MON VALLEY Researcher argues for merger of towns along river to make Pa.'s 3rd largest city

PITTSBURGH (AP) -- Hidden in the rolling hills and river valleys south of Pittsburgh is the state's third-largest city, if more than three dozen communities would agree to merge into one, according to one researcher.
The 39 communities along the Monongahela River southeast of Pittsburgh, known as the Mon Valley, could merge into "Rivers City," a city of 250,000 that could come close to rivaling Pittsburgh, according to David Miller, associate dean of the Graduate School of Public and International Affairs at the University of Pittsburgh.
"The Mon Valley is not suburbs. It has all the features of an urban community. It's an urban area and it has a dumb organizational structure," Miller said.
The communities tally 391 elected officials, 35 police chiefs, 36 planning commissions and three councils; their collective population is about three-fourths the size of Pittsburgh.
Idea grew from research
"Rivers City" grew out of research Miller did while heading the Pittsburgh branch of the Pennsylvania Economy League from 1992 to 1996. He looked at economic conditions in the towns dating back to 1980, finding that the patchwork of towns had continued to slide.
Braddock, Clairton, Duquesne, Homestead and Rankin have been labeled as economically distressed under a state program known as Act 47; another 15 are troubled, according to Miller.
Merging the towns into one city likely wouldn't save much money, Miller said, but could bolster economic development, as well as the region's political clout in Harrisburg and Washington, D.C.
Although "Rivers City" dates back to 1995, Miller recently presented his ideas to members of the Mon Valley Providers Council, a group of social service organizations and agencies, including the Allegheny County Housing Authority, the American Cancer Society, Planned Parenthood and the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
"It's an important concept for people to hear about and get to know. You can't help but think that (Rivers City) would be better than what we have today," said Dave Coplan, director of the council.
Don't like idea
A sampling of officials, most of whom would lose their jobs under the proposal, by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette indicated that many don't think "Rivers City" would float.
"It sounds like something out of Russia. That's not going to fly here. It will never happen," said Dean Bradley, council president in Dravosburg, a town of 2,500.
McKeesport Mayor James Brewster said he doubts that residents would embrace the bureaucracy of a big city. "They want to call someone up they know to get a pothole fixed," he said.
Brewster is also skeptical of whether "Rivers City" would lure better people into government, although he acknowledged that a city of 250,000 would get a larger share of state and federal money.
Besides resistance from many local officials, Miller's idea could dry up because state law doesn't encourage large mergers. To make "Rivers City" a reality, a majority of voters in each of the 39 municipalities would need to approve referendums at the same time. If one town turned it down, the proposal would be sunk.
"I think Rivers City is a compelling academic argument. Making it a popular argument will be a real challenge," Miller said.