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Residents press council over road closures and social‑media rumor about joining Pittsburgh services
Summary
A resident urged better advance notice for road closures affecting school buses and asked about a social‑media item reporting Crafton had contacted Pittsburgh about outsourcing police, fire and public works; council and the mayor denied any plan to merge or contract those services.
During the public‑comment portion of the April 8 meeting a Crafton resident raised two concerns: multiple simultaneous road closures that interfered with school bus routes, and a social‑media claim that borough officials had contacted the City of Pittsburgh about providing police, fire, EMS and public works services to Crafton.
The resident said repeated, overlapping road closures had forced her — a school bus driver — to alter routes and that the borough should notify school transportation providers in advance for permitted work. Borough staff and councilors responded that permitted work (for example restoration by a gas company) can be scheduled and communicated; emergencies such as unplanned gas work may not allow prior notice. Engineer Keenan and staff said they will coordinate permitted closures with school bus companies when notice is available.
On the social media allegation that Council Member Jim Price (referred to in the comment) had contacted Pittsburgh to explore outsourcing or merging Crafton’s fire, police or public‑works services, Mayor Perry and other councilors denied any such intent. Mayor Perry said the borough had contacted Pittsburgh two years earlier only to solicit potential bids for garbage service; Pittsburgh declined because it lacked capacity. Perry and other councilors said there have been no discussions or plans to transfer or merge the borough’s fire, police or public works with Pittsburgh, and they urged residents to use the borough’s official website and social accounts for verified information.
Why it matters: the exchange clarified borough policy and reassured residents that Crafton intends to retain local first‑responder and public‑works services. Council asked staff to improve communications with school transport providers about permitted road work when feasible.
