More than 300 recommendations are included in the reports of 12 Vision Teams, which were assembled last year to come up with ideas to improve county operations. Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald said some of the recommendations are already in the works, such as drilling at Pittsburgh International Airport.
“Creating a Facilities Department, that was a recommendation that also came out of these Vision Teams and County Manager [William] McKain has begun that process. Finding new revenues was also a recommendation, not just putting everything on property tax, and that’s something we’ve continued to take a look at – Marcellus Shale being one of those, but naming rights and other fees are part of what we’ve done,” said Fitzgerald.
He said the County has also moved to include more natural gas vehicles for the county fleet. The first order has already been placed, and Fitzgerald said the vehicles should be coming in about a month.
Other recommendations will require the county to work with state lawmakers.
“The Vision Teams came up with the recommendation of regional transit, creating a regional transit authority; the governor has presented that in his budget. Finding new revenues for transit was also something that was put in there,” he said.
Fitzgerald said the more than 700 pages of findings and recommendations provide a roadmap for the County. He emphasized that the ideas laid out are just that – ideas.
“It wasn’t me saying, ‘ok, this is what I want you to do,’ these are recommendations, some of which I probably won’t do, some of which I may disagree with. It was a way in which people could talk about what they think should be done with county government and how we should operate.”
