Wows & Scowls
Scowl: On the heels of Hurricane Katrina, which devastated the Gulf Coast and sent gasoline prices soaring to unheard-of levels, Hurricane Rita is now zeroing in on the nation’s southern coast, threatening to once again push gas to the $3.19-per-gallon range. If that happens, it’s a pocketbook-siphoning event consumers won’t look forward to – and one that could provide a real economic hardship to some. The only saving grace, if it can be considered such, is that demand won’t be as strong as on the heavily traveled Labor Day weekend when Katrina hit. Still, $3-per-gallon gasoline isn’t something anyone wants to look forward to, especially with winter and higher home heating oil prices looming on the near horizon. Wow: A $12 million sewerage project that will provide that critical infrastructure service to 90 percent of Georges Township, along with part of Fairchance Borough, has been approved by a 4-1 vote of the appropriate sewage authority. The lone dissenter said he didn’t want to saddle residents with a bill of $34 to $40 per month to cover the project’s cost. While we appreciate that legitimate concern, we also recognize that failing to install or upgrade sewer systems is a virtual death knell on economic growth, including residential development. The bill may seem a bit hefty, but without effective sewage treatment systems no area of Fayette or any other county will see much growth.
Wow: Fayette County seems well prepared for today’s testimony before the Southwest Pennsylvania Commission, where counties in the cosortium list their transportation priorities. While everyone knows that the wish lists will far exceed available funds, it’s important to stress priorities and make the case for their continued funding. Top on the Fayette list is completion of the Brownsville-to-Uniontown stretch of the Mon-Fayette Expressway, which is scheduled to begin next year. And rightfully so. While the county has other highway transportation needs, none is so critical as building a leg of the expressway that would traverse much of Fayette and provide the modern-era hookup to Pittsburgh’s south hills that everyone’s craved for decades.
Scowl: What kind of low-life person would steal a donation can set out to solicit donations for a 5-year-old girl suffering from cancer, robbing a needy person of the $100 it contained? That’s what state police say happened Monday at Panera Bread in South Union Township. It’s an egregious act for which Trooper Charles M. Morrison correctly notes, “This is one of the most despicable thefts I have ever seen.” With the help of a surveillance tape, police captured three suspects allegedly involved in the crime. If they’re eventually found guilty of the crime, let’s hope that they receive stiff prison sentences.
Wow: Almost 80 percent of local school districts are achieving academic performance targets, according to a state report. While Albert Gallatin, Connellsville and Uniontown Area school districts were placed on the warning list, most of their individual schools hit the mark.