Penn Hills renames portion of highway after late Sen. Frank A. Pecora
Penn Hills council unanimously voted to rename a portion of Old William Penn Highway in honor of the late Sen. Frank A. Pecora. His son, Frank L. Pecora, currently serves as the municipality’s deputy mayor and made the motion to pass the resolution.
The section that will be renamed is from 4091 Old William Penn Highway to the intersection of Old William Penn Highway and Jefferson Heights Road. It will be known as Sen. Frank A. Pecora Memorial Highway.
“There has never been any public facility or roadway named to honor the senator,” Mayor Pauline Calabrese read from the resolution. “It is fitting and proper to give tribute to Sen. Pecora’s service to the residents of Penn Hills, recognize the public service contributions he made and officially honor his legacy in his hometown of Penn Hills.”
Frank A. Pecora served in the state senate from 1979-94. He was described as a moderate and spent the first 13 years as a Republican before switching to the Democratic party in 1993.
Pecora started his political career founding the Penn Hills Taxpayers League in the 1960s. In 1971, he was elected commissioner of Penn Hills and later, councilman at large. He spent time in that position before becoming the first-ever Penn Hills resident to represent the district in the state senate.
“Frank dedicated most of his life to public service,” said his wife Barbara Pecora, who accepted the resolution. “Not only in the 44th senatorial district — of which he represented in Harrisburg — but also for the years he spent representing the citizens of his hometown here in Penn Hills.”
His switch to the Democratic Party in 1992 split the state senate to 25-25 and, with Democratic Lieutenant Governor Mark Singel the tie-breaking vote, switched control of the senate from the Republican Party to the Democratic Party. However, he is still known for his 13-year consecutive run as a Republican in a Democratic stronghold of a district.
Frank A. Pecora suffered a stroke in 2012 and passed away in 2017. After his time in Harrisburg, he spent his final years in Penn Hills.
Logan Carney is a Trib Total Media contributing writer.
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