Allegheny Council turned down a request to hold its own public hearing on a plan to demolish and redevelop the site now occupied by UPMC Braddock Hospital.

The 9-6 vote Wednesday night drew criticism from a half dozen speakers, who said council was failing to serve as a check on County Executive Dan Onorato.

Mr. Onorato had pledged county support for a $29 million effort, led by UPMC, to tear down the hospital and replace it with new multi-use buildings. UPMC shut down the hospital Jan. 31

"We want transparency," Pat Morgan, of Braddock, told council. She and other residents want to know the details of any agreements already worked out among UPMC, Mr. Onorato's office and Braddock officials. "Don't you have any oversight duties, or are you impotent?" she asked council members.

Tony Buba, of Braddock Hills, said any development proposal for the hospital property should contain a provision to assure emergency care or its equivalent in Braddock.

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Protesters upset about the closing of UPMC Braddock want assurances that any site redevelopment plans include an emergency medical clinic.

About a dozen protesters, members of a citizens group Save Our Community Hospitals, set up informational picket lines Monday around the Allegheny County Courthouse.

In recent weeks the group has shifted its focus away from pushing for reopening of the hospital, according to David Hughes, a member of the group's steering committee. The protesters' main two goals are to assure that Braddock is a full partner in any redevelopment plan for the hospital site and to persuade UPMC to provide an emergency-care facility on the site.

Protesters also directed their ire at Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato.

They handed out fliers that showed Mr. Onorato as a puppet whose strings were being pulled by UPMC, the health-care giant that operated the Braddock hospital.

Previous protests by the group focused mostly on UPMC and its president, Jeffrey Romoff.

UPMC shut down the hospital on Jan. 31. On Feb. 2, Mr. Onorato unveiled a $29 million proposal to demolish the old hospital and replace it with a facility with senior citizen housing, medical offices and community college classrooms.

UPMC has agreed to provide $5 million for demolition and $3 million to match expected state grants.

"But where is the rest of the money going to come from?" asked picketer Aldora Watt, of Regent Square.

Funding for the project is expected from several sources, including state aid, the sale of development tax credits and private investment.

Those opposed to the hospital closing have faced several setbacks in recent weeks.

In March, a county judge threw out two lawsuits, one seeking to reverse the closing and a second challenging UPMC's tax-exempt status.

On April 13, Braddock Council ended a two-month deadlock over the county's redevelopment plan by approving the proposal.

Protesters on Monday said they were worried about lack of formal commitments to the redevelopment project.

The county and UPMC have not signed any agreement, Mr. Hughes said. The proposal to tear down the hospital and replace it exists only as an exchange of letters and a concept, he said.

When terms of a deal are reached, Braddock officials should be among those signing off on the plans, he said.

Since the hospital has closed, borough residents and those living nearby have had to go to UPMC McKeesport or UPMC Shadyside for emergency treatment, he said. They need a closer emergency medical facility where their conditions can be stabilized, he said.

Braddock Mayor John Fetterman, an early supporter of the redevelopment plan, said he had no worries about Mr. Onorato's commitment to the borough.

"Dan has delivered for Braddock," he said, pointing to construction of new senior citizen housing and plans to redevelop the nearby 168-acre Carrie Furnace site. "Braddock Council knows the outline of what will be built here, and to question Dan's word is outrageous."

At least one other county official, however, has raised questions about the future of the UPMC Braddock site. Speaking at a May 4 council meeting, county Councilman Chuck McCullough, R-Upper St. Clair, warned that he and his colleagues would not "rubber stamp" a redevelopment deal between the county executive and UPMC. "We'll review and weigh in on it," he said.

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Protesters target Onorato over Braddock Hospital

Monday, May 10, 2010

By Len Barcousky, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Protesters angry about the closing of Braddock Hospital have turned their fire on Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato.

About a dozen members of a citizens group called Save Our Community Hospitals, or SOCH, set up informational picket lines this afternoon around the Allegheny County Courthouse.

They handed out fliers that showed Mr. Onorato as a puppet whose strings were being pulled by UPMC, the health-care giant that operated Braddock hospital.

Previous SOCH protests had focused mostly on UPMC and its president, Jeffrey Romoff.

UPMC shut down the hospital on Jan. 31. On. Feb. 2 Mr. Onorato unveiled a $29 million proposal for demolition of the old hospital and its replacement by multi-use structures.

UPMC has agreed to provide $5 million for demolition and $3 million to match expected state grants.

"But where is the rest of the money going to come from?" asked picketer Aldora Watt, of Regent Square.

More details in tomorrow's Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Len Barcousky: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or 412-263-1159.

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The below press release was sent to all PA Media Outlets May 10th 2010

PITTSBURGH, May 10-Twenty-five members of the Save Our Community Hospitals (SOCH) organization demonstrated today outside the office of Allegheny County Executive Dan Onorato in connection with his handling of the closing of UPMC/Braddock Hospital. The group distributed a flyer

calling attention to the large number of campaign contributions Mr. Onorato has taken from UPMC connected managers, physicians and lobbyists, including $12,500 from UPMC CEO Jeffrey Romoff.

On October 16, 2009, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center announced it was closing UPMC/Braddock on January 31, 2010. Mr. Onorato came to Braddock on November 18 to announce that he would fight to keep the Hospital open, or in the alternative, to find a good use for the facility. He formed a stakeholders group and hired a consultant to study how to keep the hospital open, and to find ways to utilize the building. At that meeting, Braddock residents made it clear that keeping some form of emergency care in Braddock was critical to Braddock and the surrounding communities

Suddenly, on February 2, before the stakeholders group had completed its work, and before the consultant’s study was made public, Mr. Onorato surprised all involved by holding a press conference to announce the “Onorato/UPMC Plan” to demolish the hospital building and build a retail development on the site. All those who had been fighting to save the hospital were shocked and wondered why Mr. Onorato appeared to be cutting a deal with UPMC, and even went against the recommendations of his own consultant.

SOCH members distributed a flyer today that may hold the reason why Mr. Onorato supports demolishing the building. Listed on the flyer are 23 UPMC executives, physicians and lobbyists who have contributed over $40 thousand dollars to the Onorato campaign. (Contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it for a copy of the flyer).

“We question whether Dan Onorato can be trusted to fight for poor communities like Braddock when he is the beneficiary of thousands in campaign contributions from the likes of UPMC,” said Tony Buba, SOCH chairperson.

Braddock resident Carmella Mullen pointed out that apparently the Onorato/UPMC plan has no emergency care component. “This is our top priority. People will die as a result of this hospital closing because anyone in serious condition will have to travel much longer to get treated. Many of our relatives were saved at Braddock Hospital because they were stabilized so quickly. I am shocked that there’s no plan for emergency care in Onorato’s plan,” Mullen said. “We understand the decision to close Braddock Hospital is simply about the ‘bottom line’ for UPMC,” said the Reverend James McDonald, president of the Greater Braddock Ministerial Association. “How else can you explain closing a great facility that is vitally needed by a predominantly poor and black population. But the difference between Mr. Onorato’s promises and the plan he announced really calls into question who he is working for.”

SOCH intends to keep up the pressure until Mr. Onorato and UPMC implement a plan that provides critically needed emergency care to Braddock and the surrounding communities.

Braddock ends standoff over hospital site

By Tim Puko

PITTSBURGH TRIBUNE-REVIEW

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

Braddock Council approved a $29 million redevelopment Tuesday night for the borough's closed hospital, ending a two-month standoff with Allegheny County officials about what would happen to the seven-story building.

"We have fought as long as we could to get as much out of this agreement as we could get," Council President Jesse Brown said. "I think we've got to start thinking that that building is going to be demolished. None of us want it to be demolished, but it's going to be demolished.

The former UPMC Braddock hospital will be replaced with an expanded urgent care clinic and space for Community College of Allegheny County, a plan council members once called an insult to the community. They failed in pursuing other options to save the building, including a mental health clinic and data storage site.

County officials and borough Mayor John Fetterman lauded the unanimous decision by council. The county can now work with the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center and the state to write the terms of the agreement, Economic Development Director Dennis Davin said. That process should take weeks, he added.

"This is the exact same plan (the county) offered us in February," said Fetterman, who supported the county's plan from the start. "All we've done is waste a bunch of time and create a bunch of ill will. Finally, the community has won."

UPMC has agreed to pay $5 million for demolition, likely to start this summer. It will match a $3 million state contribution, and county officials expect the rest of the funding will come from grants and housing tax credits.

The decision to close the hospital sparked outrage and months of rallies in the community of about 3,000 residents after UPMC officials announced it in October. The hospital, with 600 workers, was the borough's largest employer, and UPMC transferred most of them to other sites. The cafeteria was the town's only restaurant and the hospital had its only ATM, residents have said.

As part of the agreement, UPMC has agreed to pay the borough at least $450,000 over five years to make up for the loss of wage tax money. That will allow for the repeal of a 1-mill tax increase council approved after the hospital closed in January.

"We didn't get our original ideas," said Pat Morgan, a resident who sued UPMC twice and created a committee to try to save the hospital, "but we're going to get something good for the community."

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