Joe Napsha stories, Page 81
Norwin area weekly covid case count drops as of April 26
For the first time in three weeks, the number of newly reported covid cases fell week over week in the North Huntingdon, Irwin and North Irwin areas covered by four ZIP codes, according to state Department of Health data released Monday. There were 48 new covid cases from April 19...
Irwin OKs plans for development at Penn-Irwin Motel site
The former Penn-Irwin Motel property along Route 30 in Irwin is a step closer to a transformation after officials approved plans for the site, although much of the hillside will be removed before construction can begin. Irwin Borough approved development plans submitted by Colony Development Co. of North Huntingdon for...
Norwin adjusts for ‘The Little Mermaid’ performances
The Norwin High School Theatre Company’s production of “The Little Mermaid” is not going under the sea, but it will be heading outside. The musical will be performed under the lights in the Norwin Knights Stadium at 8 p.m. May 6-9. Performance of Disney’s “The Little Mermaid” was canceled last...
Irwin to get new parking meters, rate increase
Motorists in downtown Irwin will see new parking meters in the near future, and a rate increase. The borough was to receive an order of 200 refurbished digital meters Friday from Take A Powder Inc. of Paterson, N.J., said Stacie Santimyer, assistant borough manager. Council on April 14 approved buying...
North Huntingdon, Latrobe police expecting body cameras
With the increase in controversial and sometimes deadly encounters between law enforcement and citizens across the country, more local police departments in Allegheny and Westmoreland counties are looking to outfit officers with body cameras — but they are scrambling to pay for them. “There’s no question that law enforcement needs...
Hempfield woman wins Marine volunteer award
A Hempfield woman who volunteers in a leadership role with the Westmoreland County Young Marines won a national award for her efforts, a year after her daughter won a Young Marines award for her exemplary service. Sheila Myers, who has logged more than 1,000 community service hours in the past...
Port Authority to shut down Mon Incline next week for inspection
Commuters using the Monongahela Incline to ride up and down Mt. Washington in Pittsburgh will have to take another route next week when the incline shuts down for three days for an inspection, Port Authority Transit said Thursday. An incline shuttle bus will provide service to and from Mt. Washington...
Fire engulfs Monessen house
Firefighters from several Mon Valley departments were battling a blaze that had engulfed a house in Monessen late Thursday night, according to dispatches from Westmoreland County 911. Monessen units that reached the scene of the fire at a three-story wooden-frame house on McKee Avenue said there was heavy smoke coming...
Norwin area happenings, April 22, 2021 and beyond
Irwin event to promote Norwin’s musical Businesses in Irwin will join in an “Under the Sea Day” from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. May 1 as a promotion for the Norwin High School Theatre Co.’s performance of “Little Mermaid” from May 6 through 9 at the high school stadium. Those...
Norwin area charges filed, April 21, 2021
Charges filed with North Huntingdon District Judge Wayne Gongaware. All individuals have the right to a preliminary hearing and are innocent until proven guilty before a judge in Westmoreland County Court . • Cody J. Monro, 19, of Trafford, by North Huntingdon police with possession of marijuana. • Kayley R....
Penn-Trafford area charges filed as of April 21, 2021
Charges filed with Penn Township District Judge Helen Kistler. All individuals have the right to a preliminary hearing and are innocent until proven guilty before a judge in the Westmoreland County Court of Common Pleas. • Christopher D. Moses, 41, of Irwin, by Penn Township police with two counts of...
Earth Day ’21: environmental issues past and present still present challenges
Fifty-one years after the founding of Earth Day, with the first on April 22, 1970, the manmade pollution and resulting problems created by global warming and climate change remain the biggest threat to the planet, environmental scientists say. “Certainly, the biggest concern is climate change, because it has so many...
Blood drive, covid vaccines planned Penn-Trafford area
Women’s group plans blood drive The Community Women’s Club of Level Green will host a blood drive from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. May 8 in the Lion’s Community Building, 123 Murrysville Road, Level Green. Vitalant will conduct the drive, which will include testing for covid antibodies. All donors must...
Norwin seeks amended sports medicine bids; athletes want trainers retained
Three regional health care systems have until Friday afternoon to submit another bid to provide sports medicine and school physician services for Norwin’s athletes for the next five school years. The school board on Monday postponed awarding a contract to Allegheny Health Network of Pittsburgh to allow AHN, UPMC and...
No tax hike in Norwin preliminary budget
Norwin property owners will not pay more in real estate taxes for the 2021-2022 school year under a proposed $80.2 million budget that taps into the district’s fund balance to cover about a $2.6 million gap between projected revenues and expenditures. The proposed budget approved Monday does not cut programs...
North Huntingdon-Irwin area covid cases increase slightly from April 12-19, 2021
The slight uptick in the number of newly reported coronavirus cases continued for the third consecutive week in the four ZIP codes covering most of the Irwin, North Huntingdon and North Irwin areas, according to state Department of Health data released Monday. The number of reported covid cases rose by...
Greensburg wants dilapidated building torn down
Greensburg wants the California owner of a three-story brick building in the downtown business district to raze the structure or the city will do it. The building’s roof has fallen in and the structure is “at immediate risk of collapse,” according to a legal notice tacked to the front of...
Swimming pool demand deepens in Western Pa. during pandemic
With so many homeowners opting for a “staycation” last year because of the coronavirus pandemic and pools being closed for the same reason, pool installers and suppliers in the region say they are swimming in business — with hardly any easing up in demand from last year. “We’re getting leads...
Norwin grad takes on challenge as Pittsburgh fire bureau’s lone female lieutenantVideo
If Lt. Kari Burnham wanted to meet with other female firefighters in the Pittsburgh Bureau of Fire, they could sit around her kitchen table — with room to spare. Burnham, a 35-year-old North Huntingdon native, is one of four women among the bureau’s 474 firefighters. One recently retired and another...
Greensburg man convicted of Indiana County fire bombing
A Greensburg man accused of trying to burn down an Indiana County home last May by throwing “Molotov cocktails” at it was convicted this week in a non-jury trial, according to court records. Derrick John Weber, 21, was found guilty by Indiana County Judge William J. Martin of attempted arson...
2 Westmoreland farms protected by state conservation program
Two Westmoreland County farms were among the 26 protected by the state in recent purchases of permanent conservation easements in return for owners selling the “development value” of their property. The farms involved in raising crops and livestock were protected under the state’s Farmland Preservation Program from future residential, commercial...
Duquesne Light seeks to raise rates by 7.7%
Duquesne Light Co. wants to raise the electric bills for residential customers by 7.7%, an increase that would cost users another $7.73 a month on average, or about $92 a year, the Pittsburgh-based company said. The request was filed Friday with the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission. If approved, which is...
North Huntingdon: Details needed on township’s $3M share of pandemic relief money
North Huntingdon should get about $3 million from the latest $1.9 trillion covid relief bill that Congress approved last month, though specifics on how the township can spend the money have yet to be outlined. “There’s a lot of bullet points” saying what the American Rescue Plan money can be...
Jeannette-based cemetery company sold to Pittsburgh investment firm
A Pittsburgh private equity firm purchased a Jeannette-based company that is one of the largest privately owned gravesite operators in the nation, with 26 memorial parks, including four in Westmoreland County and another in Washington County. Stonewood Capital Management said this week an unnamed affiliate purchased CMS East Inc. on...
Norwin area happenings, April 15, 2021, and beyond
Drive-thru chicken barbecue sale The Stewartsville Lions Club will hold a drive-thru chicken barbecue sale beginning at 11 a.m. April 25 at the Holiday Travel parking lot, Route 30, across from Norwin Town Square in North Huntingdon. Due to social distancing guidelines, meal orders will be taken from the customers,...

