Services for 700 families at Tarentum center in jeopardy under Allegheny County budget talks
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Harrison’s Ashley Griffin said she will be devastated if the Highlands Family Center in Tarentum is forced to cut programs.
The East Fourth Avenue facility is a one-stop shop for children and adults, providing services that include a diaper bank, food pantry, financial counseling, story times and employment assistance.
The Griffins are among 700 families served by the center. Many of them will be watching closely as Allegheny County Council considers Executive Sara Innamorato’s proposed 46.5% property tax increase.
The center, run by the Allegheny Intermediate Unit, receives 61% of its $735,000 budget from the county. The remainder comes from the state’s Office of Child Development and Early Learning.
“If the programs aren’t there, it’s not just going to affect me, but it will really affect my 2-year-old daughter,” Griffin said. “Everyone there takes their time to help and really cares. They don’t call it the family center for nothing.”
Gaps in funding have been filled in recent years with government covid funds, which have since gone away, said Wendy Etheridge Smith, AIU director of early childhood, family and community services. She said services for the area’s most vulnerable residents hinge on an increased county budget.
“County taxes haven’t been increased since 2011,” Smith said.
Locally, the center serves families from Tarentum, Brackenridge, Harrison, Fawn and surrounding communities. Smith said programs include home visits for new moms, early literacy activities, kindergarten readiness, parent support groups and emergency food access.
“Our folks make sure families are clothed, fed and counseled,” Smith said. “It’s a safe place where they can come and feel supported in raising families.
“It is difficult to raise a family, and they provide a tremendous service to make sure people have what they need to remain strong. Any cuts would decimate them.”
While Innamorato’s proposal received immediate pushback from council members, more than 200 people spoke at a county council meeting Tuesday, including Smith. Most voiced support for the increase.
If the budget vote fails, the county would face a shortfall of more than $100 million to fund critical services like those offered in Tarentum and throughout the region at nine other AIU-run family centers.
One of the others is Riverview Community Action center in Oakmont. That facility, also dependent on county funds, put out a plea to residents to contact county council members to lobby in support of the tax increase.
“The center is in danger of a severe funding cut and possible closure if this proposed tax increase is not approved by the county council. The effect on the well-being of the people we serve in our surrounding communities could be life- and health-changing,” according to the statement the center posted to Facebook recently.
The center provides more than 200 home-delivered meals in Oakmont and Verona each week in addition to exercise, health and wellness and socialization programs.
“I honestly don’t know how some of our families are going to make it without the resources we provide,” said Lori Vollman, AIU program director of family and community education services/adult education.
Smith is urging people to reach out to County Council members before the budget vote on Dec. 3.
Griffin, a resident of Harrison’s Natrona section, was distraught over the possibility of slashed services. She visits the Tarentum center several times a week with her daughter for storytime, as well as arts and crafts. She enjoys socializing with other parents and the educational benefits of the center’s financial literacy programs.
“We get a lot of really awesome help there,” Griffin said. “There are also so many people that come just for the food distribution. The center helps the whole community, not just parents and families.”