Ched Mertz, President, Upper St. Clair Board of Commissioners Charles E. (Ched) Mertz has lived in Upper
St. Clair for 35 years. A native of the Beechview section of Pittsburgh, Ched is a graduate of Baldwin High School and Bucknell University. Ched was originally elected Commissioner to Ward 4 in 2004, filling the term of retiring Commissioner Cheryl Bayne. Reelected through 2009, Commissioner Mertz is the newly elected president of the Board of Commissioners. UPPER ST. CLAIR TODAY had a chance to talk with Ched and we’re pleased to share our conversation with our readers. Why did you want to run for Commissioner and what are your goals in that capacity? I have always been politically active and haven’t missed an election in over 45 years. Upper St. Clair has a rich history of competent leadership and I wanted to have a role
in continuing that into the future. Upper St. Clair is blessed with a great Township staff. We need to maintain the high level of satisfaction with Public Works and Public Safety Departments. We need to support and encourage the men and women who selflessly give of their time in the volunteer fire department. We need to bring to fruition the plans to fully develop active recreation at Boyce Mayview. Another priority is to immediately begin the process to plan and develop the remainder of our commercial land potential. Who has been the greatest influence in your life? That’s easy—God. Although I fail in many ways daily, I strive to keep God’s word as my moral compass and to give witness to my faith in my actions and treatment of others. What activities and hobbies do you enjoy? My family keeps me very busy. Rachel and I have two daughters, two sons, and 14
grandchildren. Our sons and their families live in Upper St. Clair. Last year there were five little Mertzs at Baker Elementary. I serve as Elder at Beverly Heights Presbyterian Church. I also enjoy antique cars, woodworking, the banjo, trail biking, golf, and many activities with our grandchildren! Anything else you’d like residents to know about you? Personal goals? My goal as president of the Board of Commissioners is to give voice to every resident of Upper St. Clair and lead in an open, respectful, and civil style. I would also hope that after full debate of the issues, that this board would be decisive in striving to make Upper St. Clair the community of choice in the greater Pittsburgh area. What’s your dream vacation? It doesn’t matter where, just so Rachel and I are together sometimes with our entire family.
USC Community Recreation Center Progress Report Lynn Rubin and Kathy Kasunich Co-Chairs Boyce Mayview Community Recreation Center Ad Hoc Advisory Group In June 2005, Upper St. Clair Township
Commissioners appointed an ad hoc advisory group to evaluate and recommend specific health, wellness, aquatic, and social facilities for a new community recreation center which would likely include membership and user fees. The group’s formation and charge were in response to the recreation assessment detailed in the Township’s Comprehensive Park Master Plan and subsequent Preschematic Plan. This identified specific recreation opportunities which could be developed within Boyce Mayview Park. Of the 30-plus organizations currently active in the community and invited by the Township to participate, more than 20 provided representatives and alternates. Throughout the past summer, members of the group traveled to northeastern Ohio and toured the campuses of seven operational community recreation centers, studying facilities and equipment as well as researching management and operating issues. They also visited community recreation facilities in
Peters and Cranberry Townships. The group members then surveyed their individual constituencies for feedback on what community residents desired in terms of fitness and wellness resources, aquatics facilities, youth, individual, family, and senior citizen activities, and communityoriented initiatives. On October 31, 2005, the ad hoc group submitted its 31-page report to the commissioners. It details the results of the group’s research and the specific recreation needs identified by USC residents. The report can be read on-line on the Township’s website at www.twpusc.org/rec/communitycenter/ report/index.html. This report was forwarded to Ballard*King and Associates, a Colorado-based consulting firm that the commissioners engaged to provide an economic and market assessment of the community center’s estimated costs. At press deadline, the Ballard*King report had been received and was being analyzed by the commissioners, Township staff, and the ad hoc group. It also was made available to the
general public for review and comment. The ad hoc group will sponsor a public information booth at the Township’s Community Day being held this year on Saturday, May 20. Group representatives will be on hand to answer questions and provide any current information as to the types of facilities and equipment that will be recommended for the community recreation center. The ad hoc group’s meetings are open to the public. Please check Cable 7 or with the Township for dates and times. Residents are welcome and encouraged to attend. There is a public comment period at the end of agenda items at each meeting. During its trips and in subsequent constituent focus groups, the ad hoc representatives identified significant social and economic advantages that a modern community center can bring to its residents. Among them are maintained and enriched property values, enhanced practicality of choosing to live in Upper St. Clair, and strengthened prestige of the Township as a modern, competitive first tier community.
Summer 2006
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