Mt. Pleasant council wants better communication with local Little League

Mt. Pleasant officials asked for improved communication from the Mt. Pleasant Area Little League at their council meeting Monday night.

Council voted unanimously to approve Silvis Landscaping to mow the baseball fields at Willows Park twice monthly at a cost of $260 per visit.

Borough officials also asked that the MPALL keep them up to date on work happening at the ball fields. MPALL Secretary Patrick Hresko said there’s no ongoing work at the present, but improvements had been made recently to the dugouts.

“It seems like the borough is always the last to know about these things,” said council President Susan Ruszkowski.

“I don’t think anyone’s unhappy with the work that’s gone on,” Councilman Andy Davis said. “We just need to see things like the league schedule and project plans, so we know what’s going on there from year to year.”

Councilman Ken Phillabaum said the MPALL’s leadership in recent years “has kind of been a revolving door and things fall by the wayside. I’m dealing with the same thing with football.”

Hresko said he would provide the borough with any needed documentation and would work to keep council updated.

Budget bequest

The borough’s 2024 budget will get an unexpected $45,000 boost thanks to a bequest from a former resident.

Doris Ellestad of Fairview Park, Ohio, who died in April 2023, included the donation in her will, and council members unanimously authorized staff to file documents accepting the donation.

“She lived on Eagle Street in a tiny little home that’s right on the sidewalk,” Councilwoman Cindy Stevenson said. “The house was donated to the Mt. Pleasant Historical Society, which has rented it for a number of years.”

Ellestad was born Nov. 1, 1927, in Mt. Pleasant, and graduated from the former Ramsay High School in 1946.

There are no conditions attached to Ellestad’s bequest, according to borough manager Sharon Lesko. The money will be put into the borough’s general fund.

Stevenson asked that the borough consider commemorating Ellestad’s donation in some way.

Anniversaries

This year marks several milestone anniversaries in the borough.

The World War I U.S. Army “Doughboy” statue, at the intersection of West Main and Diamond streets, will mark its 100th anniversary in 2024.

Dedicated on Veteran’s Day in 1924, it is actually the third version of the statue to stand at the site. The prior two were destroyed by traffic accidents in 1968 and 1981. The heads of the two former “Doughboys” are in a display case at the borough building.

This year also marks the 125th anniversary of the borough’s fire department. It will celebrate the anniversary during the annual Firemen’s Fair, set for June 26-29. Council unanimously approved the fire company’s use of the Smithfield Street parking lots for the fair, and will close Route 31 from 6-8:30 p.m. June 27 for the firemen’s parade.

Military banners

The borough is also seeking applications for its military banner project, recognizing local service members with the purchase of a memorial banner that will be hung in the borough.

Banners are $200 and include service members’ names, branches of service, rank, conflict in which they served, and other designations such as “killed in action,” “prisoner of war” or “missing in action.”

The 2-by-3-foot banners will be displayed in the borough between Memorial Day and Veteran’s Day.

For more information, or an application, call 724-547-6745 or 724-547-4658.