Greensburg fires longtime city planning director

Barbara Ciampini, who has run Greensburg’s planning and development department for decades, has been fired.

Greensburg City Council met Monday in a special session to handle the matter, Mayor Robert Bell confirmed.

Council’s decision was unanimous, he said.

Bell said he could not immediately discuss the reason for the firing, calling it a “personnel issue.” Further details may be made available later, he said.

Ciampini said she had no comment.

City Councilman Gregory Mertz said he could not comment on personnel matters. Other council members could not immediately be reached.

She worked for the city for about 35 years and was deeply involved in business development in Greensburg, working closely with the Greensburg Community Development Corp., Historical and Architectural Review Board and city council. Almost any construction or renovation project in the city was under her purview.

Her annual salary was $73,500.

Tuesday’s Historical and Architectural Review Board meeting was cancelled at the last minute due to lack of quorum.

Board Chair Barbara Jones told those in attendance the meeting was cancelled minutes before it began. The cancellation was because several board members were not in attendance, not because Ciampini was absent, she said.

She expects next month’s meeting to take place as scheduled whether or not the city has picked a new planning director.