May 17, 2007 By Steve Ferris 3 min read

Ed Fike said he wished all the residents of Uniontown could have shared the feelings he experienced Tuesday night when he won the Democratic nomination for mayor. “There was crying and laughing and hugging. It was just a wonderful feeling,” Fike said Wednesday. “I wish everybody in Uniontown could feel what I felt (Tuesday) night.”

Fike, who owns Fike Brothers Trucking, some rental properties and co-owns Penn State Auto Sales, won the nomination in the primary over three-term incumbent James R. Sileo in an 830-637 vote, according to unofficial results.

Sileo, who served two terms on City Council before he was elected mayor, could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

“I think Mr. Sileo did a fine job, it wasn’t that,” Fike said. “It was time for a change. The people were ready for it. I think we need a new direction and new blood.”

Republican mayoral candidate Russell Rhodes ran unopposed, receiving 229 votes and will face Fike in the general election in November for a four-year term.

Fike said he ran a positive campaign without speaking negatively about Sileo.

“I think people like to hear good things, not bad things. I’m proud of the things he accomplished,” Fike said.

He said he will use the same approach when he faces Rhodes in the fall.

“Nothing negative. We’re going to talk about the issues. The things that face our citizens – crime, drugs” Fike said.

Building a convention center, which was listed as goal in some of his campaign ads, would have to be studied, Fike said.

Fike said he would like to have a convention center built if construction funding from the state is available and the project would not create a tax burden for residents.

He said he travels to car shows and other events around the country and found that even small cities, such as Sturgis, S.D., have convention centers.

Fees that vendors pay to participate in events would offset the cost of the center, Fike said.

The center could be built on top of the new parking garage on Penn Street and generate revenue to help pay for the garage, he said.

Rhodes, who is an independent sales representative for Cronmiller-McCormick, a promotional products company in Bethel Park, said he, too, is looking forward to the November election.

“I think it’s going to be interesting and informative,” Rhodes said.

He said he did little campaigning in the primary because he was unopposed.

“We’re going to change that,” Rhodes said about his campaign plans for the general election.

Going door-to-door to introduce himself to voters and attending candidate forums are in his plans.

“Really just doing whatever it takes to get in front of the voters to get my vision for this city across,” Rhodes said. “My main goal at this point in time is to market this city. It’s a great place to live.”

If elected, he said he would work with investors to build affordable family housing, which would increase the city’s tax base.

Currently, the tax base is shrinking and the city’s expenses are rising, Rhodes said.

He said expanding the tax base also would help keep property taxes down and allow the city afford projects or improvements.

Rhodes said he believes the Mon/Fayette Expressway will bring new business to the city and help rebuild the tax base.

In addition, he said he also would like to work with code administrator and Fire Chief Myron Nypaver to address code issues.

“We can stride for being better than what we are,” Rhodes said.