Ball fields in Harrison get spruced up thanks to township, ATI and Western PA Conservancy

Youth baseball and softball fields on Highlands School District property are being spruced up with more than a dozen trees this month through a project with the Western PA Conservancy.

The planting project in Harrison also includes five trees on Broadview Boulevard and six along Federal Street in the township’s Natrona neighborhood.

“This will have a very positive impact on the community,” said Alicia Wehrle, the conservancy’s community forestry project coordinator.

The group partnered with the Harrison tree committee and volunteers from ATI on the project that Wehrle said will help with air quality, stormwater runoff and beautification.

Trees are scheduled to be planted from 9 a.m. to noon Tuesday, Oct. 25.

ATI process leader Erica Logero said she feels it is important to give back so “people don’t look at us as solely as a big corporation, and instead as a company willing to lend a hand in our local communities.”

Kyle Polliard, sales and marketing manager, said the project is a unique opportunity to break away from typical assignments and work with team members in a different capacity.

“And it helps to strengthen our relationship with the communities in which we operate,” Polliard said.

In September, ATI volunteers joined Harrison residents to prune and mulch about 40 trees that were planted in recent years along California Avenue and 12th Avenue, across from Highlands’ football stadium.

Harrison has been extremely successful in securing trees from the Western PA Conservancy and has had one of the most active planting programs in Allegheny County, Harrison Commissioner Chuck Dizard said.

The partnership began in 2016 and has grown to include hundreds of trees throughout the township.

“It has positively contributed to the environment and beautification of township streets,” Dizard said.

“We have had over 250 community volunteers and, recently, a wonderful partnership with ATI volunteers.”

The 13 trees along California Avenue were requested by the Natrona Heights Baseball Softball Association (NHBSA) and will be planted at no cost to the district.

NHBSA asked to have three trees each behind two of the fields, another two trees by the concession stand and the remainder near California Avenue.

The six trees along Federal Street will be planted near the water authority’s pump station. Wehrle said they will be a mix of flowering and shade trees. All of the varieties along Federal Street will be compatible with utility wires and underground pipes.

“These tree plantings are great community building events,” Wehrle said. “They bring people together around a shared goal of increasing tree canopy in their neighborhood.”

Craig Hixon, an ATI operations engineer, said: “It’s important to never forget where you came from. With ATI’s ability to supply products around the world and beyond, it’s the wonderful that we have this opportunity. When I heard about this chance to volunteer in our local communities, I couldn’t pass it up.”