Uniontown council hires police officers
Uniontown City Council hired two police patrolmen Tuesday, increasing the size of the police department to 19 officers, including the chief. Council approved hiring Frederick G. Kampert of Uniontown and Ryan J. Sabol of Pittsburgh.
They will be paid $1,224 bi-weekly during their one-year probationary periods.
A contract with the Fayette County Housing Authority will help pay the new officers’ wages.
Council approved the contract for above baseline services, in which the department will provide additional patrols at East View Terrace, White Swan Apartments, Marshall Manor, J. Watson Sembower Terrace and other authority properties.
The authority will pay the city $40,000 a year for two years for the patrols.
Mayor Ed Fike said the city has also reached an agreement with the owner of Pershing Court.
He said the owner agreed to pay the city $20,000 a year for two years for police patrols.
“It will secure those two officers” Fike said, about the contracts.
In a solemn police matter, Fike presented officer Michael Garrow with a plaque honoring his work with Sheiko, his K-9 partner who died in April after five years of service with the department.
“Uniontown’s finest lost one of their own,” Fike said. “We as a city lost a police dog, but Michael Garrow lost a friend.”
In unrelated business, council took the first steps to remove two downtown properties from the tax-free Keystone Opportunity Zone program.
Council approved decertifying a vacant lot at 11 W. Main St. and 48-52 W. Main St., the Fayette Bank Building.
Both were placed in the state’s KOZ program in 2003.
The Fayette County commissioners and Uniontown Area School Board will have to approve the decertification.
Local real estate and income taxes, and most state taxes are exempt for 10 years under the KOZ program, which was designed to spur business development.
In further business, council agreed to lease the playground at Chestnut Ridge Christian Academy on Downer Avenue for the city’s summer parks and recreation program.
The city will lease the playground for $1 and use it from June 9 through Aug. 9.
Councilman Blair R. Jones Sr. said the city should be allowed to use the playground every year because the agreement calls for the city to pave the playground.
Councilman Francis “Joby” Palumbo III said the school does not want a long-term agreement. He said the playground surface has some large cracks, and he offered to pay for the paving himself.