ATI, Harrison partner on beautification project
Volunteers from ATI will join the Harrison tree committee Tuesday to make over a cluster of 27 trees planted years ago near the Highlands baseball fields.
About four dozen people will tend to the bald cypress, birch, elm and pine trees that were paid for through a $250,000 grant from The Pittsburgh Foundation to the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy in 2018.
“It’s pretty cool to participate in events like this because it brings us together as a workforce,” said Andrew Joseph, a manager at the ATI Brackenridge facility.
“From all over the plant, we’re working together to make our community better. Volunteering as a group creates a common thread.”
The maintenance event will take place from 9 a.m. to noon.
Commissioner Chuck Dizard has spearheaded tree-tending efforts in the township for several years. During that round in 2018, trees were put in the ground along California Avenue and 12th Avenue by the ballfields, tennis courts and football stadium.
Since then, hundreds of trees have been planted throughout the township — along Union Avenue in the Natrona Heights section and along Federal and Sycamore streets in Natrona.
The young trees require maintenance at least for the first three years or until the roots have acclimated to the planting area.
Dizard said the partnership with ATI has been valuable to the program. About 30 employees are expected to get their hands dirty to spruce up the trees.
“We appreciate that our people are volunteering to support this tree maintenance effort. Thanks to their work and the groups involved, our community becomes more beautiful and we all benefit environmentally,” said Danielle Carlini, ATI’s vice president of operations.
Staff from the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy will bring mulch and tools and will advise volunteers.
Ian Musco, a process leader at ATI’s Brackenridge Operations, said volunteer efforts like this symbolize what it means to be a good neighbor.
“I hope when the people in our communities see these trees, they think of our involvement and know that ATI is a company that cares,” Musco said.
Tawnya Panizzi is a TribLive reporter. She joined the Trib in 1997. She can be reached at tpanizzi@triblive.com.
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