Ryan Santelli can walk to his job and that’s just one of the things he loves about living in Aspinwall.
As a fourth-generation Aspinwall resident, Santelli is employed as the borough’s building and zoning officer, building inspector and emergency management coordinator.
“It’s the shortest work commute I’ve ever had,” Santelli said.
Exploring Aspinwall began at an early age for Santelli.
“My grandfather, aunts and uncles lived on Brilliant Avenue. Family is really what this town is about,” Santelli said.
Santelli recalled childhood memories of Aspinwall that included riding his bike around the borough with groups of kids and playing on the baseball field or nearby woods.
Santelli, 40, moved to Aspinwall when he was 19 and now enjoys coaching Aspinwall tee ball and baseball and raising his 5-year-old son with wife Erin Reece.
“It’s awesome raising my son, following in the same footsteps as I did,” Santelli said.
He attended Central Catholic for three years and transferred to Fox Chapel Area High School, graduating from there in 2003 and then attending the University of Pittsburgh.
Santelli’s corporate job in the water filtration industry led to him traversing the globe as a traveling engineer for 15 years.
“I loved France and Germany, and China was a big learning experience,” Santelli said.
While in China, he visited the Great Wall of China, Tiananmen Square and Beijing during his 30-day stay.
“My last trip with that job was Saudi Arabia, and we got caught in a major flood. It was really bad. They don’t have filtration and sewer lines,” Santelli said.
Back home, working to enforce Aspinwall’s building codes can be challenging.
“There are a lot of old buildings in the borough, some dating back over 100 years. I try to teach people when they move here, people live two and a half feet from each other. You gotta learn to get along and you may not see eye-to-eye with your neighbors, but we need to keep that camaraderie together,” Santelli said. “The old homes, that’s the biggest challenge.”
His work credo involves the three F’s: firm, fair and forgiveness.
And for residents with a concern or question, just call the borough, Santelli said.
He attends FEMA classes and Allegheny County quarterly meetings for updates.
“Those meetings are full of information because they teach us about any and all preparedness situations,” Santelli said. I am preparing what-ifs (like if someone tried to drive through a parade) and I need to make sure all events have the safest routes and exit plans.”
A few months ago, Santelli joined Southern Allegheny Valley Emergency Services as a volunteer firefighter.
Borough manager Melissa Lang O’Malley said Santelli takes a can-do approach.
“Ryan’s work ethic truly stands out. He’s professional, persistent and always ready to jump in and help,” O’Malley said. “His approach sets a standard that strengthens our entire organization.”
Tori Lang of Aspinwall is the borough intern and a freshman at Kent State University.
“Ryan is a fantastic worker and super nice,” Lang said. “He’s understanding and really good at working with people.”
