PITTSBURGH — On Thursday, the Pittsburgh City Council announced it will vote down an effort to merge Wilkinsburg and Pittsburgh. The council instead opted to conduct a yearlong investigation into the opinions of both stakeholders and residents before voting in 2023.
Council leadership held a press conference Wednesday outside council chambers, where county and city leaders and the Wilkinsburg Community Development Corporation all joined together, many supporting the annexation. However, not present was Wilkinsburg’s mayor, Dontae Comans.
“I want it to work for all 15,000 people and not just 1,200,” said Comans.
Comans said that as the proposal stood, there was not enough community input and that he had concerns.
“Let’s knock on doors and get the information out there and reach every person out there in the community,” said Comans.
Comans wants the people of his borough to make informed decisions and understand what annexation would mean for their futures.
“We have an amazing staff of people that make this borough tick, and it would be unfair for all of them just to lose their job,” said Comans.
The mayor welcomes the additional time and says it will allow for important questions regarding resources and funding to be answered.
Comans said he does not want to see Wilkinsburg left out of the decision-making process.
“Now we get a chance to get together, get to the people and see if there’s something that they want,” said Comans.
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The city council’s decision would greenlight a yearlong formal investigation.
“This will be a city-council-led process moving forward, and we will engage the public,” said City Council President Theresa Kail-Smith.
If five yes votes from the council are received following the yearlong fact-finding process, Wilkinsburg residents will then have the opportunity to vote during the spring 2023 special election.
“I believe a period of courtship or engagement is necessary,” said Councilman Ricky Burgess, who represents District 9.
Last month, Burgess shared that he was opposed to the merger and called the process rushed, but on Thursday he announced his forthcoming support.
“I am now completely convinced that the annexation of the borough of Wilkinsburg would be beneficial to both Pittsburgh and Wilkinsburg.
“Pittsburgh will benefit from the increased population, land and income while Wilkinsburg will benefit from reduced taxes, better public services and potential economic development,” said Burgess.
As it stands, Burgess, who represents the neighboring district and stands to inherit Wilkinsburg’s representation, will likely provide the fifth vote in favor of the annexation in 2023.
The city council’s fact-finding investigation will begin immediately.
Some areas not interested in pairing with Pittsburgh
Some neighboring boroughs and municipalities said they have zero interest in becoming part of the city, including Penn Hills.
“With an over 90% tax collection rate and having a full range of services, including emergency and senior services, we are self-sufficient and doing very well,” Penn Hills Mayor Pauline Calabrese told our partners at TribLIVE.com.
She said Penn Hills is the largest municipality bordering the city and they have never been approached about joining with Pittsburgh.
Brentwood officials also said they’re not interested. They said they don’t plan to participate in any studies investigating mergers or annexations by the city.
Dormont, which also shares a border with Pittsburgh, has collaborated with neighboring places in the past for various projects. But officials there also said it has not considered joining with the city at all.
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