Nov. 7, 2012 Almanac

Page 1

NEWSPAPER OF THE YEAR Pennsylvania Newspaper Association

@SHillsAlmanac

Our 47th year

November 7, 2012

www.thealmanac.net

Smith wins Senate, Murphy keeps seat By Terri T. Johnson

Obama wins re-election

Almanac staff writer tjohnson@thealmanac.net

In a race predicted to be close, Democrat Matt Smith easily defeated Republican D. Raja for a seat in the state 37th Senatorial District. Smith, currently a state representative in the 42nd Legislative District, garnered 63,367 votes with Raja, a businessman and former Mt. Lebanon Commissioner, gathering 56,381 votes with nearly 99 percent of the precincts reporting. The race was hotly contested with both candidates running negative advertisements on television. Initially, Raja came out on top on

Smith

Raja

the Republican ticket in the spring primary beating out two challengers and was presumed to be the winner in the general election. However, when a write-in candidate on the Democratic side withdrew, Smith opted to run for the seat vacated when then state Sen. John Pippy, R-Moon Township, announced he would not seek another term.

Murphy

Maggi

Other than serving as a Mt. Lebanon Commissioner, Raja’s only other political race saw him lose to Democrat Rich Fitzgerald for Allegheny County Executive. After conceding the race to Smith, Raja said, "It was a hard fought race, I congratulate Matt Smith and wish him the very best

Shortly after 11:30 p.m. election night, incumbent Democrat Barack Obama was projected to win re-election as President of the United States. While the popular vote was extremely close, Obama captured enough electoral votes in key states to clinch the victory over GOP challenger Mitt Romney. It is possible for one candidate

SEE ELECTION PAGE A2

ML may see lower tax rate

Transit Village clears hurdle

By Terri T. Johnson The Almanac tjohnson@thealmanac.net

Mt. Lebanon residents will see their real estate millage drop, but that doesn’t mean property owners will have more money in their wallets. In fact, a millage figure is not found anywhere in the 2013 annual budget released Nov. 1. Mt. Lebanon, like all communities in Allegheny County, is playing a waitand-see game when it comes to property reassessments. “The budget assumes a property reassessment that will result in an increase of 5 percent over real estate revenue received in 2012,” said Stephen Feller, municipal manager. Law prohibits communities from seeing more than a 5 percent increase in local taxes due to the reassessment of properties by Allegheny County. The county is expected to release the reassessment figures in December, Feller said during a meeting Nov. 1 when the budget was unveiled. As a result, millage in Mt. Lebanon could drop from the current 5.43 mills to 4.4 to 4.89 mills, depending on the results of the reassessment appeal. Feller said many municipalities,

to receive more popular votes, and lose the election when the electoral votes are counted. The U.S. Constitution dictates that while one candidate may control a higher number of individual votes, the actual winner must have 270 electoral votes. As of midnight, Obama was projected to have 274 electoral votes to Romney’s 203.

By Deana Carpenter For The Almanac writer@thealmanac.net

ELEANOR BAILEY / STAFF

Savoring success Jake Wilcox (No. 29) and Josh Kruczek (No. 19) relish the gold medals they earned when Canon-McMillan edged Upper St. Clair, 1-0, and captured its first WPIAL boys’ soccer championship. Kruczek scored the decisive goal in the 26th minute and James Hathaway earned the shutout in the nets for the Big Macs (18-4). In addition to CM, PetersTownship dominated the girls’ soccer and state tennis and Mt. Lebanon ruled the volleyball courts. For more details on their winning weekend turn to page D1.

SEE TAX PAGE A4

The long-awaited Shannon Transit Village development is on its way to becoming a reality after Castle Shannon Council unanimously approved a resolution Nov. 5 to participate in a tax increment financing program for the proposed project. Council members Nancy Kovach, Jean O’Malley and Vince Smith were absent from the meeting. The Shannon Transit Village would be located at the current park and ride lot along Castle Shannon and Mt. Lebanon boulevards. The lot is owned by the Port Authority and is currently tax exempt. The development would include an eight-story, 128-unit apartment building with 14,000 square feet of retail on the first floor. JRA Development Group of the Strip District is working with the Allegheny County Redevelopment Authority on the proposed project. “It’s been long-awaited for this day,” said Castle Shannon Council Vice President Michael Warhold SEE TRANSIT PAGE A6

Dance group champions opportunity for everyone By Deana Carpenter For The Almanac writer@thealmanac.net

DEANA CARPENTER

More than 30 people attended the Senior Social Nov. 3 at the Community and Recreation Center in Upper St. Clair.

INDEX ©2012 Observer Publishing Company

One local organization is dedicating itself to making sure that everyone who wants to dance has the opportunity to do so. Yes, You Can Dance! was founded last year by Rebecca Stern of Upper St. Clair, a member of the school board, who is also the president of the organization. The group partners with other community and health outlets as well as educators and dance professionals to provide seniors, veterans and those with special needs an opportunity to learn to dance. While the organization does have a few employees, Stern said it relies heavily on volunteers to keep it running smoothly. The organization kicked off last November with a Senior Social at

the Community and Recreation Center in Upper St. Clair. “We did it last November as the inaugural event,” Stern said. This year more than 30 people attended the Senior Social held at the recreation center on Nov. 3. Stern said she wanted everyone who came to the social to have an opportunity to dance, so she relied on volunteer “dance hosts” for those who may have come to the event alone. “There are a lot of real benefits to dancing,” including physical benefits as well as social benefits, Stern said. She added that there is quite a bit of research that dance can be therapeutic, especially when dancing with a partner because each person has to think about what the other is doing and react to it. “It’s a really well-rounded activity that can be used to benefit you SEE DANCE PAGE A4

DEANA CARPENTER

Attendees enjoy dancing at the Senior Social held at the Community and Recreation Center in Upper St. Clair.

Bettering Bethel Park

Across South Hills . . .A3

Opinion . . . . . . . . . . . .A4

Arts & Entertainment . .C6-7

Religion . . . . . . . . . . .C2,3

Bethel’s Bounty caters to good taste. Page B6

Classifieds . . . .D5,6, E1-6

Sights and Sounds . .C6,7

Deaths . . . . . . . . . . . . .A4

Sports . . . . . . . . . . . .D1-3

Deed Transfers . . . . . .C8

Together . . . . . . . . . . . .C1

Editorial . . . . . . . . . . . .A4

Youth . . . . . . . . . . . . . .B1

Roamin’ the South Hills Experience wellness through movement. Page C1


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Nov. 7, 2012 Almanac by Katie Green - Issuu