March 2nd, 2026.

All council meetings will be live streamed on the city's website.

And for guest speakers, please do not turn off your microphones.

Our first order of business is roll call.

Will the clerk please take the roll?

Mr.

Charland.

Mr.

Cargill.

Miss Gross.

Mr.

Lavelle.

Mr.

Mosley.

Ms.

Solometro.

Mrs.

Warwick.

Here.

Mr.

Wilson.

Miss Strasberger Chair.

Here.

Five members present.

Thank you.

Our next order of business is public comment.

I would like to remind all speakers that the rules of council state that comments are limited to matters of concern, official action, or deliberation, which are or may be before city council.

Profanity will not be permitted.

Please state your name and neighborhood for the record.

You will have three minutes to speak.

For those wishing to speak, please come to the podium.

My name is Yvonne F.

Brown.

I live at 715 Mercer Street.

That's up in the high rise up on Bedford Avenue, top of the hill.

Uh yesterday, um, when I was speaking about the the uh refrigerator.

Um I'm serious.

I want to see the refrigerator.

Mr.

Lavelle, who doesn't our president who doesn't answer me, most of the time gonna say he's is in it is in there.

He doesn't know.

I wanna know, and if I can, I want to see it.

See, because Mr.

Krause, he was very shady, and I'll use example.

I heard that Mrs.

Harris died yesterday.

I sort of felt a uh uh uh sort of felt a little pain as she's gone.

Um, even though you know that uh me and her did not get along, but I can tell you what she did.

Uh Mr.

Krause had called a meeting with uh Vict, the lawyer for ACLU, and when he called the meeting, Mr.

Krauss wanted to take and say that we couldn't speak, that we were running for office, and there was other things, and Miss Ms.

Harris had told me, watch the video.

She says, watch me.

And she said this.

She said it was not uh he kept on saying it was a training.

It was a training.

Well, if it was a training, we the citizens were supposed to know that Vic was gonna be there.

But she said no.

She says because Mr.

Krauss wanted to say that we could not stand up here if we were gonna run for office and announce that we ran for office, and that he wanted to cut the time down from three minutes, I think to two.

So that's our good president at that time.

Well, I have made the decision that um I brought this paper because it says together our community has the power if we vote.

Um I started um campaigning for Will Anderson.

You know him and um Tim Stevens, they hang together.

Um I don't care for Tim, but Mr.

Um Anderson does fight for the community.

He does fight for the community, so I'm saying that you should vote for him.

But when I was talking about Krauss, it was um uh one time that I was speaking, and he was screaming and hollering at me.

Now we remember I told you I bring signs.

So you can remember, but here it says here.

This is about my f uh Alexis Brown.

This is my granddaughter.

Why is the child gro crying?

I brought a picture of her crying because he was screaming and hollering at me, and somebody said, Oh, he's hollering at grandma.

And I brought the picture down here and showed you.

So Mr.

Krauss, I don't believe that he he didn't take the refrigerator.

I want to see the refrigerator.

And if he did, we got to be back.

Thank you.

Next speaker, please.

Good morning.

My name is Juliet Brown.

And I am a black woman.

And one thing about us is we learn to read the room.

We have to.

Life teaches you that skill, whether you want it or not.

But my eyes were truly open when I had to live on Rainsburg.

I never seen racism so bluntly in my life.

I was subjected to discriminatory treatment through the way the staff acted and the remarks that were made.

And when you're already vulnerable, those moments stick with you.

The one that will always hunt my thoughts is when I explain something simple.

Wherever I move to, I need access to a bus.

I rely on the public transit.

And instead of understanding that, I was told with a giggle.

Well, I know people that uh invested in scooters.

Now let me say this clearly, as a woman with five children.

A scooter is not the same thing as living near a bus route.

A scooter does not take your kids to school in the winter, and or does not get me there to their school if they're sick and need to come home.

A scooter does not get you grocery shopping, does not get you across town to work, does not, it doesn't replace the public transit system, period.

When someone laughs when saying something like that, what they're really saying is the reality of your life isn't something I really have to understand.

But that brings me to something bigger.

When we talk about the domestic violence shelters and the systems that run them, we need to ask the honest question.

Why are the people with the most power inside these systems often not the same women who represent the majority of the women experiencing the abuse?

Why is it that the white women are so often the ones running these shelters and making the decisions about who gets help, how they get help, and whether they get help at all.

Because when you sit with eye set and you watch closely, it starts feeling like helps get picked pick and chosen.

It starts to feel like some of these women are safe and more deserving than others.

Now I'm not here this morning to attack anyone, but I'm here to say what a lot of women are too tired, too scared, or too unheard to say.

When black women enter these systems, we are often treated differently.

We feel that in the tongue, and we see it in the decisions.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Next speaker, please.

Dear Father, help us to mean to remain patient in every season and to focus on your guiding presence.

Amen.

Philippians 4 and 6 says, Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving.

Let your request be known to God.

Lord, please deliver me from deception, harm and danger, envy, jealousy, malice.

Please, Lord, deliver me from the presence of demonic spirits.

Where I live right now.

Keep your hands on me.

And everyone in the world who is being attacked by demonic spirits and forces in this world.

Especially our children, Lord.

Keep your hands on our children who are being abducted and forced into these secret societies that practice dark magic for parent control over them, their families, and what they possess.

In Jesus' name I pray, Amen.

The thought for today is be still and let God be God.

Because of how hard so many people are trying to keep me from doing just that.

Just being who I am.

My name, Sunshine, speaks volumes about who I am and what I stand for and believe in.

We have to love each other.

It's hard to mend people when they want you there, and they're doing everything to try and kill you.

It's very hard.

But here I still stand on God's promises.

This apply me with all of my nieces, which is including Clay.

And it's faithful.

Because I'm still standing here.

So it has to be.

I'm a living testimony of that.

Thank you, Laura, for loving me.

Using me as a vessel.

To do your will, number.

Zeremai96 says, You live in the midst of deception.

In their deceit, they refuse to acknowledge me, declares the Lord.

I will always acknowledge you, Lord.

In Jesus' name.

I pray, amen.

Thank you.

Are there any further speakers?

Any further speakers.

There being no further speakers, we will move on to our standing committee's agenda.

And our first committee is the Finance and Law Committee.

We have a supplemental new papers.

Bill 242, resolution amending resolution 845 of 2025, which authorized the fee schedule for 2026 pursuant to chapter 170 of the city code by revising fees associated with vending licenses into unified vending fees as recommended by the Department of Permits Licenses and Inspections at no cost to the city.

Motion to approve.

Second.

Discussion.

I would like to call Director Gula and anyone else up to discuss why the change to the um the fee schedule.

We have Director Green as well.

At this present moment.

Thank you.

And actually, I'm just gonna turn this right over to Director Green because we did this on uh his behalf, so I'll let him further explain.

But yeah, so this is follow-up to the vending program legislation changes that I'm forgetting the time frame of approval, I think late last year.

Um either November or December, forgive me.

Uh don't recall exact dates, and um uh needed that enabling legislation to understand um how the program might change uh and then to develop the rules and regulations that were also trans transmitted to council as part of the materials for uh council this week and uh fee changes are necessary to support the changes in the program.

So um if I'm remembering correctly, uh one of the things is including a fee for work that the Department of Mobility and Infrastructure would do related to this program that didn't happen before.

So sorry, I meant to turn that off.

Uh and uh making sure that we uh have some administrative uh fees to cover the cost of that work for the uh for that team to do that we didn't have before.

Thank you.

I'd like to further add that I believe that this is a a consolidation as well as fees, so this is something that would be basically revenue neutral for us, but it also should make it easier for vendors to apply and then turn around and do business.

Um, and this is important ahead of the draft where we expect large numbers of vendors to be coming into the city to participate in that weekend.

So that answered my question as to why um I mean the answer I wanted to daylight it, why we are expediting this bill with a rule eight yesterday.

Yes, thank you.

Okay, thank you.

Any further questions?

Questions online.

All right.

Um, seeing none, all those in favor of bill two forty-two, please say aye.

Aye aye.

Affirmative recommendation.

Thank you all.

Thank you.

Deferred deferred papers, bill thirty-nine.

Ordinance and ordinance directing the Allegheny County Board of Elections to place before the qualified voters of the City of Pittsburgh at the 2026 May primary election, a referendum question.

Shall the Pittsburgh Home Rule Charter, Article 3 Legislative Branch be amended by changing the budget approval rules to ensure timely passage at the end of a legislative session?

Motion to hold 12 weeks.

Second.

Second discussion.

Seeing none, all those in favor of a 12-week hold, please say aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Bill will be held 12 weeks.

That moves us on to invoices.

Is there a motion for invoices?

Motion to approve.

Second.

Discussion on invoices.

Seeing none, all those in favor of invoices, please say aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Invoices are approved.

That moves us to P cards.

Is there a motion on P cards?

So moved.

Second.

Discussion.

Seeing none, all those in favor of P cards, please say aye.

Aye.

Aye.

P cards are approved.

That moves us to public safety and wellness committee chaired by Councilman Coghill.

Bill 193, resolution authorizing the mayor and the director of public safety to enter on behalf of the city of Pittsburgh into a professional services agreement or agreement with Operation Butterblock to provide group violence intervention technology services at a total cost not to exceed $300,000 over three years.

Motion to approve.

Second.

Discussion.

Yeah, could we have the team come up?

Thanks.

Just state your name and then a little explanation about what this is.

Yes.

Good morning.

My name is Takina White and this isn't director of public safety.

So basically, what this is is our technology component that stems from the GBI contract with the GDI program.

And we use this technology component to basically track different data, such as like the law enforcement, community partners, all the information that we receive or we get from the outreach workers.

They input it.

There's also information in there to distribute to the public, such as housing information, food service information, and different social um aspect information.

Any further discussion?

All right.

Thank you very much.

Seeing none, all those in favor of Bill 193, please say aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Affirmative recommendation.

Bill 194.

Resolution authorizing the mayor and the director of public safety to enter into a license agreement or agreement between the city of Pittsburgh and the Bunchur Company for use of warehouse space for Bureau of Police Training Activities for four days over a period of 90 days at no cost to the city.

Motion to approve.

Second.

Sorry.

Discussion.

Seeing none, all those in favor of Bill 194, please say aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Affirmative recommendation.

Bill 195.

Resolution authorizing the mayor and the director of public safety to enter into a license agreement or agreements between the city of Pittsburgh and a bunch of company for use of space at Gateway View Plaza for 45 days at no cost to the city.

Motion to approve.

Second.

Discussion.

Seeing none, all those in favor of Bill.

Well, my eyes are playing tricks on me.

I thought I saw a hand up.

Um Bill 195, please indicate by saying aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Affirmative recommendation.

That moves us to public works and infrastructure committee chaired by Councilwoman Salonetro.

Bill 196, resolution authorizing the mayor, the director of the Office of Management and Budget, and the Director of the Department of Mobility and Infrastructure to enter into an agreement or agreements with the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation for the purpose of receiving grant funds from the automated red light enforcement grant program and the amount not to exceed $85,533 to replace signals at the intersection of Fifth Avenue and Dithridge Street.

Motion to approve approved.

Second.

Discussion.

Seeing none, all those in favor of Bill 196, please indicate by saying aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Affirmative recommendation.

Bill 203.

Resolution authorizing acceptance by the City of Pittsburgh of the dedication of two city owned parcels, 49 S500 and 49R296 located in 9th Ward 7th Council District at no cost to the city.

Motion or approved.

Second.

Discussion.

Madam Chair, I thought I'm online.

I raised my hand.

Yes, Councilwoman Gross.

Thank you.

Apologies to Councilwoman Solidature.

I try to reach you by text message.

But I um going to ask for your um willingness to hold this for a couple of weeks by outreach to uh stakeholders around the bullets intersection.

There have been 20 years of community visiting and planning and you know, consultants work around this intersection, and there's a lot of a lot of voices and a lot of concern, a lot of stakeholders.

So I think it's best if we do outreach first instead of moving this forward.

Um so if you wouldn't mind uh I'd like to motion to hold three weeks.

There's a motion to hold and a second for three weeks.

Any discussion on the motion?

Seeing none, all those in favor of a three-week hold for Bill 203, please say aye.

Um thank you.

Bill will be held three weeks.

Bill 204.

Resolution granting a vacation of an unopened, unimproved paper portion of Savoy Street 274 First Council District at no cost to the city.

Second discussion.

Seeing none, all those in favor of Bill 204, please say aye.

Aye.

Affirmative recommendation.

Bill 205.

Resolution authorizing the mayor and the director of the Department of Public Works on behalf of the City of Pittsburgh to enter into an agreement or agreements or the use of existing agreements with ENL X Advisory Services, USA LLC for energy evaluation and consultant services in connection with the city's aggregated purchase of electricity supply along with the members of the Western Pennsylvania Energy Consortium for a term of six years and no cost to the city.

Discussion.

Yeah, council councilmember Warwick.

Yeah, if we could just get some clarification.

Yes, I would love to hear more too.

Morning.

Don Mudrick, Manager of Personnel and Finance for Public Works.

Uh Bat Mahoney, uh planning manager with city planning.

Joel McLear, Acting Director of Public Works.

So what we're doing here, we've already been under contract with an energy advisor.

We now have two different ones.

One is advising us on our electric procurement, and the other one is advising us on our gas procurement.

Um this contract was uh previously held contract, it expired.

We put it back out to bid and um received three responses.

And chose NL once again as the responsible party.

And so we're just entering into another contract for uh electric advisement and procurement.

So I mean, when you say it, so what what are they advising on?

Just like so.

So what the city did, and and floor marion and that have been leading this with planning.

They established what's called WEPEC, Western Pennsylvania Energy Consortium.

So, and that involves the county, us, um, 25 different partners.

And we go and purchase as a group our electric electricity from the generators, the suppliers of the electricity.

And what Enough will do is they'll go out to the market, they read the market, their subject matter experts, they tell us when it's time to buy units.

So that's where we can control our energy costs on that side of the equation.

And then we have the Duke Light side.

So what we're purchasing out there and what Enel is advising us on goes to Duke Light, and then Duke Light sends it out to everyone else.

So Ducaine Light has their fees and their distributor fees, and those are a little more volatile.

But what this does is this ensures um during the uh budget hearings.

We were able to show you that through working with NL, we are able to kind of field off some of the large increases in energy production that we've seen.

So our year over year is not is less than the the national average or what you know private sector or residential might be experiencing.

So we're able to control our costs that way.

And then these are the subject matter expert folks who know the market, they give us updates, and then together with WEPIC as a group in the city we decide to make purchases or not.

So this like energy, this like consortium that's multiple municipalities count, just multiple government bodies all coming in together and buying as a group.

Yeah, power and scaling up.

Got it.

And that um that agreement, is that something that that came through council earlier on to enter into that group?

With WEPIC, I would believe so, but that would be more on that.

So that that agreement uh there's been a memorandum of understanding that was entered into uh uh previously in 2020.

Uh we pre we've recently refreshed and renewed that MOU.

Uh and that's coordinated uh pretty internally.

It it was not presented to council.

Um but is an MOU that helps determine the governance structure, uh the responsibilities of the uh consortium and and sort of you know those shared responsibilities are are outlined in that MOU.

Okay.

All right.

Um I have sort of other reasons to to be asked, but I I'm I'm curious about and I have nothing no no concerns with this all sounds like a good idea.

But um sorry, we are receiving cost savings too.

Right, right.

But um what what's more is sort of the the re-upping of these MOUs, that feels like something that should come before council.

I mean, no, uh uh uh the the fact that it doesn't is perhaps a process issue that that I think maybe we need to look at uh uh across the board, not just with this.

But that that's why I was asking is I was so initially it was voted on, but then the kind of re-upping of staying in within the the group was just something we did internally without coming here.

Yeah.

Okay, okay.

I'm just trying to understand the process.

Yeah, I think it was we piloted the group.

Right.

So it was a c it started as a city initiative with planning.

Oh not to get too deep into the weeds, but uh uh in early 2000s, Pennsylvania allowed consumers of electricity to purchase their own generation from whatever supplier they choose.

Uh at that time, the county and the city, Pittsburgh Water, and other entities decided to come together to leverage their collective purchasing power uh and purchase electricity together to secure uh more you know lower rates and better rates for longer terms as the market has evolved and as uh other entities have become more uh accustomed to these transactions.

Uh WIPIC has grown uh to provide cost certainty for a lot of local municipalities that don't have the capacity to engage with an energy advisor, uh an added benefit of WIPIC is that we have a renewable energy portfolio aspect of our up uh of WIPIC, and so about over 50% of our electricity is procured that's renewable, um, which would likely not be accessible to local governments outside of the city.

Um so there's there's uh uh strength in numbers is what WIPIC uh has been charged with or has been you know pursuing uh and the city currently chairs the uh WIPEC uh uh consortium uh alongside a seven with a seven committee member that's represented by Allegheny County, the uh Pittsburgh Water and several other entities.

So we co-lead this consortium.

And ultimately the the advisor is negotiating on all of our behalfs, but we're signing individual agreements.

So we're not signing a singular agreement with whoever that covers everybody, each member signing their own agreement, but we enjoy the power of the scaled up negotiation.

Yeah, no, no, I understand that that that all makes sense.

And of course, for this it's electricity, of course we need to buy electricity, there's no question.

But if it were something else, sure.

That wasn't electricity that maybe we needed, maybe we didn't need not having the re-upping of that consortium come through council could cause issues, I would say.

Anyway, but thank you.

This all this all makes sense and good work on launching the launching this way back in 2020, you said?

Uh it originally WIPIC started in 2007.

Okay.

Yeah.

And so 2020 is when uh and MOU was signed, and then 2025, we have a five-year MOU cycle.

Got it.

Got it, got it, got it.

Okay.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Further discussion for members.

I did have some questions.

I wanted to um I I don't remember exactly the year, about eight years ago, there was discussion about expanding the MOU not just to other governmental entities, but for say the community center that wanted to um enjoy the purchasing power of a larger entity or you know, the religious institution that wanted to install hydroelectric or geothermal and s and solar and then be part of this purchasing agreement.

Did that ever become part of this?

And is that currently part of this?

And is it a little bit more is it broader?

I thought that's what I remember that it would be open to smaller entities as well if they're a certain size, but I never knew if that actually was operationalized.

Yeah, go ahead.

Okay, I can answer that question.

So uh there are some size constraints for sub so some smaller entities, smaller local governments, it doesn't make it as cost effective to join WIPIC because we do have renewable energy goals.

Uh and we also have other management costs that are associated with these larger procurements.

Um there is uh you know, the smaller municipality uh uh uh without you know uh our our smallest has about you know uh uh uh uh not that much demand uh of electricity.

Um but that's not to say that there aren't benefits uh to learning about the energy market uh uh activities that are taking place, learning that there may be volatility in the market uh in the future.

Uh so there are some varying levels of benefits uh to being a part of WIPIC.

Um there are other discussions that are taking place within the consortium right now that to explore other energy opportunities.

So uh uh if we are able to organize under one contracting vehicle, we can pursue you know power purchase agreements for renewable energy that would be available to multiple entities within uh a consortium or maybe even fuels, liquid fuels or other uh energy resources that cities and municipalities uh require purchasing uh we could utilize this same model for uh uh uh to you know lead into that collective purchasing power to reduce costs and bring more cost certainty uh to those energy procurement options.

Yeah.

Because clearly, I mean it's it's every uh energy source right now that's um so volatile as we know, and so um so much part of a larger system and and in some cases a global market that's just out of our control.

Will this it sounds like it has helped us keep us help helped keep our region or our consortium below the other you know comparable prices, but um what more can this group do to keep it really stable as especially electricity is is so volatile statewide.

We don't know what's gonna happen with data centers.

We don't know what PGM is gonna do, you know, like w the future is out of our control.

What can this do aside from a negotiating, you know, um a great agreement?

Uh the future I s in and just off the top of my head, there are things like uh you know, demand and usage uh kind of like uh marketing tools, you know, turn the lights off between three and four type thing, right?

Like we could work with WEPIC to pull out the type of educational programming, I think.

Okay, great.

Um just the the fact of WEPIC existing creates a level of of uh quality control that we didn't have before.

So an example of that is due to this work of WEPIC, we found 350 accounts that weren't actually attached correctly, then we now found cost savings.

Yep.

Right.

Um so that's the future where WEPIC can go, I think is really just that kind of uh advocate for energy.

Especially because yesterday we just had the right the most agenda on climate.

Right fits right in.

Right.

If I could just quickly add on what Don was saying with those 350 accounts, and this is a good opportunity to elevate the importance of this issue, slamming, which is uh when uh electric generation distributors inaccurately or uh you know uh uh pursue customers uh and maybe put them on their account without proper authorization or pressure them into signing up for a generation contract.

I'm sure maybe many of us have had that interaction, and so the city experiences those same uh interactions with suppliers enrolling city accounts into suppliers that are not with our authorization.

So through this WIPIC process, we're able to continuously audit our accounts and make sure that those accounts remain with the supplier that we choose.

Not everybody has that you know that's that opportunity to continuously review their accounts and make sure, especially with as many accounts as the city has to make sure that those accounts aren't being inappropriately enrolled.

Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

My last question is you mentioned liquid fuels.

So this currently includes gas and liquid and liquid and natural gas, or it doesn't.

Is there a separate process for that?

There is a separate process for natural gas right now.

Uh the city recently uh contracted NLX to uh uh conduct auctions uh for procuring our natural gas supply, uh which is si somewhat different from our process for procuring electricity.

Um there is there are interests in future in in the future of exploring how we can use WIPICS model to procure more energy sources.

Great.

Yeah, like I said, everything's volatile, so we need to have the most power we can over the process.

Just the last point to your to what WEPA can do.

WEPEC already brought to the table where we transitioned like 30% of our portfolio to a w to a wind generating farm in Ohio, right?

So it's it's those types of connections and being a lookout on diversifying our portfolio from dirty energy to clean energy as well as programming, right?

Versus just the operational managing utilities working in a programming piece.

Right.

Thank you all.

Uh any further questions.

All right.

Seeing none, all those in favor of Bill 205, please say aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Affirmative recommendation.

Thank you.

Thank you.

That takes us to land use and economic development committee chaired by Councilman Wilson.

Excuse me.

Bill 207.

Bill 207, resolution authorizing the Pittsburgh Land Bank to acquire all the city's right title and interest, if any, and into the publicly owned properties in a fifth ward city of Pittsburgh, designated in the D Registry Office of Allegheny County as block 10K lot 152, 635 Carpatrick Street, District 6, no cost to the city.

With discussion?

Councilman Wilson.

Is there someone here to talk about a bill?

We have a Sally Statleman listed.

I don't know if Sally has joined us online.

Is there anyone else?

Okay.

That's okay.

I'll just reach out separately.

Okay.

Um you comfortable moving forward.

Yeah, yeah.

Okay.

Any further discussion?

All those in favor of Bill 207, please say aye.

Affirmative recommendation.

That brings us to intergovernmental and educational affairs committee chaired by Councilman Mosley.

Bill 197 resolution authorizing the issuance of a warrant payable in favor of the United States Conference of Mayors for one-year membership dues and an amount not to exceed 21,824.

Can we get a motion on the councilman's behalf?

Motion to prove.

Second.

Discussion.

Seeing none, all those in favor of Bill 197, please say aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Affirmative recommendation.

Bill 198.

Resolution authorizing the issuance of a warrant payable in favor of Pennsylvania municipal leave for one year subscription in an amount not to exceed $52,962 and 24 cent.

Motion to approve.

Second.

Discussion.

Seeing none, all those in favor of Bill 198, please say aye.

Affirmative recommendation, Bill 199.

Residu resolution adopting plan revision to the City of Pittsburgh's official sewage facilities plan for AG property ventures LLC 2111 Penn Avenue at no cost to the city.

Motion approve.

Second discussion.

Seeing none, all those in favor of Bill 199, please say aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Affirmative recommendation.

Bill 200.

Resolution adopting plan revision to the City of Pittsburgh's official sewage facilities plan for 1717 through 1719 Cliff Street at no cost to the city.

Motion approve.

Second.

Discussion?

Seeing none.

All those in favor of Bill 200, please say aye.

Aye.

Affirmative recommendation.

Bill 201.

Resolution adopting plan revision to the City of Pittsburgh's official sewage facilities plan for 544 Lincoln Avenue at no cost to the city.

Motion approved.

Second.

Discussion.

Seeing none.

All those in favor of Bill 201, please say aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Affirmative recommendation, Bill 202.

Resolution authorizing the mayor and director of public safety to enter into an agreement or agreements between a city of Pittsburgh and a stadium authority of Pittsburgh and Allegheny County.

Total cost not to exceed one dollar to allow for installation of public safety equipment.

Motion to approve with discussion.

Oh, second.

Yes.

Discussion, Council Person Charlotte.

Usually someone on this side of the table is driving the motions.

We appreciate your service.

Good morning.

Dan Shack, manager of the Office of Public Safety Technology.

Yeah, I I I obviously supportive of this.

I'm just curious what uh we're doing here.

Yeah, absolutely.

So it was part of the NFL draft there are a number of uh light poles and infrastructure on the North Shore that are be pulling out.

Um so some of the infrastructure we have for the public safety security initiative for you know crowd monitoring and protection of public safety critical infrastructure over on the North Shore is being relocated just from the uh the lighting poles um onto the uh the parking garage that the SEA owns um since those poles are being removed for the draft.

We're we're removing light poles for the draft.

Yeah, there are some that are in in certain areas um that for um on corners and just for better egress to sidewalks.

Oh, interesting, okay.

Yeah.

That's it.

It's pretty simple.

Interesting, cool.

All right, that's uh that's all for me.

You have further discussion.

Seeing none, all those in the case.

Sorry, man.

I was trying to raise my hand.

Go ahead.

Um so yeah, I'm still I just want to make sure I understand because we just also saw some news reports about trees being removed, and now we're um hearing about poles being removed.

And um this bill more specifically says there's an agreement.

And can you just give me a little more detail about that?

On the agreement, ma'am.

Yes, please.

Uh so the uh the SEA when we approached them about uh you know utilizing some of the rooftop space, um, the stadium authority who owns and maintains the gold lot one garage just asked for an agreement for the uh the placement of the equipment um on the building um that would you know provide indemnity in case there was any damages or anything um that was sustained during the work there.

So the the agreement is more so to provide the indemnity.

Between the city and the SEA.

The uh stadium authority.

Okay, okay.

Yeah, I get the mixed up.

Thank you.

Um so what is the the equipment?

So the equipment picture in my brain.

Yeah.

The the equipment is uh like a point-to-point infrastructure that allows uh you know connectivity for the devices to get back into the uh the city network.

What kind of devices?

Uh it's the it would be for the public safety security initiative, so the the cameras over on the north shore um that provide uh you know kind of security for the events over in that area.

So the so we have cameras on poles, and they're like in the parking lots and things, or on the street in the actually streets or like um uh in the parking lots.

So they are located on um city-owned uh light poles um within the public right-of-way um facing towards you know the streets where there's uh you know kind of traffic and you know no expectation of privacy, you know, areas of of public egress and ingress.

Thank you for throwing in the war requirements.

I do appreciate that.

Um because it this is something that I think citizens want to know about, and you know, we want to make sure that we are respecting citizens' privacy, and so we are temporarily locating them onto the stadium authorities property, but then we'll be removing them.

Is that correct?

The the placement of the equipment would relocate it from a lighting pole that is at street level um to the parking garage for the duration of the event.

Yes, ma'am.

And then it would end, and then they would go back to the locations where they exist now.

That is correct.

Okay, I'm following you.

And about like how much equipment is this?

How many of these um cameras are being moved and then moved back?

So it is one location uh that is uh being relocated from uh the poll at street level up to the parking garage.

Got it, like one poll with one camera.

Yes, ma'am.

That gives us a much better sense of the scale.

Uh makes me more comfortable.

Um we're definitely still getting up to speed, I think, on kind of where people and cities are comfortable with having um street cameras because there's just been a giant shift in technological capabilities.

So cameras 20 years ago, you know, 25 years ago were like film, right?

And now we have massive digital capabilities, AI, facial recognition, and it's a whole different ball game.

It makes people uncomfortable.

Um so here in this bill, we're moving removing one light pole and one camera, relocating it to a parking garage roof, and then going to move it back where it has been.

Did I say that right?

That is correct.

Okay, thank you.

I appreciate it.

That's all the questions I have.

Thank you.

Any further discussion?

Seeing none, all those in favor of Bill 202, please say aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Affirmative recommendation.

Thank you very much.

Thank you, everyone.

Have a good rest of your day.

You too.

Bill 206.

Resolution authorizing the issuance of a warrant in favor of National League of Cities for one-year membership dues and an amount not to exceed $19,626.

Motion approved.

Discussion?

Seeing none, all those in favor of Bill 206, please say aye.

Aye.

Aye.

Affirmative recommendation.

That exhausts our standing committee agenda.

Is there anything from members?

Seeing none, we have some meeting announcements.

This afternoon at 1 30 p.m.

Council will hold a pre-agenda interview.

Well, several pre-agenda interviews for the Historic Review Commission, Public Art Committee, and Civic Design Committee.

Next week, council will hold its regular meeting and standing committee meeting on Tuesday, March 10 17th and Wednesday, March 18th at 10 a.m.

respectively.

To register to speak at these meetings, please fill out the sign-up form on the council meeting webpage by the deadlines, and you may also call the clerk's office at 412-255-2138.

Nothing from members.

Aye.

Meeting adjourned.