Category: News, Politics || By Submitted Reports

Five candidates are seeking the Democratic nomination for mayor of McKeesport in the May 17 primary. In alphabetical order, they are Michael Cherepko, Regis McLaughlin, Darryl Segina, Lori Spando and A.J. Tedesco Jr.

All candidates were invited publicly to submit their platforms for publication at Tube City Almanac. Candidates were limited to 400 words. Rules were announced on Jan. 24, March 1, March 31 and April 30 at www.tubecityonline.com, www.facebook.com and www.twitter.com.

No candidates are filed for the Republican nomination, according to the Allegheny County Elections Division.

Following are the profiles submitted by Cherepko, McLaughlin and Tedesco. They have not been edited for content. No information was received from Segina or Spando.

. . .

MICHAEL CHEREPKO

My name is Michael Cherepko, and I would be honored to be your next mayor.

I was born and raised in McKeesport and am now raising my own family in Fawcett Plan. My wife, Nicole, and I have two children: Jake, 2, and Madeline, 4.

I have been a teacher at Cornell Intermediate School in the city's Seventh Ward for 12 years. I have served on council for eight years and am currently serving as council president. I want to be your mayor because I want my children and grandchildren to be proud to call McKeesport their home, just as I have been.

I have a comprehensive plan to provide new opportunities to give our youth a constructive outlet for their energy. I will call for a new spirit of volunteerism to provide the guidance that many of our youth lack in their lives. I will combine these efforts with a complete overhaul of our Property Maintenance Code and our enforcement efforts in this regard.

I will ensure the safety of our city by maintaining first-class police and fire departments. This, in conjunction with the continued demolition of blighted structures, will make our city a place to be proud of once again and enable us to recruit the new residents and businesses we need to expand our tax base.

I will also formulate a comprehensive marketing strategy to attract new businesses and residents. I will organize and meet with city business owners to ensure that we are fostering the best environment possible and enlist their help in recruiting new businesses.

Former Mayor James Brewster and I partnered over the last eight years to guide McKeesport through some of the hardest financial times the city has ever faced, without a single tax increase.

Many of my current opponents have stated they will follow the recommendations set forth in the Delta Report. While we have already implemented most of their suggestions, I can assure you I will not be raising taxes immediately as the report suggests. Tax increases raise little revenue and hit our senior citizens on fixed incomes the hardest.

No --- we will continue to think outside the box and work hard to find other solutions to our city's financial woes. We have made progress, but the job is not finished. I look forward to building a better McKeesport and know that together, we can overcome any challenge!

. . .

REGIS T. McLAUGHLIN

With a financial crisis facing the city of McKeesport, my first act of business was to refuse a $10,000 raise, forgo a city car, and decline city-paid hospitalization insurance.

Prior to my appointment as mayor, I served for 18 years as a board member for the Municipal Authority of the City of McKeesport and as the chairman of the board for five of those years. For 13 years I served McKeesport as a council member and sat as president of the council for seven years before being appointed to my current office.

As a member of the MACM board, I worked to purchase parts of the sewage infrastructure from McKeesport, which generated more than $6 million in revenues for the city. In addition, I implemented a plan to purchase $600,000 of debt from McKeesport and developed a system to collect delinquent sewage bills.

Additionally, because we have actively sought new revenue streams for the city, we will soon repurchase $750,000 of debt from McKeesport by using the newly generated funds from the gas well waters treated by MACM.

As a councilman and as mayor, I have found ways to generate revenues and cut expenses, all while maintaining the same services to residents. As a lifelong resident of McKeesport and as a public servant who has worked closely with many of the service providers in the city, I have learned that while there are many areas in the city that need improvement, McKeesport residents are blessed to have some of the finest police, firefighters and public works employees in the commonwealth.

If elected mayor for a full term, I will continue to work for the residents of McKeesport to balance the budget, provide city services and encourage economic development in the city.

. . .

ALFRED "A.J." TEDESCO JR.

• 34 years old


• Elected member of McKeesport City Council


• Elected member of Democratic State Committee, 45th District


• Supervisor, Allegheny County Department of Court Records, Civil Division, Finance Department


• McKeesport Area High School graduate


• Bachelor of Arts, University of Pittsburgh


• Enrolled in Graduate Studies, earning a master's degree in law and public policy, California University of Pennsylvania


• Lifelong resident of McKeesport, residing in the Seventh Ward


• Member of Western Pennsylvania Humane Society and ASPCA Founders Society


• Website: www.ajtedesco.com


• Only candidate for mayor who voted "no" to the current City of McKeesport budget that allocated an $80,000 payout to the former mayor.


• Only candidate for mayor that voted "no" to creating a city job for a political hire at an allocation of $25,000 annually.


• Opposed a proposal to pay the solicitor a $120,000 salary plus benefits and expenses.


• Has pledged not take the city's vehicle.


• Father, Alfred Tedesco Sr., retired City of McKeesport police chief


• Mother, Kula (Manolakis) Tedesco-Goughnour, former member of the City of McKeesport Recreation Board

• Reducing crime by increasing police visibility on the streets enforcing community policing our neighborhoods;


• Creating a proper economic environment to attract new businesses to McKeesport and put people to work;


• To continue to reject any unnecessary and wasteful city spending ensuring our tax dollars are used efficiently to improve our city;


• Reduce the cost of government and professional services in order to provide needed equipment and training to our public works, police and fire departments;


• Pledging a new era of transparency and inclusive government to the citizens of McKeesport. As mayor, I pledge to not serve on other boards or authorities in the city.

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