Mt. Oliver Mayor-Elect Looks To Curb Violence

MT. OLIVER, Pa. (KDKA) - It's a small borough nestled in the middle of Pittsburgh's city neighborhoods, but Mt. Oliver comes with its own set of challenges.

"There's problems here, there are things we need to look at and do differently to make certain changes and that's a big part of why I wanted to run for mayor," said Joanna Taylor, who's the mayor-elect.

KDKA sat down with her just hours after neighbors said they were sick of the violence and turning to the new leadership for help.

On Tuesday morning, a man allegedly tried breaking into his ex-girlfriend's apartment on Ormsby Avenue. County police told KDKA he was shot by another man in the house.

So where do you start on tackling crime?

"We don't have a fully staffed police force. We are missing several officers we could have on the force and they are trying to actively fill those spots," Taylor said.

With more manpower, Taylor hopes to bring more resources with new grant funding and allow officers more time to connect with the residents.

"They want to and are trying to communicate more with the residents and build relationships with the community and that's what I want to support and find ways to have police more present in a way that builds a relationship," Taylor said.

With this type of change, resident said they want the ability to feel safe at home again.

"They have great ideas, they want to move us to the next level and get out of us being known for violence and crime and all these negative stereotypes and show who we really are," Taylor said.