Six vie for three spots on Dunbar council
DUNBAR – Six people want to fill three, four-year council seats open in the borough. Democratic incumbents John Maddas, Kathleen “Kathy” Dynes and Patrick FitzGerald will face off against Laureen Bruno Malachin, Thomas Allen Yekel and former Councilman Frank Zadell for the Democratic nomination for a seat on borough council.
This is the second time that Yekel, son of Dunbar Township Supervisor Thomas Yekel, has tried to secure a seat on council. Yekel said he ran for council about 10 years ago on the Democratic ticket but lost by six votes.
He said his main reason for running this time is to make sure that borough funds are being distributed properly.
“I want to make sure that the money coming into the borough is being used for the people in the borough,” said Yekel. “I hear people complain all the time that they can’t get anything out of borough council.”
Yekel said he wants to work together with the other council members for the betterment of the community. He also said that he would like to see some new businesses come to town.
“I was also very happy to see that council agreed to allow parking again on Connellsville Street,” continued Yekel. “When they decided to make it a no parking area, it caused a hardship for people living on the street.”
Yekel, who lives on Lowery Drive, has an associate degree in specialized business/computer technology from West Virginia Career Institute. He has worked at Fayette County Community Action in the housing program, the energy program and with the homeless shelter.
He is employed through Goodwill Industries working at Union Station Clubhouse of Uniontown with the mentally ill. Yekel said he is a staff generalist and teaches computers in addition to other duties at the facility.
FitzGerald, who is looking to secure his second, four-year term on council, said he is really interested in trying to get the Dunbar Creek Project pushed through.
“I’ve been working on that project since I got on council almost four years ago,” said FitzGerald. “I’ve made some progress but that’s what I want to do in the next four years.”
FitzGerald said the borough is in the process of making land acquisitions for the project, and they only have a couple to go. He said the acquisitions have to be signed yet, however.
“I’m hoping that we can get started within the next couple of years with the Creek Channeling Project.”
FitzGerald said when he first secured a seat on council, it was through a write-in campaign when he was 18 years old. Since that time, he has learned that being a councilman is a hard job.
“It’s hard to please everyone who comes before council,” he continued. “I have learned a lot over the past three and one-half years but it’s hard to please everyone.”
FitzGerald said he is proud that the borough has moved forward with Dunbar Days in September of each year and he is anxious to see the Sheepskin Hike/Bike Trail come through the borough.
“We will be getting a nice pavilion with restrooms on our end of the trail,” said FitzGerald. “We have a new playground, and I just want to try and help our community out.”
FitzGerald said he tries to get involved as much as he can and said he is treasurer and a second lieutenant with the Dunbar Volunteer Fire Department. He is a fourth-year apprentice with the Plumbers and Pipefitters Union.
Zadell, who resigned from council a couple of years ago for health reasons, said he is running for office again because he wants to do “something for the taxpayers” of Dunbar.
Zadell said he doesn’t want to see things being changed in the borough that don’t need to be changed.
“Government for the sake of government isn’t good,” said the former ex-Marine. “I think we need some retired people on council who can be around to check on things and do the things that need to be done at a minimal cost to the taxpayer.”
Zadell said because he is retired and his health is good, now he has the time to devote to borough matters.
“I wasn’t happy when council changed the parking on Connellsville Street,” he continued. “I know they had good reasons for it because of safety issues, but it caused a lot of problems for people living along the street, and it made the town look like a ghost town because there were never any cars parked on the street.”
Zadell said he would like to see more businesses in town and he is hoping that when Dunbar’s portion of the Sheepskin Trail is completed, it may bring in tourists. He also said he would like to see people get behind the Dunbar Historical Society so that they can move forward with the beehive coke oven restoration and the proposed park.
“We have a real good housing authority person in Kathy Dynes and I would like to see all of the apartments filled with responsible people,” he said. “Other than that, the state and the county has worked on the clean water issue so I guess tourism would be the only other issue that I would like to see addressed.”
Zadell said he believes that Dunbar could eventually become a tourist attraction.
Maddas, who currently serves as council president, said after 20 years on council he still wants to serve the people of the community.
“There are a couple of things I would like to get done in the community before I hang it up,” said Maddas. “I want to see the Dunbar Community Playground expanded to include some sort of a walking trail for residents and maybe even expand the ballfield.”
Maddas said the borough has applied for recreation grants but haven’t had much luck lately. He additionally said that he would like to see the old hotel building above the borough building on Connellsville Street fixed up so that residents could have community functions in it.
Maddas said he is proud of how the borough is being run and of the activities that have come about over the past couple of years.
“We have the library, the historical society, community days and the fire department where everyone pitches in, and they do a very good job,” he continued. “We have a lot of good activities such as the Memorial Day Parade and the Halloween Parade, and I am working on expanding the fishing area down through town and we hope to have a kids fishing area on Dunbar Creek behind the fire station next year.
“We have a lot of fishermen down here, and it makes me happy to see kids fishing in the creek,” he said. “The game commission has stocked the creek with trout and the other day I must have seen 10 kids headed for the creek with their fishing poles. That’s what it is all about – the kids.”
Maddas said the Dunbar Sportsman’s Club is also helping with the project.
Dynes, who has served on council for seven years, said she feels that she has made a difference in the borough and would like to continue to move forward with the municipality.
“I would really like to see more people get involved with their local government,” said Dynes. “I know that people are busy, but I would really like to see more communication between borough officials and the taxpayers.”
Dynes said she is interested in what people are thinking and would appreciate feedback from the community.
“I’m proud of the housing development and the new roofs and refurbishing projects that we have completed at the housing development, the Dunbar Community Park reconstruction, the Safe Kids Program, the photos with fingerprints for the kids and the senior citizens and the upstairs apartments at the Dunbar Public Library since we took it over,” she continued.
Dynes said the borough is also in the process of creating an exercise area down at the park that will tie in with the Sheepskin Trail. She additionally said that the big project that she would like to see get off the ground is the revitalization of the hotel in the downtown area that could be used as a community center.
“It would cost about $500,000 to buy the building, but we have gotten the go ahead from the engineers who said the building is structurally sound. I would like to see it used as a community building with educational after-school programs.”
Dynes said she would like to see some computer programs, a community room and maybe some sort of a coffee shop. She said that she received information on grants and is in the process of reading through the literature to see what needs to be done to make application.
“Anything we can do for the kids would be an improvement, because they need something to do,” she continued. “I am dedicated to this borough, and I have lived here all my life. My family is from here. My children are still here, and my grandchildren are coming here and this is where my roots are.”
Dynes believes that one person can make a difference, and she said that is what she is trying to do.
Malachin said she feels that council needs a change, because taxpayers aren’t heard enough.
“I feel that they (taxpayers) deserve more than they’re getting, because they have lived here all of those years, and they deserve more of a voice than what they get,” she said. “This is the first time that I have felt the need to run for office, but I think that I could offer a different prospective.”
Malachin said that she feels that Dunbar residents should get more respect from council and whatever their needs or complaints, they should be dealt with in a respectful manner.
“They sit over there (council in council chambers) with their back to you and don’t even seem like they are paying attention to complaints. I simply feel that the people of this town who have lived here and paid their dues deserve a fair shake.”
Malachin said she is disappointed that council takes so long to make decisions and said that they need to complete things.
“I think you should complete one task before you start on another,” she said. “And, you should have a probable cause or viable reason as to why you are doing something. Give the people a reason so that they don’t walk away wondering why they are voting on things the way they are.”