Remembering 2016: Stories that helped shape the year
The Bethel Park Volunteer Fire Company headquarters on Brightwood Road
Renderings for the upscale condominiums and townhouses for 400 Washington Road, which is expected to be fully completed by 2020.
Michael Silvestri retired in August after 40 years with Peters Township.
Representatives of various generations participate in the groundbreaking for South Fayette’s new athletic fields.
William Babcock stands next to the statue on the day of its unveiling at the Upper St. Clair Veterans Memorial Park.
The closer the ball gets to dropping in Times Square, the more you read about what went on in the year that’s about to end.
From two founding members of Jefferson Airplane dying on the same day in January to Donald Trump pulling off an upset victory in November to win the presidency, 2016 was an eventful year for the nation.
And as you’ve read in The Almanac, that also has been the case for our corner of the South Hills.
BETHEL PARK
New fire station opens: In June, Bethel Park Volunteer Fire Company held an open house to introduce the community to the new fire station on Brightwood Road following completion of the $8.2 million project.
Built on the same site where the previous 14,000-square-foot station was razed, the new version is 22,000 square feet. It features executive offices for the chief, president, deputy chief, vice president, treasurer and line officers, along with many amenities and resources. Read more.
School district extends teachers’ contract, holds tax line: Bethel Park residents received a double dose of good news in June, when the school board voted to extend the contract with teachers through the end of the 2016-17 academic year and to implement no real estate tax increase.
With the school district experiencing multiple work stoppages during contract negotiations in the past few decades, the extension provided an opportunity to avoid such a situation by allowing the two sides more time to reach an agreement.
Meanwhile, Bethel Park’s holding the line on taxes ran counter to what has become a necessity for school districts throughout Pennsylvania as they try to meet the financial obligations of paying for a severely underfunded pension program. Read more.
MT. LEBANON
Deer problems persist: Using sharpshooters and archers in attempts to reduce Mt. Lebanon’s deer population might be missing the mark.
Mt. Lebanon commissioners have expressed the goal of reducing the number of collision between vehicles and deer, but the total actually increased during 2016.
The municipality has explored the possibility of nonlethal methods for deer control, but to this point, the Pennsylvania Game Commission has yet to approve any such program statewide. Read more.
Washington Road vacancy filled: After nearly two decades of property at Washington and Bower Hill roads lying vacant, Zamagias Properties and Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices broke ground for a new luxury townhouse and condominium development.
Zamagias had made previous attempts to develop the property, in conjunction a tax increment financing loan, but those were unsuccessful because of less-than-optimal market conditions. In the meantime, many Mt. Lebanon residents, including commissioners, lamented the eyesore that the vacant property presented near a gateway to the municipality. Read more.
PETERS TOWNSHIP
Longtime leaders bid adieu: When township manager Michael Silvestri retired in August after 35 years on the job, he was among several longtime municipal employees who said their goodbyes.
Silvestri actually joined the township as assistant manager and planner in 1976, the same year that Pier Lee became library director. She retired late last year, followed in turn by police Capt. Michael Yanchak (1983), public works director Peter Overcashier (1978), Silvestri and police Chief Harry Fruecht (1988). Read more.
Teachers agree to new contract: Following a work stoppage by teachers in October 2015, the Peters Township Federation of Teachers Local 3421 and school district officials negotiated for another six months before reaching an agreement in May.
The six-year deal includes $1,200 annual salary increases for teachers on steps 2 through 16, which correspond with years of service, and $1,000 for teachers on Step 17, the highest salary tier, in the remaining four years of the contract. Read more.
SOUTH FAYETTE
Homes coming to former Mayview site: With most of the buildings at the former site of Mayview State Hospital relegated to memory, work is progressing on Hastings, planned as a 572-unit residential development.
Even more units had been proposed, but South Fayette School District officials expressed concern about adding students to an enrollment base that has grown by 50 percent in the past decade. Read more.
Work starts on new athletic fields: These days, “growth” is perhaps the word most associated with South Fayette Township, as commercial and residential development continues at a dizzying pace.
With regard to the latter, the influx of youngsters and others who enjoy physical activity has led to a shortage of places for recreational opportunities. And so township officials were pleased to break ground in September for three new athletic fields off Seminary Avenue. Read more.
UPPER ST. CLAIR
Statue unveiled at Veterans Memorial Park: Five years to the day of the dedication of the Upper St. Clair Veterans Memorial Park, a statue was unveiled as a further honor for the township’s men and women who have served in all branches of the military.
The bronze image of a flag-saluting boy, sculpted by Pittsburgh artist William Kofmehl III, made its first public appearance during the township’s annual Veterans Day commemoration. Present were William Babcock and T.J. McGarvey, the two local residents who first approached township commissioners with the idea for a memorial park. Read more.
Accident claims mother of two: Mariah Klinefelter of Upper St. Clair was only 35 when she died, the victim of an April accident while she was jogging in Florida.
A labor and employment attorney for the Southpointe office of Steptoe & Johnson PLLC, she is survived by her husband, Jeff, and two young sons, Gabriel and Noah.
“The world’s just not as bright,” her mother, Mary Ann Coda, said in May. “She was just entering the peak of her life.” Read more.