President, Councilman Pat Catena
Allegheny County District 4

Councilman Catena was appointed Councilman to Allegheny County Council District 4 on January 17, 2017. Patrick’s family generations are strong in the Carnegie area. He is the third generation to reside in Carnegie. He is the grandson of Richard and Suzanne Cavanagh and Dr. William P. Catena and Elizabeth Catena. He is also the nephew of the late Drs. William P. Catena, Elizabeth P. Catena and Michael R. Catena all long-time physicians with
Dr. Mike still calling the Carnegie office home.

A Life of Public Service

His Dad, the late Patrick Catena Sr. was a long-time member of the Carnegie Volunteer Fire and Rescue Bureau, drawing upon his Father’s knowledge that has helped resolve long time issues between the bureau and council. His Mom, Ann, is a former Assistant Principal at Sts. Simon and Jude and has been extremely active in the Community for many years. Pat is a family man, believing in strong family values raising his son, Jack who is 19. Councilman Catena believes in giving both his son and future generations the same opportunities he had growing up. His dedication to family can be found on the baseball field attending/assisting and fundraising for baseball games for the Miracle League or helping the local children in Carnegie with family events and sponsoring Santa when the Carnegie Volunteer Fire Department generously donates their time to bring him around on the Fire Truck in December.

Patrick as a third-generation lifelong resident of Carnegie, graduated from Sts. Simon and Jude Grade School in Scott Township, Bishop Canevin High School in 1991 and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in political science and communications and a certificate in Public Service from the University of Pittsburgh in 1995.

His dedication to funding of children’s events and creating a line item for budgets to assist with these funds has enabled Carnegie to assist in programs dedicated to the youth of the community, since President Catena recognizes that they are the future leaders. Also, President Catena lobbied the state for successful funding for the three-phase park project in Carnegie. Pat has also lobbied for successful funding and development. After Hurricane Ivan, Councilman Catena worked tirelessly on rebuilding Carnegie’s Main Street and Central Business District encouraging Economic Development. Establishing a LERTA with Carlynton School District and helping businesses move into Carnegie like the first Bob’s Diner. His work with Mary Pitcher and creating the Pitcher Skateboard Park, which is a great community asset, and the Haunted Trail are just two more examples of his community engagement.

While on Council, with the help of Councilperson Susan Demko he was able to reduce wastewater fees and hold the line on taxes. Engaging the youth, building our tax base through economic development and holding the line on taxes are three of the areas he strongly believes in as he moves forward.

Mr. Catena has been a member of Allegheny County Council since 2017 and has served as its President since 2020. Throughout his tenure, President Catena has been extremely active in legislative and other initiatives relating to a variety of topics, including public safety, economic development, budgeting, property tax appeals and policy, human services, and government efficiency. He has taken a leadership role in reforming the County’s property tax appeal system in the wake of litigation that demonstrated significant errors made by administrative branch staff that disadvantaged taxpayers over a period of years and is a staunch advocate for increased budgetary oversight. Most recently in the context of the County’s Department of Human Services, whose budget encompasses nearly a quarter of the County’s total operating
expenditures.

While a member of County Council, President Catena has sponsored or co-sponsored enacted ordinances establishing a County demolition fund to aid municipalities in remediating blighted properties, requiring that the County take steps to ensure that its construction equipment emits as little air pollution as possible, forbidding discrimination in medical treatment settings, assisting local police departments in acquiring body worn camera equipment, improving operational readiness at the County’s 9-1-1 Call Center and County Jail, refining the County’s longtime owner occupant tax discount program, and creating a property tax credit program for
the County’s first volunteer firefighters and nonprofit EMS employees. He has also advocated for the County’s paid sick leave regulations, which foster public health and provide a vital safety net for individuals struggling to make ends meet, particularly those employed in the service industries. Throughout his time on County Council, he has consistently worked with Council members on both sides of the aisle and has remained a tireless proponent of increasing the ability of Council to function simultaneously as a partner with and vital check and balance to the County’s Chief Executive.

His professionalism, creative vision, persistence and self-motivation show in his strong leadership skills and is an asset to County Council and the many constituents he represents. Throughout the years President Catena’s financial acumen in business and analytics have played a key role in his decision-making process. His business experience is an asset to the community of Carnegie and across Allegheny County in District 4 and as President of County Council all of Allegheny County.

Over the years, President Catena truly understands his purpose to unite Council and the Community. During his time, he was instrumental in having meetings televised and added to the Carnegie Borough website via YouTube and was hands on in the implementation of the new award-winning Carnegie Borough website in 2016.