Monongahela Welcomes New Businesses, Merry and Bright Night Recap, Milestones and More!

INTRODUCING LUXARIA HAIR STUDIO, LLC

New businesses have been moving in pretty intensively in the last six months. Luxaria is a new hair salon located at 234 West Main Street, just below Sambol’s Bakery, in the Hoffman Building (previous location of Mon Valley Outdoors). It’s next to the Aspire to Impact Dance Studio space, a new business that opened mid-August this year. Luxaria had its grand opening a little over a week ago, on Tuesday, November 12th. Having worked previously in a nearby town, I know that the Luxaria staff is experienced with all hair types. Stop in to see Brina and Amelia, congratulate them on opening their new business in our Little City, and see what they can do for you. Phone number: (724) 521-4290.

NEW BUSINESSES JUST KEEP COMING

Beyond Luxaria Hair Studio, what are some other new businesses?

• Mon-City Restaurant – should be open any day (former Di’s Deli location), 218 West Main, (724) 244-2719
• Lil’ Sprouts Daycare – The target date for opening is December 16th (former location of Main Street Gypsy, next to City Mission Thrift Store), 219 West Main
• Dusty Attic – Antiques, Collectibles, Thrift, since 22 November 2024, 308 West Main Street (former barbershop space next to PNC Bank)
• Speers Street Financial, since September 2024, Bill Hecklick, owner, 600 Park Avenue (Peno’s Plaza) Suite B, (412) 600-6458
• Aspire to Impact Dance Studio space, since August 2024 (former Just 4 You card shop location), grand openings August 8th and August 13th
• Nails by Brittany (at Expressions Styling Salon), 606 Park Avenue (Peno’s Plaza), Monongahela (412) 447-1756, since 27 June 2024
• MVA Business Resource Center, since 15 November 2024, Cait Lee, Director, 235 West Main (part of Mon Valley Alliance offices), (724) 565-5639
• Yesterday’s Best Antique Shop in the old Furiga House in New Eagle has closed permanently as of this month. The shop’s name, “Yesterday’s Best,” has a storied history as it has evolved since the early 1980s.

WINDOWS TO A FUTURE WELL ROOTED IN OUR HISTORY

Don’t those new windows look fantastic? The Commonwealth Charter Academy Cyber Charter School has been installing them at the historic Monongahela High School Building (AKA, M.E.C.) across Chess Street from Community Bank and Family Dollar. They are designed to match the original openings and the original style beautifully.

Also, at this writing, the Charter School’s contractors are in the process of rebuilding the sidewalk ramp up to the Monongahela High School Building (M.E.C.) in its original location, from Chess Street near the intersection with Twelfth Street and rising toward the entrance to the building. A new railing has been installed to replace the recently removed one, and new concrete is being poured. It appears that bases have been put in for lighting along the path, which would have been a good idea many years ago. The ramp will allow Charter School employees to walk down the hill for lunch, to sop, do banking, get some exercise, see our beautiful Downtown, etc.

LASH’D BY TAMMY

Lashed by Tammy, the new shop at 242 West Main had a really nice open house on November 18th, featuring several independent vendors set up at the shop. Stationed outside was the Lou’s Hibachi food truck, and inside B LINC’D, a new jewelry vendor was launching a new line of permanent jewelry; plus there was at least one other vendor’s space selling clothing. Great things keep happening in Monongahela.

SOUTHSIDE PITTSBURGH

A recent article about Pittsburgh’s Southside said the city is seeking new Main Street personnel. The city says the South Side has a 26% vacancy rate, and it hopes that having a new manager in place would help improve that. (East Carson Street in the Southside is considered one of America’s longest traditional historic Main Street business districts. However, if their vacancy rate is that high, maybe we could give them some tips since we are not really doing all that badly ourselves.)

LIGHT-UP NIGHT

The Monongahela Area Chamber of Commerce did a great job facing a difficult situation due to the sudden change of weather and making the event work this Friday evening for our community’s seasonal light-up event, Merry and Bright Night. In fact, despite the almost constantly drizzling cold rain and suddenly colder weather, with threats of snow, many parts of the event came off just as they would in a typical year, or even better.

The fireworks were fantastic, maybe better than ever, and drew positive “rave reviews” from many attendees. Having extra dancers helped as well, pulling a fairly large crowd into the 200 block up to the end of the event.

Having several community organizations doing various things added a lot to the festivities, such as the Monongahela Area Historical Society serving hot chocolate, First United Methodist Church hosting the Salvation Army kettle and serving popcorn, Ringgold groups performing and manning a station at the Key Bank plaza, the Monongahela Rotary Club taking photos with the Grinch, the Fire Department taking Santa to his Santa house, and so forth.

There were also vendors at Chess Park, at the Library, and at the Fire Hall. Many shops seemed pleased with the turnout and customer activity. It was interesting seeing so many people willing to pop up an umbrella over their heads to watch the festivities in the 200 block.

NEW LIGHTS

After trying out new LED tops for our existing Downtown light poles, under the leadership of City Council member Sarah O’Brien, the City secured a grant to replace the rest of the Downtown lights with this style fixture. Some new lights were installed just in time for this Merry and Bright Night, our Chamber of Commerce event that serves as our annual light-up celebration – what a great time to kick off new Downtown lighting. Congratulations and many thanks to Sarah O’Brien, the City Street Crew, and other City representatives who have been working on this project.

DOUG WIBLE DEDICATION

The Monongahela Area Revitalization Corporation’s (MARC’s) gazebo-shaped bus shelter at West Main and Fourth Street was rededicated on the afternoon of Friday, 15 November, in honor of former MARC president and long-time leader Doug Wible, who passed away in an accident two years ago.

Doug ran Wible Maytag Co. Appliance Store at 214 West Main Street with his father, Dan Wible (Doug’s grandfather, Daniel Wible, Sr., started the Wible Maytag Appliance store about 1943, which moved once or twice before settling in at 214 West Main in 1956, and which Doug’s father Dan Wible, Sr., had taken over in 1953).

Upon Doug’s passing, he bequeathed funds to the Monongahela Area Revitalization Corporation (MARC) and the City of Monongahela to be used for various improvements to community facilities. MARC used its funds to renovate the bus shelter, which it first built in the 1990s. A new roof was installed, some other design changes were made, and the shelter was painted dark green. A plaque telling about Doug was mounted within the shelter.

Doug’s widow, University of Pittsburgh history professor Lara Putnam, and their daughter Eleanor Wren Wible were on hand for the dedication. City Council member Mark Gadd made some remarks, as did the current MARC leaders and Prof. Putnam. Afterward, refreshments were served at the Monongahela Fire Department Social Hall. The renovation project and refreshments were chaired by Jack Cattaneo with help from others.

BUSINESS RESOURCE CENTER OPENS

The Mon Valley Alliance has added a new service to what it offers at its offices at 235 West Main (former Community Bank location). The MVA now has a Business Resource Center, with Cait Lee as the director. The grand opening for the new center was this past Friday afternoon, November 15th. About 45 people were in attendance. Some of those in attendance made brief presentations on how the facility came into being, including Betsie Trew of the Washington County Community Foundation (the Foundation provided some initial funding).

The Business Center was created to support future and existing small businesses in the Mid-Mon Valley. While the name also refers to the office and conference room spaces it occupies within the larger Mon Valley Alliance offices at 235 West Main Street (former Community Bank location, built as First Federal S&L of Monessen), as a “program,” the Business Resource Center will “provide educational opportunities, capacity building resources, and technical assistance for small businesses to launch, grow, and thrive.”

They have partnered with several organizations to give small businesses access to various support and programs. Through this, they intend to offer a robust selection of activities, including advisory services (e.g., one-on-one business coaching) and networking opportunities. For instance, they have partnered with Washington and Jefferson’s Ignite Business Incubator in Washington, Pa.

They are planning to rent (primarily office) space out to some kinds of business start-ups at their Monongahela location, and together with the Mon Valley Regional Chamber of Commerce, they are forming a young professionals group called NeXGen Mon Valley. For more information and contact information, see the attached flyer and business card for Cait Lee, the director of the BRC.

SYMPOSIUM WITH A PRESENTATION BY FILM COMMISSIONER

The Mon Valley Alliance held its second annual Mid-Mon Valley Economic Symposium at the Lombardi Conference Center at the Penn Highlands Monongahela Valley Hospital on October 31st. The room was filled with people involved in economic development, community development, commerce, various professions, light industry operators, state and local government, and other people affiliated with civic affairs.

The keynote address in the five-part program was by Gino Pesi, the Film Commissioner for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Pesi is a Belle Vernon area native and a graduate of Charleroi High School. His mother, Regina Abel, is well known locally for her work as the regional director of the U.S. Small Business Administration. He has made his career so far in acting, although his relatively recent role as Film Commissioner, an office within the Pa. Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED), includes matching up new film productions with the state’s film tax credit, among other services. (See below.) Gino’s topic was “Storytelling, Tourism, and Economic Impact.” The topic connected well to the other presentations and served as a high point for the event.

The symposium also involved presentations on the projects the Mon Valley Alliance has underway at the industrial parks they operate, plus some remarks on the Business Resource Center they recently launched at their West Main Street, Monongahela, office. Jeff Kotula of the Washington County Chamber of Commerce and Tourism Office gave a presentation on tourism, and the MVA gave out two awards. The Allison Maxwell Outstanding Leadership Award went to Fallowfield Township, the Charleroi Area School District, and the Chuck Chattaway Award went to Vice President of the MVA board, John LeCarte. John LeCarte, who owns Model Cleaners, Stoney’s Brewery, and a development company, is part of a family that has been a major force in development and light industry activities in the Charleroi area for generations.

Chuck Chattaway, for those of you who have been here for less than 40 years, was a community leader and owner of an insurance agency and real estate business (which became part of CSC Insurance, the latter “c” standing for Chattaway). A former Monongahela City Treasurer and City Council member, he had also been executive director of the Monongahela Area Chamber of Commerce, among many other things. He was the first president of the Mid-Monongahela Industrial Development Association (MIDA), which is now part of the Mon Valley Alliance.

JOHNNA PRO LEADS SEMINAR OF NEIGHBORHOOD ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS

On October 23rd, Johnna Pro of Fallowfield Township, the Regional Director of the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development, led a seminar at the MVA offices entitled “Unlocking the Funding Benefits of the Neighborhood Assistance Program (NAP).” As Johnna explained, the name “Neighborhood Assistance Program” is used by state government as an umbrella term for several community development tax credit programs, one of which is a specific program also called the “Neighborhood Assistance Program” or NAP. The NAP program is a shorter-term program but sometimes serves as a precursor to a longer program called the “Neighborhood Partnership Program.” The broader “Neighborhood Assistance Program” category also includes a program called “Special Program Priorities” and another called the “Charitable Food Program,” and the state’s “Enterprise Zone” program also falls under this umbrella.

At some point, we may cover more on what these programs are doing in our area or could be doing here toward community development. The tax credit part is that it provides an advantage to businesses large enough to be paying a certain amount in state income tax (the details vary from program to program) and want to help neighborhood non-profit groups to improve the conditions of the community that surrounds their place of business, allowing them to give toward the community and credit it against what the owe in state tax.
The Mon Valley Alliance already has a Neighborhood Partnership Program that helps Charleroi with park development projects and provides a multi-lingual liaison whose work there is like that of a Main Street Program staffer.

Another aspect of this seminar worthy of note is that it drew people into our Downtown from many other communities. Eleven people from around the region attended in person and about 16 others attended by video conference call.

MMVRCC

Relatedly, the Mid-Mon Valley Chamber of Commerce has also been attracting people to our community by holding midday networking meetings at the MVA offices since the development of the Business Resource Center suite.

FIZZ THE SEASON

The annual Fizz the Season Event at Red Boot Antiques/Red Boot Home will be on Saturday, November 30th, from 11 AM to 5 PM. Stop by, shop, enjoy the festivities, and say hi to the owners, Marcia and Jessa.

STEAK NIGHT

This past Saturday was “Steak Night” at Monongahela Valley Country Club (reservations were required). This evening, November 27th, the Country Club will hold a Thanksgiving Eve Party at 6 PM.

DE ROSE DECOR HAS A HOLIDAY RING FOR YOU

DeRose Decor has some lovely earrings available. For details, visit their Facebook page or contact Olivia.

WINDOW DISPLAY

Did you see the beautiful window display at 221 West Main Street, which recently opened as the Mod on Main antique shop? Karen Langol did a great job decorating the window, mostly with merchandise she sells at her shop at 202 West Main Street, Noel’s Primitive Shop and Gifts.

MILESTONES

MAXINE HOLLOWOOD PASSES AWAY AT EIGHT MONTHS PAST HER 105th BIRTHDAY

Maxine Hollowood was, in many ways, the one living person with the longest tenure and deepest roots in Downtown Monongahela. Her father established a men’s clothing store in 1932 when Maxine was 13 years old in the Odelli Building (now the location of Angelo’s II.) The Odelli Building was built in 1925 (when Maxine was six), and the building was thus only seven years old when her father, Henry William Becker, set up business there in 1932. (He had already been in the retail men’s clothing business since 1914.) Maxine and her husband Don took over Becker’s Men’s Store and operated it until retiring in 1982.

To me [Terry Necciai, speaking], 1982 was a turning point in Downtown Monongahela. Many things were happening all at once, and I think it was the beginning of an upswing toward the kind of community we have today. I paid close attention to Becker’s in 1982, spending time shopping there (I think I still have a couple of shirts from Becker’s in a box somewhere) and talking to Don and Maxine a great deal, hoping the Hollowoods would keep the store open for a few more years. Maxine told me much later that she attributed the fact that they had closed at that moment to the fact that there had been so much chaos a couple of years earlier from the massively federally funded “Big Redevelopment Project” of 1970-1980, which they found discouraging.

In that project, about three blocks of Monongahela were almost entirely bought out and leveled (except for the Odelli Building, DeVore Hardware, Frye Funeral Home, and the then-recently-built First Federal Saving and Loan of Monessen Building which were the only buildings to escape the wrecking ball between Fifth Street and Linn Alley on that side of West Main.)

A number of other businesses closed at approximately the same time (partly because they weren’t sure what would happen next) and/or went out of business because of the project. Some of those businesses were

• Myers and Myers Hardware Store
• The Elite Grille
• Zeman’s Ladies Clothing Shop
• the Sons of Italy Lodge
• Isaly’s
• Don’s Appliances
• the Monongahela Taxi stand
• the Cottage Diner
• Perry’s Fruit Market
• Miller’s Drug Store
• Italian City Pizza
• the Blue Goose Tavern
• John’s Bar
• and several others.

It is the main reason why we have only a couple of retail stores on that side of the street down to the present. The current City Hall, the medical building where Dr. John Holets Office is, the Monongahela Manor High-rise, McDonald’s, and the Stratigos Building (where the State Store and Dominoes are today), so that these five buildings took the place of about 40 buildings, most of which qualified as historic (at least 20 other buildings were demolished soon afterward in closely related projects).

Maxine’s visitation at Frye Funeral Home was on Monday, November 25, from 10 AM to 12 Noon, with the funeral at noon led by Rev. Dr. Zayzay Kpadeh. Several of Maxine’s family members spoke, as did David Solomon of Pittsburgh, who explained how Maxine had become an adopted member of the Solomon family and a couple of people who knew Maxine from church activities.

DAVID REYNOLDS

Our sympathy to the family of Dave Reynolds, who passed away unexpectedly on Veterans Day, November 11th. Dave’s wife, Janet Reynolds, is the sexton at First United Methodist Church and an active member and leader of the congregation.

MARK FIDANZATO, EUGENE AND NANCY FLAMENT

We offer our sympathy to Carol Fidanzato Flament, her husband, Mark Flament, Sherri Fidanzato Fogiato, and other family members. The Fidanzato family operates their late father’s business, Joe Fida’s Auto Plate Services. Carol’s and Sherri’s brother, Mark Fidanzato, passed away on October 22nd, and Mark’s parents, Eugene and Nancy Hank Flament, both passed away within a few days of each other in mid-November. Carol is the President of the Ringgold School Board.

RUTH BUCCHIANERI

We offer our sympathy to the family of Ruth Bucchianeri, co-owner of Lone Oak (Christmas Tree) Farm in Valley Inn, who passed away unexpectedly on October 21st. Ruth had purchased the Hank Dairy Farm from her parents and family and developed it into a tree farm.

ELEANOR SIMMONS NEWTON

Our sympathy to the Simmons family in the passing of Eleanor Simmons Newton (“Aunt Til”) of Glen Rock, New Jersey, on October 9th at age 100. Eleanor was a sister of Judge Paul A. Simmons. Although she had moved from Monongahela in the 1940s, after attending Howard University, she visited here frequently and remained very knowledgeable about our City; personally, I [Terry] had called her once or twice to ask questions about things that no one living here at the time seemed to know. Aunt Til is survived by a daughter, Martha Newton, in New Jersey and many other relatives in the extended Simmons family.

MARC’S HOLIDAY LIGHTING MAP

The Monongahela Area Revitalization Corporation has launched its annual Christmas decorating contest. As they did last year, they have created a mapping program where you can upload your address to show off your seasonal displays. Forms for entering the contest are available by way of a link given in a post on the Facebook Page of the Monongahela Area Revitalization program Facebook page (another post on the MARC FB page contains a link to enter your address on the map, though link to the finished map showing the participating addresses won’t be published for the non-participating general public to access the tour for another two weeks.) This year’s winners will gain notoriety from the project (possibly including local newspaper coverage) and will be awarded a congratulatory yard sign.

EBT SNAP CONVENIENCES

The Mon City Smoke Shop carries a variety of grocery items that may be of interest to people shopping in other locations Downtown, such as bananas, canned goods, some cleaning supplies, soft drinks, potato chips, and other items. They also have tossle caps ballcaps. A sign on the door says that the Smoke Shop welcomes EBT SNAP customers.

RINGGOLD LIGHTHOUSE COMMITTEE LIGHTING THE WAY

The Ringgold Lighthouse Committee is in the early stages of planning a 5K Run in Monongahela this Spring. Stay tuned for more details.

MID-MON VALLEY RAILROAD CLUB

The Mid-Mon Valley Model Railroad Club has opened for the season with its weekend “Open House” exhibits on the upper floor of the New Eagle Borough Building, 156 Main Street, New Eagle. The club has also announced its annual Train Show, which will be held on Sunday, January 26th, 2025, from 10 to 4 PM, at the New Eagle Firemen’s Social Hall in the old Natatorium Building on Chess Street, one block up the hill from the Borough Building.

SOME CITY GOVERNMENT NEWS

As of the November City Council meeting, the City is adding a fee to organizations who wish to have banners hung over West Main Street, explicitly mentioning the state highway requirements that apply to West Main Street, Park Avenue, and Fourth Street.

The City has approved an agreement with the Army Corps for the “Aquatorium and Boat Ramp Relocation Project,” which will be the adjustments the Army Corps will make to the Aquatorium and the boat docks on the Second Street Wharf side of the Aquatorium. They have also contracted with a private company to help them operate and maintain the docks.

The City has asked the people parking on streets where leaves have been piled in the parking lane to park away from the leaves and not on top of them so the Street Crew can do their job vacuuming them up.

Fees have also been raised for groups using the park properties, such as Chess Park. There will now be a fee for a group to use the pavilion at Monongahela Memorial Park (i.e., the Mounds Park).

Also, at the last City Council meeting, Tom Soltis presented a check to the City Council for $1,000 raised for the City’s use during the recent Halloween Season paranormal tours and events.

HEY ANDY’S

Substantial progress has been made toward removing the long, derelict old “Hey Andy’s Bar” building at the back of the Foodland Parking lot. About half of the building is now gone.

AT CHESS PARK, SCARVES AND COATS

The “Scarf in the Park” project has started again. You can drop off coats and scarves you no longer use or would be willing to give to the project by placing them in the containers at the Chess Park Gazebo. If you need a coat, scarf, or hat for when the weather gets ahead of you, they are there for those who need them.

MISCALCULATED

I saw pink plastic calculators at Dollar General the other day. It never ceases to amaze me how prices for technological innovations contradict different things in the economy. I reminded me of a story I might retell here. When I graduated from high school, my parents hosted a party where many well-wishers brought a card with some cash. My mother had always told me about how she had bought luggage with gifts she received upon high school graduation as if it were to symbolize moving on to bigger and better things and going out to see the world. But I was worried at that point (the mid-1970s) about how I would ever be able to afford one of these newfangled electronic devices that college students were just then beginning to use, which were remarkably easier to use and more accurate.

PECHINS HAS COMPLETELY CLOSED

Pechins Market, the world-famous, world’s cheapest place to buy groceries, in the Dunbar area of Fayette County, where incredibly inexpensive meat would be rolled out on carts and grabbed by patrons so fast the coolers never seemed to get refilled, is now completely closed. It’s a sign that it’s time to try new gimmicks and start new traditions, or work harder at improving on some of our better old traditions and make them world-famous.

MMSP BOARD OF DIRECTORS

The current Board of Directors of the Monongahela Main Street Program is as follows:
Karen Langol, President
Walter Seal, Vice President
Amy Leavor, Secretary
Jared Hazen Sherlock, Treasurer
Bonnie Brand
Dorothea Pemberton
Janet Roslund
Jacob Ford
Brad Feld
Keith Lester
Joseph DeChicchis
Dan Tregembo and Tobias Provan, Presidents Emeriti

Non-Voting: Terry Necciai, Exec.Dir.

WE HAVE A WONDERFUL CITY! Terry A. Necciai, RA, Exec.Dir., MMSP