Canonsburg taps Kipp as borough manager
Canonsburg Borough council members voted, 7-2, to appoint Bob Kipp as borough manager at a special voting session Monday.
Council members Paul Sharkady and Tim Bilsky opposed the appointment. The position has been vacant since April 30, when former manager Terry Hazlett retired after 11 years.
Kipp previously served for seven years as manager of municipal authority for North Strabane Township.
“It’s a very vibrant borough,” said Kipp, 48, of Ohio Township. “I’m looking forward to the challenges, and I get to work with a lot of old friends. I’m excited for the opportunity.”
Terms of the position were not available.
Also at the meeting, about 50 Canonsburg residents protested development of Greenwood Village, a proposed residential development with 233 multi-family units on 62.4 acres located at Greenwood and Victoria drives in North Strabane Township.
The developer, Bove Development Corp., has proposed a second access road to the housing units through Crawford Street in Canonsburg, which many local residents complained would jam up the already highly trafficked area and worsen shoddy safety conditions along the street.
Agna Lesniakowski, of 201 Crawford, said she opposed the project primarily for safety reasons, including the dangers of increased traffic, the absence of sidewalks on the street and the tendency of drivers to speed through stop signs. “If $40,000 is the price of a life, then I hope this council does not approve his access to this road,” Lesniakowski said of the cost of the project proposed by Terry Bove, president of the development company.
Others worried current environmental issues in the area, like soil erosion and mine subsidence, would be exacerbated by the development.
Nancy Gregory, of East Street, which intersects with Crawford, said her home already has been damaged by mine subsidence.
“My house sank three inches and twisted. You couldn’t open a window, you couldn’t open a door,” she said. “Every time you tried to open the garage door, the springs would break … it’s only going to get worse (with this development).”
Gregory added only North Strabane Township would be reaping the tax benefits of the project.
“North Strabane is going to be rolling in green while Canonsburg is left with the smog,” Gregory said, and her comments were met with applause from residents.
President John Bevec said the council hopes to discuss the Crawford Street access point at the next agenda meeting July 1.
North Strabane Township will vote on a conditional-use application for the proposed Greenwood Village plan at its legislative meeting at 7 p.m. tonight.