Letters to the Editor

Letter: Rezoning the Moon Walmart Property?

A Moon resident writes that a mixed-use development would have been a better fit for the property at University Boulevard and Brodhead Road, where developers plan to construct a Walmart superstore.

To The Entire Board Of Supervisors Of Moon Township, It has been nearly a year since I sent you this letter that was sent to the Board of Supervisors in response to the Comprehensive Planning meeting of May 9, 2012. A full year has passed for the board to act and rezone the property that Walmart Corporation owns and has been unable to develop as a result of MoonFirst’s actions. MoonFirst is a community group that has resisted the idea of a big box development with a single use located in the heart of Moon Township. MoonFirst has pressed the Board of Supervisors to move ahead and rezone that property in case Walmart decides to sell their property or abandon their current development plan and propose a distribution warehouse, with continuous…

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8:24 pm on Sunday, March 31, 2013

We (if I may speak for others) are not WalMart haters. We don't shop there as a moral imperative, in solidarity with the victimized (yes, I know they're still better off than the lowest of the rest of the world, but this is the USA, land of the free, home of the brave, where we believe, at least in theory, that all, especially here, are created equal and entitled to an equitable choice of a good …   more ›

Moon to Auction Old Traffic Signals

Revenue from the sale of old traffic signals will benefit the township's general fund.

Moon Township will auction off old traffic lights on the municipal auction website Municibid. In 2012, the township earned $25,000 from auctioning off out-of-use traffic signals. The township will also sell off used garbage containers.  Revenue from the sale will benefit the township's general fund. Moon supervisors approved the auction during Wednesday the board's Wednesday meeting.  The Moon Township Public Works Department will begin work on the bridge that carreis North Flaugherty Run Road over Boggs Run on April 1.  The bridge will be reduced to single-lane traffic through May 1, 2013 while the repairs take place. 

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Upgrades Planned for University Boulevard, Campus Drive Intersection

Moon Township considers adding a series of improvements for pedestrian travel.

Moon Township Manager Jeanne Creese said a series of improvements will make the intersection of Campus Drive and University Boulevard safer for pedestrians.  With its proximity to Robert Morris University and Moon Plaza, the area is one of the township's most heavily trafficked pedestrian intersections, Creese said.  "Between the university and the shopping center, we do see a high volumn of pedestrian traffic there," Creese said. "And it's really been a three-way partnership between the township, university and PennDOT to make safety improvements in that area."  Creese said the township looks to install traffic signalization that provides a count-down timer for those crossing in each of the intersection's four directions. Crews will also …

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Ewing Road Interchange to be Named for Former Moon Official

Gov. Tom Corbett signed into a law the renaming of the interchange.

The traffic interchange at Interstate 376 and Ewing Road will be named after a former member of the Moon Board of Supervisors.  Township resident Jack Wise, who was first appointed to the board to fill a vacancy in 1981, served as both a supervisor and founding member of the Moon Transportation Authority and Thorn Run Interchange group.  Wise, a former candidate for the state legislature, is credited with cultivating public-private partnerships that lead to intersection improvements in Moon. He continued to sit on the board until 1989, said Moon communications director Alexis Sergeant. Rep. Mark Mustio, R-Moon, introduced a bill during the 2012 legislative season to rename the Ewing Road roundabout as the "Jack Wise Interchange," in honor …

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Crescent, Moon Leaders to Discuss Sharing Police Services, Costs

Crescent Township officials seek the meeting on a proposal to obtain police coverage from Moon officers. They also appoint a new, permanent police chief.

Moon Township supervisors and Crescent commissioners have agreed to meet and discuss police services in their neighboring communities. A date for the meeting has not been scheduled, Crescent Manager Patience Eckhardt said. In September, Crescent Commissioner Karen Patton requested a meeting with Moon Township Supervisors to explore a potential contract for police services with Moon's department.  Members of Crescent's Board of Commissioners have expressed interest in disbanding the community's police department in favor of contracting out services to Moon Township's police department as a cost-savings measure. Board members discussed those efforts with the public during a commission meeting in August.  Moon supervisors accepted Patton's …

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Moon, Robinson Approve 2013 Budgets, Postpone Adjusting Millage Rates

An Allegheny County judge has extended the deadline for municipalities to finalize 2013 millage rates.

Officials in Moon and Robinson have opted to delay setting millage rates for 2013 following a court order extending deadlines for municipalities to approve budgets and property tax rates.   Municipalities have the option to re-examine and modify their final millage rates no later than 10 days before 2013 tax bills are mailed, according to the court order.  The deadline to adopt municipal budgets has been delayed until Jan. 31, though the neighboring communities have approved 2013 spending plans.  Allegheny County Judge Stanton R. Wettick earlier this month moved to extend the deadlines as municipalities work to finalize their budgets with uncertainty regarding property assessment appeals.  Robinson Township commissioners unanimously …

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Funding Awarded for Mooncrest Historic Preservation Efforts

Supervisors approve a $34,000 contract for historic preservation efforts in a Moon Township neighborhood with World War II roots.

The Moon Township Board of Supervisors has awarded a contract to the Murrysville-based T&B Planning for a historic-preservation action plan for the Mooncrest neighborhood.  The township in recent months launched efforts to document the 42-acre neighborhood's historic past and World War II roots.  The $34,000 contract includes a total of 679 hours of work on the plan. Supervisors awarded the contract in a 4-to-0 vote earlier this month.   Pennsylvania designated the Mooncrest neighborhood as a historic district in 2004. Moon officials are now working alongside faculty at Robert Morris University to publish a book documenting the neighborhood's history. The Moon Historic Architectural Review Board also is preparing an application for the …

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Officials Approve Dispatch Agreement Between RMU, Moon Police

The university has approached Moon Township Police about providing dispatch services, according to Moon officials.

The Moon Township Board of Supervisors approved an agreement for Moon Police to provide dispatch services to Robert Morris University campus police.  The agreement, approved in a 4-to-0 vote Wednesday during the board's workshop session, includes a 12-month contract between the university and township police.  Robert Morris University will pay an annual fee of $8,000 under the agreement. The university has requested to pay the township on a quarterly basis.  Either party can end the agreement with 60 days notice, said township solicitor Adam Bish.  Township Manager Jeanne Creese said the contract would not involve new hires in Moon's department. She said RMU Police Chief Randy Mink approached the department about dispatching for the campus…

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Moon Sets Limits on Marcellus Shale Drilling

The board moves to prohibit drilling in areas of the township.

Marcellus shale drilling is banned in areas of Moon Township zoned for residential, commercial or educational uses, according to a newly revised ordinance approved by the Moon Board of Supervisors.  Drilling is permitted to take place in districts zoned for mixed use, research and technology, airport operations and open space, such as Moon Park or the Moon Golf Club.  Supervisors approved the measure in a 5-to-0 vote Wednesday night.  The township moved to revise its existing oil and gas drilling ordinance to comply with new conditions of the state's Act 13 law, which regulates natural gas drilling in the state.  Supervisors examined three versions of the revised ordinance; each providing various restrictions on where in the township …

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