3 vie for 2 spots on Jeannette City Council

Two newcomers and an incumbent are seeking two open spots on Jeannette City Council in the Nov. 4 election.

Michelle Langdon, who has spent the last four years on council, and newcomers Donald Johnston Jr. and Denise Ward will be on the ballot for the two four-year terms.

Council members are paid $1,125 annually.

Johnston, 53, said his decades of work on the streets of Jeannette as a police officer helped him become familiar with issues around town, as well as the inner workings at city hall. He retired as police chief Jan. 1, 2024.

“We still have an issue with blight,” he said.

Johnston said he’d like to see those dilapidated buildings either be renovated and reused, or torn down to make room for fresh construction.

“The appearance and the aesthetics of the city, it makes it look bad,” he said.

The Republican candidate, Johnston worked for the city as a police officer from March 1999 until his retirement. Before that, he worked at the South Greensburg Police Department for four years.

He’s now a full-time school police officer at Hempfield Area. During his few years as chief, he gained experience working with council and city officials.

“I’m already familiar with the community, I’m familiar with policy and procedures,” he said. “I can hit the ground running with the knowledge I have.”

If elected, Johnston plans to keep the city’s services, such as sanitation, firefighters and police, intact. Jeannette has the county’s only full-time paid fire department.

“I’m completely happy with the public services that we have,” he said.

After years of raising a family and working in Jeannette, Johnston said he felt it was time to give back to the community, help it thrive and create better opportunities for young people.

Langdon, 68, has served on council for four years and is on the Democratic ticket. She said she switched from Republican to better align with her views on women’s rights.

An accountant, she previously worked five years for the city in varying roles, including chief fiscal officer and clerk.

”I have skills and knowledge that would benefit council since I’ve spent so much time at city hall in all those different positions,” Langdon said. “I come with a background that none of the others do.”

Public meetings have been livestreamed on her Facebook page, which is an effort Langdon took on herself after a lack of interest in the city starting its own YouTube page.

She hopes to have information about finances, such as grants, expenses and account balances, added to the website in an effort to improve transparency.

“I don’t want people to feel like they have to be suspicious of city hall,” she said. “I think communication is lacking, to some degree, at city hall.”

She said she is willing to take a stand when she doesn’t agree with something up for consideration, a track record of which she is proud.

As an example, Langdon said she spread the word in 2022 when a proposed ordinance would have carried fines of up to $1,000 for curfew violations. After about a dozen people spoke against the proposal, council ultimately approved an updated ordinance that calls for fines ranging from $25 to $300.

“I’m the candidate that stands up when something unfair comes along,” she said.

Langdon also is running for mayor. If she wins both races, she will pick one seat.

Ward, 67, hopes to work with city officials to find new ways to push the owners of dilapidated buildings to fix up their properties or sell them. She’s frustrated with property owners who take advantage of the court system when cited for violations, do the bare minimum to get the city off their backs and then leave their buildings to deteriorate, continuing a cycle.

“That’s a big thing I’d like to see get done,” said Ward, who is on the Republican ticket.

That goes for empty buildings in the downtown area, too. They could be home to new businesses, she said, but the city needs to find ways to push property owners to get them occupied.

“We don’t want to let them sit empty,” she said.

Ward has been involved in the Jeannette Initiative’s plan to apply for Main Street Matters designation, which is a program through the state Department of Community and Economic Development that provides funding to support revitalization efforts. She’s been focused on brainstorming ideas on how to beautify the city as part of Jeannette’s program application.

“It’s worth it, we just need to get the people together,” she said. “We’re all one, I don’t care if you’re Democrat or Republican, you’re all citizens of the city.”

Now retired, Ward said she has experience working with finances throughout her career in various roles including as a buyer at Jeannette District Memorial Hospital, at the hospital’s credit union, as co-owner of the former Glass City Cafe, a real estate agent and a notary.