By Max Robinette
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McKeesport recently earned a national spotlight as a featured city on “Viewpoint with Dennis Quaid.”
“We are happy to showcase our city as a place that, although it has declined statistically over several decades, is redefining itself and evolving in a sense of community and economic development,” Mayor Michael Cherepko said.
The award-winning, 18-year old, short-form, public access television series interviews city officials and residents about their hometown, underscoring city pride and economic development after years of stagnation.
It can be viewed by following the link on the City of McKeesport – Mayor’s Office Facebook page.
“We talk about, ‘Once a Tiger, always a Tiger,’” Cherepko said in the feature. “As a lifelong resident of McKeesport, I can’t even begin to tell you the sense of pride that, not just myself, but all McKeesporters have in them.”
The mayor explained the story of the Mon Valley over the past 40 years to national audiences, offering context for optimistic views of the future.
“The collapse of the steel industry in 1982 was a devastating blow, not only the City of McKeesport, but to this entire region,” he said. “Probably about 10 years ago we hit our rock bottom and we’ve been slowly rebuilding since.
“I always say that you have to crawl before you can walk and walk before you can run. And to be quite honest, in the City of McKeesport now, we’re starting to jog a little bit as far as economic development. There’s a lot of excitement now in the City of McKeesport.”
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