Baldwin Boro Council Supports Shade Tree Commission—Sort Of

The Baldwin Borough Council took the first step on Tuesday—barely—to entering Baldwin into a multi-municipal with neighboring Brentwood and boroughs. By a 4-3 vote during Tuesday's regular council meeting, the council approved the first reading of a bill that would include in the commission.

Whitehall Council has already formally entered its borough into the agreement, and Brentwood Council is leaning that way, as well. And now Baldwin's will have a chance to do so at a meeting next month when the bill could become an official part of borough code.

The purpose of the commission is to plant more trees and to further care for existing greenery in order to beautify the three municipalities and to make them more attractive for businesses and residents.

Whitehall Mayor James F. Nowalk, who has been championing the commission and has even attended a Baldwin Council meeting to try to convince officials to join, has touted the agreement as having no downside, pointing to grants that will award trees and advice to the commission's members.

For example, the organization TreeVitalize will offer free trees and four hours of free training for tree caretakers if the commission is realized. TreeVitalize officials will also encourage residents to plant more trees.

"It's purely advisory and will result in getting free trees and expertise," Nowalk said at . "It's a no-lose situation for any municipality, and I am hopeful that all three are going to adopt it."

Some Baldwin council members—and Baldwin's Mayor Alexander R. Bennett Jr.—have agreed with Nowalk, but Baldwin Council's Vice President Michael Stelmasczyk has been an outspoken opponent of Baldwin joining the commission.

On Tuesday, Stelmasczyk—along with council President David M. Depretis—voted unsuccessfully to delay a Shade Tree bill vote in Baldwin. 

Following that unsuccessful delay attempt, Stelmasczyk, Depretis and fellow council member John Ferris then voted unsuccessfully against advertising the bill. They were defeated by "yes" votes from Councilmen Ed Moeller, Larry Brown, Bob Collet and John Conley. Conley requested the bill to be on Tuesday's meeting agenda.

"I just feel that we're being rushed by outside groups like Whitehall Council," Stelmasczyk said, mentioning that Whitehall council members have sent letters to Baldwin council members asking for support of the commission. "I've never seen another council try to influence the decision of another council, even on something like this.

"I think that was in bad form."

Stelmasczyk said that his biggest issue with the bill, though, is that the commission takes too much power away from the Baldwin Council. He would like the commission to be an advisory group only without any power to call shots in Baldwin.

He also doubted that joining the commission won't come at some cost to Baldwin.

"I've heard both mayors tell us that this is free," Stelmasczyk said. "There is nothing free. This ordinance specifies that they're going to go after funding from the boroughs. EDS (Economic Development South) is going to be asking us for money; now, this commission is going to be asking us for money."

Brentwood, Baldwin and Whitehall—along with the Pittsburgh neighborhoods of Carrick and Overbrook—are already , and the Shade Tree Commission would be an extension of that cooperation.

"And the thing that bothers me—really—about this, more than anything," Stelmasczyk said, "is they call themselves an advisory group. Yet, they set the ordinance up to hire people, to have employees, to pay for social security, to pay for group health insurance, for employee benefits. That's not an advisory group. That's setting up a jobs plan funded by the taxpayers.

" ... They can get trees without Baldwin Borough being involved. We can get our own trees today. We don't need this commission. To me, this is simply a power grab."

Before voting "yes" to advertise the bill, Moeller pointed out that the council could agree to simply advertise it before stopping it from becoming an actual ordinance next month.

Mayor Bennett, who said that he would never ask the council to spend Baldwin's money on the commission, confirmed with borough solicitor Stanley B. Lederman that the Baldwin Council, should it ultimately pass the ordinance, could opt-out of the commission at any time and that any money committed to the commission would be voluntary.

Ferris argued that Brentwood and Whitehall are more suited to be in the commission, as there are bigger shopping areas in those municipalities.

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