Murrysville Star category, Page 129
AMVETS, American Legion, VFW host honor roll ceremonies for Veterans DayVideo
Michael Jackson of Export, a retired first lieutenant with the U.S. Army Special Forces, was quick to distinguish Veterans Day from its sibling holiday, Memorial Day. “It’s about service today,” Jackson said at an early Veterans Day ceremony Saturday morning at the Frank Kapusta American Legion post in Export. “We...
Export officials hope to relocate vets monument in the spring
Export officials hope to move the veterans memorial at the former American Legion on Kennedy Avenue closer to the borough’s downtown in the spring. “We want to shoot for April,” said Councilman John Nagoda. “It going to probably be easier than we thought.” With 2020 marking the 75th anniversary of...
State grant to help fund turn lane for Route 22 development in Murrysville
Murrysville officials secured a grant that could be worth up to nearly $971,000 to help pay for construction of a westbound turn lane on Route 22 to accommodate plans for a 46-acre mixed used development that will include the expansion of Dedicated Nursing Associates. The developer, Bushy Run Investments, is...
Several races unopposed; newcomer joins Murrysville council
While candidates in the Franklin Regional school board race were anxiously anticipating the first returns in Tuesday’s election, it was business as usual for Export council members John Nagoda, Joe Ferri, David Silvis and Vince Harding, who held their regular monthly meeting despite all being up for reelection. Export council...
Export officials propose 2020 budget with no tax hike
Export officials will vote next month on a 2020 budget that holds the line on taxes at 14 mills. Borough council voted Monday night to advertise the $659,000 budget, which has a projected surplus of more than $10,000. Council has not raised taxes for more than a decade, and its...
Murrysville church taking nominations, donations for ‘A Soldier’s Christmas’ program
Gordon Israelson of Murrysville knows the importance a handwritten note can hold for a soldier stationed overseas. “Mail is kind of always a big deal,” said Israelson, who was stationed in Germany from 1969 to 1972 with the U.S. Army. “A long-distance call to Europe back then was amazingly expensive.”...
Veterans Day activities planned for Saturday
On Saturday, the White Valley AMVETS will join the Export, Delmont and Murrysville American Legions and the Delmont VFW to sponsor Veterans’ Day ceremonies at two local cemeteries, and honor rolls throughout the three towns. The itinerary will be:8 a.m., ceremony at Eastview Union Cemetery, East Pittsburgh Street in Delmont8:30...
Sloan project opponents take 4 of 5 seats on Franklin Regional School Board
The race for five Franklin Regional School Board seats appears to have been dominated by a single issue: the Sloan “elementary campus” project. Candidates who banded together under the banner of “Restore Taxpayer Trust” took four of the five contested seats. They were steadfast in their opposition to the Sloan...
Washington Township man sets state record for largest green squash
It’s the great pumpkin, Charlie Brown! Or rather, it’s the great green squash! Whatever it is, it’s officially the largest of its kind in Pennsylvania — and it was grown in Washington Township by the Yohe family. “This is my fourth year growing them,” Jay Yohe said. “My father was...
Murrysville Cantata Choir to present 2nd annual ‘Patriotic Thanksgiving’ concert
The Murrysville Cantata Choir will present “A Patriotic Thanksgiving” concert Nov. 10 in First Presbyterian Church, Murrysville, and will also perform the concert a week later in Heinz Chapel in Pittsburgh’s Oakland neighborhood. “We were very pleased by the warm reception that last year’s concert received and we look forward...
Delmont firefighters say criticism from council hurts fundraising, recruitmentVideo
Delmont firefighters say an ongoing rift between the department and borough council has stymied fundraising and recruitment efforts. “It’s completely unnecessary, but they keep bashing our fire department,” said Rich Balik, Delmont fire chief. “We’ve been trying to build this department back up for two years after the past problems...
Franklin Regional youth football teams will play for two championships this weekend
When Big East Youth Football League teams get together for four championship games this weekend in Vandergrift, squads from Franklin Regional will have a chance to win half of them. The Franklin Area Midget Football Association’s 7/8 and 11/12 teams will go up against Gateway and McKeesport, respectively, on Saturday...
State legislation would expand first-responder tax credit to the county level
This April, state Rep. Bob Brooks, R-Murrysville, donated $16,000 of his state salary to fire departments in his 54th District. Brooks wants to continue helping first responders with House Bill 1839, which would authorize counties to issue a property tax credit to active firefighters or emergency medical responders. The bill...
Franklin Regional Panther Foundation gets $18,000 donation, plans 2020 fundraisers
The Franklin Regional Panther Foundation has big plans for 2020, which were bolstered in late October by the announcement of an $18,000 donation from a local car dealership. Officials at the nonprofit foundation received the donation from Robert Thomasson, general manager for Spitzer Toyota in Monroeville. It will help fund...
Delmont library officials will break ground next month on new building
Delmont Public Library officials will break ground on a brand-new building on Nov. 16. Following a roughly four-year capital campaign, library officials raised just over $1 million through grants and community donations that will help fund a new, 4,150-square-foot library with multiple eco-friendly “green” features. “It’s amazing and phenomenal,” said...
Family offers $50,000 to match donations for new Delmont library
Delmont resident Bill Lendl and his family value their local public library and want to see it thrive. That’s why Lendl announced a matching fundraising challenge, where he agreed to match community donations up to $50,000, which will be put toward the building fund for the new Delmont Public Library....
YouTube video leads to criminal mischief charges at Murrysville golf course
Murrysville police arrested six men after a video surfaced online showing damage to golf carts and turf at the Rolling Fields Golf Club in Murrysville. The men have been charged with criminal mischief and conspiracy. Video posted to a YouTube channel called WTR, which police said stands for “White Trash...
Franklin Regional Middle School welcomes vets for annual Veterans Day assembly
For more than a quarter-century, members of a Franklin Regional Middle School eighth-grade performing arts class have welcomed veterans to the school annually to honor their valor and sacrifice at a Veterans Day assembly. That tradition will continue with this year’s assembly at both 8:30 and 10 a.m. Nov. 8...
Historical society rebuilding former one-room Murrysville schoolhouseVideo
About 175 years ago, a short stroll into the woods behind the Sampson-Clark Toll House in Murrysville would bring the one-room Murrysville schoolhouse into view. The original school was built around 1836. In 1929, the family who’d purchased the property discovered the school’s original foundation. By that time, it had...
Franklin Regional will hire part-time secretary to help with Right-To-Know requests
Franklin Regional officials will hire a part-time confidential secretary to help handle the increased number of Right-To-Know requests the district has received. The Pennsylvania Right-to-Know Act, also known as the Pennsylvania Sunshine Law, is a series of laws designed to guarantee that the public has access to public records of...
Alex Hribal’s appeal rejected in Franklin Regional rampage
A Pennsylvania appeals court on Wednesday upheld the 60-year prison sentence for Alex Hribal, the Murrysville teen convicted of wounding of 20 teens and a security guard during a 2014 knife rampage at Franklin Regional High School. A three-judge panel rejected the appeal from Hribal, 22, who claimed the sentencing...
Franklin Regional crowns homecoming royalty
Seniors Kara Soles and Riley Smith earned their spot as royalty in the Class of 2020 at Franklin Regional’s homecoming celebration on Oct. 18. The Panther football team lost, 31-14, to McKeesport, but it was all smiles among the home crowd at halftime during the homecoming festivities....
Franklin Regional officials praise expanded student-assistance program
Franklin Regional support services Director Jennifer DiFulvio began seeing what she called a “pretty significant need” in student referrals across the district’s buildings in 2015. DiFulvio said counselors were “doing a large amount of work, meeting with students and connecting them with resources. We saw the need for some additional...
Murrysville hires attorney to help develop ordinance addressing 5G antennas
Murrysville will hire a Pittsburgh attorney to help develop an ordinance regulating small wireless towers in the municipality. “Some municipalities have looked at it as a money grab, charging exorbitant permit fees,” Chief Administrator Jim Morrison told council members. “Others have chosen not to regulate it, which I do not...
Dedicated Nursing Associates expansion could include traffic improvements in Murrysville
Murrysville council amended its traffic improvement plan Wednesday to accommodate development along Route 22 that includes an expansion of the Dedicated Nursing Associates business. “Improvements will be necessary to Manor Road and possibly Route 22,” Chief Administrator Jim Morrison told council members. “A right-hand turning lane on Route 22 westbound...
