Valley News Dispatch category, Page 46
The Stroller, July 17, 2025: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your non-profit’s community events, fundraisers and club meetings for free in The Stroller. Send information at least two weeks in advance to vndnews@triblive.com or The Stroller, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Follow the Stroller on X at @VNDStroller. ‘The Roeblings of Saxonburg’...
Lower Burrell approves cooperative fire agreement: ‘a realistic solution,’ mayor says
A cooperative fire agreement among Lower Burrell, New Kensington and Arnold fire departments has won approval from Lower Burrell officials. Council approved plans outlining rules to establish a Tri-Cities duty crew for daytime volunteer fire coverage among the three cities. “I’m very excited for the Tri-City duty crew and its...
Tarentum’s Dreshar Stadium, rich in sports history, ‘served its time’
Amy Nulph grew up at Dreshar Stadium in Tarentum. “My dad coached there for the Hornets, my brothers played there and now my kids are there with RYFO (Rams Youth Football Organization),” she said. Plans to demolish the 87-year-old sports complex are bittersweet for Nulph and many area families. Work...
Roads closed, wires down after rain pummels Harrison, Fawn
Heavy thunderstorms rolled through the area Wednesday, wreaking havoc in local municipalities, particularly Fawn and Harrison. In Fawn, Bull Creek Road was flooded for a considerable stretch in the vicinity of Iron Bridge Road. There was a report of a house that in that area having 5 feet of water...
Burrell elementary school expansion to be tweaked after bids come in over budget
Burrell School District officials need to pare the cost of construction projects at Bon Air Elementary School after bids came in over budget. The lowest bid for Bon Air’s proposed cafeteria and kitchen addition, and heating and cooling projects, came in at $12.6 million, according to Superintendent Shannon Wagner. “That...
Plum inks deal with DA for body cam footage requests
All Right-to-Know requests for police audio and video footage in Plum will go through the Allegheny County District Attorney’s Office first after Plum Council approved a memorandum of understanding with the DA’s office. The memorandum requires the borough to forward all requests for audio and video related to “criminal and...
Shoe Sensation nearing opening date in Allegheny Township
A Shoe Sensation is coming to Allegheny Township. The store, in the Hyde Park Plaza, 451 Hyde Park Road, tentatively plans a soft opening Aug. 15, according to a representative from Shoe Sensation. The representative offered no other details about the store. Shoe Sensation sells an assortment of shoes and...
Fox Chapel Area School District STEAM camp draws nearly 200 students
Fox Chapel Area School District hosted its annual STEAM Camp at Fairview Elementary School last month. About 200 students participated in the week dedicated to science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics. It was open to students in first through eighth grades. District community engagement specialist Jill Leonard said students attended...
Oakmont man threatened to use guillotine on Florida hospital CEO, police say
An Oakmont man was arrested and charged with cyber harassment of a Florida hospital CEO, including threats to use a guillotine. Florida officials are seeking to extradite Lawrence Brunn, 63, to face charges that he has been harassing the CEO of Tampa General Hospital, according to court documents. The CEO,...
The Stroller, July 16, 2025: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your non-profit’s community events, fundraisers and club meetings for free in The Stroller. Send information at least two weeks in advance to vndnews@triblive.com or The Stroller, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Follow the Stroller on X at @VNDStroller. Free concert to feature...
Tarentum man charged in connection with Halloween dog attacks
Editor’s note: This story was changed on Wednesday, July 15, to reflect that all charges against Brandon Baynes were dismissed in June. A Tarentum man is facing criminal charges, accused by police of letting pit bulls out of an apartment on Halloween that attacked and severely injured other residents. Shawn...
New Kensington murder suspect given deadline to decide on plea deal ahead of August retrial
A New Kensington man has just hours to decide whether to accept a plea deal involving the 2020 murder during a botched robbery and the unrelated shooting of four others a year earlier. The combined plea offer comes just weeks before the scheduled retrial of Latresse T. Williams, 34. Prosecutors...
Natrona Heights woman tries to retract manslaughter plea at sentencing
Brook Lynn Lank pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter on June 11 — admitting she shot her boyfriend three times before dumping his body in a McKees Rocks alley. In preparation for sentencing, she wrote a letter to the court acknowledging what she called her mistakes, and saying, “I take full...
‘Unforgivable’: Final defendant gets life sentence in starvation death of Oakmont girl
Throughout her prosecution for killing a 3-year-old girl, Alexis Herrera blamed her actions — starving, assaulting and torturing the child — on her sister, Laura Ramriez. It was Ramriez who hated Bella Seachrist, a child born from her husband’s affair. It was Ramriez who first started abusing the child in...
PennDOT rejects Lower Burrell’s request to outlaw jake brakes on stretch of Route 56
The loud roar of diesel trucks using brake retarders will continue to be heard on Route 56 between Hillcrest Drive and Leechburg Road in Lower Burrell. City officials in April had requested that PennDOT look into outlawing brake retarders, commonly known as jake brakes, on that stretch of road after...
Girl’s fall from Leechburg Bridge under investigation, officials say
Leechburg officials said Tuesday they’re still investigating after a girl fell from the Leechburg Bridge on Monday night. First responders were dispatched to the Leechburg Bridge at around 7:30 p.m. for a juvenile who had fallen from the bridge and onto the shoreline along the Kiski River. It’s unclear at...
Lower Burrell’s Kotecki Park to include space for dogs
Lower Burrell police Officer Derek Kotecki’s legacy will be remembered in the city in a new way. Council approved plans for a dog park at K-9 Officer Derek Kotecki Memorial Park. The dog park will be located past the outfield of the ballfield, closest to where people pull in to...
The Stroller, July 15, 2025: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your non-profit’s community events, fundraisers and club meetings for free in The Stroller. Send information at least two weeks in advance to vndnews@triblive.com or The Stroller, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Follow the Stroller on X at @VNDStroller. Tarentum Summer Concert series...
Girl falls from Leechburg Bridge onto shoreline of Kiski River
A girl was taken by medical helicopter to a local hospital after falling off the Leechburg Bridge and onto the shoreline along the Kiskiminetas River Monday evening. Lower Kiski Ambulance Service confirmed the incident via its Facebook page. The post said crews responded to the scene at the bridge, along...
Harrison Commissioner Chuck Dizard, credited for much township revitalization, resigns
Harrison Commissioner Chuck Dizard hand-delivered his annual newsletter to more than 900 homes in the First Ward on Friday, calling it his grand finale. Dizard plans to resign July 31 after 10 years on the board. “We need some young leadership,” he said. “We need new people coming to the...
Brackenridge officials ask for patience during staff shortage
Brackenridge Mayor Lindsay Fraser is asking residents to be patient while the borough administrative staff undergoes transitions to help solve staff shortages. While some people have taken to social media with complaints about their difficulty reaching anyone at the borough building, Fraser said, residents can “expect more efficient and accessible...
Officials eye safety upgrades at Tarentum spray park amid vehicle crashes
Tracy Tressler is a regular at the Tarentum spray park. Most days in the summer, she walks the few blocks from her job at Kiddieland on East Fourth Avenue with her students so they can run around and cool off. Hearing the borough is eyeing safety upgrades at the splash...
Route 28 Harmar exit reopened after car crash takes out light pole
The Harmar exit of Route 28 inbound (Exit 11) has reopened Monday morning after being closed for several hours while crews addressed a fallen light pole. A car crash reported to PennDOT just before 2:30 a.m. knocked over the light pole along the exit lane, said spokesperson Steve Cowan. Utility...
Spin Doctors, Gin Blossoms and Blues Traveler rock it old school at Pittsburgh Brewing Co.
On Sunday night, Pittsburgh Brewing Co. in Creighton got a lineup that would’ve completely packed Star Lake in 1995. You can just imagine a sea of tie-dye-clad hacky-sackers rocking out to three of the moment’s hottest bands. Considering it’s 30 years later, the bill of Spin Doctors, Gin Blossoms and...
Sharpsburg Parks and Rec Commission welcomes new members
Sharpsburg’s parks and rec commission recently welcomed two new members. Residents Paul Rouse and Jon Andrascik were sworn in to their volunteer positions by Mayor Kayla Portis earlier this year. Commission terms are four years. Rouse said he moved to the borough from O’Hara about three years ago and wanted...
