Nov 4, 2017 4 min read

Two former Washington City Council members are seeking a return to council this year, challenging each other and an incumbent for the two open seats, each with a four-year term.

Terry L. Faust, 63, a Republican from McKinley Avenue, sat on council from 2008 to 2015. He’s owned HVAC Consultants in Washington for 20 years and was a board member of Transitional Employment Consultants for nine years. He also served 10 years on Washington-East Washington Joint Authority, which operates a municipal wastewater treatment plant.

“I really care about the city,” he said. “My wife and girls all grew up here in the city, my business is in the city, and I feel like I have something more to possibly add to this council.”

Faust said one of the biggest issues the city is facing is finances.

“I would bring a more conservative approach, operating as a business,” he said. “You operate off of the revenue of what you’re coming into and you don’t spend over.”

Faust also said he wants council to be more proactive in addressing issues with recreation, economic development and infrastructure, including stormwater and flooding issues.

“With the finances of the city, the blight and the situation we just faced with the building collapse uptown, there could have been a lot of proactive decisions made there,” Faust said. “Reactive is not good enough – you need to be proactive.”

Matthew Staniszewski, 40, of Buttonwood Avenue, also has served eight years on council, from 2006 to 2014. He’s running as a Democrat and Republican, after recently moving back to the area.

Staniszewski spent three years working as director of community and economic development in New Castle, but recently moved back to Washington. Now, he’s the manager of Homestead Borough in Allegheny County.

“I bring a higher level of diverse experience to the council because I worked on both sides of government, in both an elected position and a position of management,” he said.

Staniszewski said he wants to work to bring an end to the “alarming” heroin epidemic, which he said is one of the biggest issues the city is facing. He also said he wants to “look at smart investments” and “innovative ideas” that benefit taxpayers, especially since the county’s property tax reassessment negatively impacted Washington residents.

“A lot of our residents experienced a 30 to 50 percent increase in their taxes, and it puts a strain on cities like Washington,” he said.

He also said he wants to build up the city with higher-paying jobs and more recreational opportunities for families, and he wants to reduce the city’s blight and abandoned properties.

“It negatively affects the property owner’s ability to sell their property, and it’s a haven for illegal activity,” he said.

The incumbent they’re challenging is Democrat Joe Manning, 56, of Duncan Avenue, who’s seeking re-election to his third term. He’s a retired city firefighter who also is the director of a small marketing company in the area.

“There were a few things we have going on that I wanted to see through to completion,” he said. “More than likely, this will be my last term, but I just wanted to see some of these projects get finished up.”

One of those projects, Manning said, was the pavilion in Washington Park that is being renovated. He also mentioned work that needs to be done on Main Street where a building collapsed earlier this year.

“We’ve had a lot of interest in people putting something in where that building collapsed,” he said. “I’d like to see what we can do about marketing that and getting another building in there. I think it’s going to end up being good for the city.”

Overall, Manning said he thinks the city is in “a good position” and “renaissance phase.” He said with a new Main Street manager, new brewery, new distillery, and small business incubator, along with how well the farmers market has been growing, the city has been “revitalized.”

“I think it’s a good time to be part of the City of Washington,” he said.

Washington City Council

Term: four years

Salary: $7,000

Terry L. Faust, Republican

Age: 63

Education: Trinity High School, Gateway Technical Institute

Occupation: Owner of HVAC Consultants

Matthew Staniszewski, Democrat/Republican

Age: 40

Education: Washington High School, California University

Occupation: Manager of Homestead Borough in Allegheny County

Joe Manning, Democrat

Age: 56

Education: Immaculate Conception High School, Pennsylvania State Fire Academy

Occupation: Managing director of Alpha-Omega Communications