A fatal shooting in Export Tuesday stemmed from a monthslong parking dispute, police said.
Killed was Daniel Chicka, 65, police said. The other man, Matt Miller, 32, wasn’t injured and is in state police custody, said Trooper Steve Limani.
He said the shooting took place about 2 p.m. in the 5800 block of Madison Avenue.
The men appear to have been involved in a dispute for several months, Limani said.
“It appears these neighbors have had an ongoing dispute over parking, which is a shame because it escalated into one of the neighbors shooting the other, and subsequently that neighbor died from the gunshots,” Limani said.
Limani encouraged neighbors with information on the incident or doorbell camera footage to reach out to state police.
Residents of Madison Avenue huddled under their porch roofs Tuesday afternoon to watch investigators as rain poured down. Troopers lined the surrounding streets with caution tape, setting up a tent to protect evidence from the downpour.
“Definitely the capturing of evidence and preservation of it is paramount,” Limani said of the brief lightning storm’s impact on the investigation. “Weather could definitely be a factor.”
The shooting left Export residents in shock.
Resident Kenny Knouse has lived along Madison Avenue for about seven years. He found out about the shooting via an Export Facebook page.
“I was totally shocked,” he said. “When I came home and saw the police tape I was like, ‘Oh. Wow. This is real.’ ”
He was surprised to hear an argument led to afatal shooting on his street.
“You’ve heard arguments in town, but those usually just come from downtown and nothing too major,” he said. “I didn’t think (parking) really was (a problem on this street). I park right here in front of my apartment. If people are parked in my spot I get a little miffed, but there’s plenty of parking up and down the street. I just move my car down more.”
Borough Councilman Joe Ferri, who owns Joey’s The Edge bar and grill about a block from Madison Avenue, described the shooting as tragic.
“It’s a shame. I didn’t know anybody that was involved, but it is less than a block away from me,” he said.
Ferri said he heard the gunshots from the apartment over his bar and initially did not think much of it.
“People shoot and stuff like that, but then I started hearing ambulances and sirens. I went outside, and sure enough, something happened up there on Madison Avenue,” he said. “It’s usually a pretty peaceful little town.”
Parking is an issue in the borough, he said, though additional parking is being added along the Westmoreland Heritage Trail.
“It’s a little mining town, we have narrow streets and not much off-street parking,” he said. “That particular road, Madison Avenue, where this occurred, is real narrow. It’s on a hillside, it’s dense housing and there’s not much parking.”
Export area couple Tim and Linda West had hoped for a pleasant stroll down memory lane as they drove through their old stomping grounds along Madison Avenue Tuesday evening.
The Wests have been married for about 35 years and lived on that Westmoreland County borough road years ago.
What they found on their trip while looking at their and other relatives’ former homes were state police and caution tape.
“I just think it’s a shame what this country’s come to with all these shootings,” said Tim West, 78. “It’s usually a pretty quiet little town; a lot of friendly people in it.”
“This is just an unfortunate thing that happened up here. It’s a shame it had to come to that,” Linda West said.
She said her son considered moving to Madison Avenue but declined due to parking concerns.
“It’s hard to believe this has happened. I just feel bad for everybody involved. It’s just sad,” said Export Mayor Joe Zaccagnini. He was out of the area working when the shooting happened. He saw the police cars on the hill when he got home, he said.
“When I saw the police cars there, everything started to become a reality,” he said.
The borough is waiting until more information is available to determine next steps, he said.
“We’ll wait to find out exactly what all took place and go from there,” he said.
A new parking lot is set to be completed in the borough within the next few weeks, he said.
Staff writer Michael DiVittorio contributed.