Friday: Here's the Windup...

The Pittsburgh Public Schools yesterday said the firing of its facilities chief had nothing to do with his allegations that the district mismanaged a construction project at a Squirrel Hill school. (P-G, Joe Smydo)

We think Joe is trying to tell us something!

"This is not a 'whistleblower' case," district Solicitor Ira Weiss said, adding that school board members who suggested otherwise were "misleading" and "inflammatory."

We really think Joe is trying to tell us something.

Mr. Brentley called Mr. Nabas a "wonderful employee." Mr. Taylor urged the board to tread carefully because of laws protecting whistleblowers, but Mr. Weiss said "this termination has nothing at all to do" with Mr. Nabas' allegations about mismanagement.

Well, if Mark Brentley says he's alright.....

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Residential developers are poised to develop Downtown, but are just waiting out the storm that is the U.S. credit crisis.

"Anybody who hasn't started will be stalled," said Kevin Keane, executive vice president of Lincoln Property Co., which owns three major residential complexes Downtown, on the North Side and South Side.

"The winds are changing." (P-G, Dan Fitzpatrick)

Boy, howdy.

Mr. Keane, who in 2006 opened a 151-unit apartment tower Downtown called the Encore on 7th, disagrees with that assessment, arguing that there is not enough space Downtown for people making $30,000 to $45,000 a year.

"I certainly think the high end of the market has been satisfied," he said.

If we keep building amenities for the young and the fabulous, they will come. Right?

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Officials said that to stay within budget, the authority will have to continue a 2-year-old freeze on vouchers, probably cutting the number of families receiving the rent subsidy from 5,425 to about 4,700 by year's end. (P-G, Rich Lord)

Is this entirely attributable to federal program cuts? Or are there ways of buttressing these efforts with grant monies and other revenue streams that are currently being diverted to other projects?

"I don't even mention Section 8" to homeless families seeking shelter, said Mac McMahon, director of homeless assistance programs at Community Human Services in South Oakland. "Why even give them the hope?"

Sad.

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"Just because I disagree with them doesn't mean I don't recognize that," Drozd said. "I recognize they care as much as I do, but they also need to show it by action." (Trib, Justin Vellucci)

Very informative article on County Councilman Matt Drozd, R-Ross. Yes it's clearly also a puff piece, but a nutritious one.

"He certainly has strong opinions on some things ... but he's willing to stand up for them," said County Councilman Charles Martoni, D-Swissvale.

"He's a character, and I think we've lost a lot of that in government and business. I think that's a good thing. We probably need more characters."

We probably need more bipartisan magnanimity such as this as well.