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OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD

Record of Proceedings

Pre-Agenda Interview for Eric Sloan as Director of Parks and Recreation - February 17, 2026

City Council — Tuesday, February 17, 2026

BodyPittsburgh, Pennsylvania

SessionCity Council

DateTuesday, February 17, 2026

StatusFILED

Video Record

0:00 / 1:09:41

Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

0:16

So good afternoon and welcome to the pre-agenda interview for Tuesday, February 17th, 2026 for the director of the Department of Parks and Recreation.

0:24

Would the clerk please read the title of the bill?

0:28

Bill 19 resolution appointing Eric Sloan as the director of the Department of Parks and Recreation.

0:36

For the record, we're joined by Councilman Charlotte and Councilwoman Warwick.

0:40

Other members may join periodically.

0:43

As I believe you are aware, um, prior to your statement or answering questions from members, we have to do an oath.

0:51

Um so after I'll I'll read it and then you simply say you do, if you do.

0:58

Do you, Eric Sloan, solemnly affirm that the testimony you are about to give before this council shall be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, and do you further affirm that you will faithfully discharge the duties of the Department of Parks and Recreation to which you have been nominated?

1:13

I do.

1:14

Wonderful.

1:14

I'll turn it over to you.

1:16

Um if you would if you have a remarks, you can certainly give remarks, but you tell us who you are a little bit about yourself.

1:21

I do, and why you're willing to serve in this capacity.

1:25

Thank you.

1:26

Good afternoon, Council members, and thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today.

1:32

Uh I'm truly honored and excited to be nominated by Mayor O'Connor to serve as director of parks and recreation.

1:38

I'm grateful for the trust placed in me and for the opportunity to speak about the responsibility and reach of this department.

1:46

Throughout my career in service, I've been fortunate to lead in professional nonprofit and volunteer capacities.

1:53

The combination of those experiences, managing teams and operations professionally, leading community-based nonprofits, and serving directly as a volunteer has prepared me for this moment.

2:05

I believe I bring a unique blend of transferable skills, strategic leadership, operational discipline, relationship building, and a deep understanding of how programs affect residents on the ground.

2:16

My experience leading community-based organizations, combined with my background in organizational leadership and development, people management and program development has shown me how essential strong partnerships, genuine engagement, and thoughtful planning are to building healthy neighborhoods.

2:34

Parks and recreation is central to that mission.

2:37

This role is deeply personal to me.

2:39

My wife and I are raising our four children here in the city of Pittsburgh.

2:43

Our family has grown alongside parks, rec centers, and neighborhood spaces.

2:48

From a volunteer perspective, I began as a volunteer coach and later led a citywide youth sports nonprofit.

2:55

But my services extended beyond youth athletics throughout work through through my work with Bridges FC and as a big brother in the community-based mentorship program through Big Brothers, Big Sisters.

3:06

I've seen how recreational spaces and public programs serve as gatherings points, places where mentorship happens, where families connect and where community is strengthened.

3:17

What draws me to this role is not just youth programming, but the full intergenerational impact of this department.

3:24

Parks and recreation supports seniors through our healthy acting living centers and wellness program.

3:29

It strengthens neighborhoods through our rec centers that serve as safe, welcoming hubs, and it promotes food access and local economic vitality through farmers markets and food nutrition programs.

3:41

And it maintains the public spaces that residents rely on every single day.

4:25

If confirmed, I'm committed to bringing collaboration, transparency, empathy, and a service first mindset to parks and recreation as we work to deliver safe, vibrant, and equitable spaces for every Pittsburgh resident.

4:38

Thank you.

4:42

Thank you.

4:43

And with that, we'll turn over to members for questions.

4:45

Maybe we start with Councilman Carkill, work our way down.

4:49

Hi.

4:50

You too.

4:51

Thank you for the comments.

5:02

So we don't have a recreation center.

5:08

So do you see opportunity there as to like I mean the conversation?

5:17

I did.

5:17

Yeah.

5:18

And they have a nice space there.

5:20

And um we did talk and we have supplemented programs previously, but we did talk about uh potential to partner soon, hopefully for spring programming and um also talked about some potential uh partners and nonprofit partners that he could reach out to as well.

5:33

And so that was a really productive conversation uh both for us providing support but also thinking about how we can partner externally as well.

5:41

Yeah, he he's he's a really great guy.

5:44

I'm gonna have him apply for maybe to stop the violence funding, which I think will help his not not that what you were there for, but but uh you know he's um asset to our community works with at-risk kids.

5:57

He also works with our immigrant population there.

5:59

We have a lot of you know Latino specifically, um which is uh which is really good.

6:05

You grew up in Mount Lebanon?

6:07

Yeah, right.

6:07

My Lebanon High School.

6:10

Watch that Tony Griffith working under you.

6:11

You know this guy, right?

6:13

Uh a little bit.

6:13

He was older than me, but uh we've reconnected.

6:16

Oh yeah, he was my two yeah.

6:19

Been in Highland Park now for the past twelve years.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting

Parks and Recreation█████████████████████████████████████████████49%

Youth Programs███████████████████21%

Community Engagement████████████13%

Food Justice████████9%

Senior Programs█████5%

Arts And Culture███3%

Summary of Proceedings

Pre-Agenda Interview for Eric Sloan, Director of Parks and Recreation

On Tuesday, February 17, 2026, at 1:30 PM in Council Chambers, the City of Pittsburgh City Council held a pre-agenda interview for Bill 2026-0019, which appoints Eric Sloan as Director of the Department of Parks and Recreation. Council President [not named], Councilman Carkill, Councilwoman Warwick, Councilman Mosley, Councilwoman Strassberger, and Councilman Gross (via video) participated. The interview lasted approximately one hour and covered Sloan’s qualifications, vision, and priorities for the department.

Discussion Items

Opening Remarks by Eric Sloan: Sloan introduced himself, highlighting his background in corporate organizational development, nonprofit leadership (including youth sports), and volunteer coaching. He emphasized his commitment to collaboration, transparency, empathy, and a service-first mindset. He noted that parks and recreation is personal to him, as he and his wife raise four children in Pittsburgh and have used city parks and rec centers.
Councilman Carkill’s Questions: Carkill asked about opportunities for a recreation center in his district, referencing a meeting with Pastor Wade at Grandview Church. Sloan confirmed a productive conversation about potential spring programming and external partnerships. Carkill also discussed the Brookline Community Center’s 1.3-acre site for a farm and invited Sloan to visit. He noted that Moore Park has a new pickleball court relocation due to a court order for noise, and that the park has the second-largest pool in the city.
Councilwoman Warwick’s Questions: Warwick asked about equitable programming across the city. Sloan said he plans to visit each rec center monthly and hold frequent conversations with community groups and council members. Warwick also emphasized the importance of partnerships with outside organizations (e.g., housing authority, Pittsburgh Public Schools, the symphony, the zoo, Phipps, the Aviary). Sloan agreed and added that internal collaboration within the department is also needed to break down silos. Warwick asked about KPIs; Sloan mentioned tracking participation numbers (kids in rec centers, seniors in healthy active living centers) and conducting user surveys to establish baselines and measure improvement.
Councilman Charlotte’s Questions: Charlotte asked about talent management and building staff capacity. Sloan discussed cross-training, load balancing, and formalized training programs to develop future leaders. He also highlighted the new free flag football league in partnership with Pittsburgh Flag Football, which will include transportation via city vans. He noted that this league is separate from existing pay-to-play leagues and is aimed at increasing access. On girls’ sports, Sloan said he has a daughter and emphasized increasing female participation and adaptive programming (e.g., Top Soccer). For seniors, he acknowledged the success of the Valentine’s Day event and discussed the need for better marketing, transportation, and internal collaboration (e.g., city farms programs at senior centers).
Councilman Mosley’s Questions: Mosley asked about using non-traditional spaces (e.g., churches, community centers like Kingsley Association) in neighborhoods without rec centers. Sloan cited his visit to Grandview Church and interest in formalizing weekly programming. Mosley also raised the idea of creating a neighborhood-by-neighborhood matrix of after-school programming from 3 PM to 10 PM, involving PPS and youth-serving nonprofits. Sloan agreed on the need for proactive, organized programming marketed well in advance. Mosley discussed partnerships with professional sports teams (Pirates, Steelers, Penguins, Riverhounds) to attract tournaments and provide economic benefits. Sloan supported this, noting the city has many underutilized fields. On arts and music programming, Sloan said there is opportunity to partner with organizations like the symphony and dance groups, and to train staff to offer such programs. Mosley also mentioned the Marshall Mansion as a potential cross-neighborhood hub.
Councilwoman Strassberger’s Questions: Strassberger remarked on the opportunity to map out-of-school time deserts and break down silos between city and non-city programs. She suggested using older adults as volunteers for tutoring. She also discussed the need to improve senior programming without building a new $30 million center. Sloan agreed and emphasized internal collaboration (e.g., city farms at senior centers) and better marketing to reach seniors. Strassberger asked for regular communication of upcoming programs to council members for sharing via newsletters and social media. Sloan committed to that.
Councilman Gross’s Questions (via video): Gross discussed the need to adapt facilities to changing demographics, noting that some neighborhoods have transitioned from mostly seniors to young families. Sloan agreed and emphasized feedback from local groups. Gross highlighted the success of the city farms program, which grew from supporting 4 gardens in 2020 to 55 gardens in 2025—a 1,200% increase. Volunteers range from ages 5 to 82. She noted that measuring impact, such as produce output, is important. Sloan agreed on measuring impact quantitatively and qualitatively. Gross also mentioned that all produce from one garden in Westland Park is donated to a local food pantry, providing 50 gallons of produce weekly.
Additional Topics: Councilman Charlotte (presumably) noted that he has had preliminary conversations with Pittsburgh Public Schools about programming at Shanley Field and basketball courts in Manchester, and asked about cooperation agreements. He also mentioned the Ammons Rec Center Hall of Fame jersey program and asked to reconnect with the vendor for the next induction.

Key Outcomes

The pre-agenda interview was held as scheduled. No formal vote was taken; the interview serves as a step toward confirmation of Eric Sloan as Director of Parks and Recreation.
Council members expressed general support for Sloan’s nomination and offered specific priorities for collaboration.
Sloan committed to follow up on several items: visiting Brookline Community Park, meeting with the Marshall Mansion stakeholders, continuing discussions with PPS, and reconnecting on the Ammons Rec Center Hall of Fame program.

Meeting Transcript

So good afternoon and welcome to the pre-agenda interview for Tuesday, February 17th, 2026 for the director of the Department of Parks and Recreation. Would the clerk please read the title of the bill? Bill 19 resolution appointing Eric Sloan as the director of the Department of Parks and Recreation. For the record, we're joined by Councilman Charlotte and Councilwoman Warwick. Other members may join periodically. As I believe you are aware, um, prior to your statement or answering questions from members, we have to do an oath. Um so after I'll I'll read it and then you simply say you do, if you do. Do you, Eric Sloan, solemnly affirm that the testimony you are about to give before this council shall be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, and do you further affirm that you will faithfully discharge the duties of the Department of Parks and Recreation to which you have been nominated? I do. Wonderful. I'll turn it over to you. Um if you would if you have a remarks, you can certainly give remarks, but you tell us who you are a little bit about yourself. I do, and why you're willing to serve in this capacity. Thank you. Good afternoon, Council members, and thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today. Uh I'm truly honored and excited to be nominated by Mayor O'Connor to serve as director of parks and recreation. I'm grateful for the trust placed in me and for the opportunity to speak about the responsibility and reach of this department. Throughout my career in service, I've been fortunate to lead in professional nonprofit and volunteer capacities. The combination of those experiences, managing teams and operations professionally, leading community-based nonprofits, and serving directly as a volunteer has prepared me for this moment. I believe I bring a unique blend of transferable skills, strategic leadership, operational discipline, relationship building, and a deep understanding of how programs affect residents on the ground. My experience leading community-based organizations, combined with my background in organizational leadership and development, people management and program development has shown me how essential strong partnerships, genuine engagement, and thoughtful planning are to building healthy neighborhoods. Parks and recreation is central to that mission. This role is deeply personal to me. My wife and I are raising our four children here in the city of Pittsburgh. Our family has grown alongside parks, rec centers, and neighborhood spaces. From a volunteer perspective, I began as a volunteer coach and later led a citywide youth sports nonprofit. But my services extended beyond youth athletics throughout work through through my work with Bridges FC and as a big brother in the community-based mentorship program through Big Brothers, Big Sisters. I've seen how recreational spaces and public programs serve as gatherings points, places where mentorship happens, where families connect and where community is strengthened. What draws me to this role is not just youth programming, but the full intergenerational impact of this department. Parks and recreation supports seniors through our healthy acting living centers and wellness program. It strengthens neighborhoods through our rec centers that serve as safe, welcoming hubs, and it promotes food access and local economic vitality through farmers markets and food nutrition programs. And it maintains the public spaces that residents rely on every single day. If confirmed, I'm committed to bringing collaboration, transparency, empathy, and a service first mindset to parks and recreation as we work to deliver safe, vibrant, and equitable spaces for every Pittsburgh resident. Thank you. Thank you. And with that, we'll turn over to members for questions. Maybe we start with Councilman Carkill, work our way down. Hi. You too. Thank you for the comments. So we don't have a recreation center. So do you see opportunity there as to like I mean the conversation? I did. Yeah. And they have a nice space there. And um we did talk and we have supplemented programs previously, but we did talk about uh potential to partner soon, hopefully for spring programming and um also talked about some potential uh partners and nonprofit partners that he could reach out to as well. And so that was a really productive conversation uh both for us providing support but also thinking about how we can partner externally as well. Yeah, he he's he's a really great guy. I'm gonna have him apply for maybe to stop the violence funding, which I think will help his not not that what you were there for, but but uh you know he's um asset to our community works with at-risk kids. He also works with our immigrant population there.

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