Joe Napsha stories, Page 123

Robert Juliano moved a step closer to owning the Cafe Supreme restaurant in Irwin after reaching a tentative agreement with Irwin Borough to pay more than $11,000 in delinquent garbage bills that had piled up from the restaurant’s previous owner. Last week, Juliano proposed to Irwin council he would pay...

Norwin School District property owners may pay 3% more in real estate taxes for the 2019-2020 school, the most the school district can raise taxes without getting approval from the state education department or district voters. In discussing the proposed budget for the upcoming school year, Norwin anticipates raising real...

Lois June Drexler grew up on Mt. Washington in the 1930s and 1940s, when Pittsburgh was known as the “Smoky City.” The steel mills were belching out smoke on both sides of the Monongahela River — the South Side and Hazelwood — and homes like the one young Lois Bressler...

North Huntingdon wants to ban its employees from texting and making or taking calls on personal and municipal cellphones while driving township vehicles. “People on cellphones is a major accident waiting to happen … literally,” said Jeff Silka, township manager. The proposed policy is expected to be voted on at...

Norwin officials have agreed to spend more than half a million dollars on artificial turf at two high school fields, a move opponents wanted to delay until the cost of swimming pool repairs is known. The Norwin School Board on Monday awarded a $587,174 contract to Shaw Sports Turf to...

The new leader of Norwin schools is a North Hills assistant superintendent with extensive experience as a curriculum coordinator who in the interview process touted his collaborative leadership style and vision that Norwin needs as the district continues to grow. School board members on Monday unanimously selected Jeffrey Taylor, who...

A Westmoreland County commissioner, a minister, a nursing professor, a local businessman and past and present school administrators will be recognized next month as distinguished alumni of Norwin High School. The six honorees are: Commissioner Ted Kopas, Westmoreland County Community College nursing professor Rebecca Gediminskas, Norwin assistant superintendent Tim Kotch,...

A section of Turkeytown Road in South Huntingdon will be closed beginning Monday to allow the state to make emergency repairs, resulting in a detour that will last about a month, PennDOT’s Uniontown office said. PennDOT will replace the existing bridge with a new 48-inch cross pipe to carry Hunter’s...

It’s not many colleges that have a decorated war hero and a professional athlete as the principal commencement speaker, but Saint Vincent College has found one person who can lay claim to being both — former Army Ranger Alejandro Villanueva, who is an offensive tackle for the Pittsburgh Steelers. The...

Irwin-area motorists have the dubious distinction of being No. 1 in Pennsylvania — as the state’s worst drivers. Drivers in the Irwin ZIP code were rated the worst drivers in any “city” in the state, based on data from QuoteWizard.com customers surveyed in 2018 about the number of accidents, speeding...

UMPC is planning to spend some of the $500 million from a bond issue on two Westmoreland County projects — its Urgent Care Center along Route 30 in North Huntingdon and Weatherwood Manor assisted living residences in Hempfield. The state Pennsylvania Economic Development Financing Authority has scheduled a public hearing...

Allegheny County police are investigating the death Thursday of an Allegheny County Jail inmate who was facing a murder trial and hung himself Sunday afternoon in his jail cell, authorities said. The inmate, Timothy L. Pauley, 34, of Moon Township, was found unresponsive in his cell at 5:35 p.m. Sunday.,...

Irwin residents who are active volunteers with one of North Huntingdon’s fire departments or North Huntingdon EMS/Rescue, and even those who join in the future, will get a tax break under an agreement the borough’s solicitor will prepare. Irwin Council on Wednesday authorized Solicitor Zachary Kansler to prepare an agreement...

A landslide on Caruthers Lane in Irwin needs to be fixed before the road sustains more damage that could lead to closing it while it is being repaired, an engineer told borough officials this week.. The crack in Caruthers Lane, which has occurred above the Norwin Public Library, has expanded...

Margaret Rumbaugh served as a librarian at Hempfield Area’s West Point Elementary School and at her church, Charter Oak Church in Unity — an appropriate job for a woman who had a passion for reading. “She loved reading and hated that we (as a society) don’t read as much,” said...

Norwin officials want the state to make it illegal to sell vaping products to minors as well as for students to vape or have electronic smoking products at school. The administration has asked the school board to consider approving a resolution Monday showing support for amending state House Bill 97....

A mini-walk preview of the anti-drug abuse Reality Tour, plus health screenings, food and drug awareness vendors, will be part of the Norwin School District’s free Health, Wellness & Nutrition Expo planned for 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. April 27 at the Norwin High School, McMahon Drive, North Huntingdon. There...

Norwin high school sports teams, marching band and physical education classes will have a safer field on which to play and march with new artificial turf at Knights Stadium, officials said. School board members this week indicated they support replacing the stadium’s eight-year-old turf as well as repainting its track....

Norwin School Board is expected to vote next week to oppose Sheetz Inc.’s plans to sell alcohol at its convenience store across the street from one of the district’s elementary schools. Barbara Viola, board president, said there is a board consensus to oppose Sheetz’s plans to sell alcohol at its...

A two-mile backlog was reported on the Pennsylvania Turnpike on Friday evening as a result of a tractor-trailer truck that hit a barrier and overturned in the westbound lanes at milepost 85 in Mt. Pleasant Township, a Westmoreland County Department of Public Safety supervisor said. The accident was reported at...

Former businessman James Lentz loved to cook, whether it was serving barbecues from his food truck at the annual Mt. Pleasant Glass Festival or joining with his wife to cook two big turkeys on Thanksgiving to feed an extended family of 40 to 50 people in his house. “He loved...

The 2019 elections and canvassing for those elections will be discussed when the Norwin Area Democratic Committee meets at 6 p.m. April 10 at the Norwin Public Library, 100 Caruthers Lane, Irwin. William Essay, a newly appointed member of the Norwin School Board, will speak about the importance of the...

A Norwin High School team’s bridge made of pasta and held together by hot glue was able to hold 37.4 pounds before collapsing, winning the team first place in a competition that aims to increase student awareness in engineering. Several hundred people watched as 19 teams from high schools across...

Verizon Wireless customers in eastern North Huntingdon, Manor and the Adamsburg areas should get better coverage for phone and data if the company builds a cellphone tower on property Manor owns in North Huntingdon, a Verizon attorney said. The township zoning hearing board this week granted TowerCo 2013 LLC and...

“The Living Last Supper,” a dramatization of Jesus’ last meal before his crucifixion, will be performed by First United Methodist Drama Team from April 16 and 18. The free performance will begin nightly at 7 p.m. at the church, 210 Oak St., Irwin. Church members will perform as disciples, Jesus,...