Mary Ann Thomas stories, Page 17
PennDOT policy change adds cost to Lower Burrell VFW’s Veterans Day parade
After decades of holding the annual Veterans Day parade in Lower Burrell, the local VFW doesn’t understand why they now have to pay $450 in insurance to stage this year’s parade. “For what we have done for this country, the sacrifice and soldiers risking their lives, and now with a...
Police say Snapchat post of ‘shooting up’ Central Catholic High School is no longer a threat
A social media post about “shooting up” Central High School, not necessarily Central Catholic High School in Pittsburgh, is no longer a threat to the local all-boys, college prep school, according to Pittsburgh Police on Sunday. Central Catholic officials alerted Pittsburgh Police about the threat Saturday on Snapchat. Detectives with...
Man shot early Sunday in Lincoln-Lemington
A man was shot in the torso in Pittsburgh’s Lincoln-Lemington neighborhood early Sunday. Pittsburgh Police responded to a report of shots fired near the intersection of Lincoln and Lemington avenues just after 2:30 a.m. Police said when they arrived they found a man shot in the torso. He was taken...
Thousands flock to Freeport for fall festival honoring the late Greg Wells
Organizers had expected about 500 residents to participate in the inaugural Greg Wells Memorial Fall Festival on Sunday at Freeport Community Park. That estimate turned out to be a bit low, as more than 2,000 people showed up to honor the late Freeport youth baseball and soccer coach. A Harrison...
Dirty Dozen bike ride challenges cyclists to take on Pittsburgh area’s steepest hills
The 38th annual Dirty Dozen Bicycle Ride was held Saturday, challenging cyclists to take on 13 of the Pittsburgh area’s steepest hills. The route is about 60 miles. Typically, the ride’s duration is five hours because of the stops and easy pace between the hills. The ride requires endurance and...
Giant Eagle to hold hiring event to fill more than 1,000 jobs in Pittsburgh area
Giant Eagle will hold in-person hiring events at all of its stores Tuesday to fill more than 1,000 permanent, full-time and part-time jobs in the Pittsburgh area. Although the positions are permanent, a Giant Eagle statement said it needs the workers to help with the stores’ vital role in local...
Clover the cat was a frog and a Westie wore a bridesmaid’s dress for Animal Protectors Halloween
Not surprisingly, a 6-foot-long inflatable black cat greeted visitors at Animal Protectors of Allegheny Valley’s Halloween open house Saturday. But it was a real tabby in a frog costume that stole the show at the pet dress-up contest during the afternoon. While Clover didn’t run the catwalk in front of...
I-79 South lane restrictions into Sunday morning in Sewickley Heights, Mt. Nebo exit
PennDOT has imposed a single-lane restriction on southbound Interstate 79’s Exit 68, at Mount Nebo in Sewickley Heights, that remains in effect until Sunday at 11 a.m. Work crews are working on an emergency pull-off area along the corridor. Future improvements are in the works on I-79 in the Sewickley...
Firefighter tax credit still on hold in Lower Burrell
A proposed municipal tax credit, as high as $300, is on hold for firefighters living in Lower Burrell. That’s because city council was not able to complete the details of the package this year, according to Councilman Joe Grillo. Former Mayor Rich Callender said he floated the idea to council...
Leaves didn’t cooperate for Allegheny River tour in Armstrong, yet Gateway Clipper trip turnout was strong
OK, so there wasn’t fall foliage for the much-anticipated Gateway Clipper leaf-peeping tour on the Allegheny River in Armstrong County earlier this month because of unseasonably warm weather. Then, Lock and Dam No. 6 in Clinton closed unexpectedly for repairs, causing organizers to reroute the trip to launch from Freeport...
Lower Burrell lands $130,000 grant for Craigdell Road project, awards contract
Lower Burrell has secured a $130,000 state grant to fix stormwater drainage problems along Craigdell Road in the Kay Street area, with contract bids coming in lower than anticipated. Aging pipes in the Craigdell Road area need to be repaired before they worsen, said Matt Pitsch of Senate Engineering, the...
Experts pick the best places to see fall foliage in Southwestern Pa.
Local foresters, outdoors enthusiasts, biologists and motorcycle riders all have their favorite places to see the fall panorama of leaves. Mountains, hillsides and river valleys are among the best places to view the fall leaf spectacle not just because of the volume of trees, but the variety. “The diversity of...
Any day now, really: Fall leaf colors to pop soon in Western Pa.
There wasn’t much peeping going on for the long-planned and sold-out Gateway Clipper fall leaf-peeping tour last weekend on the Allegheny River in Armstrong County. Although the boat ride was spectacular in its own right, “it was disappointing we could not control Mother Nature,” said Chris Ziegler, president of the...
Burrell School District settles for $400,000 loss in property taxes with Arconic
After Arconic appealed a $653,100 real estate tax levy for property in Upper Burrell last year, the aluminum company and Burrell School District recently settled on a $403,000 tax reduction. Upper Burrell is also part of the settlement, and it will lose close to $39,000 in tax revenue annually. “The...
Biden expected to sign legislation for feds to assist in 9/11 National Memorial Trail
President Joe Biden is expected to sign legislation unanimously passed by Congress supporting the development of the September 11th National Memorial Trail, a proposed 1,300-mile recreational trail linking the three 9/11 crash sites. The legislation will enable the Department of the Interior to assist in developing the trail route, signage,...
Ten years later, scholarships carry on Officer Derek Kotecki’s legacy
An industrial products salesman who is a firefighter. A corrections officer at a halfway house. A pharmacist in Baltimore. They never met Lower Burrell senior patrolman Derek Kotecki, but he touched their lives unexpectedly with an educational scholarship. Oct. 12 marks the 10th anniversary of when Kotecki, 40, was killed...
Third Lower Burrell food truck and craft show on tap for Saturday
For its final food truck rally of the year this Saturday, Lower Burrell Volunteer Fire Company No. 3 is pairing a wide selection of international and American cuisines with a craft show featuring handmade jewelry and other artisan wares. During the fundraising doldrums of the pandemic, the fire company had...
Escaped Steller’s sea eagle, Kody, spotted near Pittsburgh’s North Park
The National Aviary in Pittsburgh said Friday that it is getting closer to capturing Kody, the Steller’s sea eagle that escaped from an outdoor enclosure last week. Kody, short for Kodiak, was spotted Thursday in the North Park area. Aviary staff, including the executive director and animal care experts, camped...
Burrell High retires Officer Brian Shaw’s soccer number; soon to retire his football number
The late Officer Brian Shaw’s No. 2 jersey for Burrell’s soccer team has been retired. Burrell School District officials retired Shaw’s number just before the start of a home game Wednesday between the Buccaneers and Leechburg High School. Shaw, a New Kensington police officer and a 2010 Burrell graduate, was...
Police seeking Indiana County men who they say stole ATV from Kiski Township
Kiski Township police are looking for two Indiana County men who they said stole a Wildcat side-by-side, all-terrain vehicle from a township home. The theft of the lime green Wildcat ATV was reported to police on Sept. 16. Police said they are asking the public for information about the whereabouts...
Aviary asks Pittsburgh residents for help in finding Kodiak, the missing Steller’s sea eagleVideo
The National Aviary in Pittsburgh’s North Side is asking the public to help them find Kodiak, the Steller’s sea eagle that escaped from his outdoor enclosure on Saturday. The aviary has been closed since Saturday as groups of staff and volunteers fan out across Pittsburgh’s North Side and nearby communities...
Burrell middle school students help draft legislation calling for mandatory recess statewide
Students at Burrell’s Huston Middle School have co-authored proposed state legislation that would make recess a protected right for young students like them. What started as a persuasive writing exercise turned into the students crafting the would-be legislation with state Rep. Bob Brooks, R-Murrysville. Brooks is looking for co-sponsors before...
National Aviary’s Steller’s sea eagle remains missing, believed to still be in Pittsburgh area
The National Aviary is still looking in the Pittsburgh area for the missing Steller’s sea eagle known as Kodiak and Kody, a huge bird that is noticeably larger than its relative, the bald eagle. The bird escaped from a breach in its outdoor enclosure Saturday morning, said Molly Toth, a...
Spooky Howl at Moon 5K and walk coming next month to Roaring Run Trail
There was the Roaring Run trail’s Race to the Moon 5K most years in July when Apollo celebrated the first moon landing. But that race was canceled two years in a row because of the pandemic. Now resurrected with a spooky theme is the Howl at the Moon 5K and...
Jeff Pyle honored at groundbreaking of new BC3 college in Ford City
As a line of public officials spoke at the groundbreaking of the new Butler County Community College (BC3) in Ford City on Friday, most of them uttered the same name: Jeff Pyle. Pyle is a former Republican state representative, former Ford City mayor and a former teacher at Ford City...
