(The city did not provide requested documentation of the charge by the time of publication. And our police officers hand write time slips? Graduating in Pennsylvania is about to get more complicated. This story was made possible with financial support through the American Press Institute. Keenon Mikell turned on the lights for First Steps empty gymnasium, illuminating a boxing ring, heavy bags, training bags, speed bags and exercise machines. Cherepko said he remembers Lawson but he did not know where she was living when he took her property. It had cost him jobs, landed him in legal trouble and filled him with shame: He skipped his mothers funeral to get high, he told the group. Two abandoned houses on East Street in McKeesport were torched. "Well, yeah. Despite ongoing challenges to the city's long-term financial health, Mayor James Brewster said there's more good news than bad news in the 2010 budget. Dennis K.E. Whole Foods would be good. Only three new homes, including the mayor's, were built in the past decade.Cherepko is not the first one to use this program, but he says he is the first to use it to build a house. Reducing salaries would be a penny wise and a pound foolish. 32-year-old Officer Sean Sluganski was shot and killed after responding to a domestic. He currently lives in Mt. "I signed it over to McKeesport. The opportunity to restore this building can do so much for the city just from the whole perspective of how people view McKeesport from the outside, the mayor said. For some of them, the program clicks, he said. That was despite the fact that in those early years, Lous salary was $22,000 per year, while he and Jean were trying to raise two growing young sons who loved to eat! I dont understand why we cant get any assistance helping this population in McKeesport, he told council. This employer has not claimed their Employer Profile and is missing out on connecting with our community. Now he has an annual budget that hovers below $500,000 a year, anchored by an Allegheny County Department of Human Services allocation that is $312,000 in fiscal 2021-22. The average median income in the city is just over $23,000 (zipskinny.com). See our privacy policy. "Oh, God. On the wall was a plaque featuring a 1997 McKeesport Daily News article headlined Abusers Take First Steps. It described Giles path from his own recovery to the founding of this organization, including seven years he labored without vacation or funding.. You can pick one up on ebay fairly cheap(and they run themselves). The recovery organization is struggling to pay the bills, to make payroll and to salvage its relationship with city government. What should happen are municipal mergers that would put all of these towns on a level field but the voters hate the idea. In fact, the owner said she paid to have the old house demolished.People at a McKeesport shopping complex who spoke with Action News Investigates were unaware of the city program and skeptical of the mayor's motives. I cant imagine we still have switchboards. Action News Investigates has learned that the mayor of McKeesport got the property for his house on the cheap, using a city program.Mayor Michael Cherepko says he was given no special favors, but the mayor is the first and only person in McKeesport who has used this program to build a house.WATCH: Paul Van Osdol's investigationThe story of the mayor's home starts with a fire in May 2012. Here's what people are saying about City Of Mckeesport. With 39 officers, the bonuses totaled $117,000. If it can restore a 96-year-old landmark, McKeesport will send a powerful signal to skeptics, the citys mayor said at a public hearing on the fate of the long-abandoned Penn McKee Hotel. Employers: This data could be used as reference point in your market pricing, but not the only source, due to differences across jobs locations, and sizes of companies.Consider additional sources like our Employer reported data. I am fiscally responsible for the tax dollars in the City of McKeesport, Cherepko told Giles in the first of two testy encounters before city council. "The good old days that we think of today are gone," he said. Is More Than a Website Its a Community Instigation. Just to feed his residents, he relies on generosity from restaurants and charity. Gerald Mitchell, a First Step Recovery Homes resident, becomes emotional as he tells a group of residents about his difficult road. The salary paid can be different for the same position in City Of Mckeesport based on experience, skills, and education. McKeesport city controller Raymond Malinchak confirmed that he is circulating petitions, seeking signatures for an independent bid for mayor of McKeesport. (Lake. No, yet the guy in McKeesport is expected to work for less money for doing the same job. On this late October day, the residents were all en route to the convention in Erie. Feb 2016 First Step CEO Keith Giles believes that the city armed with $24.7 million in American Rescue Plan Act [ARPA] funding should help to stabilize the financially struggling program. Until recently, he was also the owner of a building on McKeesports Fifth Avenue. I wont complain about how much they get paid. "That's circumventing the system, taking advantage of his position -- something that shouldn't be happening," John Luenberger said. The employment base of U.S. Steels National Works and the tax base that went with it all but disappeared in his first term. How do you do that? City Of Mckeesport pays an average salary of $780,849 and salaries range from a low of $676,965 to a high of $899,293. At that same time and in that same area, Mayor Michael Cherepko was looking to build a home. He estimated the cost at $2.5 million or more. Instead the city razed the house last summer, then billed First Step for the costs, which Giles said were around $12,600. "Could anyone get the city to get rid of all these tax liens, knock down three buildings, to build a home?" Lou also entertained requests from a street person named Bill who panhandled him for a buck or two everyday on the street or in his office. The Allegheny County Health Department found 347 housing code violations across two troubled McKeesport properties over four years but only collected one penalty, for $2,250. The average salary of City Of Mckeesport jobs will vary according to location, department, and job description. Salaries for the mayor, councilors, solicitor and other city administrators tote up another $1.2 million, while property maintenance costs $1.1 million. var second = 'il'; Sep 01 - Sep 30, 2014 All of us will remember the positive impact he had on the lives of his city and his close friends there are too many to name, but I would be remiss for not remembering Bill Lickert Sr. in particular. He joined the team in 2020, serving as a reporter focused on housing and economic development and an assistant editor. investigative reporter Paul Van Osdol asked. But its a bad thing if we dont have property. (Photo by Ryan Loew/PublicSource), In years past, hed gone to recovery homes to avoid winter on the street or meet terms of probation. Van Osdol asked. Now, North Huntingdon pays their police chief 40 percent more than McKeesport. Next years goal: demolition of 200 to 300 abandoned homes. "Tube City Online" and "The Tube City Almanac" are trademarks of Tube City Community Media Inc. registered with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. If someone isnt doing their job, zero dollars is too much.