Bob Cranmer
Encyclopedia
Robert "Bob" W. Cranmer (born 1956, Brentwood, Pennsylvania
) is a Pennsylvania
businessman and politician
, best known as a former Republican
County Commissioner of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, from 1996 to 2000.
in 1974 and received a bachelor of science degree in secondary education/history from Duquesne University
in 1978. After service as a United States Army
officer where one of his assignments was as a company commander with the 101st Airborne Division
, he returned home and was elected to Brentwood Council in 1991.
Brentwood Town Square
Seeing that the Brentwood-Whitehall Shopping Center was in an advanced state of deterioration (and had fallen into bankruptcy), he initiated a plan to create an economic development corporation to address the commercial needs of the borough. Working with Allegheny County, Kappa Properties, and Giant Eagle
this corporation undertook a development plan to demolished and rebuild this primary business district, eventually creating a $32 million development which became known as "Brentwood Towne Square".
Brentwood vs. TCI Cable
He gained the attention of the national media in 1993 when he challenged the operating practices of the media giant “TCI Cable”. The firm which had contracted with Brentwood to provide cable television services added without notice or approval two explicitly adult (pay-per-view) channels; “Playboy” and “Spice”. Each channel was lightly scrambled but still provided full audio. Cranmer claimed that this was done as a ploy to entice viewers to subscribe. He also based his objections on a existing borough ordnance that prohibited the sale sexually explicit magazines, videos, or performances. In signing a contract with the borough TCI had agreed to abide by all borough laws and regulations and that they were now violating the ordnance by providing “home delivery service” of pornographic material. Brentwood borough and TCI eventually came to an out of court agreement in which the channels would be further scrambled and blocked entirely upon request of the subscriber.
The Teresa Heinz Controversy
In 1994, he was elected Chairman of the Republican Party of Allegheny County. In October of that year Cranmer again gained the national spotlight when Teresa Heinz, the wife of the late Senator John Heinz (R), and later wife of presidential candidate John Kerry
, publicly endorsed the Democratic candidate running for her late husband’s U.S. Senate seat; then Senator Harris Wofford
. She called the Republican candidate, Congressman Rick Santorum
, “Forrest Gump
with an attitude” and labeled him much too conservative for Pennsylvania. The same day that her endorsement made the Pennsylvania newspapers Cranmer issued a press released which included a letter from him to Mrs. Heinz (a Republican) asking her to change her voter registration to the Democratic Party; he also included a voter registration form. This news quickly over-shadowed her endorsement announcement and the Cranmer letter quickly became the topic of discussion rather than the Heinz endorsement of Wofford. Santorum soon won the election and Cranmer increased his political stature.
The Johnny Gammage Incident
In 1995 during his campaign for county commissioner two Brentwood Police officers were involved in an incident during which a young black man named Johnny Gammage
of Syracuse, New York was killed during a routine traffic stop. Mr. Gammage was the cousin of Ray Seals
a player for the Pittsburgh Steelers
football team. The controversy surrounding the death made the national news and racial tension rose to a fever pitch in Pittsburgh. Cranmer, who had been at odds with the Brentwood police as a councilman denounced the police conduct and when pressured leveled accusations that Brentwood had a history racist incidents. He and his family were castigated by members of the community and contemplated moving but eventually did not. After several trials and mistrials all of the police officers were eventually acquitted in the case. Many in the community never forgave Cranmer for his statements.
Allegheny County Commissioner
Cranmer went on to be elected County Commissioner in November 1995 in a landmark election and was thought to be a firebrand conservative. As a Commissioner he made significant changes to county government, reducing county taxes by 20 percent, reducing county personnel by 18%, merging twenty-eight county departments into six, creating the position of County Manager, an integrated county 911
system, and forming a joint city/county economic development organization. The economic development organization is most notable for the coordination and construction of The Waterfront
business/commercial/residential development with Continental Real Estate-Development, on the former site of the United States Steel Homestead Works. Being a member of the first Republican majority in Allegheny County government since the Great Depression, Cranmer subsequently split with his Republican running mate Larry Dunn over major differences concerning the managing of the county government, and formed a governing alliance with Democrat
commissioner Mike Dawida. He was heralded as a "traitor" to Republicans by commissioner Dunn, who subsequently, (unlike Cranmer), switched parties and became a registered Democrat to run for county controller in 2003.
New County Government and Legacy
He led an effort to establish home rule
in Allegheny County, which created the position of County Executive and County Council after coming to the conclusion that a new structure of government was needed. He also initiated the creation of the Allegheny County Airport Authority
to manage the Pittsburgh International Airport
in a more effective, professional manner. During their administration Mike Dawida and Bob Cranmer also oversaw the rehabilitation and restoration of the famed Henry Hobson Richardson county jail designed in the late 1800s. The vacant and deteriorating structure was converted to house the new combined home of the juvenile and adult family sections of Allegheny County Common Pleas Court. The $46 million spent on the renovation project was nearly 23 times the original cost of both of Richardson's Romanesque masterpieces, the jail and county courthouse. Bob Cranmer and Mike Dawida demonstrated that bi-partisan government could work, while similarly partnering with the City of Pittsburgh to achieve major city-county goals. Cranmer's tenure in office had an impact upon the size, structure, and cost of county government. The Post-Gazette summed up his time in office with the following when he announced that he would not seek reelection:
"By thinning the field and working toward the day when Republicans have a single alternative to the policies of ill-conceived tax cuts, reactionary thinking and government-as-usual, Commissioner Cranmer has made the ultimate political sacrifice. If that is the mark of a citizen-lawmaker - to be honest, to spurn patronage, to reform the public sector and then get out - this commissioner has been one such leader. Allegheny County could use a few more Bob Cranmers."
He was followed in office by Jim Roddey
, the first Allegheny County Executive. Papers and associated historical records concerning Cranmer's term in office are filed at the Heinz History Center
, (archival storage) in Pittsburgh.
He worked for several firms after leaving office (in government relations) and in July 2009 he established "Cranmer Consultants", a government and legislative affairs company. In 2000, Cranmer was inducted into the Sons of the American Revolution
after he traced his lineage back to Noahdiah Cranmer who fought in the Revolutionary War, and served as president of the Pittsburgh chapter for two years.
and the Pittsburgh Pirates
sports teams shared Three Rivers Stadium
from 1970 to 2000. After discussions over the Pittsburgh Pirates building a full-time baseball park
, a proposal was made to renovate Three Rivers Stadium into a full-time football facility. Though this met with negative reaction from Steelers ownership, the proposal was used as a "fallback position" that would be used if discussions for a new stadium failed. Steelers ownership stated that failing to build a new stadium would hurt the franchise's chances of signing players who might opt to sign with other teams, such as the other four teams in the Steelers division who had all recently built new football-only stadiums.
Originally, a ten county half percent sales tax
increase was proposed by the Allegheny Conference on Community Development to fund three projects: Heinz Field
, PNC Park
, and a major expansion of the David L. Lawrence Convention Center
, along with other regional public works infrastructure improvements in all ten counties. After the rejection of this proposal in a referendum, Cranmer, Mike Dawida and Pittsburgh Mayor Tom Murphy
developed Plan B which involved no "new" taxation. The source of the funding would be the Allegheny County Regional Asset District which already collected a one percent sales tax in Allegheny County. The county commissioners were required to be involved if this revenue was to be used for the projects. Thus Cranmer became key to the plan's formulation and success. Similarly controversial, the alternative proposal was labeled Scam B by opponents. The Steelers' pledge toward the new stadium was criticized for being too little, even after it was raised from $50 million to $76.5 million. Other local government members criticized the $281 million of public money allocated for Plan B. The lone Republican, Cranmer's support was seen as key for the plan to succeed. He had initially stated that he would not use tax money to build stadiums but later clarified his position to mean revenue collected from "property taxes". This was due to his discovery that a portion of the Regional Asset District Tax was specifically designated for the "construction and maintenance" of sports facilities. The plan met with criticism and opposition from Fred Baker, a member of the Regional Asset District Board. When Baker made clear his opposition to the plan, Cranmer asked for his resignation. After resigning, Baker ran for a seat on the new County Council in order to continue opposing Cranmer's plans.
One member of the Allegheny Regional Asset District
board called the use of tax dollars "corporate welfare". The plan, totaling $809 million, was approved by the Allegheny Regional Asset District board on July 9, 1998, with $233 million allotted for Heinz Field. Shortly after Plan B was approved, the Steelers and the Pirates signed leases to stay in the city until at least 2031. The total cost of Heinz Field was $281 million, with the Pittsburgh Steelers paying for all costs over the original budgeted amount. Due to his support for Plan B his popularity with Republican voters dropped significantly and he announced in early 1999 that he would not run for the newly created position of county executive
. He was both praised and reviled for his role in Plan B with much of his other work going unnoticed by the general electorate. Many Republicans also would not forgive him for working cooperatively with the Democrats.
In 1999 Cranmer would not agree to a similar deal with the Pittsburgh Penguin's Hockey Team which guaranteed that a funding plan would be in place by 2002 to build a new hockey arena. He maintained that there would be no money to support such a financial plan without a tax increase and was against committing the future government to such a financial responsibility.
Cranmer's wife Lesa and son Charles gave statements to police alleging that Cranmer had assaulted his son, following a dispute over the use of Cranmer's bathroom by his son Robert. Cranmer asserted that his actions were in self-defense, and that his son suffered from bipolar disorder
which caused him to become violent.
In November 2003 Cranmer's court hearing on the assault charges were postponed for thirty days by the District Justice hearing the case, after the court was told that Cranmer and his family were undergoing counselling. The charges were later dropped.
's office Geary M. Conley sued Cranmer, his colleague Larry Dunn and Allegheny County, alleging that Cranmer and Dunn fired him in 1996 for political reasons.
In 2009, it was reported that Cranmer was expected to testify in a lawsuit against the county by former county recreation manager Mike Diehl.
The lawsuit claimed that Cranmer fired Diehl for political reasons. In February 2009 Cranmer testified at great length that Diehl was dismissed specifically for his mismanagement, in that county employees were living in county-owned homes at reduced rent rates or without paying any rent at all. (As officially reported by the office of the Allegheny County Controller.) Cranmer ordered that Diehl (a 25 year county employee) and the three employees who were living in the houses be dismissed as a result. Despite Cranmer's testimony that his action was in no way related to Diehl’s political affiliation the jury awarded Diehl $144,000 in compensatory damages for emotional distress, embarrassment, harm to his reputation and humiliation.
Brentwood, Pennsylvania
Brentwood is a borough in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and is part of the Pittsburgh Metro Area. The population was 9,643 at the 2010 census.-Geography and climate:Brentwood is located at ....
) is a Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
businessman and politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
, best known as a former Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
County Commissioner of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, from 1996 to 2000.
Career
The son of a retired military officer, Cranmer graduated from Brentwood High SchoolBrentwood High School (Brentwood, Pennsylvania)
Brentwood High School is a small, suburban high school located outside of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It serves the community of Brentwood, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania...
in 1974 and received a bachelor of science degree in secondary education/history from Duquesne University
Duquesne University
Duquesne University of the Holy Spirit is a private Catholic university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded by members of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit, Duquesne first opened its doors as the Pittsburgh Catholic College of the Holy Ghost in October 1878 with an enrollment of...
in 1978. After service as a United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
officer where one of his assignments was as a company commander with the 101st Airborne Division
101st Airborne Division
The 101st Airborne Division—the "Screaming Eagles"—is a U.S. Army modular light infantry division trained for air assault operations. During World War II, it was renowned for its role in Operation Overlord, the D-Day landings on 6 June 1944, in Normandy, France, Operation Market Garden, the...
, he returned home and was elected to Brentwood Council in 1991.
Brentwood Town Square
Seeing that the Brentwood-Whitehall Shopping Center was in an advanced state of deterioration (and had fallen into bankruptcy), he initiated a plan to create an economic development corporation to address the commercial needs of the borough. Working with Allegheny County, Kappa Properties, and Giant Eagle
Giant Eagle
Giant Eagle, Inc., is a supermarket chain with stores in the U.S. states of Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia, and Maryland. The company was founded in 1918 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Supermarket News ranked Giant Eagle No. 21 in the 2009 "Top 75 North American Food Retailers" based on 2008...
this corporation undertook a development plan to demolished and rebuild this primary business district, eventually creating a $32 million development which became known as "Brentwood Towne Square".
Brentwood vs. TCI Cable
He gained the attention of the national media in 1993 when he challenged the operating practices of the media giant “TCI Cable”. The firm which had contracted with Brentwood to provide cable television services added without notice or approval two explicitly adult (pay-per-view) channels; “Playboy” and “Spice”. Each channel was lightly scrambled but still provided full audio. Cranmer claimed that this was done as a ploy to entice viewers to subscribe. He also based his objections on a existing borough ordnance that prohibited the sale sexually explicit magazines, videos, or performances. In signing a contract with the borough TCI had agreed to abide by all borough laws and regulations and that they were now violating the ordnance by providing “home delivery service” of pornographic material. Brentwood borough and TCI eventually came to an out of court agreement in which the channels would be further scrambled and blocked entirely upon request of the subscriber.
The Teresa Heinz Controversy
In 1994, he was elected Chairman of the Republican Party of Allegheny County. In October of that year Cranmer again gained the national spotlight when Teresa Heinz, the wife of the late Senator John Heinz (R), and later wife of presidential candidate John Kerry
John Kerry
John Forbes Kerry is the senior United States Senator from Massachusetts, the 10th most senior U.S. Senator and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He was the presidential nominee of the Democratic Party in the 2004 presidential election, but lost to former President George W...
, publicly endorsed the Democratic candidate running for her late husband’s U.S. Senate seat; then Senator Harris Wofford
Harris Wofford
Harris Llewellyn Wofford served as a Democratic U.S. Senator from Pennsylvania from 1991 to 1995 and as the fifth president of Bryn Mawr College, and is a noted advocate of national service and volunteering...
. She called the Republican candidate, Congressman Rick Santorum
Rick Santorum
Richard John "Rick" Santorum is a lawyer and a former United States Senator from the commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Santorum was the chairman of the Senate Republican Conference -making him the third-ranking Senate Republican from 2001 until his leave in 2007. Santorum is considered both a social...
, “Forrest Gump
Forrest Gump
Forrest Gump is a 1994 American epic comedy-drama romance film based on the 1986 novel of the same name by Winston Groom. The film was directed by Robert Zemeckis, starring Tom Hanks, Robin Wright and Gary Sinise...
with an attitude” and labeled him much too conservative for Pennsylvania. The same day that her endorsement made the Pennsylvania newspapers Cranmer issued a press released which included a letter from him to Mrs. Heinz (a Republican) asking her to change her voter registration to the Democratic Party; he also included a voter registration form. This news quickly over-shadowed her endorsement announcement and the Cranmer letter quickly became the topic of discussion rather than the Heinz endorsement of Wofford. Santorum soon won the election and Cranmer increased his political stature.
The Johnny Gammage Incident
In 1995 during his campaign for county commissioner two Brentwood Police officers were involved in an incident during which a young black man named Johnny Gammage
Johnny Gammage
Jonny Gammage was a black motorist who was killed on October 12, 1995, after being stopped for "driving erratically" by police from the nearly all-white Pittsburgh suburbs of Brentwood,...
of Syracuse, New York was killed during a routine traffic stop. Mr. Gammage was the cousin of Ray Seals
Ray Seals
Raymond Seals is a former football defensive end in the NFL. He is famous for not having attended college, a rarity in the NFL; and in 1992 he batted away Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre's pass which ended up being his first ever career completion which was to himself...
a player for the Pittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The team currently belongs to the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Founded in , the Steelers are the oldest franchise in the AFC...
football team. The controversy surrounding the death made the national news and racial tension rose to a fever pitch in Pittsburgh. Cranmer, who had been at odds with the Brentwood police as a councilman denounced the police conduct and when pressured leveled accusations that Brentwood had a history racist incidents. He and his family were castigated by members of the community and contemplated moving but eventually did not. After several trials and mistrials all of the police officers were eventually acquitted in the case. Many in the community never forgave Cranmer for his statements.
Allegheny County Commissioner
Cranmer went on to be elected County Commissioner in November 1995 in a landmark election and was thought to be a firebrand conservative. As a Commissioner he made significant changes to county government, reducing county taxes by 20 percent, reducing county personnel by 18%, merging twenty-eight county departments into six, creating the position of County Manager, an integrated county 911
911
Year 911 was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar.-Africa:* Rebellion of the Kutama Berbers against the Fatimid Caliphate...
system, and forming a joint city/county economic development organization. The economic development organization is most notable for the coordination and construction of The Waterfront
The Waterfront
The Waterfront is a super-regional open air shopping mall spanning the three boroughs of Homestead, West Homestead and Munhall near Pittsburgh. The shopping mall sits on land once occupied by U.S. Steel's Homestead Steel Works plant, which closed in 1987. It has a gross leasable area of in "The...
business/commercial/residential development with Continental Real Estate-Development, on the former site of the United States Steel Homestead Works. Being a member of the first Republican majority in Allegheny County government since the Great Depression, Cranmer subsequently split with his Republican running mate Larry Dunn over major differences concerning the managing of the county government, and formed a governing alliance with Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
commissioner Mike Dawida. He was heralded as a "traitor" to Republicans by commissioner Dunn, who subsequently, (unlike Cranmer), switched parties and became a registered Democrat to run for county controller in 2003.
New County Government and Legacy
He led an effort to establish home rule
Home rule
Home rule is the power of a constituent part of a state to exercise such of the state's powers of governance within its own administrative area that have been devolved to it by the central government....
in Allegheny County, which created the position of County Executive and County Council after coming to the conclusion that a new structure of government was needed. He also initiated the creation of the Allegheny County Airport Authority
Allegheny County Airport Authority
Allegheny County Airport Authority is a Municipal Authority in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania that oversees and maintains the Allegheny County airport system. These include management of Pittsburgh International Airport as well as Allegheny County Airport...
to manage the Pittsburgh International Airport
Pittsburgh International Airport
Pittsburgh International Airport , formerly Greater Pittsburgh Airport, Greater Pittsburgh International Airport and commonly referred to as Pittsburgh International, is a joint civil–military international airport located in the Pittsburgh suburb of Findlay Township, approximately west of...
in a more effective, professional manner. During their administration Mike Dawida and Bob Cranmer also oversaw the rehabilitation and restoration of the famed Henry Hobson Richardson county jail designed in the late 1800s. The vacant and deteriorating structure was converted to house the new combined home of the juvenile and adult family sections of Allegheny County Common Pleas Court. The $46 million spent on the renovation project was nearly 23 times the original cost of both of Richardson's Romanesque masterpieces, the jail and county courthouse. Bob Cranmer and Mike Dawida demonstrated that bi-partisan government could work, while similarly partnering with the City of Pittsburgh to achieve major city-county goals. Cranmer's tenure in office had an impact upon the size, structure, and cost of county government. The Post-Gazette summed up his time in office with the following when he announced that he would not seek reelection:
"By thinning the field and working toward the day when Republicans have a single alternative to the policies of ill-conceived tax cuts, reactionary thinking and government-as-usual, Commissioner Cranmer has made the ultimate political sacrifice. If that is the mark of a citizen-lawmaker - to be honest, to spurn patronage, to reform the public sector and then get out - this commissioner has been one such leader. Allegheny County could use a few more Bob Cranmers."
He was followed in office by Jim Roddey
Jim Roddey
James C. "Jim" Roddey is a Pennsylvania businessman and politician best known as the former Chief Executive of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, from 2000 to 2004.He is also a former United States Marine...
, the first Allegheny County Executive. Papers and associated historical records concerning Cranmer's term in office are filed at the Heinz History Center
Heinz History Center
The Senator John Heinz History Center, an affiliate of the Smithsonian Institution, is the largest history museum in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Named after the late U.S. Senator H...
, (archival storage) in Pittsburgh.
He worked for several firms after leaving office (in government relations) and in July 2009 he established "Cranmer Consultants", a government and legislative affairs company. In 2000, Cranmer was inducted into the Sons of the American Revolution
Sons of the American Revolution
The National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution is a Louisville, Kentucky-based fraternal organization in the United States...
after he traced his lineage back to Noahdiah Cranmer who fought in the Revolutionary War, and served as president of the Pittsburgh chapter for two years.
Plan B
The Pittsburgh SteelersPittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The team currently belongs to the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Founded in , the Steelers are the oldest franchise in the AFC...
and the Pittsburgh Pirates
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates are a Major League Baseball club based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They play in the Central Division of the National League, and are five-time World Series Champions...
sports teams shared Three Rivers Stadium
Three Rivers Stadium
Three Rivers Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania from 1970 to 2000. It was home to the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Pittsburgh Steelers, the city's Major League Baseball franchise and National Football League franchise respectively.Built as a replacement to...
from 1970 to 2000. After discussions over the Pittsburgh Pirates building a full-time baseball park
Baseball park
A baseball park, also known as a baseball stadium, ball park, or ballpark is a venue where baseball is played. It consists of the playing field and the surrounding spectator seating...
, a proposal was made to renovate Three Rivers Stadium into a full-time football facility. Though this met with negative reaction from Steelers ownership, the proposal was used as a "fallback position" that would be used if discussions for a new stadium failed. Steelers ownership stated that failing to build a new stadium would hurt the franchise's chances of signing players who might opt to sign with other teams, such as the other four teams in the Steelers division who had all recently built new football-only stadiums.
Originally, a ten county half percent sales tax
Sales tax
A sales tax is a tax, usually paid by the consumer at the point of purchase, itemized separately from the base price, for certain goods and services. The tax amount is usually calculated by applying a percentage rate to the taxable price of a sale....
increase was proposed by the Allegheny Conference on Community Development to fund three projects: Heinz Field
Heinz Field
Heinz Field is a stadium located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It primarily serves as the home to the Pittsburgh Steelers and University of Pittsburgh Panthers American football teams, members of the National Football League and National Collegiate Athletic Association respectively...
, PNC Park
PNC Park
PNC Park is a baseball park located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It is the fifth home of the Pittsburgh Pirates, the city's Major League Baseball franchise. It opened during the 2001 Major League Baseball season, after the controlled implosion of the Pirates' previous home, Three Rivers Stadium...
, and a major expansion of the David L. Lawrence Convention Center
David L. Lawrence Convention Center
The David L. Lawrence Convention Center is a convention, conference and exhibition building in downtown Pittsburgh in the U.S. commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The initial David L...
, along with other regional public works infrastructure improvements in all ten counties. After the rejection of this proposal in a referendum, Cranmer, Mike Dawida and Pittsburgh Mayor Tom Murphy
Tom Murphy (mayor)
Thomas J. "Tom" Murphy, Jr. is a Democratic politician from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. From January 1994 until January 2006 he served as mayor of Pittsburgh...
developed Plan B which involved no "new" taxation. The source of the funding would be the Allegheny County Regional Asset District which already collected a one percent sales tax in Allegheny County. The county commissioners were required to be involved if this revenue was to be used for the projects. Thus Cranmer became key to the plan's formulation and success. Similarly controversial, the alternative proposal was labeled Scam B by opponents. The Steelers' pledge toward the new stadium was criticized for being too little, even after it was raised from $50 million to $76.5 million. Other local government members criticized the $281 million of public money allocated for Plan B. The lone Republican, Cranmer's support was seen as key for the plan to succeed. He had initially stated that he would not use tax money to build stadiums but later clarified his position to mean revenue collected from "property taxes". This was due to his discovery that a portion of the Regional Asset District Tax was specifically designated for the "construction and maintenance" of sports facilities. The plan met with criticism and opposition from Fred Baker, a member of the Regional Asset District Board. When Baker made clear his opposition to the plan, Cranmer asked for his resignation. After resigning, Baker ran for a seat on the new County Council in order to continue opposing Cranmer's plans.
One member of the Allegheny Regional Asset District
Allegheny Regional Asset District
The Allegheny Regional Asset District is a special purpose unit of local government in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. Its physical boundaries are the same as those of Allegheny County, and include the City of Pittsburgh. The district was authorized by an act of the Pennsylvania Legislature...
board called the use of tax dollars "corporate welfare". The plan, totaling $809 million, was approved by the Allegheny Regional Asset District board on July 9, 1998, with $233 million allotted for Heinz Field. Shortly after Plan B was approved, the Steelers and the Pirates signed leases to stay in the city until at least 2031. The total cost of Heinz Field was $281 million, with the Pittsburgh Steelers paying for all costs over the original budgeted amount. Due to his support for Plan B his popularity with Republican voters dropped significantly and he announced in early 1999 that he would not run for the newly created position of county executive
County executive
A county executive is the head of the executive branch of government in a county. This position is common in the United States.The executive may be an elected or an appointed position...
. He was both praised and reviled for his role in Plan B with much of his other work going unnoticed by the general electorate. Many Republicans also would not forgive him for working cooperatively with the Democrats.
In 1999 Cranmer would not agree to a similar deal with the Pittsburgh Penguin's Hockey Team which guaranteed that a funding plan would be in place by 2002 to build a new hockey arena. He maintained that there would be no money to support such a financial plan without a tax increase and was against committing the future government to such a financial responsibility.
2003 arrest
On Sep. 14 2003, police were called to Cranmer's home in Brentwood at 11:30 pm by Cranmer's 14 year old son Charles, where Cranmer was arrested after a dispute with his 19 year old son Robert Cranmer Jr. In an affidavit one arresting officer alleged that his son was "in a state of semiconsciousness to the degree that he could not reply to my questioning", and Cranmer admitted at the time to having punched his son in the face. His son was examined by paramedics and taken to Jefferson Memorial Hospital, and Cranmer was charged with simple assault, arraigned in Night Court by Senior District Justice Leonard Boehm and released on his own recognizance the following morning from the Allegheny County Jail.Cranmer's wife Lesa and son Charles gave statements to police alleging that Cranmer had assaulted his son, following a dispute over the use of Cranmer's bathroom by his son Robert. Cranmer asserted that his actions were in self-defense, and that his son suffered from bipolar disorder
Bipolar disorder
Bipolar disorder or bipolar affective disorder, historically known as manic–depressive disorder, is a psychiatric diagnosis that describes a category of mood disorders defined by the presence of one or more episodes of abnormally elevated energy levels, cognition, and mood with or without one or...
which caused him to become violent.
In November 2003 Cranmer's court hearing on the assault charges were postponed for thirty days by the District Justice hearing the case, after the court was told that Cranmer and his family were undergoing counselling. The charges were later dropped.
Lawsuits
In 1998 former investigator in the county public defenderPublic defender
The term public defender is primarily used to refer to a criminal defense lawyer appointed to represent people charged with a crime but who cannot afford to hire an attorney in the United States and Brazil. The term is also applied to some ombudsman offices, for example in Jamaica, and is one way...
's office Geary M. Conley sued Cranmer, his colleague Larry Dunn and Allegheny County, alleging that Cranmer and Dunn fired him in 1996 for political reasons.
In 2009, it was reported that Cranmer was expected to testify in a lawsuit against the county by former county recreation manager Mike Diehl.
The lawsuit claimed that Cranmer fired Diehl for political reasons. In February 2009 Cranmer testified at great length that Diehl was dismissed specifically for his mismanagement, in that county employees were living in county-owned homes at reduced rent rates or without paying any rent at all. (As officially reported by the office of the Allegheny County Controller.) Cranmer ordered that Diehl (a 25 year county employee) and the three employees who were living in the houses be dismissed as a result. Despite Cranmer's testimony that his action was in no way related to Diehl’s political affiliation the jury awarded Diehl $144,000 in compensatory damages for emotional distress, embarrassment, harm to his reputation and humiliation.
Photographer
After leaving office Cranmer set out to record in pictures what he called "the amazingly unique scenery and architecture of Allegheny County." He compiled these photos into a book which he titled "The World through a Pittsburgh lens" in 2009.Editorials Authored
- Forum: Dad,I'm pregnant., Post-Gazette
- Forum: What would Lincoln do?, Post-Gazette
- Forum: 'Pittsburgh County, Post-Gazette
- Forum: Don't skate on this thin ice, Post-Gazette
- Opinion: A new arena for the 'Guins?, Tribune-Review
- Op-Ed Perspectives: So, how about those Pirates?, Post-Gazette
- Forum: Time to leave the GOP?, Post-Gazette
- In Rebuttal: Pittsburgh's debt to Tom Murphy, Post-Gazette
- Former Pittsburgh mayor had a vision, The Daily News
- Thank you, Jeffrey Romoff, Post-Gazette
Television News Clips
- Former Commissioner Defends Tunnel To Nowhere, KDKA Television News video