A second covid-19 vaccination clinic could be up and running at the Ross Community Center by March 1 if Allegheny County and township officials can hammer out an agreement.

Brian Dunbar, a deputy county solicitor for the county, attended the board’s online meeting on Feb. 1 to outline the proposal to use the community center’s gymnasium for about nine months to administer vaccinations to the public.

“The county is so anxious to get this up and running that I already have a draft (agreement),” he said. Terms of an agreement can begin to be negotiated “as soon as we are able to meet and talk,” Dunbar said.

If approved by the commissioners, the vaccination site would be the second distribution point in the county.

A vaccination clinic was set up in January at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Pittsburgh – Monroeville Convention Center.

Ross officials said they approached the county several weeks ago to offer the use of its facility.

“We need to do our moral obligation to make sure we are helping the county, the state and the nation get people vaccinated and put an end to this pandemic,” said Eloise Peet, the township’s recreation director.

Peet said the gymnasium could be used as a vaccination site from March through June and then be moved to another building available at the township’s public works complex along Cemetery Lane if recreation programs are permitted to resume by summer.

She noted the public works annex was used this fall for the general election and is accessible to people with physical challenges.

“We have the infrastructure,” she said. “This is our chance to make a difference, to be a force to help out.”

Dunbar said the county would like to operate the Ross site 12 hours a day, six days a week for at least nine months.

“The goal is to vaccinate about 1,000 people a day at each of the locations,” he said.

Initial plans call for the private company Curative to administer the vaccine, Dunbar said, adding that they likely will use the Moderna vaccine because it does not require freezers to keep it stable.

The commissioners said the township manager would be tasked with negotiating the terms of the agreement with the county, which would include, among other things, what compensation the township would receive for the use of the building.

Dunbar said the county pays DoubleTree its regular day rate for the rooms it uses to vaccinate people.

He said he would provide the township with a draft of an agreement by the end of this week so it can be reviewed by officials in time for consideration at its Feb. 16 meeting.

Allegheny County Council will not have to vote on approving Ross for a vaccination site because the county manager has the authority to negotiate the terms of the agreement, Dunbar said.

Copyright ©2025— Trib Total Media, LLC (TribLIVE.com)