:57] None.

[55:58] Public comment on general items.

[56:00] We have six individuals who signed up timely. First up is Catherine Dickey.

[56:16] I'm Katie. You know me. Katie Dickey. Wilkins Township, apparently, but like right on the border.

[56:22] Speaking just for myself today, social worker and Wilkinsburg as well. Okay, so this past year I'm

[56:28] saying yes to things all the time when I'm invited to them. That's how I ended up here all the time.

[56:32] It started as a joke about marrying the movement after like a weird breakup, but now it's been like

[56:37] eat, pray love where every stop is get go all the time. It's kind of great. I'm not going to lie

[56:42] by the end of it. I'm hoping to have like an organizing degree and ten dollars maybe

[56:46] and a really good immune system. Okay so I was curious about the Redeemer Church people who've

[56:51] been coming here a lot and this is just informational and you can fact check this yourself for

[56:55] elaborate as you see fit. So I met Joe Griffo here. He's their lead pastor. He told me I was going to

[57:03] burn in sulfur fire, which was so metal that I had

[57:05] directly professional, but they represent a larger

[57:09] alt-right movement, and they're not single issue

[57:11] speakers.

[57:12] So they're going to be back.

[57:13] So it's important we get acquainted.

[57:15] In the 2020 religious census, we have 100, 1,131

[57:21] religious congregations in Allegheny County.

[57:23] That would be 87 over your districts if they were

[57:25] spread evenly, but they're not.

[57:27] They're kind of concentrated.

[57:28] This one is in the South Hills.

[57:31] In their registry on ministry.org, they have just over a hundred people in 2016, they have

[57:36] an updated that number since.

[57:39] Their main leaders are Joe Griffo, Luke Griffo, Aaron Pratt and Bill Powell, the names, titles

[57:44] and photos of all the people who they send to these sorts of events the most are all available

[57:48] on their website, which is redeemerchurchsh.org.

[57:52] Some of the doctrines they believe in, I dug into a little bit the Chicago Statement on

[57:56] Biblical in Erecy states that Biblical truth,

[58:00] Trump's scientific truth.

[58:04] Diverse statement excludes women from leadership,

[58:06] which would be really bad if we wanted to get a vote

[58:07] here like ever again, and then the natural statement,

[58:11] they adhere to which restricts Christianity

[58:13] to only trans-exclusive homophobic churches.

[58:17] So yeah, feel free to look into each of those by name.

[58:20] There's so much good stuff online about what that could mean

[58:23] and for policy and for where advocacy gets concentrated.

[58:28] Also, well, you're looking really hard for work

[58:31] that needs to be done and you're walking away a lot

[58:33] when we come here and talk about it.

[58:35] The work being done can be found in public comment.

[58:37] Please stay and stop limiting public comment

[58:40] on potent topics.

[58:41] You don't report to the city county relationship

[58:44] and many of the folks I served don't even live in the city.

[58:46] So kind of what's going on there

[58:47] or who we're talking to there does not matter.

[58:50] the what matters is what's coming from the constituents.

[58:54] I did just that to be honest, but I know the work feels small when you're not reliably always encountering it and doing it.

[59:02] Please come talk to some of the social workers in Wilkinsburg.

[59:04] We would love to talk about more work with the county, could have their hands in,

[59:08] that could change lives and help transform Pittsburgh's exec seconds.

[59:11] Thank you so much.

[59:12] I'll talk to you soon.

[59:13] Thank you.

[59:15] Jan Martin.

[59:19] No.

[59:21] Brendan Whistinger.

[59:22] I didn't see that.

[59:24] No.

[59:26] Rosalind Tosh.

[59:28] She's here.

[59:36] I'm here to tell Pat Katina to resign.

[59:40] It's been a few weeks since we addressed you Pat Katina.

[59:43] You're still not here.

[59:45] But this county does not need a coward who will sit on Zoom calls

[59:49] in fear of interacting with his own constituents.

[59:52] This county does not need a coward who will throw a vulnerable community

[59:55] under the bus in order to try to gain votes.

[1:00:00] And this county does not need a coward like you. Trans people among many other marginalized groups are under unprecedented federal attacks right now, as well as attacks to our direct safety from organized and unorganized threats. Our siblings out of state are losing their driver's licenses, trans people in like Tennessee and we're having to deal with our family and our friends who are experiencing this.

[1:00:29] And in this state, in this county, people who we know who are younger or who don't have

[1:00:36] the same privileges in terms of access to health care are losing the health care that

[1:00:39] they need in order to live comfortably and safely.

[1:00:43] And these are the people who you pat Katina through under the bus thinking that it would gain

[1:00:49] you votes.

[1:00:50] I'm mostly interacting with college students since I am a student at CMU and students are

[1:00:58] scared right now.

[1:00:58] It is a scary time to be a trans person, even though CMU is a relatively safe campus.

[1:01:04] People are hearing about incidents like UW, near Seattle, but trans woman, my age, who

[1:01:09] probably looked and sounded a lot like me, was stabbed 40 times by someone she didn't know.

[1:01:15] And students are hearing about this, they're seeing in this county health care being taken

[1:01:19] away for people like them, because many of them are under 19, and again, they have someone

[1:01:26] an in-county council who is trying to use them to score cheap political points.

[1:01:32] But even though it is a scary time to be any marginalized group right now, I don't know

[1:01:36] a single one who was sitting by idly.

[1:01:39] All of us are strengthening and organizing and finding how they can go to the governments

[1:01:46] that are betraying them and get help.

[1:01:49] And part of that is finding people like Pat Katina who are willing to throw us under the

[1:01:55] bus, for political gain and not relenting. This county, the state, is not a stranger to

[1:02:04] traitors. Has someone who has marched in the street with a thousand people chanting

[1:02:09] Fuck John Fetterman. Has someone who has stood outside his office and freezing rain with

[1:02:13] my knuckles frozen to a picket sign. I am aware of how long people can continue to push

[1:02:20] back against one person and how unwilling they are to forget when they're betrayed by someone

[1:02:25] they voted for. And I think that you're going to find yourself in the same position. You already

[1:02:31] have found yourself in the same position, given that you're refusing to show up. And so I'm asking you to

[1:02:36] resign. Thank you.

[1:02:40] Chef Davis.

[1:02:55] Hello, I'm Chef Davis of Squirrel Hill. Packet Tina should resign.

[1:02:59] All of the members of the council should formally advocate his resignation. I'm going to talk about

[1:03:03] what Pacatina did, why his existence on this council is unacceptable, and why and what

[1:03:08] you should all do about it.

[1:03:10] So, as I'm sure you all know, last month, Pacatina as part of his campaign for the State

[1:03:16] House of Representatives mailed advertisements to a targeted group of voters, slurring transwights

[1:03:24] organizations as extremists, and saying that people should vote for him because of that.

[1:03:29] Literally hundreds of people have spoken in this exact room testifying to the widespread

[1:03:33] a heart that this is done, including the Council's general, failure to protect

[1:03:38] trans people, a bit national, onslaught, and yet Pat Katina had made zero formal

[1:03:44] or material amends at all. And when he sat down as president, he admitted no

[1:03:50] guilt or remorse about this issue. And yet he is still here, virtually.

[1:04:02] Why does

[1:04:03] and outrage to all established norms of political campaign ethics.

[1:04:08] The American Association of Political Consultants Code of Ethics, which is a standard for the industry,

[1:04:13] explicitly forbids appeals to identity-based prejudice as path to Tina, flagrantly

[1:04:20] performed.

[1:04:22] Also, I've performed research interviews with dozens of political consultants.

[1:04:26] The number one ethical issue that they say is important right now is not saying different

[1:04:31] and things to different people based on micro-targeting,

[1:04:33] which is what Pakatina did.

[1:04:35] At the same time that he sent that mail,

[1:04:36] he was also actively courting the favor and approval

[1:04:39] of various LGBTQ plus organizations.

[1:04:41] This was too faced of him.

[1:04:44] And the fact that the council has made no formal advocacy

[1:04:48] for him to step down, amount to it,

[1:04:50] acceptance of the president,

[1:04:51] that any of you can use micro-targeting

[1:04:54] to send too faced hate speech to anyone you want.

[1:04:57] And you can still be here.

[1:04:59] That's the president that you all have basically accepted at this point.

[1:05:03] It is absolutely within your power to formally advocate for Pat Katina's resignation.

[1:05:09] Moreover, it would be consistent with the council's stated values.

[1:05:12] On May 12th, you all lease a statement saying, quote,

[1:05:15] attacks on marginalized community, marginalized groups of people,

[1:05:19] and service of one's own political advancement is unacceptable.

[1:05:23] None of you gave any reason what Pat Katina should remain.

[1:05:27] Of course, advocating for Pat Katina's removal

[1:05:29] would not solve the problem of him being here, only voters can do that unless he finally

[1:05:35] grows a conscience. And of course it wouldn't completely remove your history of throwing

[1:05:42] trans people under the bus, but it would at least prevent this flagrant disregard for ethical

[1:05:47] norm from becoming president of this esteemed body. You all have it in your power to advocate

[1:05:53] his resignation and container resign.

[1:05:56] Thank you.

[1:05:59] Tom Bailey.

[1:06:09] Good

[1:06:13] evening.

[1:06:15] It's good to see you, Ms. Nakaradhi Chappas, in the president's chair.

[1:06:20] I apologize if I mispronounce your name.

[1:06:22] My name is Tom Bailey.

[1:06:23] My wife and I live in Penhills.

[1:06:24] I used to be a board member of Valley Clean Air now in Glassport, and Claireton.

[1:06:28] I met with a group of Springdale residents for the past three months.

[1:06:31] How do we get any property LLC as the developer who has proposed to build a 340 megawatt artificial intelligence data center in springdale?

[1:06:40] On June 11th, the developer filed a subdivision of land development ordinance application with the county's economic development office.

[1:06:46] Our group is educating ourselves about the application preparing to give public comment at the upcoming public hearing.

[1:06:53] The developer proposes to build a data center in springdale on the site of the former Cheswick Power Station.

[1:06:59] In 2025, the county identified Springdale as an environmental justice community of moderate

[1:07:04] need.

[1:07:05] One reason for this status is the pollution burden they've already suffered.

[1:07:10] Economic development will rule in a salto application and compliance with Pennsylvania's municipal

[1:07:14] planning code.

[1:07:16] As with many issues before the county and this body, when businesses compete with residents

[1:07:21] for access to our natural resources, the county wears another hat.

[1:07:24] That, of an Article I, Section 27 trustee of our public natural resources.

[1:07:29] In my opinion, the Trump and Shapiro administrations do not recognize nor defend this state civil right that we possess.

[1:07:37] This body, however, has already recognized the role of Section 27 public trustee that it holds.

[1:07:43] In 2022, you forbid tracking in county parks.

[1:07:47] I would argue you are the public trustee of all the public natural resources in Allegheny County, not this county parkland.

[1:07:54] As a result, all county offices, in my opinion, are Section 27 public trustees.

[1:08:00] So that brings me to the sustainability department's climate action plan.

[1:08:05] This climate action plan incorporates the hazard mitigation plan prepared by the county's emergency management agency.

[1:08:11] Section 4.3.12 discuss extreme temperatures in Allegheny County.

[1:08:17] Quote, extreme temperatures will lead to a larger strain on the power grid due to increased usage of

[1:08:23] Hating and cooling utilities in response, end quote, that's page 297.

[1:08:28] The hazardous materials agency on section 4.327 covered utility interruption.

[1:08:38] The past occurrences section reviewed the April 2025 wind and rain storm which

[1:08:43] left some county residents without power for two weeks.

[1:08:47] We and Penn Hills route for seven days.

[1:08:49] Finally, the county health department will be asked to grant an air pollution permits

[1:08:53] a developer.

[1:08:54] This is the cover and estimated 116 diesel generators to be used to power the facility

[1:09:01] if the power is out.

[1:09:03] They will operate 24-7 to ensure the developer's equipment does not overheat.

[1:09:08] I say this council should require industrial uses drawing this much electricity off the grid

[1:09:15] to use photovoltaic panels and battery backup.

[1:09:20] Thank you.

[1:09:21] Thank you.

[1:09:23] We have two individuals sign up late.

[1:09:26] Lucy Rose, Ruchio, and Mariah Park.

[1:09:32] Here comes one.

[1:09:34] I'm going to try to go real quick.

[1:09:34] That time we'll allow them.

[1:09:35] Is that okay?

[1:09:36] Yeah.

[1:09:37] So we're going to be real quick.

[1:09:38] Yeah.

[1:09:38] You won't go far.

[1:09:39] It really makes what I'm about to say.

[1:09:42] Great.

[1:09:43] I'm sorry.

[1:09:44] Can you state your name?

[1:09:44] Yes.

[1:09:45] I'm Lucy Rose, Ruchio.

[1:09:47] I live in the South Squirrel Hill.

[1:09:50] I'm here to speak out for paid parental leave.

[1:09:54] I've worked in the neonatal intensive care unit for over a decade

[1:09:57] and for the last five years as a nurse practitioner in the NICU at McGee Women's Hospital.

[1:10:02] I'm here as an advocate for my patients, my profession,

[1:10:05] and also for my two young sons and myself as we look forward to having our third in the fall.

[1:10:11] I think what unites us today and every day is a unique combination of love

[1:10:16] for this community and rage at the growing crises we have at hand.

[1:10:20] Love and rage is a combination, mothers know all too well,

[1:10:24] and it's a combination that I've witnessed for years as a

[1:10:27] bedside NICU nurse watching patients struggle to balance the joy of child

[1:10:31] birth, the anguish of a NICU admission, and the dread of the timeline to go

[1:10:35] back to work. In McGee's NICU we care for babies as early as

[1:10:40] five months, weighing less than a pound, and who can stay in the hospital for

[1:10:44] over six months before they're ready to go home their parents want to be with

[1:10:48] their newborns as much as possible and they should be able to. I see first hand

[1:10:54] the intense pressure on parents as they try to balance the demands of caring

[1:10:57] for their fragile newborns while trying not to lose their paychecks or even their

[1:11:02] jobs and this pressure negatively impacts both children and parents and you see

[1:11:08] it show up in Allegheny County's data on infant and maternal health over and over

[1:11:12] again. I also experienced this pressure on my co-workers and myself at McGee.

[1:11:18] UPMC is the largest private employer in the county and our Commonwealth, 67% of all

[1:11:25] hospital staff in Allegheny County that 60,000 workers are employed by UPMC and thankfully

[1:11:33] they seem to be doing just fine. They reported 261 million in profits for the first quarter

[1:11:39] of this year alone, 10% increase from last year.

[1:11:44] The key women's is the most profitable hospital in the entire state, and I'm proud to work there.

[1:11:49] But despite all of this, UPNC offers just two weeks of paid parental leave.

[1:11:54] I've seen how that pushes nurses away from the bedside worsening, the nursing shortage crisis

[1:11:59] that is the worst in Pennsylvania over any other state in the country.

[1:12:04] We've heard a lot about the impact on businesses, but studies show that parental leave

[1:12:08] We've helped retain and recruit employees, which is good for businesses and strengthens our overall economy.

[1:12:15] Costs aside, parental leave is essential for addressing the infant and maternal health crisis.

[1:12:20] It's time to put working families first.

[1:12:23] That's why I'm urging the City Council to support the passage of paid parental leave for the health of all working families.

[1:12:29] Thank you.

[1:12:30] All right, boys.

[1:12:35] Mariah Park?

[1:12:36] work.

[1:12:39] And there was one individual who wanted to speak.

[1:12:53] I'm sorry, y'all, it's a lot.

[1:12:59] My name is Ceres Taylor. I'm the missing child. I just wanted y'all to put a face with

[1:13:05] my name because I speak public via city council. God has transformed me into special agent sunshine.

[1:13:12] I'm a special agent for God, and I'm out here letting people know that I'm not dead.

[1:13:19] I'm part of the identity theft fraud investigation that you may or may not know is 40 years old.

[1:13:27] My identity was stolen when I was a child.

[1:13:29] Last count, I'm 62.

[1:13:31] Last count on paper.

[1:13:33] I'm not 62.

[1:13:35] My name, everything about me was changed when I was a child.

[1:13:39] And everything that was attached to my name, my real name, which I still do not know, was stolen from me.

[1:13:45] A house, I'm homeless, not helpless y'all, I'm educated.

[1:13:50] I went to CCAC, I'm the 1981 CCAC dance instructor, I went there for engineering, I was also in their flight technology program.

[1:14:01] Whoever stole my identity was me dead, somebody in my family, the people that raised me were not my family.

[1:14:07] I was adopted. It's so much. I really don't want to get too much into it because it's getting

[1:14:14] ready to come out. The truth is getting ready to come out. God used me online to expose what

[1:14:19] is happening to me and was being done to me. They're still targeting me trying to take me out

[1:14:24] to keep what was stolen from me. Do it. I can't hear the face you because the only way I was able

[1:14:31] to get where I am right now, was to face all of my enemies. All of them. Or you, I came

[1:14:40] to ask you a few questions. Are you the one who, uh, Daniel Avell sold his soul to? How

[1:14:48] do you know me? You know me, don't you? You know my brother, Mark Taylor. You know my

[1:14:55] whole family to keep it raised me. The first time I came here.

[1:15:00] Which was the last time I was here was the first time I came in this meeting. I wasn't able to speak. But I did say something to the wit in regards to it was like around voting time or something. And I had suggested at the voting polls for entertainment. I'm a female vocalist. I speak publicly, but I also sing. I'm being blocked from praising God in city council. It's not against the law. We are not allowed to swear.

[1:15:29] We get three minutes. I praise God. He's blocking me will not let me sing. I was taken outside of the meeting and threatened on camera with a police in the city council meeting that I cannot sing. Why?

[1:15:43] Why are you blocking our gifts that the world needs to see? Because they had me dead on paper twice. There was a funeral for me as well. Do I look at any of you?

[1:15:55] That's why I came here so that you could see that I'm not. I'm here. Amen. I'm here.

[1:16:02] God help me preaching and I'm so grateful to be part of this investigation and how he's using me.

[1:16:09] Please pray for me. Pray for Dr. Chilter and that we're. Thank you.

[1:16:14] A thousand of them have been abducted right here from you.

[1:16:16] So I believe that was the last public comment.

[1:16:34] Good evening council members my name is Jan from Lebanon. I wish to address the rapid industrial

[1:16:45] The real scale transformation of our region by hyperscale AI data centers are borough by borough zoning might not keep pace with the massive cumulative impact of this infrastructure.

[1:16:58] The problem, we're witnessing capacity creep at the developer Elegane DC property site in Springdale, which presented as requiring 180 megawatts.

[1:17:11] However, once approved, the infrastructure design suggested a potential requirement of 330 megawatts and industrial load equal to a mid-sized city.

[1:17:23] We should not be planning our community's future based on preliminary numbers that the developer himself says he's unsure about.

[1:17:31] Furthermore, we're seeing companies such as Keele Infrastructure or BitFarm pivot from Bitcoin mining to AI data centers in Mercer County and Venango counties specifically to occupy our PGM grid capacity because these sites share a regional power grid named PGM, approving them in silos creates a blind spot.

[1:17:58] But corporations are drawing massive amounts of power from our electrical grid to fuel their operations while residents bear the consequences.

[1:18:07] Public health burden.

[1:18:08] Noise.

[1:18:09] Developers will promise mitigated noise levels of 60 to 80 decibels.

[1:18:14] But raw, unmitigated noise of 124 diesel generators can reach 120 decibels.

[1:18:22] If these machines require their employees to wear industrial-grade hearing protection,

[1:18:28] why should our community be expected to live with what escapes through the walls?

[1:18:33] Air quality, the 124 diesel-powered generators at Springdale will release nitrogen oxides

[1:18:42] in very small particulates during mandatory testing cycles, frequent triggers for respiratory issues

[1:18:49] and it's known to increase asthma.

[1:18:52] Heat. These facilities are 24-7 space heaters

[1:18:56] that create data heat islands, increasing ambient temperatures

[1:18:59] up to four degrees Fahrenheit for five city blocks.

[1:19:04] In closed-loop cooling systems, the stacks release

[1:19:07] of 14 degrees to 25 degrees Fahrenheit above ambient temps.

[1:19:13] Blowdown. In closed-loop cooling, they add to water

[1:19:18] bio-sides, refrigerant, corrosion inhibitors, and scale inhibitors.

[1:19:22] How often do they have to do blowdown, meaning drain the waste water?

[1:19:27] And where does that blowdown water go?

[1:19:29] Will they treat the water first?

[1:19:32] Employment.

[1:19:32] The Springdale developer promises jobs with major economic studies, including research show that these facilities are among the least labor intensive, full-time employers in our economy by design.

[1:19:43] Could you wrap up in a sentence or two?

[1:19:44] We're closing, thank you, because of the increase of hyperscale AI data centers in Western P.A., I'm asking this council to establish a regional oversight process that mandates transparency on grid reliability and public health.

[1:20:01] I've included my full technical breakdown and citations in written testimony and providing for the record.

[1:20:06] Thank you for your time and your commitment to our shared future.

[1:20:10] sure. Thank you. Okay and that was our last public comment so with that meeting

[1:20:17] Good evening, HR.

[1:20:18] Thank you.

GOV - cc-9-8-26

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