Aviary Expansion Shrinks

The National Aviary on the North Side says it is shrinking its expansion plans. Aviary Executive Director Patrick Mangus says the overall size of the project will shrink and the theater will fall from 200 seats to 125. He says although it does shrink the cost of the work, the budget was not the motivating factor. He says the Aviary realized it did not need all the space and the small theater will allow it to be used for events other than the free flight shows. The aviary hopes to use those shows as a focal point for visits. The original cost of the expansion came in at $22 million with options, including an expansion of the bird hospital, that could have pushed the cost above $28 million. Mangus says the new project will come in at $16.5 million. The Aviary has already raised that much for the project. The project is to be completed by Labor Day 2010.

H1N1 Peaked in PA But Another Wave Expected

Although health officials confirm that swine flu has peaked, Pennsylvania’s Acting Physician General says there is still a lot of H1N1 around.
Dr. Stephen Ostroff says there are more than 10 thousand confirmed cases in the state and that represents only a small portion of the actual number. Ostroff says there have been 57 confirmed fatalities but they believe the actual death toll is at least 4 times that. Ostroff says the spread of the disease began to slow in November but even though it’s peaked it’s still important to take precautions.
Ostroff says he was frustrated that the vaccine did not become available as rapidly as the swine flu came around in early fall but the supply and demand has about evened out. In fact, the vaccine might soon be available to people not in the five targeted groups: pregnant women, people between 6 months and 24 years old; care providers for children less than 6 months; medical personnel; and, those between 25 and 64 with underlying conditions. He says it’s still important to get the vaccine because they expect another wave of the H1N1 to hit in winter or very early spring.

Listen to an extended interview with Dr. Ostroff

Tobacco Free Allegheny Holds Meeting

Tobacco Free Allegheny held their quarterly meeting on Thursday at The United Way Headquarters on Thursday. The meeting focused on the connection between the brain, smoking and gambling.

Casinos in Pennsylvania allow smoking which experts say fuels the urge to gamble in the brain. Two addiction specialists from Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic made presentations.

In September, data from a casino air quality report revealed that nearly 300 nonsmoking casino workers in the state will die from illnesses stemming from secondhand smoke.

Solicitor Nominee Gets Grilling but no Public Hearing

Despite a long list of signatures on a petition the Pittsburgh City Council has decided to not hold a public hearing on the selection of a new city solicitor. Mayor Luke Ravenstahl has nominated 34-year-old Daniel Regan to replace George Specter who is moving to the Urban Redevelopment Authority. South Side residents asked for the public hearing after they learned that Regan is one of three partners at the law firm of Caputo and Caputo. That firm represents several bars on Carson Street including one that has a case pending against the city contesting an ordinance to limit the number of bars in a neighborhood and another bar that Councilman Bruce Kraus, who represents the South Side, says is flagrantly defying liquor laws. The petition had the required number of signatures to call for a hearing but missed the deadline by weeks. A hearing request must come within three days of a bill or nomination being introduced. In the past the council has ignored the time restriction but by a split vote decided to enforce the rule in this instance. Before the vote was taken council members asked a few questions about qualifications including time practicing the law and experience with municipal law and issued a few warnings about how political the position could become with the mayor’s office and nine council members all placing demands on the legal department. Kraus grilled Regan on his dealings with the bars and questioned his ability to set aside those allegiances. He says, “I have an attorney who is presently suing me at the table asking me to hire them as my attorney and I’m struggling.” Regan repeatedly told Kraus that he did not feel there was a conflict of interest and if there ever was a conflict he would take steps to make sure safeguards are put in place to prevent even the appearance of impropriety. He says, “I can defend the ordinance and I will defend that ordinance.” Council is expected to take a vote on Regan’s appointment next week.

ICA Gets New Budget

Pittsburgh Mayor Luke Ravenstahl has submitted a revised 2010 budget to the Intergovernmental Cooperation Authority. The ICA board rejected the first budget submitted by the mayor in September saying it was not based on legal and reliable revenues. Board Chair Barbara McNees said at the time the 1% tax on tuition was not allowed under state law and could not be included I the budget. The mayor reportedly found $15 million in cost savings and revenue enhancements including upward adjustments to some existing revenue streams and the addition of some new one-time income sources. ICA Executive Director Henry Sciortino says the authority has 15 days to review and vote on the budget. He says staff has begun the process and he sees no reason why the deadline would not be met. If the ICA rejects the spending plan the Mayor will have to continue to resubmit budgets until he gets the needed votes. After the ICA approves the spending plan city council must approve the budget by December 31st.

First Bonusgate Trial Begins

The first trial of an ongoing legislative corruption probe is underway in Harrisburg.
Former Beaver County Democratic Representative Sean Ramaley faces charges for allegedly collecting public dollars for a no-work state job while campaigning for office.
He’s the first of 22 defendants to go to trial in Attorney General Tom Corbett’s long running investigation of tax dollars used for political purposes.
Corbett, a Republican, is running for governor, so political scientist Christopher Borick of Muhlenberg College argues the Ramaley verdict will play a major role in the upcoming campaign.

"For an attorney general about to run for governor of Pennsylvania, and you’re touting your record, you want to actually have the results when it comes to prosecutions, and not just bringing indictments. And so that’s why I think a lot of eyes in the state are going to see these trials through a political lens."

The trial’s first day was spent on jury selection, and opening arguments may not begin until Friday. Other Democratic defendants, including former minority whip Mike Veon, are scheduled to go to trial next month.

Medical Marijuana Debated in PA Legislature

Advocates and opponents of legalized medical marijuana stated their case at a state Capitol hearing. A bill before the House would allow patients to use marijuana with a doctor’s permission. The drug would be sold at licensed so-called “compassion centers.”
Patients would be limited to six plants or one ounce of marijuana at a time.
Those restrictions aren’t good enough for Sharon Smith, the founder and president of the anti-drug organization MOMSTELL

"When has smoking anything been good for your health?"

Smith doesn’t buy the argument marijuana can help ease the pain of seriously ill patients.

"House Bill 1393 ignores the fact that marijuana is an illegal drug with no recognized medical value."

Supporters of the bill told members of the Health and Human Services Committee that legalizing medical marijuana is a common-sense way to improve the quality of life for some terminally ill individuals.
Former Montgomery County Commissioner Ruth Damsker says the legislation wouldn’t have any impact on general drug use.
Damsker says if anything, medical marijuana could help parents convince their children not to mess with drugs.

"Treating marijuana as a powerful, medicinal drug for limited purposes will raise awareness that this is a serious drug, and not something to be taken for recreation."

The legislation would require registration with the Health Department.

City Council Holds Tuition Tax Bill

Pittsburgh City Council Voted today to hold for one week the bill creating a 1% tuition tax with the hope that a meeting with the universities later this week will produce an agreement. The 7-2 vote came after two hours of debate. City councilman Jim Motznik says the threat of the tax is why the universities are willing to talk. But Council members Bill Peduto and Doug Shields say the universities will not negotiate until the tax is taken off the table completely. Peduto says if the tax remains in play the non-profits, that had planed to give $1.6 million to the city next year, might pull that offer from the table as well. Peduto and council president Doug Shields voted against the hold but the other 7 members voted for the one-week hold. Pittsburgh Council on Higher Education President Mary Hines says the council will meet with the city Friday but it will not be a negotiation. There is ongoing debate over the legality of the tax. Motznik says he has the five votes he needs to get the tax on the books and then the two sides will have to fight it out in court. He is confident that the city will win. Hines, who is also the president of Carlow University, is equally positive the schools will win. She says holding the bill for a week, as a way to put pressure on the schools, is a waste of time. However, she says if the hold is to give the council members a chance to review testimony given over the last week and reconsider its position then the deal is worthwhile. Doug Shields says holding a gun to the universities for payment will result in a short term solution at best and he warns that the university’s have a much bigger gun then the council does.

Judge Rejects County's Assessment Plan

A visibly upset judge has given Allegheny County until Friday to come up with a new plan to reassess all 570,000 properties within an acceptable time frame. In November Judge Stanton Wettick outlined a 4-year rotating assessment system to replace the county’s current base year plan that has been ruled unconstitutional. He also left the door open to the county creating a plan of its own to have all the work done by 2012. That order included an order that the county report its progress December 2nd. At the meeting yesterday the county offered a two and a half page plan that would not finish the work until 2013. The judge asked the county why it did not comply with his order and then asked the county chief assessor Edward Schoenberger if he had read the order. His response was that he had read “half of it,” saying his supervisors told him it did not comply with the state’s uniformity clause. County Solicitor Michael Wojcik apologized to the judge if the county had offended him. Judge Wettick quickly ordered a second meeting Friday. The county refused to comment on the proceedings but lawyer for the homeowners who originally filed suit, Ira Weiss, says he does not know what to expect Friday. He says so far the county has “thumbed its nose at the court” and it is “lucky [Wettick is] such a patient judge.” He says the county has meet the judge’s order with “petulance and defiance.” Donald Driscoll is another lawyer for the complainants. He says the plan offered by the county is “totally unacceptable” and the county “must make amends” to the tax- payers that have been over paying for years.

Tighter Drilling Regulations Urged

Environmental advocates say state regulators need to step up the effort to protect water sources from the effects of natural gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale.
A new report from PennEnvironment has five recommendations to minimize the environmental impact of natural gas drilling.
The group is calling for steeper penalties for companies that leak chemicals and gasses into drinking water sources, and more funding for Department of Environmental Protection drilling inspectors.
Clean water advocate Erika Staaf also wants to see the state bar drilling in large swaths of state forests and parks.

"We're not calling for an all-out ban, but we would like to place certain areas off limits to drilling, including those that are close to personal drinking water areas, and areas that supply drinking water to downstream communities, especially sensitive or threatened ecosystems such as wetlands."

Lawmakers agreed to lease out acres of state forest land for drilling as part of this year's budget plan.
Drilling has led to several instances of drinking water contamination over the past year, according to DEP findings.