Petition created to show support for public greenspace project in Penn Hills, Churchill
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A group of people from Penn Hills and surrounding areas created a petition online asking for support of the Allegheny Land Trust’s effort to acquire the vacant 148 acres that used to house the defunct Churchill Valley Country Club.
“This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to protect a critical stormwater recharge area that also serves the delightful function of providing butterfly and bird habitat for the enjoyment of people of all abilities,” reads the petition on Change.org. “We ask that our elected officials at both the state and local levels provide their active support for the Allegheny Land Trust purchase of this land as they seek grant and foundation support.”
The petition was created by Renee Dolney, along with help from other supporters. Dolney lives in Wilkinsburg, though she frequents the grounds because of its proximity to her house.
“The pushback on this has been that we don’t have enough public support. That’s just not true, so we need a way to show that we do,” Dolney said.
She said the petition’s results will be presented to the communities represented in the project, which involves Allegheny Land Trust buying the 148 acres from Zokaites Properties LP for $3 million to preserve it as a recreational, public greenspace.
So far, the organization has raised $1.15 million toward that goal. The money needs to be raised in full by March 2021.
The petition comes after a Tribune-Review article revealed state Rep. Tony Deluca, D-Penn Hills, has expressed disfavor with the project because he wants to see the property returned to the tax rolls. Other officials, such as Councilman Jim Getsy and Penn Hills Planning Commissioner Brent Rambo have said the reason Penn Hills has not offered formal support is because of Deluca’s influence.
Council members John Petrucci, Frank Pecora, Getsy and Mayor Pauline Calabrese have all expressed they would be willing to sign an endorsement letter but have yet to do so. Deputy Mayor Cathy Sapp has not commented on the issue.
ALT has around $2 million in grant requests still pending from county and state programs. The organization has said it expects to hear the results of those requests by December.
Dolney said she hopes the petition can be presented to Penn Hills and other governmental bodies in October to drum up more support for the project.
She said she hopes to garner 1,000 signatures by then. As of Sept. 17, the petition has gathered 321 signatures.
Anyone interested in signing the petition can do so at change.org.