Pittsburgh City Council delays vote on Wilkinsburg annexation

Pittsburgh City Council on Wednesday delayed a vote on the potential annexation of neighboring Wilkinsburg for one week, with Councilman Anthony Coghill saying he’d like more time to gather information.

Council President Theresa Kail-Smith last week introduced legislation to deny the measure, which has generated controversy among residents and local officials.

A judge ordered council to render a decision, though council members have said they don’t yet have enough information on the matter. Kail-Smith said she and other members of council wanted to vote against the measure now, but continue gathering information and public input to reconsider the potential annexation in the future.

Coghill said he would like to see whether more information could be presented within the next week. He said he’s not necessarily supporting annexation, but doesn’t want to vote against it if there’s more data to inform his vote.

“I have not supported the Wilkinsburg merger publicly as of yet,” he said. “My sole purpose is just to get the information in front of us for next week.”

Council members have said they need answers to questions on issues such as merging school districts, financial ramifications and vacant properties in Wilkinsburg.

Kail-Smith on Tuesday introduced legislation that would pave the way for more in-depth investigations of potential annexations or mergers with neighboring municipalities, including Wilkinsburg.

Councilman Ricky Burgess, whose district is adjacent to Wilkinsburg and would likely include Wilkinsburg if it was annexed, said he is open to annexing or merging with the neighboring borough.

But Burgess said he’d like to take about a year to investigate concerns about the proposal and hear input from members of the Pittsburgh and Wilkinsburg communities.

“I think we could actually do this,” Burgess said. “I think this time next year, after a year of conversations and a year of exploration, we could be in a position to approve this.”