City Council
A half mile of trees illegally cut down along the Ohio Riverfront Trail leads to a two-year tree study.
About a half mile of trees along the Ohio Riverfront Trail were cut down without permission. A city arborist said a neighboring property owner did it and dumped much of the wood into the river. On Oct. 7, council advanced paying for an independent tree count there. The city forester said that's needed to seek restitution.
Written by Amy Whipple
The city is planning to spend more than $4,000 to count city trees that were cut down by a property owner in order to determine the restitution needed.
The Department of Public Works requested $11,910 for the Davey Resource Group to conduct tree inventories on the Ohio Riverfront Trail and Arsenal Park over the next two years.
Utility arborist Michael Kelley said during the Oct. 7 committee meeting that the inventory along the Ohio Riverfront Trail is the result of “willful destruction” by an unnamed resident who owns adjacent property.
“He took out about a half mile of trees without authorization on public land and dumped a good portion of the material into the river,” said Kelley. He said that the trees were neither tall enough to hit, nor capable of falling in the direction of nearby structures.
City forester Lisa Ceoffe said, “It’s devastating, actually.”
The resident received a violation for illegal dumping into the river. In order to receive restitution to restore the corridor, the city now needs an independent arborist study, Ceoffe said.
She also said that Lawrenceville Together requested the inventory for Arsenal Park. The park has some older trees that are in decline, and the intention is to determine which can be saved and where the organization could plant new trees.
Council agreed to move forward with both requests.
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City Council
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A new review system might help the city weigh past performance before renewing a contract.
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Council asks to sit in on the court fight over its $1.5 billion-short pension fund 🔗.
Allegheny County's employee pension fund is nearly $1.5 billion short. A Sept. 3 court opinion said the governor and state lawmakers will likely need to give the county more funding tools. Then on Sept. 22, county council voted to ask the court to let its lawyer join the case as a neutral party. Next, the court will hold a hearing on that request.
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Door-to-door reassessment could cost $50 million and bring a wave of appeals.
Allegheny County hasn't reassessed property values since 2012. In August, a judge ordered the county to start reassessing by July 2027 and finish by 2032. On Sept. 14, a council committee heard the door-to-door work could cost $50 million and bring a wave of appeals. For now, it's holding a bill for regular reassessments until other lawsuits end.
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EMS providers get a faster path to $1 million in opioid settlement relief.
Opioid settlement money set aside for emergency medical services providers has sat unspent since last December. On Sept. 22, county council approved changes that widen how the $1 million can be used and simplify applications. Payments can begin as soon as the county executive signs the legislation. So far, the county has spent almost half of its overall opioid settlement funds.
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City closes North Side space that provided drop-in support for unhoused residents.
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A will of council urges county lawmakers to require paid parental leave.
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Speakers warn that surveillance technology threatens civil rights.
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Golden Horizons would bring a 55+ community with pickleball to Banksville.
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Paving becomes the quickest way to use up unspent pandemic aid.
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Campaign materials built with generative AI could need a clear disclosure starting next year.
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Proposal would soften a 2021 ban on shackling incarcerated individuals during medical care.
Medical emergencies at the Allegheny County Jail are climbing, and the jail is short on staff. On Sept. 8, three county council members proposed letting sheriff's deputies use leg shackles during medical transport and care. That would soften a 2021 ban on shackling people held at the jail. For now, the proposal sits with council's public safety committee.
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Love Your Block returns after a two-year pause with $20,000 for 17 neighborhood groups.
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Verra Mobility’s red light cameras land on a list of 37 surveillance tools up for review.
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Permit change aims to end no parking signs that linger for weeks with no work.
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Nearly $60,000 would buy a dozen trailers for snow and lawn crews.
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Proposed ban would keep data centers off county-owned property.
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