Joe Napsha stories, Page 118

The wall that China has built around imported recyclable materials like some plastics and glass is hitting home, as communities around Southwestern Pennsylvania will see costs rise while fewer recyclable materials will be collected. “It’s a national issue. This is a market-driven issue that is affecting everyone,” said Ellen Keefe,...

A Ku Klux Klan flag that hung inside the Sewickley Township public works building at least two years ago created a “hostile work environment” for employees, township officials were told amid calls for the resignation of the roadmaster who also is a township supervisor. Former supervisor Alan Fossi called for...

The state is studying the timing of traffic signals at routes 22 and 819, as well as taking other safety measures, after that area was the site of several crashes, including one fatality earlier this month. PennDOT employees checked the traffic signals at the Salem Township intersection Wednesday after state...

Norwin replenished its teaching staff for the next school year, hiring secondary and elementary teachers, along with full-time, long-term substitutes. The five full-time secondary teachers hired by the Norwin School Board Monday under the 2019-2020 school year budget were: Rebecca Shakely, music; Dylan McElfresh, social studies; Marissa Pecora and Aimee...

The turf’s up at four Westmoreland County school districts — Franklin Regional, Greensburg Salem, Norwin and Penn-Trafford — and being installed at Jeannette. Shaw Sports Turf of Calhoun, Ga., has removed artificial turf from stadiums at Norwin, Greensburg Salem and Penn-Trafford and will have the fields ready by the time...

Bethel Park police are warning residents to be aware of a black bear that was spotted Friday in the area of South Park Road and Drake Road. Residents are being advised on the police department Facebook page, “to STAY AWAY from the animal,” according to information posted at about 9:15...

If you’ve ever wondered about that bear-like creature “Bigfoot,” then Stan Gordon of Greensburg might have some answers for you. Gordon will present “Strange Aspects of the Elusive Bigfoot,” at 6:30 p.m. July 27 at the Norwin Public Library, Caruthers Lane, Irwin. Gordon has investigated reports of Bigfoot sightings in...

An online fundraising tool created to help cover the funeral expenses of one of two lightning strike victims killed Thursday at Mammoth Park lake in Mt. Pleasant Township topped its $20,000 goal. More than $20,000 had been pledged from more than 380 GoFundMe donors since Friday to help pay for...

The state’s Amtrak passenger rail service will be impacted when the Pennsylvania Turnpike’s $450 million annual payment to PennDOT plunges by $400 million three years from now, a PennDOT official warned Thursday. “Amtrak service is in jeopardy, as we know it today,” even without the pending funding crisis, Jennie Granger,...

Irwin officials gave the green light to transfer a liquor license from West Newton to a proposed restaurant on Main Street that will feature tacos and tequila. Council on Wednesday unanimously approved the request of Greg Olszewski, a Penn Township businessman, and Matthew Mitchell of North Huntingdon, to transfer a...

Irwin Borough is looking to hire its third manager in two years. Council accepted Valerie Morton’s resignation, effective June 25. Morton, who has been the borough manager since September 2017, said she is leaving to take a job in private industry in Moon Township. Morton was hired in December 2016...

North Huntingdon officials will hold a public hearing this week on a request from Verizon Wireless for a variance to build a cell phone tower, an effort that is the target of a lawsuit by the township. The commissioners scheduled a required public hearing for 6:30 p.m. Thursday on a...

Norwin needs to either fix the high school swimming pool and amenities to make it safe and bring it up to current standards or replace it. While the message was somewhat simple from Lancaster architect Edwin Wallover, who conducted a feasibility study of the pool, fixtures, equipment and building, the...

Saint Vincent College plans to announce its new president Friday at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, the college said. Brother Norman Hippsannounced in April he would leave the position at the end of June. Hipps, 75, has been the Unity-based college’s president for nine years. J. Christopher Donahue, chairman of the...

A group of 200-to-250 members of the Marine Corps League of Pennsylvania are expected to descend upon the Greensburg area next week for the organization’s 74th annual convention. Major John Urban, who has served eight years in the Marines, will be the keynote speaker in the convention that runs from...

A report by the Southwest Partnership for Mobility, chaired by state and local officials, calls for stable statewide public transportation funding without relying on the Turnpike Commission giving PennDOT $450 million a year. Providing a sustainable funding source would ease the Turnpike Commission’s debt burden, as well as the need...

Norwin School Board will meet Monday to vote on a 2019-20 budget that would include raising taxes by 3% for most of the district’s property owners and transfer $1.1 million from the fund balance to cover a shortfall. Five votes are needed to approve the budget. But during a meeting...

Uniontown firefighters battled blazes at more than one house in Uniontown late Friday night, a Fayette County 911 supervisor said. The fire was reported at 336 E. Main St., at about 9:20 p.m. The 911 supervisor said that city police said multiple buildings were on fire. The initial report from...

The Greater Westmoreland County Labor Council will discuss the impact of the 2020 Census on the county during a meeting at 7 p.m. June 17 at Hempfield Fire Co. No. 2, 421 Thornton Ave., Hempfield. Sheila Beasley, the Pittsburgh Partnership Specialist for the U.S. Census Bureau, will provide information about...

More than 500 custom and vintage cars, trucks and motorcycles are expected to be displayed at the Norwin Elks Annual Father’s Day Charity Car Cruise planned for 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. June 16 at the Norwin Elks off Sandy Hill Road, Manor. The event has grown from less than...

A taco and tequila restaurant is planned for downtown Irwin this fall, run by a man who already owns two other restaurants in Irwin. Businessman David Caruso, who owns Burgher Burgher on Fourth Street and dO wood fired, featuring pizza, on Fifth Street, plans to open Gato in September in...

A workshop to train people how to intervene to prevent suicides is planned for Aug. 8-9 in Smithton. Living Works, an organization with a base in Fayetteville, N.C., describes its Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training workshop as “suicide first aid.” It teaches participants to recognize when someone may have thoughts...

Sheetz Inc. has applied to sell alcohol at its North Huntingdon convenience store on Route 30, which is near a Norwin elementary school. The request from the Altoona-based convenience store chain at its store located across Carpenter Lane from the Stewartsville Elementary School is pending before the Pennsylvania Liquor Control...

The county’s transit operator wants to expand its park-and-ride lot in North Huntingdon so more commuters could catch a bus to Pittsburgh, but work will not start until next year, transit officials said. The Westmoreland County Transit Authority wants to add 55 spaces to its parking lot along Route 30...