Pittsburg, PA
Whistleblowers allege poor construction of new parking garage at airport, council president says
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — The president of Allegheny County Council said whistleblowers contacted him with allegations of poor construction of the new parking garage at Pittsburgh International Airport.
The Allegheny County Airport Authority, though, said any safety concerns are unfounded and it has identified solutions for cosmetic hairline cracks.
Allegheny County Council President Patrick Catena said he was sent several pictures and a video showing cracks in the floors of a parking garage that’s being built at Pittsburgh International Airport. According to Catena, a handful of people reached out to him with concerns about the quality of work being done, fearing it would be swept under the rug if it wasn’t made public.
“There are allegations that the principal contractor for the parking garage – Michael Baker International, Inc. – is aware that the condition of the parking decks in the garage is of substandard quality. There are also allegations that Baker has directed a subcontractor – Rycon Construction, Inc. – to apply a coating to the parking decks to conceal the quality issues, rather than fixing them,” Catena said.
The Allegheny County Airport Authority runs the airport, and the county still owns the land. Control over what happens on the property was given to the airport authority about 25 years ago, and the authority is required to maintain the airport in good condition and repair.
“It thus appears any cover up of the deficient construction quality in the new garage would also cover up a potential default on the contract by the airport authority,” Catena said.
The Allegheny County Airport Authority told KDKA-TV it is disappointing Catena did not contact it directly with any safety concerns, which it says are unfounded.
The airport authority statement also said, in part, “During the preparations to apply a finishing coating on a portion of the new parking garage, hairline cracks appeared. These cracks are cosmetic, and our analysis shows no impact on the structural integrity of the building. The contractor has already developed a plan to seal the cracks in the coming weeks, and the ACAA is closely monitoring the situation through our rigorous quality assurance and quality control (QA/QC) program.”
Catena is calling on the airport authority to do a review of the alleged construction issues and give the council and the chief executive a thorough, transparent report by Nov. 21, or he’ll initiate a council investigation.
He said he wants to make sure the work is done in the best fashion for all the people who use the airport.
“I think we need to look at everything, at some point whether that’s cosmetic, at some point, even if they seal it, that’s not going to last,” Catena said.
“I have concerns that it needs to be done correctly and safely, and want to make sure that’s it going to last because this is a lot of money, not the taxpayers funding the airport but a lot of money being spent on this project,” he added.
KDKA-TV reached out to Michael Baker International., which said, “Michael Baker International, Inc. (“Michael Baker”) is a full-service engineering and architecture firm and provided the initial design of the parking garage. Michael Baker is not a construction contractor. Michael Baker has not done any construction onsite and does not have the authority to direct any construction contractor or subcontractor.”
KDKA-TV also reached out to Rycon Construction for comment, because Catena mentioned the company in his press conference and it helped with the project but did not hear back on Tuesday.
Pittsburg, PA
About 5 pounds of bees removed from Acrisure Stadium scaffolding ahead of Morgan Wallen concerts
Acrisure Stadium is buzzing with excitement ahead of the back-to-back Morgan Wallen concerts. Except it’s not the fans generating all the excitement — it’s about 5 pounds of honeybees.
The Fine Family Apiary in Monongahela said it was contacted on Wednesday about a swarm of bees clustered on the stage scaffolding. The apiary put the swarm in a “nuc box” and took them home before moving the bees into full-size equipment.
Owner Al Fine estimates the swarm weighed about 4 to 5 pounds and consisted of 12,000 to 15,000 bees. All said, it took less than two hours to get the job done.
Why do bees swarm?
Swarming is how honeybees propagate, Fine explained. According to Penn State Extension, during swarming, the queen and about half the workers leave their home to establish a new nest. The bees will form a temporary cluster, hanging out while scouts search the surrounding area for a more permanent home in hollow spaces like tree cavities or, occasionally, the walls of a home.
Swarms can stick around for several hours or days until they’re ready to move, Penn State Extension says. Meanwhile, the colony left behind is temporarily without a leader until a new queen is established.
With the swarm at Acrisure Stadium removed, Morgan Wallen’s show is ready to go on. The country music megastar will bring his I’m The Problem Tour to Pittsburgh on June 5 and June 6, along with multiple acts like Brooks & Dunn and Ella Langley.
On Sept. 17, multi-platinum country music star Luke Bryan will bring his Farm Tour to 1846 Farms near Latrobe.
Westmoreland County is no stranger to large outdoor concerts. Some may remember the Rolling Rock Town Fair in the early 2000s, while others may recall Luke Bryan’s stop at a farm in South Huntingdon Township just two years ago. Now the country music superstar is returning to the area.
The Unity Township farm’s general manager, Aleisha Stas, gave KDKA a tour of the family farm, which dates back to before the Civil War. She says Bryan’s team first reached out after finding the farm on social media, but she says at first, she and her family thought it was too good to be true.
“This was around April Fools, so we thought it was an April Fools prank,” Stas said. “My whole family, we were like, there’s no way this is about to happen. But this has been incredible.”
Stas says Bryan’s team is handling everything logistically from parking and bathrooms to deciding exactly where the concert will be staged.
“If we have it on this side of the property, we can hold 12,000 people,” Stas said. “And if we have it on (the other side) of the property, it can be up to 20,000. But we have not determined that yet.”
Many of those decisions will be made as September gets closer. In the meantime, however, the farm is holding off on planting in certain fields until the final concert location is selected.
And while hosting thousands of people may sound a little intimidating, Stas says her family is excited to welcome fans to the farm for what they hope will be a memorable night.
“Obviously, we’ve never had this many people here before, so it will be a new thing for all of us, but we are not worried,” said Stas. “Luke Bryan’s team are experts with this, and I think it will go great.”
Tickets for this concert are currently on sale, and they will run you about $77 per person, plus tax for general admission.
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