Trib: Connecticut festival to showcase Mt. Lebanon teen's film

A Mt. Lebanon High School student's short film was among 50 accepted into next month's Westport Youth Film Festival in Fairfield, Conn.

Olivia Tant, an 18-year-old senior, will have her film screened May 14 at the festival, whose organizers say is the only film festival in the world produced by teens and featuring the work of teenage filmmakers.

Read the full article:

• www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/pittsburgh/s_734291.html (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)

Trib: Mt. Lebanon board awaits answers on high project bids (Updated)

Update 2011-04-28 4:20 PM: Added Pittsburgh Post-Gazette article regarding school board meeting

Update 2011-04-28 11:25 AM: be sure to also see Dan Miller’s comments on the fire-safety issues mentioned in the Tribune-Review article.

Mt. Lebanon school board members didn't get many answers this week on why bids came in much higher than expected on the high school renovation project, but they pledged to get the project back on budget when it is re-bid later this year.

The board unanimously rejected the first round of bids Monday night during a solemn and angry meeting.

"From this point forward, we need you to come up with as many scenarios as you can with this project," board president Josephine Posti told architect Tom Celli and P.J. Dick project manager John Taormina. "There are no sacred cows."

Read more:

• www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/pittsburgh/s_734251.html (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)
• Mt. Lebanon school board wants reasons for high bids (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

School board rejects high-school bids and vows to lower costs (Updated 5)

Updated yet again. Added more description and link to Bill Matthew’s letter to the school board on the bids. Also added more links to other reports. Be sure to read The Almanac’s article; it gives a pretty good summary of the meeting.

Tonight the school board voted unanimously to reject the bids for the proposed high-school renovation. The bids, which had been opened on April 19, 2011, had exceeded the project’s estimated maximum construction cost by more than $15 million, suggesting that the project’s total cost, once capped at $113 million, was in reality closer to $130 million.

Members of the school board vowed to bring the project’s cost down. While they hoped to preserve the existing design, they said that all options were open for consideration.

“There are no sacred cows,” said Josephine Posti, school board president.

School director Dale Ostergaard, pointing to upcoming pension obligations, said that the board must be realistic about how much it can afford. He said that the renovation’s cost must be sharply reduced, and that things previously non-negotiable must become negotiable.

Board members offered suggestions for lowing the cost: forgo LEED Silver certification, use split shifts for students to ease construction phasing, challenge the municipality’s “high-rise” fire-safety designation (but see Dan Miller’s blog post, linked to below), relax contractual terms for bidders to encourage lower bids, and others. Even some of the previously untouchable Fifteen Design Criteria were discussed.

Community member Dan Rothschild suggested revisiting Building C, which had been slated for demolition. Reusing Building C, as the Community Advisory Committee had advised the school board in late 2009, would be a more efficient use of an existing building and potentially keep all of the other programmed spaces intact, he said.

Community member Bill Matthews asked the school board to keep a closer eye on its hired architects and construction managers, who the school board had questioned earlier in the meeting about the unreliability of their project-cost predictions. Matthews had also written to the school board earlier, asking them to realize that the high bids were not caused by a problem with the bidders but with the complexity of the high-school project itself.

Other reports:

• Now is the time (Lebo Citizens blog)
• Mt. Lebanon school board rejects renovation bids (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
• Project Update (Center Court, Josephine Posti’s blog)
• Bids for high school renovation too high for Mt. Lebanon board (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)
• Mt. Lebanon rejects renovation bids (The Almanac)
• Mt. Lebanon school board wants reasons for high bids (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
• Mt. Lebanon board awaits answers on high project bids (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)
• Fire Safety Questions at the High School (Dan Miller’s blog)

The school board’s test begins today

Over on the Lebo Citizens blog, Bill Lewis asked me about the high-school construction bids and what they say about the credibility and integrity of the people leading our community from the school district. It’s an interesting question, and because my answer is complicated, I’m going to give it here.

When people say something that turns out to be false, it certainly ought to affect our understanding of their credibility. If it didn’t, we wouldn’t be thinking straight. It should also affect our understanding of their integrity, but in what way depends on whether we believe they believed what they were telling us.

So I’m going to tell you what I believe.

I believe that the folks on the school board are good people, trying to do a good job. Nothing I’ve seen makes me think otherwise. I also believe the same of superintendent Steinhauer.

And that’s why I believe that the project’s champions genuinely believed what they were telling us – that they could get the renovation’s price tag down to around $95 million. In my eyes, then, their integrity remains intact.

But their credibility is shot. Almost everything they said about the project’s cost has now proved false, and by such a wide margin it’s hard to believe they know where things actually stand.

In light of the bids, it seems hard to deny that our community must now pay more for the renovation – perhaps $25 million more – than we were told to expect. And, most likely, we must also accept less in return, as parts of the project get lopped off to avoid a referendum that would almost surely fail.

Therefore, because we now know the truth, the school board’s test of integrity begins today.

Faced with overwhelming evidence that their beliefs about the project were off target, what will the school board tell us? Will they tell us that everything is fine? That this renovation is “worth it,” even if it costs $25 million more than expected?

Here’s the problem with that argument: it ignores opportunity cost. If we spend $25 million more than expected on this renovation, that’s $25 million less than expected we have to invest in other things within the school district. In other words, to go forward with this renovation, we’re going to have to give up $25 million worth of real education.

Will the school board tell us that this sacrifice is “worth it”?

Or will they be willing to consider that it’s time to pause, clear our eyes, and take a fresh look at our options?

The test begins today.

P-G: Coloring book celebrates Mt. Lebanon's history

A year and a half ago, members of the board of the Historical Society of Mount Lebanon started kicking around an idea: to design a coloring book that featured the municipality's landmarks and history.

Dick Price, 79, a retired Pittsburgh Public Schools English teacher, volunteered to lead the project, and sent letters to as many Mt. Lebanon-based artists, architects and art teachers as he could find, asking if they could draw an image to go along with the captions about Mt. Lebanon.

Read the full article:

• www.post-gazette.com/pg/11111/1140737-55.stm (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

P-G: Mt. Lebanon man sentenced to 4 years in jail for mortgage fraud

A Mt. Lebanon man guilty of mortgage-related fraud and tax evasion was sentenced to four years and three months in prison today.

Daniel Gillen, 43, was an employee of People's Home Mortgage, based in the West End. He was accused of submitting fraudulent loan applications, using unlicensed appraisers to evaluate homes and acting as an appraiser without a license. He pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to conspiracy to launder money, conspiracy to commit wire fraud and tax evasion.

Read the full article:

• www.post-gazette.com/pg/11111/1140993-100.stm (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

The Almanac: Lebo lacrosse not worried about ratings

Mike Ermer has coached college lacrosse for 11 years. He also celebrates his 25th year associated with the Mt. Lebanon High School program.

Throughout his tenure and his life, he has learned a valuable lesson. Take care of your own house.

"I don't worry too much about what other teams are doing. I worry about Mt. Lebanon lacrosse," he said. "If we do what we do well, then we will be good."

Read the full article:

• www.thealmanac.net/alm/sportstory10/04-20-2011-Lebo-lacrosse (The Almanac)

P-G: Mt. Lebanon resident wins AA title

Daniel "D.J." Goldblum is heading to Hershey for a PIAA tournament for a third time.

He wants to make one last PIAA championships appearance, as well -- and for this one, he wants to take 16 of his closest friends with him.

Goldblum, a Mt. Lebanon resident who is a senior at Winchester Thurston, won his second WPIAL Class AA singles championship last week, defeating David Cenkner of Mount Pleasant, 6-2, 6-4, in the final this past Friday at Norwin High School.

Read the full article:

• www.post-gazette.com/pg/11111/1140609-364.stm (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

High-school bids exceed $113 million, despite assurances to the contrary (Updated 3)

Updated 2011-04-20 09:39 to add link to school district’s announcement about the bids.
Updated 2011-04-20 18:24: the school district cancels the April 28 groundbreaking ceremony.
Updated 2011-04-21 10:17: local media are now reporting that the lowest bid came in $15.3 million higher than the the school district’s estimate.

Yesterday evening, the Mt. Lebanon school district revealed in a press release that bids for the proposed high-school renovation came in more than $14 million higher than expected. The lowest bid suggests a project cost of over $127 million.

Earlier, the school district had told the community that the project would cost no more than $113 million. This was the “maximum project cost” reported in the school district’s Act 34 declarations, back in January, 2010.

Since then, proponents of the project, both on and off the school board, had spread the belief that the project would cost less. One school-board director had said that “$95 million or less” was achievable. Another had written in her blog, “I'm confident that we will bring the project in below $113 million...”

Community activists contributed to the belief as well. Bloggers at Real Lebo had written that “cold, hard facts” about similar projects offered guidance about what Mt. Lebanon “could likely expect,” explaining that, “if you do the math, if our $113 M cap gets bids that are 20% less, that would bring our ACTUAL cost down to about $90 [million].” Similarly, the VOICE of Mt. Lebanon group claimed that the cost would be capped at $113 million and “could come in as much as 20% less...”

Speaking about the bids now, superintendent Dr. Timothy Steinhauer said they were “unacceptably high.”

The school district’s construction manager and architect are trying to figure out why the bids came in so much higher than expected. They will report their findings at a meeting scheduled for Monday, April 25, 2011, at 7:30 pm in the high-school library.

Update: groundbreaking ceremony canceled

The school district has now canceled the groundbreaking ceremony planned for April 28. From the school district’s web site:

The High School groundbreaking ceremony scheduled for April 28, 2011 is postponed while the Board deliberates on the outcome of the bids for the High School project.

Update: lowest bid $15.3 million higher than school district’s estimate

In updated coverage, the Post-Gazette and the Tribune-Review are reporting that the lowest bid was $15.3 million higher than the school district’s project cost estimate.

Read more:

• Mt. Lebanon postpones renovation project groundbreaking (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
• Bids for Mt. Lebanon high school renovation ‘unacceptably high’ (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)
• Bids for Mt. Lebanon schools renovation higher than expected (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)
• No $75 Million Plan, and No $113.3 Million Plan Either (Lebo Citizens)
• High School Bids Opened: Costs Exceed Estimates (Mt. Lebanon school district)

newPA: Corbett Administration Recognizes Six Greater Pittsburgh Area Municipalities and Officials for Dedication, Innovative Management

Lt. Governor Jim Cawley, on behalf of Governor Tom Corbett, today recognized three local government officials and three municipalities in the Greater Pittsburgh area for their commitment to their communities and for using innovative approaches to municipal service delivery that resulted in cost savings and service efficiencies.

“As local government officials you hear firsthand the issues of your constituents and it is your responsibility to provide solutions that make your community a vibrant place to live, work and raise a family,” Lt. Governor Cawley said at the 15thannual Governor’s Awards for Local Government Excellence. “This celebration is a testament to your hard work and an acknowledgement that your concern for your community and your dedication has not been overlooked.”

The following municipalities in the Greater Pittsburgh area were recognized today:

* Mount Lebanon Township, in Allegheny County, was recognized in the category of “innovative community and governmental initiatives” for the Mount Lebanon Fire Department’s integration and use of a new information technology system that has improved service delivery, increased safety of fire personnel and enhanced fire service to the residents of the township.

Read the full article:

• www.newpa.com/newsroom/corbett-administration-recognizes-six-greater-pittsburgh-area-municipalities-and-officials-for-dedic (newPA)

School board approves first steps of reorganization

At its meeting on April 18, 2011, the Mt. Lebanon school board approved the first steps of superintendent Dr. Timothy Steinhauer’s proposed reorganization of top staff positions. The board made five appointments.

Dr. Deborah Allen’s appointment was extended for an additional two years. Under the new plan, she will become the Assistant Superintendent of Elementary Education.

Dr. Ronald Davis, currently the high-school principal, will become the Assistant Superintendent of Secondary Education.

Brian McFeeley, the principal of Mellon Middle School, will replace Davis as the high-school principal.

Peter Berg, currently the Supervisor of School Counseling, will become the High School Dean of Students, another new position.

Greg Wensell, currently the Supervisor of Mathematics, Computer Science, and Business and Information Technology, will become the principal of Jefferson Elementary School. Wensell will replace Mike Schnirel, who is retiring.

Sources in the school district say the reorganization is expected to make the district run more effectively. Lines of communication will become clearer, and the resources to solve problems will be placed closer to the people working on those problems.

School board approves parking agreement with Mt. Lebanon United Lutheran Church

At its regular meeting on April 18, 2011, the Mt. Lebanon school board voted to approve a 48-month parking agreement with the Mt. Lebanon United Lutheran Church at 975 Washington Road. The agreement will make 127 additional parking spaces available to the school district during the high-school renovation.

In exchange for the parking spaces, the school district will pay the church $1500 per year and provide for the general maintenance of the parking lot, including salting and snow removal. The school district also agreed to reseal and re-stripe the parking lot when the agreement ends, an estimated cost of about $19 thousand.

School-board director Dan Remely said during the meeting that, compared to what others were paying for parking, the school district’s agreement was a bargain.

Two details of the agreement remain to be worked out: (1) the exact start and end dates and (2) how to handle the Lion’s Club Farmers’ Market, usually held on Wednesday evenings in the parking lot.

Trib: Mt. Lebanon has work to do

Mt. Lebanon softball coach Nikki Fajtak knows repeating as WPIAL and PIAA Class AAAA champion isn't going to be a breeze.

To be honest, though, a 1-4 start wasn't what she had in mind.

"It's like I always say: After you win a WPIAL championship, the hardest game is the first game at states to get back off that high," Fajtak said. "I don't think we expected to start off where we are, but I knew it wouldn't be easy and we'd have to work hard to get there again."

Read the full article:

• www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/sports/highschool/s_731412.html (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)

Trib: System gambling with safety of family

He might not be watching, but they feel his eyes regardless.

They feel Robertino DeAngelis's gaze as they recall his capacity for unpredictable violence. They can't help pondering what he could be capable of doing next.

"This is an extremely difficult situation for our family," Joseph DeIuliis, the father of the young woman DeAngelis tried to kill, said Friday. "I've been spending a lot of my time assuring friends and relatives that we're OK. Truth is, we're not OK."

Read the full article:

• www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/columns/heyl/s_732677.html (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)

Trib: Judge rejects plea bargain, gives Mt. Lebanon man jail time

A Westmoreland County judge rejected a tentative plea deal for a Mt. Lebanon man who admitted inappropriately touching a teenage girl after learning yesterday that the man has at least six prior sex offenses and has been accused of sexually assaulting a Fayette County girl.

Instead of serving a probation sentence, Richard M. Sabatasse, 26, was ordered to serve eight to 23 months in prison, to be followed by five years' probation. He was ordered to undergo intensive treatment for sexual offenders.

Read the full article:

• www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/s_731794.htm (Pittsburgh Tribune-Review)

P-G: Mt. Lebanon man, 19, released to house arrest

A Mt. Lebanon teenager who spent 18 months in juvenile detention for trying to kill his ex-girlfriend was released to house arrest Monday, returning home flanked by his parents.

At a hearing earlier, Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge Kim Berkeley Clark ordered Robertino DeAngelis to wear an electronic monitoring anklet, used to enforce the house arrest.

Read the full article:

• www.postgazette.com/pg/11102/1138717-55.stm (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

P-G: Contractor pleads guilty to scamming Mt. Lebanon homeowners

A Lawrenceville contractor pleaded guilty last week to taking money from elderly homeowners for jobs in Mt. Lebanon and then never finishing the work.

James Turowski, 41, pleaded to seven counts of failing to perform work and one count of theft in scamming seven homeowners.

Read the full article:

• www.post-gazette.com/pg/11095/1136996-55.stm (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

WTAE: 8-Year-Old Boy Delivers Hope To Tornado Victims

An 8-year-old Mt. Lebanon boy raised hundreds of dollars for two Hempfield boys whose home was destroyed by last month's tornado, and delivered it to them personally this morning.

Trevor Turkovich, 8, attends Foster Elementary School, and saw on the news the destruction along Fosterville Road. He decided his school should do everything it could to help.

Read the full article:

• www.wtae.com/news/27501980/detail.html (WTAE)

P-G: Fire damages Mt. Lebanon home

A fire early today damaged a Mt. Lebanon home.

No one was hurt in the blaze that was reported at 2:30 a.m., according to an emergency dispatch supervisor. The fire was brought quickly under control and was confined to a sun-room area, the dispatcher said.

Read the full article:

• www.post-gazette.com/pg/11100/1138430-100.stm (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

P-G: Genealogy society can help with search for ancestors

The Mt. Lebanon Genealogy Society can help members and visitors discover if those family legends are true. It offers to help searchers learn more about the lives of their ancestors.

Jim Stuber, co-chairman of the group, said one of the first places to start looking is to ask older relatives about the stories of their forebears.

Searchers should record everything they find -- information that doesn't make sense now will probably make sense later, Mr. Stuber said.

Read the full article:

• www.post-gazette.com/pg/11097/1137481-55.stm (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

P-G: Educator will manage logistics of high school project

The description of responsibilities for the position "owner's liaison" listed on the Mt. Lebanon School District website is lengthy:

"Review traffic patterns for drop-off and pickup. ... Ensure continuity of instruction and other educational programs including athletics and the arts. ... Assist with the relocation of students and classrooms throughout the project. ... Assist with communication to students, staff and parents."

These duties, and many others outlined in bullet points by the district, will be taken up by Terrence Kushner, a longtime educator in Pittsburgh-area suburban schools, as the district prepares for the start of its long-planned $113.2 million high school renovation.

Read the full article:

• www.post-gazette.com/pg/11097/1137478-55.stm (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

P-G: 'Sore thumb' billboard in Castle Shannon draws much attention from Mt. Lebanon

If the job of a billboard is to attract attention, then the one installed recently in front of the building at 250 Mt. Lebanon Blvd. is working overtime.

The 180-square-foot billboard was erected in a commercial zone of Castle Shannon sometime in early to mid-March.

Not long after, a blogger in neighboring Mt. Lebanon took notice. Fake Lebo, the anonymous satirist of all things related to Mt. Lebanon, posted a picture of the billboard on a Facebook page and wrote, "If you hate this, 'like' this."

Read the full article:

• www.post-gazette.com/pg/11097/1137473-55.stm (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

Superintendent announces school-district reorganization (Updated 2)

Updated 2011-04-05 23:55 with additional links.
Update 2011-04-06 14:52: Referred to Jo Posti answering some questions about the reorganization.

In an interesting change (shake-up?) at the school district, superintendent Dr. Timothy Steinhauer announced a reorganization of some top spots.

“These changes are designed to improve student learning, communication, coordination, and consistency throughout the District,” Dr. Steinhauer wrote.

Under what is being called the “first step” of the reorganization, there will be two changes:

One: “The reappointment of Dr. Deborah Allen in a new role as the Assistant Superintendent for Elementary Education and the appointment of Dr. Ronald Davis as the Assistant Superintendent for Secondary Education.”

Two: “By the start of the 2013–14 school year, all curriculum supervisor positions will be eliminated. Individuals currently holding these positions will be able to move into other positions within the District over the next two years.”

It’s not clear what the next steps of reorganization will be. For now, the superintendent is “asking for patience” and promises to have more information after the April 18, 2011, school-board meeting, at which the school board is expected to vote on the announced changes.

I wonder what’s coming up.

Update: On her blog, Center Court, school-board president Jo Posti has answered some questions about the reorganization. They are:

• When will other positions impacted by the reorganization be announced?
• Is this announcement a reaction to the District's current or future budget situation?
• Will there be staffing changes within the teaching staff?
• Why now?

The answers are not particularly direct or informative. Still, one thing did catch my eye:

Once the plan is fully implemented, there will be a significant savings to the District, ...

Interesting.

Also reporting on the reorganization:

• Letter from Dr. Steinhauer (Lebo Citizens Blog)
• Reorganization Announced (Center Court, the blog of Jo Posti, president of the school board)
  
• Questions About The Reorganization (Center Court, the blog of Jo Posti, president of the school board)
  

WTAE: Clearview Student-Athlete Of The Week: Anna Kestler, Mt. Lebanon

In each of the past four seasons the Mt. Lebanaon girls' basketball team has ended their season in the same place: the PIAA Class AAAA championship game at Penn State's Bryce Jordan Center.

In the past three trips the Blue Devils came back with the state championship trophy, the latest being a 47-46 win against Archbishop Carroll last weekend.

Senior point guard Anna Kestler is one of only two players on the Mt. Lebanon roster -- and one of few ever in western Pennsylvania -- to have played in four state championship games.

Read the full article:

• www.wtae.com/high-school-playbook/27388047/detail.html (WTAE)

P-G: Mt. Lebanon man must pay $300,000 to gaming company

A Mt. Lebanon man whose hobby-turned-business crossed swords with a fantasy gaming company faces a $300,000 legal judgment and other penalties, U.S. District Judge Terrence F. McVerry ruled Thursday.

Philip James Holland, 23, copied the online game Evony: Age II, and circumvented its owners' controls over their intellectual property, Judge McVerry found.

Read the full article:

• www.post-gazette.com/pg/11091/1136138-55.stm (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)