Mary Ann Thomas stories, Page 60
Long-awaited Route 356 project begins in Allegheny Township; little disruption expectedVideo
Whether it’s the numerous traffic accidents or rescuing his wife after her car hit black ice caused by poor drainage, Allegheny Township Supervisor Ren Steele and many others are thrilled to see the Route 356 widening project finally begin. “It’s been a team effort,” Steele said of past supervisors, residents...
State officials to tour Armstrong County flood damage, hold public meeting Monday
The Allegheny River Development Corp (ARDC) along with state lawmakers and the Department of Environmental Protection will tour flood damage in the Rimer area of Armstrong County along the Allegheny River on Monday and hold a public meeting at 1 p.m. at the Madison Township Building, 107 Lawsonham Road, Widnoon,...
Game Commission hopes plastic bag in nest won’t harm Hays bald eagles
The male Pittsburgh Hays bald eagle brought an unusual, and potentially dangerous, object to the family aerie earlier this week: a black plastic bag. An official with the Pennsylvania Game Commission said Friday she hopes the plastic bag won’t wrap around an adult’s leg or one of the two young...
Antique telegraph and electrical insulators on display at West Leechburg show
The Western Reserve Insulator Club will showcase antique telegraph and electrical insulators at its 19th annual show April 6 in West Leechburg. The free public show will take place at the West Leechburg Fire Hall. The club will have a table of freebies to entice the public. “If you want...
Free Narcan training in Lower Burrell
Lower Burrell will offer a free Narcan training and education to the public at 6 p.m., April 9, at city hall. The Westmoreland County Drug Task Force will present an opioid addiction education forum, including training on how to administer naloxone, also known as Narcan, which reverses the effect of...
Residents of Vandergrift high-rise report ‘sewage-cicles,’ other plumbing problems
Residents of McMurtry Towers in Vandergrift sent a petition to the Westmoreland County Housing Authority demanding that it do a better job of cleaning up a sewage-line break last month that reportedly formed “sewage-cicles” on the building’s front porch. The sewage break in a second-floor apartment Feb. 8 caused raw...
Allegheny Angler in Tarentum to offer discounts, food at grand reopening
In the run-up to the opening of trout season next month, Allegheny Angler in Tarentum will hold its grand reopening Saturday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. The longtime bait-and-tackle shop at 200 Ross St., rallied back after a fire closed it for more than four months. Although the business...
New Freeport senior elective could set up students for $40K-plus job at Oberg
Freeport Area High School students will have an opportunity to take an advanced manufacturing elective with Oberg Industries, where graduates could snag a job starting in the low $40,000 range after graduation, according to company officials. The Freeport Area School Board approved an apprenticeship and career exploration program earlier this...
Feds say budget changes proposed by Trump won’t affect Parks Twp. waste dump cleanup
A proposed change in the 2020 federal budget that would transfer management of a nuclear waste dump cleanup from the Army Corps of Engineers to the Department of Energy isn’t expected to have any effect on the Parks Township project. Currently, the Corps is in charge of cleanup efforts at...
Armstrong County job fair coming March 28 to Apollo-Ridge
The Armstrong County Counselors Association will hold a career and job fair March 28 from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. in the Apollo-Ridge High School gymnasium in Kiski Township. The event is free and open to the public. Attendees should register on the events tab at PACareerLink.pa.gov Two free job...
Feds bust wife of former Vandergrift High, NFL player in college admissions scandal
The wife of a Vandergrift native and football star who played for Pitt and the San Francisco 49ers is among 50 people charged in the largest college admissions scam ever prosecuted in U.S. history. Marci Palatella, 63, of Hillsborough, Calif., is facing mail fraud charges in federal court for alleged...
Feds bust wife of former Vandergrift High, NFL player in college admissions scandal
The wife of a Vandergrift native and football star who played for Pitt and the San Francisco 49ers is among 50 people charged in the largest college admissions scam ever prosecuted in U.S. history. Marci Palatella, 63, of Hillsborough, Calif., faces mail fraud charges in federal court for her alleged...
Bank, Penn State affiliate to offer business tips to Vandergrift businesses on Friday
Vandergrift’s VIP program along with First Commonwealth Bank and Penn State Cooperative will explore financial help and education for the borough and local businesses during a public meeting Friday at the borough building. First Commonwealth and Penn State Extensions’ Smart Growth Program will see if Vandergrift Borough and local businesses...
Apollo-Ridge looks to cut costs, maintain quality through early retirements
Apollo-Ridge School District is offering an early retirement package to teachers with five or more years of experience — a package for which about 80 percent of the district’s nearly 100 teachers would be eligible. “The timing of the offer is to continue our desire to creatively find ways to...
North Apollo hires firm to recover $200,000 in delinquent sewage bills
North Apollo recently agreed to hire AAS Debt Recovery Inc. to pursue payments from residents behind on their sewage bills. Councilman Bill Campbell said some accounts are 10 to 15 years behind and the agency hopes to recover about $200,000. Under the plan, AAS would keep 35 percent of the...
Tundra swans are a treat for those lucky enough to catch their migration north
They can arrive like a snowstorm and disappear just as fast. A swatch of migrating tundra swans will continue to captivate those lucky enough to see them on local lakes and rivers as they head to their breeding grounds on the Arctic tundra. They will move through the region for...
Burrell students get high-tech homework assignment from electronics maker
Talk about your homework. Burrell High School students took home a robotic arm, a 3D printer and a heavy assignment from a visit to a Harrison circuit board producer. Tuesday’s visit to EPD Electronics by 14 Burrell students wasn’t your typical field trip and, according to school administrators and students,...
Peregrine falcons at Pitt’s Cathedral of Learning have 1st egg of season
The peregrine falcons nesting atop the University of Pittsburgh’s Cathedral of Leaning have their first egg of the season. Hope and Terzo last year raised two healthy chicks banded by the Pennsylvania Game Commission. Monitors spotted their first egg of the season Monday afternoon while watching a live web cam...
Vandergrift council candidates to hold meet-and-greet
Three Vandergrift council candidates will hold meet-and-greet at 6:30 p.m., March 15, at the Center on Franklin Avenue, 262 Franklin Avenue. Three council seats are up for election this year. They are four-year terms currently held by Kathy Chvala, Vernon E. Sciullo and James Rametta, according to the Westmoreland County...
Crime trends presentation to highlight Vandergrift Community Watch meeting
A presentation at the new Center on Franklin Avenue will highlight the Vandergrift Community Watch meeting at 7 p.m., Thursday, in the borough building. The meeting will include a presentation on crime trends by Vandergrift Police Officer Joseph Gray. The meeting is a time for the community to air any...
Natrona resident Bill Godfrey creates art, community
Editor’s note: This is part of an occasional series that features Alle-Kiski Valley people and the notable things that they do. A sunny day is best to visit artist Bill Godfrey, as the golden rays pour into his studio to illuminate the lavender and canary walls, and a palette of...
Lower Burrell homeowners will soon pay about 20 percent more in sewage fees
Lower Burrell is raising its sewer rates by 21 percent. The new rates will be reflected in customers’ quarterly bills, which will arrive in the next few weeks, according to city officials. The average customer currently pays $81.81 per quarter. The same customer will now pay $98.71 per quarter. That’s...
Vandergrift awards contract for more than $180,000 to repave borough streets
A state grant will pay for repaving a number of Vandergrift streets this year. Vandergrift Council recently awarded a paving contract to A. Liberoni Inc. of Plum. Their price is a little more than $180,000. It was the lowest of nine bids received. According to the contract, 10 streets will...
$330K Penn State New Ken grant will train Alle-Kiski Valley teachers tech skills
A $328,000 state grant to a Penn State New Kensington collaborative with 14 Alle-Kiski Valley school districts will pay for teacher education and learning modules for students to take on computer coding and other technologies. The grant is part of $30 million awarded by Gov. Tom Wolf’s PAsmart, which is...
Great American Cleanup event planned in West Leechburg
The Kiski Watershed Association will participate in the Great American Cleanup with a cleanup event at the West Leechburg Wildflower Preserve from 9 a.m. to noon March 23. Volunteers are needed and should wear boots, gloves and clothes that can get dirty. Registration is not necessary. The Keep America Beautiful/Great...
