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Witherspoon most worthy of recognition

Shining rays of sun on some good news: The Central Blair Recreation Commission has made an excellent decision in asking Altoona City Council to name a basketball court at 13th Avenue and 19th Street for the late NAACP President Don Witherspoon. CBRC Executive Director Mike Hofer confirmed the intention at the organization’s annual Community Classic Dinner and Auction. Witherspoon was a driving force behind the refurbishment of the basketball courts, where many of the city’s past greats honed their skills. The improvements led to a renovation of the dilapidated court, ...

Ideas needed to help address job vacancies

The message “Help Wanted” was one of the most visible and predominant of 2021 in the Southern Alleghenies region — indeed, across America — probably second only to some of the most important announcements tied directly to the COVID-19 pandemic. For the six Southern Alleghenies counties — Blair, Cambria, Bedford, Somerset, Huntingdon and Fulton — the two-word plea for workers has remained a fixture during the first months of 2022 as well. Well-run businesses and industries have a definite planning structure in place to run their operations. That includes a handle on the ...

Council needs more flexibility

Perhaps Altoona could benefit soon — and over the long term — if the Altoona Planning Code were to be revised to make it easier for businesses to acquire approval for development projects. Based on a Feb. 24 Mirror article, City Council members seem agreeable to considering revisions in response to perceptions — correct or incorrect — that it is hard to do business in the Mountain City. But before city leaders open themselves up to considering specific changes, some serious brainstorming ought to be on the agenda. Some of what needs to be considered: * What existing or ...

Improved rail service long overdue

The opinion that Amtrak service through this region ought to be improved was the central point of a Mirror editorial on Jan. 10, 2020, as two federal House of Representatives panels were about to begin work on a reauthorization bill to replace the FAST Act. FAST was a five-year surface transportation funding bill signed by President Barack Obama on Dec. 4, 2015. Most Americans did not envision in “New Year 2020” that a mere two years later a funding mechanism might be in place for making upgraded rail passenger service reality in what now is being described as “within the next ...

Shining light on those who protect us

As the COVID-19 pandemic has had an impact on nearly every aspect of our lives over the past two years, it’s allowed us to take a look at some of the people who are critical to our society but may have been overlooked in the past. Today, we want to shine a spotlight on corrections officers. To most people, it’s a foregone conclusion that those who are caught committing crimes go to jail and those who are convicted are often sent to prison. We are afforded great peace in knowing the people who are most likely to harm us are in a place where their ability to do so is greatly ...

Turnpike needs to recover its unpaid debt

It is laudable that the Pennsylvania Senate Transportation Committee has approved bills aimed at avoiding another uncollected-tolls debacle like the one that has cost the Pennsylvania Turnpike $104 million since the toll road converted to all-electronic tolling. One bill — Senate Bill 1053 — would allow expansion of the ways motorists would be able to pay tolls electronically. A second bill — Senate Bill 1051 — would require the commission to provide an annual report to the Legislature dealing with uncollected toll revenue, the goal being to avoid unpleasant surprises like ...