Blawnox Council welcomes a new member whose budgeting skills will be relied upon

Blawnox Council has a new member.

Council voted 5-0 May 8 to appoint Matt Stanczak to fill the vacancy created by former Councilwoman Meghan Kennedy, who resigned from her elected post last month. Councilwoman Katie Specht-Coban was absent.

Kennedy was appointed to council in 2016 and has since served as the borough’s finance expert. She was chair of council’s finance committee and was a part of its property and planning, and strategic planning committees.

Her term was set to expire at the end of next year. Stanczak would have to run in the November 2025 election to retain the seat.

“My wife (Heidi) and I moved to Blawnox over 20 years ago, and we really love the community,” Stanczak said. “Terrific borough, great neighbors, great community, great schools, small-town feel next to a big city.”

The couple lived in the Pittsburgh area before moving to Blawnox.

Mayor Anthony Gross administered the oath of office shortly after the vote.

“I’m hoping it works out well,” Gross said. “He seems to be very excited (to be on council). It looks like everything will just roll along real smoothly. We needed a good finance person. We believe with his background he will be (a good person).”

Stanczak, 51, works in the water services department of Canonsburg-based Equitrans Midstream, a natural gas pipeline company.

He has a bachelor’s degree in international politics from Penn State University and a master’s in public management from Carnegie Mellon University.

Council President Deborah Laskey said Stanczak’s background and experience set him apart from the other two candidates for the council seat.

“He will be able to guide us when it’s budget time,” Laskey said. “That’s important because you have to survive and have to be spot on with the budget. … If you don’t have someone that is really solid in finance, that could really disrupt a whole lot of things.”

Stanczak said he knows he has big shoes to fill and hopes to pick up where Kennedy left off.

“There’s not a specific project that I’m looking to tackle,” he said. “The woman who sat in this chair before me did a lot of great things for this community. I want to continue the work she was doing on the finance committee and making sure we continue to be a successful borough.”

In other business

• The centennial committee is expected to meet with food and beverage businesses May 20 to discuss participating in the borough’s 100-year celebration Sept. 20, 2025.

More information about the committee and how to donate to its efforts is available at blawnoxcentennial2025.com.

• Residents are reminded to put their trash in bins with a lid to prevent wildlife from tearing through the bags.

Trash outside of bins are to be in heavy black bags to also prevent breakage. Waste Management is the borough’s garbage hauler.

• Borough Manager Kathy Ulanowicz said the borough has a hearing set with the magistrate about a property at 38 Riverside Court.

Blawnox is in the process of having the property condemned in preparation for sheriff’s sale to recoup back taxes of about $6,500.