As you may be aware, a focus of mine has been to boost the economy of the business districts in Mt. Lebanon. A key issue expressed by all constituents of the business districts was “parking”. The EDC Task force, that I initiated and spearheaded, in the process of creating a Strategic Plan for our Business Districts, highlighted the issues with parking by means of a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats) analysis and has come up with several recommendations to address the issues with parking, whether they are perceived or not. The complete Strategic Plan with SWOT details and Parking recommendations are available online at www.mtlebanon.org.

As Commission Liaison to the Parking Authority, I have initiated meetings between the Parking Authority (MLPA), Business & Professional Association (BPA), Building Owners and the EDC Task Force to address these issues. I reached out to Chris Schultz, member of the EDC and fellow MBA alum from CMU, to put together a financial model to evaluate options that provide free parking and greater discount to the BPA’s parking validation program while remaining revenue neutral to the Parking Authority. (Thank you, Chris, for the financial models and your efforts in this regard).

In addition to Chris, I want to thank Al Frioni (Chair of MLPA Board), Rich Sahar (Executive Director of the MLPA) and Joe Ravita (President of BPA) among others for taking time to meet and discuss the various constraints as our conversations evolved into good solutions. Looking at usage patterns in the garages and other factors, we came up with solutions to provide one hour free parking for everyone in the South Garage and also provide the BPA with greater discount on validation. I met with the MLPA Board on Saturday, August 30th to discuss the financial model. I understand that the MLPA Board approved these recommendations at their Board meeting on September 4th. MLPA is currently working on the details of the new program and it is anticipated that the program will be unveiled shortly. I am looking forward to these being implemented, in addition to the various other MLPA initiatives (credit card payments, new parking meters, etc).

I believe that the small wins can go a long way to reenergize the community and free parking is one such win that was achieved at a grass roots level!!

http://www.informationweek.com/blog/main/archives/2008/06/penguins_pirate.html

http://ceiamerica.com/PBT_Diamond_Award_2008.pdf

Entrepreneur of the Year winners announced

CEO of Computer Enterprises, Inc.
Winner of Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year

PITTSBURGH, Pennsylvania – July 2, 2008 – Computer Enterprises Inc. (CEI) a global leader in
information technology today announced that D. Raja, CEO has been selected as a local winner
of the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award. D. Raja received the award June 27, 2008
at a banquet held at the Carnegie Music Hall in Oakland for the Integrated Technology Category.

“The Entrepreneur Of The Year award recognizes all of the hard work, ingenuity and care these
leaders have put into building and improving their businesses and communities,” Kevin Pickels,
Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of The Year Program Director for upstate New York, western
Pennsylvania and West Virginia, said in a statement. “This group of winners is truly remarkable
for all that they have accomplished.”

The Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Awards are designed to recognize leaders that haveentrepreneurial and business skills. They are judged on their leadership skills and community
involvement. Raja was also nationally recognized in 2000 when he was a finalist for the Ernst &
Young (US) Entrepreneur of the Year Award.

About D. Raja:
D. Raja co-founded CEI in 1992 with the vision of creating a global leader for providing IT
solutions in leading edge, niche technologies. Today, under Raja’s astute leadership, CEI can
boast of being one of the few companies in the world to provide the benefit of Agile developmentmethodologies, a high level of competence and resource depth in leading edge technologies inMicrosoft and J2EE.
Raja’s passion for excellence manifests itself in CEI’s mission to be “known and trusted to
consistently deliver quality services that exceed customer expectations”. On the strength of thisguiding philosophy, CEI has grown from strength to strength and has provided IT services to over850 clients across the US, including over 60% of Fortune 50 companies.
Raja holds a Master’s degree in Computer Science from the University of Pittsburgh and an MBA
from Carnegie Mellon University. He also holds an undergraduate degree in Electrical
Engineering from Anna University, India. While still pursuing his Master’s, Raja began his
professional career as a software engineer. He worked for over five years at Formtek, a
Lockheed Company. His sharp business acumen and leadership skills marked him as a star
performer at Formtek where he quickly scaled the ranks from software engineer to manager of
the software department. In 1992, Raja launched his own consulting and project management
practice, a venture that was to become CEI.

Raja’s entrepreneurial and business skills were nationally recognized in 2000 when he was a
finalist for the Ernst & Young (US) Entrepreneur of the Year Award. Raja is also the recipient of
the 2007 Smart Business Pacesetters Award for CEO excellence, which recognized his
leadership both within Pittsburgh and the region. In 2008, Raja was awarded the Diamond Award
by the Pittsburgh Business Times recognizing his effective leadership and his commitment to his
employees and clients. Very active in the community, Raja is currently serving as Commissioner
of Mt. Lebanon (www.mtlebanon.org) and President of TiE Pittsburgh (www.tiepgh.org).
Providing substantial business and industry acumen to regional organizations, Raja is a board
member of the South Hills Chamber of Commerce (www.shchamber.org) and Chairman of the
Computer Science Industry Board at the University of Pittsburgh.

On Friday, September 12th, I was buying lunch at Panera’s on Greentree Road when I ran into a PTA member who asked me, “Why did the Commission want to take Officer Mike Riemer from the school?” After I explained the situation to her, she thanked me and was glad that I had corrected the wrong impression she previously had. In fact, she recommended that I communicate directly to the public. I have not been blogging since I was elected Commissioner and I realize that I should speak out to the residents of Mt. Lebanon concerning important issues.

The facts regarding the Keystone Oaks officer reassignment are as follows. The Commission was presented with a request from Keystone Oaks that they would pay $60K for Mt. Lebanon to reassign an officer to Keystone Oaks. At the end of 2006, Mt. Lebanon was providing an officer to Keystone Oaks and my understanding was that we would receive $60K additional revenue to go back to the same situation at the end of 2006, which was providing the same officer at Keystone Oaks. The Commission voted (3 votes in favor, including myself, and 2 against) to provide an officer to Keystone Oaks and for Mt. Lebanon to receive the $60K. Keep in mind this was not in line with the recommendation of the Police Chief who wanted the Commission to add either another police officer or turn down the proposal from Keystone Oaks. Adding another permanent police officer when we only had a one year commitment from Keystone Oaks did not seem to be a good decision at the time.

Instead of reverting back to the same situation at the end of 2006 (i.e. providing the same officer to provide services back to Keystone Oaks), the Police Chief decided to reassign Mike Riemer, without informing the Commission. It was only when several concerned PTA members emailed me days after this decision was made that I found out about this unexpected change. At the next Commission Executive session, the Police Chief explained the reasons for pulling Mike Riemer out of his school responsibilities and reassigning him to Keystone Oaks. Several new facts were presented at this meeting which did not make it feasible to meet the proposal of Keystone Oaks. I did not and would have never made the decision to take Officer Mike Riemer from his school duties and reassign him.

This is a prime example of when I believe a good decision was improperly executed. Personally, I feel blind-sided by the decision to reassign Officer Riemer. I understood the Chief’s reasons after the additional new facts were presented; however, I believe that the proper communication and presentation of all facts at decision time would have prevented this situation from happening. I have since requested Steve Feller, the municipal manager, to inform the Commission about the implementation details, particularly if the decision is not in line with the recommendation of any of the Municipal Heads.

One positive outcome has arisen from this issue – I realize the importance of clearing up misunderstandings and communicating important issues to the residents of Mt. Lebanon. I intend to continue to keep you informed and look forward to viewing your comments.

• Pittsburgh Magazine has the 25 most beautiful people in
  Pittsburgh in their January 2008 edition and Raja is in this magazine  …  Your disbelief is understandable and you are right :). While Raja did not make the top 25 list, he is on Page 55 of this magazine. Thanks to Christine O’Toole, the author of this article, for the write-up. Christine lives in the 1st ward; Raja knocked on her door prior to the elections and she contacted him after the election. Here are the online links to the same: http://www.wqed.org/mag/index.php (Main page of
  Pittsburgh magazine) and http://www.wqed.org/mag/features/0108/raja.php (Direct link to the article).
• All commissioners are featured in Mt. Lebanon Magazine for January and Raja is the first one since he represents the 1^st ward. Here is the online link to the same: http://www.mtlebanon.org/DocumentView.asp?DID=2330.
• The Business mentoring group (that Raja initiated several months ago) is beginning to show results. The Mt. Lebanon Magazine has a “Business Update” on Mave and their commitment to move to Mt.
  Lebanon. Here is the link that has this article: http://www.mtlebanon.org/DocumentView.asp?DID=2349.

Hi Everyone,

Hope you had a great Christmas. Wish all of you and your families a Wonderful 2008.

Here are some updates since the Election:

• I have been working on two ideas to help with the Mt. Lebanon budget for 2008. I have shared these ideas with the Commissioners, Municipal Management and with various groups/boards. The first is with regard to cutting costs and to do this by providing a significant one time bonus (pro-rated in proportion to the savings) to the Municipal management now for cutting operating costs without impacting services or debt; this can only be done after the final budget has been presented. The second is with regard increasing revenue by putting in place a Vision for the Business District, creating grass roots level plans and executing on the same. I have write-ups on both these ideas; so please contact me for details and I will share them with you. (I need to figure out how to post these articles online and put links to them in the blog. Maybe, my good friend, McKeesport Councilman Paul Shelly who is a blog-whiz can help me here!!)
• Pittsburgh Magazine has the 25 most beautiful people in Pittsburgh in their January 2008 edition and I am in this magazine  …  Your disbelief is understandable and you are right :). While I did not make the top 25 list, I am on Page 55 of this magazine. Christine O’Toole is the writer for this article and she lives in the 1st ward; I believe that I knocked on her door prior to the elections and she contacted me after I won. (Knocking on doors has some unforeseen advantages; thanks, Chris!!) Here are the online links to the same: http://www.wqed.org/mag/index.php (Main page of Pittsburgh magazine) and http://www.wqed.org/mag/features/0108/raja.php (Direct link to the article).
• All commissioners are featured in Mt. Lebanon Magazine for January and I am the first one since I represent the 1^st ward. Here is the online link to the same: http://www.mtlebanon.org/DocumentView.asp?DID=2330.
• The Business mentoring group (that I initiated several months ago) is beginning to show results. The Mt. Lebanon Magazine has a “Business Update” on Mave and their commitment to move to Mt. Lebanon. Here is the link that has this article: http://www.mtlebanon.org/DocumentView.asp?DID=2349.
• The Swearing in Ceremony is on Jan 7th (Monday) at 8pm at the Mt.
  Lebanon Municipal Building. I invite all of you to attend; hope to see you then. Judge Cashman has graciously agreed to swear me in and I thank him for the same in advance. The first Commission meeting in on Jan 14th (Monday). I am excited to begin work on the Commission and look forward to making a difference.

Happy New Year!! 

Raja

Hi Everyone,

Thanks to each and every one of you for your support and encouragement over the past several months. The real job begins now. The analogy that I can think of is that I had interviewed with the residents of the 1st Ward and have now been selected. I am looking forward to focusing on the key items that I had discussed throughout my campaign: Vision and measurable goals for Mt. Lebanon, Reducing taxes without compromising service (or increasing debt) and using Online communication for greater transparency.

In my opinion, the best ideas and solutions come from the residents. Please email me your vision for Mt. Lebanon. I also request that you email me any issues that you see in Mt.t Lebanon along with your solutions to address the same.

I want to thank my Campaign Committee for not only their enthusiasm and strategic input, but also for the endless hours that were spent going door to door, setting up Meet & Greets, mailing postcards, etc. I have numerous people to thank and I plan on do so individually. However, I want to thank two people in particular: (i) my wife, Neeta, who did a spectacular job in coordinating many parts of the Campaign and (ii) Campaign Chair, Elaine Warren, who energized the entire group and kept us focused until the very last day => we were scheduled to go door to door even the day before the election!!

Thanks again.

Raja

Hi Everyone,

I have completed my door to door visits for the entire 1st ward. I have been to every house in the 1st ward (I may have missed a few including apartments) over the past 7 weeks. The 1st ward has 7 districts and I covered 1 district per week. The feedback and support has been overwhelmingly positive and enthusiastic.

As you may know, the Commission had appointed me to the Economic Development Board a couple of months ago. I have been able to understand the big picture issues from the Economic Development Board. Going door to door has given me the insight on the day to day issues faced by the residents of the 1st ward.

I was able to discuss both the issues and the possible solutions with the residents. At lot of the questions that I received were like “when will this sidewalk issue addressed, ” when will the leaf pickup issue be resolved, “where can I get information on sexual predators living in Mt. Lebanon”, etc. Given my Information Technology background, my recommendation is to implement an online system where (i) a resident can log an issue and the Municipality can respond on when the issue will be addressed (i.e. the resident will know that their sidewalk issue will be resolved on a certain date that may even be a couple of months out), (ii) post all information on line such as deer culling policies, information on sexual predators, etc and (iii) even broadcast commission meetings on the web. The beauty of an online system is that it is available 24×7 and the residents can get the feedback/update at their convenience.

In my opinion, the best solutions come from the residents and we need to have a way to encourage submission of ideas and solutions online to the Commission. This will improve the two way communication between the Commission and the residents and will improve the customer satisfaction of the residents.

I would love to hear from you on solutions to issues faced in Mt. Lebanon along with ideas to improve communication between the Commission and the residents. Thanks.

Raja

Hi Everyone,

Please join me in welcoming Elaine Warren as Campaign Chair. As you may all know, Matt & Erin Smith had a baby girl recently. I thank Matt for everything he has done on the Campaign to-date and I wish his family with the new baby the very best. I am energized about Elaine being the Campaign Chair - those of you who know Elaine clearly know why I say energized. Elaine will keep me and the rest of the Steering Committee moving at full speed through the next several weeks until the election on Nov 6^th.

Here are some other general updates: The 1^st Friday on Sept 7^th was a really good success with us handing out balloons as usual outside the Cyclops Building on Washington Road. Please look for us at the South Hills Chamber of Commerce “Cruisin’ Oldies Fest” on Sunday, September 30 from 1 to 5 PM at South Park Wave Pool and at the Sunrise Rotary Club & Mt. Lebanon Police Association’s Art in the Park festival on Oct 6/7 in Mt. Lebanon Park.

Overall, I have been getting great feedback from everyone in the 1^st ward. The momentum is building and I will keep you posted. Thanks.

Raja