In Primary, Plum Dems Split Over Development in Renton

On Tuesday, voters will decide which candidates get the nod and move onto the general election for Plum Borough Council.

With three seats in contention, the six Democratic candidates—Lori A. Churilla, Paul Dern, Christine Scardina-Gazzo, Michael A. Guida, Donald Knopfel and Steven Taylor—have one thing in common: all of the lifelong residents seek to hold the line on taxes. But the candidates have split into two blocs, with half supporting a proposed development center in Renton and the other half opposed to the effort.

Incumbent Scardina-Gazzo supports the development and is running a joint campaign with Churilla and Dern. All three are endorsed by the Plum Borough Democratic Committee. Incumbent Taylor opposes the development and is campaigning with Guida and Knopfel.

Regardless of the alliances, the primary nominations will go to the top three vote-getters.

Scardina-Gazzo, 44, is finishing out her first four-year term on council. Having worked as a project manager at Westinghouse for 12 years, Scardina-Gazzo lives in Holiday Park and has a 14-year-old son, Antonio, in the school district.

The most important issue facing the borough is keeping taxes at their current level while maintaining services, Scardina-Gazzo said. But the borough needs to increase its tax base in order to make doing so feasible, she added.

“As a borough, we’re very limited as to where our revenue can come from,” Scardina-Gazzo said. “We’ve pretty much cut as much as we can cut.”

The proposed development would occur in two phases, Scardina-Gazzo said. During the first, the public works department would move into a new building on the property, which the borough already owns. Then the borough would look to lease its current building to a grocery store, eventually transitioning to the new location. The borough is considering moving its fire department to the site, too, if it can obtain grants.

Funding for the first phase would come from a bond issue the borough currently has, Scardina-Gazzo said. Tax revenue generated from the grocery store would provide a surplus, she and her running mates expect, which would be used to fund further development of a town center comprised of retail stores. The candidates said the development would not require a tax increase.

But Taylor and company are skeptical that the plan can move forward without burdening taxpayers.

“We must take care of the old problems we have in Plum before we create new ones,” said Taylor, 50, referring to the borough’s deteriorating roadways and infrastructure.

Taylor formerly served on council from 2002-2005, when he lost reelection by 14 votes despite being named “Citizen of the Year” by the  Trib Total Media-owned newspaper, Plum Advance Leader, in 2004. He won election in 2007 with the largest percentage of the vote.

Mentioning a survey conducted by Penn State New Kensington that supporters of the development point to as an indicator of broad public support for the project, Taylor said: “I want a million dollars and a new Corvette, but, realistically, I have to drive my Buick.”

Working in maintenance and operation for the Pennsylvania Turnpike, Taylor has a 23-year-old daughter, Brooke, and a 21-year-old son, Zachary and lives in central Plum. He is a member of Unity Presbyterian Church and a local Masonic Lodge.

Taylor is running under the campaign slogan “Past, Present, Future,” with former councilman Knopfel, 67, and first-time candidate Guida, 20.

With more than 20 years of experience on council, Knopfel, a retired auto-maintenance worker, came out of an eight-year political hiatus when he decided to run.

“You name it, I’ve done it on council,” Knopfel said.

A major reason Knopfel decided to return to local politics was his disagreement with current council members, who largely support the Renton development.

“I decided that rather than moaning and groaning about it, I’d try to make a difference,” he said.

Knopfel said he is not opposed to economic development incentives but thinks the current proposal relies too heavily on speculation.

“There’s too many other things that need to be done,” he said. “Stores are empty (currently); now you’re going to put something over in Renton?”

At 20, Guida is young enough to be Knopfel’s grandson. (He has a granddaughter, Gracie, who is 23.)

But while he said his youth makes him somewhat nervous about his chances, Guida said he’s ready to serve residents.

“I’ve always been interested in local politics,” said Guida, who works as a railroad conductor for Norfolk Southern and has known Taylor since his childhood.

“I’m not a politician; I’m just a person running for office, trying to do the right thing,” Guida said. “You just have to be a good person with common sense and listen to people...that’s what qualifies you.”

Guida said he served on student council while at Plum High School, volunteers at the fire department and is a member of St. John the Baptist Church and a local Masonic Lodge.

Guida echoes Taylor’s and Knopfel’s views on the Renton development and the need for fiscal restraint. But he admits that the problem of increasing Plum’s tax base needs to be addressed.

“That has to be on the back burner,” he said. “We need to broaden the spectrum.”

Lori A. Churilla, 43, whose father Matthew formerly served as the borough’s tax collector, is also a first-time candidate. A certified public account who currently does auditing work as the assistant deputy controller in the Allegheny County Controller’s office, Churilla said she’ll bring an eye for cost saving strategies to council.

“As a councilwoman, I will always continue to put the taxpayers first,” Churilla said. “My job, for the past 22 years, has been to ensure that the taxpayers’ dollars are being used appropriately.”

In Churilla’s view, the proposed development is one step in the long-term problem of ensuring that the borough is financially stable.

“We definitely need to get in there, and we want to increase the revenue coming to the borough,” she said.

A member of St. John the Baptist Church, American Institute of Certified Public Accountant and the Pennsylvania Institute of Certified Public Accountants, Churilla has a son, Matthew, who is 16.

Paul Dern, 51, an electrician who works for UPMC and owns his own business, served on council for eight years before losing reelection in 2009.

This time around, Dern said he’s confident he can work with council to build Plum into a thriving suburb without burdening taxpayers.

“We’re not going to raise taxes a cent,” said Dern, 51, who served on council for eight years before losing reelection in 2009. “This is the type of development we need to spur business and develop our tax base.”

A member of Murrysville Alliance Church and a board member on the Plum Baseball Association, Dern has three children: a 23-year-old daughter, Valerie; a 21-year-old son, Philip; and an 18-year-old daughter, Shannon.

Having served in the capacity of both president and vice president for a year each during previous council terms, Dern was on council with some of the current members, the majority of whose views he shares, he said.

“I think I can work with the current majority of council, and they can work with me,” Dern said. “I have some of the experience that’s needed to make hard decisions, and I have the interests of the citizens at heart.”