Allegheny County Council Meeting - February 11, 2025

The Allegheny County Council met on February 11, 2025, in an evening session with 11 members present at the start and a 12th joining later. The meeting included an interim at-large council appointment, public comment, second-reading ordinances, appointments, and liaison reports. No agenda or minutes were provided, so item numbers are as read from the transcript.

Consent Calendar

• Approved the minutes of the January 14, 2025, regular meeting by voice vote.
• Councilmember Naccarati-Chapkis sponsored proclamation 13397-25 recognizing Cynthia Carrow on her retirement from the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy after 51 years. Carrow said the work included 90 community gardens, 7,000 volunteers, and about 1,200 hanging baskets and street planters annually.

Public Comments & Testimony

• Ryan O'Cain criticized the sudden interim appointment process and lack of public notice. He supported separating assessment appeals (item 13276-24), the complete streets policy (item 12952-24), the Human Relations Commission ordinance (13317-24), and the tax deadline extension (13400-25).
• Jacob Evangelista, vice president of Complete Streets at Pitt, supported the complete streets ordinance and cited traffic deaths, including nine-year-old Courtney Carter.
• Neil Desai, reading a prepared comment for Tom Pike, supported complete streets and described a Forest Hills county road where the county repaved over a municipal complete streets plan.
• Dylan Bisescu, a new District 11 resident and environmental lawyer, supported complete streets, citing 23 road deaths in 2023 and potential federal air quality non-compliance.
• Jonathan Blanton of Brighton Heights supported complete streets to improve access to jobs, school, health care, and public life.
• Brendan Wissinger of Forest Hills supported complete streets, describing unsafe conditions on Greensburg Pike and calling for coverage of all 1.5 million county residents.
• John Kensowitz spoke in general public comment on the jail restraint chair. He argued the 2022 referendum banning it was vague, urged use of the 500-voter county council agenda initiative to reinstate it, and said it should be limited to transport and medical assessment.

Discussion Items

• Interim At-Large Appointment: Councilmember Filiaggi, chair of the Republican caucus, nominated Mike Ambrasia to fill the at-large seat left by Sam DeMarco. Councilmember Hallam abstained, saying she had only about 11 minutes with the nominee, the agenda only said nominations, the nominee was not named, and the process lacked transparency. Another councilmember echoed concerns about the process while praising the nominee. A senior councilmember said party replacement has been the traditional practice. The appointment passed 12-0 with one abstention, and Ambrasia was sworn in. Ambrasia said he is a Mount Lebanon resident, an executive at a robotics company, previously ran for a council seat, and plans to run for the seat beyond the interim term.
• Complete Streets Ordinance: The council passed an ordinance requiring a complete streets plan by the Department of Economic Development in cooperation with the Department of Public Works no later than December 31, 2025. It passed 12-0 with one abstention.
• Human Relations Commission Ordinance (13317-24): The council passed amendments to Chapter 215, Article 5 to strengthen the Human Relations Commission's ability to ensure equal opportunities in employment, housing, and public accommodation. It was amended and recommended by the Committee on Housing and Homelessness on January 28, 2025, and passed 12-0.
• Real Estate Tax Deadline Extension (13400-25): The council extended the county real estate tax discount deadline from March 31, 2025, to April 30, 2025, and the face-period deadline from May 1, 2025, to May 31, 2025. All present members were added as co-sponsors. The second reading was waived and the bill passed.
• Appointments: President Catena sent all presented appointments back to the Appointment Review Committee for a second round of interviews. These included juvenile detention board advisory appointments (13318-24 through 13321-24), an ethics commission appointment (13390-25), and Friends of the Park for North Park appointments (13392-25, 13393-25, 13394-25).
• Contract Notification (13399-25): A communication summarizing approved executive actions for January 2025 was received.

Liaison Reports

• Councilmember Naccarati-Chapkis reported on an EMS Council meeting with state leaders. EMS challenges included recruitment and retention, staffing shortages, low pay, long hours, underfunding, rising health care costs, no transport equals no pay, and public apathy. She cited a 2024 increase to 73,910, a 52.6% increase in a stretcher system purchase.
• A councilmember reported that a large Pittsburgh homeless encampment was resolved with residents accepting new housing, and that Mark Fogle of Oakmont was released from a Russian jail.
• Naccarati-Chapkis agreed that EMS challenges mirror recruitment and service pressures facing volunteer fire departments and police.

Key Outcomes

• Mike Ambrasia was appointed and sworn in as the interim at-large council member.
• The complete streets ordinance passed.
• The Human Relations Commission ordinance passed.
• The real estate tax deadline extension passed.
• Appointments were referred back to committee.
• The January 14, 2025, meeting minutes were approved.