Candidates say infrastructure, new families key issues in Cheswick Council election

Six candidates, nearly all Republicans and engineers, are seeking five open seats on Cheswick Council this November.

Among the half dozen, five are pursuing full, four-year terms. Frank Stanish is the only candidate solely seeking an open two-year seat.

Stanish, who was appointed to council last March, said he’d like to use his professional background for the benefit of the borough.

A retired engineer, Stanish, 61, said his primary concerns are upgrading the borough’s road and water infrastructure.

“I just wanted to use my experience to help out the town I grew up in,” he said.

The Republican graduated from Springdale Jr.-Sr. High School before earning an associate degree in tooling design from the now-defunct Alliance College.

In addition to infrastructure upgrades, Stanish said he’d focus on making sure the proposed data center project — just across the municipal border in Springdale — doesn’t have any adverse effects on Cheswick.

Appointed to council soon after Stanish, Nicholas Pollino, 35, said he has always wanted to be involved in the community.

He’d like to see more growth in Cheswick, and he’d work to improve borough roads and cleanliness.

“I just hope I can continue with the growth,” Pollino said.

Pollino, a Republican, is also a Springdale graduate. He holds a bachelor’s degree in marketing from St. Vincent College.

He’s a landlord and also runs Pollino Landscaping.

In addition to a full term, Pollino is seeking a two-year term, leaving him to face off with Stanish.

The youngest candidate on the ballot, Rachel Simko, 31, said she’d like to make her borough a more desirable place for new residents.

An engineer at Curtiss-Wright, the Republican has a bachelor’s degree in engineering physics from Westminster College and a master’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Pittsburgh.

Simko initially took interest in the community through her work as a steward with the nonprofit Friends of the Riverfront. She said she’s interested in working toward the planned long-term redevelopment of Cheswick’s Rachel Carson Riverfront Park.

That’s in addition to her goal of analyzing borough finances and tax rates to “reinvest in the community.”

Frank Meledandri is no stranger to council. He has served in various roles as an elected official in Cheswick for more than 40 years.

Primarily focused on finances, Meledandri, 77, said he’d like to continue to keep the borough’s finances solid.

“It’s just a matter of coming up with a model that works for a small community,” he said.

He has an electrical engineering bachelor’s degree from Carnegie Mellon University and a master’s degree in business from the University of Pittsburgh.

Also a Republican, Meledandri is retired after a career spent as an engineer and director at Westinghouse.

Outside of finances, he’d work to carve out spaces for young people in an effort to attracted new families to the borough, he said. Like Simko, Meledandri said he has his eye set on Rachel Carson Riverfront Park.

Appointed to council at the same meeting as Stanish, Adis Halimic, 45, said he also wants to draw new folks into the aging borough.

He said Cheswick officials would have to enforce local ordinances and codes surrounding noise and property maintenance to make sure the borough stays in good shape.

“The goal is to maintain the community to make it attractive for younger families,” Halimic said.

An applications engineer, the Republican holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Penn State University.

George White, the sole Democrat on the ballot, declined a TribLive request for comment for this story.

Elections are set for Nov. 4.