Bethel Park Journal category, Page 9
Organizer ‘beyond words happy’ with inaugural Bethel Park Arts and Music Festival
The sun was beaming, creating an 80-degree afternoon. A combined scent of gyros, tacos, barbecue and pastries wafted through the humid atmosphere. Children cheered in the splash park and music filled attendees’ ears. The American flag flew high in the air, displayed by an aerial fire truck. This scene made...
$1M anonymous donation funds UPMC Western Psych unit renovation
The Adult Trauma Recovery Unit of UPMC’s Western Psychiatric Hospital has been renovated with murals and supplies after receiving $1 million from an anonymous donor. Now called the Zoe Atrium, the unit on the 13th floor features new welcoming spaces, books, magazines and board games, new flooring and murals in...
Site of former LA fitness eyed for new store in Bethel Park
The scene of a demolished building that housed fitness centers is proposed as the site for a new store. Bethel Park Council approved the preliminary/final plan for Floor & Décor, to be located at 3000 Oxford Drive, where there previously was an LA Fitness and before that, Bally’s. “I have...
In brief: Bethel Park happenings, week of July 22, 2024
Acting Up Club South Hills Church of the Nazarene, 5601 Library Road, Bethel Park, presents the next session of the Acting Up Club 6:30 to 8 p.m. Wednesdays, Aug. 28 through Dec. 11. The drama and music club for children in secnd through sixth grades features music, movement, and acting...
Bethel Park real estate transactions, week of July 21, 2024
Bethel Park Lori Wilmot sold property at 2910 Bethel Church Road to Cedar Brook Properties Funding 1 LLC for $145,000. Kimberly Wicker sold property at 4940 Gardenville Road to Jenki Gomez Diaz for $160,000. Clyde Elliott Nelson sold property at 211 Horning Road to Natalie Lacek and Zachary McDowell for...
2024 Trib HSSN Preseason Football All-Star Team: Bethel Park’s Ryan Petras
The recruiting process can be a stressful time for top high school athletes as they try to determine which college to choose to continue their academic and athletic careers. The pressure can be twice as tough when they are sifting through offers from two different sports. Welcome to the world...
Bethel Park’s Ryan Petras wraps up highly decorated junior year
The postseason accolades have been pouring in for Bethel Park superstar athlete Ryan Petras. As a junior shortstop in 2024, Petras recently was named the Trib HSSN Class 5A Baseball Player of the Year. Petras overcame a wrist injury to hit .452 (33 for 73) this spring with one home...
Food for all: Carlow University garden in Oakland is the vision of a student from Bethel Park
Grace’s Garden will provide nourishment for the body … and the soul. Located on land at Carlow University in Oakland, the ground is being tended to grow fruits and vegetables for not only students, faculty and staff, but also anyone else in the community. The name of the Carlow Community...
Bethel Park hosts 1st Arts and Music Festival
Imagine Bethel Park’s Park Avenue occupied by thousands of faces, the street lined with food trucks, an eclectic mix of music filling the air, and vendor tables and raffle baskets taking over the football field. On July 27, Bethel Park will make history by hosting its first Arts and Music...
New pickleball courts in Bethel Park’s Millennium Park cater to all
Bethel Park resident Wayne Reno was on a casual walk through South Park when he first discovered pickleball. “Someone from the group said, ‘Do you play pickleball?’ I said no, and they just invited me to play,” he recalled. Now Reno and a group regularly show up at the new...
Full STEAM ahead for Camp Invention in Bethel Park
Some kids enjoy going to school during the summer. Camp Invention is a nationwide science-oriented summer camp created by the National Inventors Hall of Fame to engage students entering kindergarten through sixth grade with learning and social activities. “Hearing from parents that ‘my child doesn’t really like school, my child...
Demolition approved for dilapidated Bethel Park home
At first glance of Bethel Park’s Brookside Farms, one may assume it is an ordinary Pittsburgh suburban neighborhood. With a turn onto Comanche Road, the picturesque area becomes distorted when a deteriorating house filled with woodpecker holes and mold becomes visible through the overgrowth that devours the home. At a...
Pittsburgh Vegan Expo hosts summer festival in Bethel Park
By reputation, Pittsburgh seems to be a meat-and-potatoes kind of town. These days, though, plenty of people are sticking with the potatoes and forgoing the meat. And milk and cheese, for that matter. Amy Cottrill, who originated the Pittsburgh Vegan Festival back before very many folks knew what “vegan” meant,...
Multistate forgery ring suspects head to trial in Allegheny County bank thefts
Early this year, police broke up what they said was a multistate crime ring of document forgers and identity thieves who swindled thousands of dollars from personal bank accounts in Southwestern Pennsylvania, Connecticut and Kentucky. Four thieves hailing from New York, Indiana and Delaware drove a rented car from bank...
Memorial car cruise brings 300-plus classics to Bethel Park
The third time proved to be the charm for the #GaryStrong car cruise in Bethel Park. In October, owners of classic and performance vehicles gathered to honor enthusiast Gary Carmen, a 1980 Bethel Park High School graduate. “The first car show, the weather was really cold,” Sandy Jansante, his sister...
‘The Place for Smiles’: Brentwood artist’s painting helps celebrate 75 years of Eat’n Park
As an artist with a passion for painting Pittsburgh landmarks, Linda Barnicott had the idea for a 2024 project depicting an iconic restaurant chain. She remembers discussing the possibility with a young man who visited her vendor booth at a holiday market. It turned out that his grandfather had owned...
Bethel Park School Board adopts budget, approves tax increase
Following the June 25 Bethel Park School Board meeting, district taxpayers are faced with a 1.5222-mill real estate tax increase, bringing the new rate to 26.0748 mills. The increase comes with the board’s adoption of a $110.4 million final general fund operating budget for the 2024-25 school year. For a...
In brief: Bethel Park area happenings, week of June 24, 2024
Summer Spectacular fireworks Bethel Park will hold its annual Summer Spectacular fireworks display at 9:40 p.m. June 29. Suggested viewing areas include Abraham Lincoln Elementary School, 1524 Hamilton Road; St. Germaine Church, 7003 Baptist Road; Hamilton Presbyterian Church, 4500 Hamilton Road; Cool Springs, 1530 Hamilton Road; and Lowe’s, 5775 Baptist...
Bethel Park real estate transactions, week of June 23, 2024
Bethel Park Barbara Colteryahn sold property at 2679 Bethel Crest Drive to Andrew Blasko and Nicole Hauck for $379,000. Stephanie Sue Burkhard sold property at 6131 Brush Run Road to Terrence Earl and Jonay Michelle Carpenter for $375,000. David Tischler trustee sold property at Cedar St. to Edward and Paula...
Bethel Park notebook: Makenzie Wade, Belinda Bova play in softball all-star game
The inaugural Western PA Softball All-Star Game between Team Gold and Team Black took place June 18 at Plum High School. Team Black won the game, 7-4. Many of the WPIAL’s top senior players participated in what was termed “a celebration of the 2024 spring season.” Two girls from Bethel...
Bethel Park baseball continues program’s tradition of deep postseason runs
Bethel Park advanced to the WPIAL Class 5A baseball championship round riding a five-game winning streak and with a 9-2 record in the second half of the regular season. Penn-Trafford, the Black Hawks’ opponent, strung together a 13-game winning streak this season and had won 17 of its last 19...
Bethel Park School District budget calls for tax increase
Bethel Park School Board is scheduled to vote June 25 on a final general fund operating budget that calls for a 1.5222-mill real estate tax increase. The $110.4 million spending plan includes a recent adjustment to add $2 million award to the district for the purchase of 10 electric buses...
Event in Peters raises $50K for veterans, military members
A yearly fundraiser on behalf of veterans and active members of the military continues to be a success. The VETS Care charity event, held on the sunny afternoon of June 1 in Peters Township, exceeded its $50,000 goal. Organizer Bri Hall of North Strabane reported the proceeds will be divided...
Display memorializes Bethel Park Marine
The portrait shows a youthful, handsome Marine in his dress blues, a slight smile surrounded by his square jaw and bright eyes conveying pride and determination. That’s the way his parents wanted to remember him when they commissioned Washington County artist Nat Youngblood to paint the image of 2nd Lt....
Bethel Park opens new Splash Park
Looking into a crowd of children wearing bathing suits in anticipation of being first-ever guests at the new Bethel Park Splash Park, state Rep. Natalie Mihalek decided to keep her comments brief. “I don’t want to be the one standing in the way of kids going to the splash pad,...
