Four politicians representing local communities displayed optimism for businesses and new developments in the region during the covid-19 pandemic during a recent forum hosted by the South West Communities Chamber of Commerce.

Freshman lawmaker Sen. Devlin Robinson, R-Bridgeville, joined state Reps. Natalie Mihalek, R-Upper St. Clair; Jason Ortitay, R-South Fayette and Anita Kulik, D-Kennedy on the Feb. 11 virtual conference call in giving updates to attendees.

First to speak was Kulik, who represents 13 municipalities, including Carnegie, Coraopolis, Emsworth and Ben Avon. She said her priority in 2021 is supporting the economic recovery of small businesses.

Though small businesses have suffered through the pandemic, she said only a few have closed permanently and, “remarkably,” some have even opened. She referenced a Taco Bell that is planned to move into Kennedy, along with a First National Bank.

She commended officials in Carnegie, who have done well to adapt to support the borough’s business district — which is growing with the addition of a new restaurant and a deli.

“To have that happening at this time — it’s encouraging, amazing,” she said.

Ortitay kept the good news coming with updates about various developments in his districts, including a number of commercial builds in South Fayette.

“They’ve just been going gangbusters (in South Fayette),” he said. Ortitay rattled off developments that include a restaurant complex in the former Star City theater, along with other restaurants, office space, housing and a veterinarian center, in addition to updates to parks including adding a cricket field and a splash pad.

Speaking of splash pads, Bethel Park is adding some to its parks, said Mihalek, whose district includes Upper St. Clair, McMurray and Venetia.

She also touched on Peters Township High School’s new $110 million campus, which opened earlier this year. Mihalek said she toured the site recently.

“It is a beautiful facility and hopefully it will stay there for a long time coming,” she said, adding there are plans to build a recreational facility with a pool on the property, which used to house the Rolling Hills Country Club.

Robinson, who was elected to his first term in November, said his focus will also be on economic recovery. He said as the owner of a company that leases equipment to hospitals, he understands the pressures brought on by the pandemic.

He pointed to his roles in committees that “work hand in hand to bring money back into my district.”

He was appointed to serve as vice chairman of the Senate Law and Justice Committee, along with membership in the Senate Appropriations; Community, Economic and Recreational Development; Game and Fisheries; Labor and Industry and Local Government committees.

The second annual conference was moderated by the chamber’s director, Mandi Pryor, who has been at the helm since 2017. The conference also featured a Q&A session, where attendees were able to ask participating politicians questions.

The two questions that came out of the forum were on the covid-19 vaccine rollout and the status of Millers Run Road, which is slated for repair after a landslide washed out part of the road.

Ortitay said the vaccine rollout has been chaotic and convoluted since the beginning.

“We don’t have a large supply (of vaccine doses), we’re completely dependent on the federal government shipping the vaccines into the state and a lot of the vaccines go directly to the health care providers,” he said, adding that the county health department only gets 11% of the vaccines coming into Allegheny County.

However, the slow rollout might speed up by the end of March, Ortitay said, and predictions seem to indicate that around 200 million people will be inoculated by the end of June.

There are more virtual events scheduled throughout the year, including networking opportunities. For more information, visit southwestcommunitieschamber.org.

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