Valley News Dispatch category, Page 548
South Buffalo Township institutes secure boxes for medication drop-offs
South Buffalo Township Police Department has installed secure boxes for dropping off unwanted medication. There are two boxes — one located at the South Buffalo Township Municipal Building and the other at the Cadogan Township building, where the police department has a substation. “It’s a no-questions-asked means for people to...
Owner of Leechburg’s Twisted Thistle opening new restaurant at New Kensington ice arenaVideo
A Leechburg restaurant owner is looking to pull off a hat trick in New Kensington. Joe Hesketh, co-owner of Twisted Thistle and Market Street Pizza in Leechburg, is opening a new restaurant, Crossbar Grill, across from the Pittsburgh Ice Arena on Craigdell Road. Crossbar replaces The Breakaway Bar and Grill,...
West Deer’s proposed $7.2M budget calls for 11% increase in spending, no tax increase
West Deer’s preliminary budget for 2021 includes no increase in property taxes despite a proposed increase in spending across numerous departments. Supervisors will vote to adopt next year’s $7.2 million budget at their Dec. 16 meeting. The tax rate remains 2.99 mills in the preliminary budget. Township Manager Dan Mator...
New $250,000 waterline installation project in Upper Burrell won’t stop traffic, will improve water
An upcoming waterline project in Upper Burrell along Bethesda Drive and a small portion of White Cloud Road won’t inconvenience residents, but will improve the water quality and flow, according to a water authority official. The Municipal Authority of New Kensington is planning the $250,000 project this spring to provide...
East Deer passes proposed $1.5 million budget, no tax increase
East Deer’s proposed $1.5 million budget for 2021 calls for no property tax increase despite a 23% increase in spending. Commissioners approved the proposed budget at their Thursday meeting, and will vote to approve the final budget on Dec. 31. The tax rate will remain at 4.9 mills. Commissioners Chairman...
PennDOT plans $10M project for Route 356 corridor in Buffalo Township
PennDOT plans to make $10 million in upgrades along Route 356 in Buffalo Township to improve the flow of traffic through the township’s central business district. The project will widen Route 356 to five lanes — consisting of four travel lanes and one center turning lane — from north of...
Allegheny Township teen finds Alle-Kiski Valley towns, the outdoors compelling photographic subjects
Tyler McCandless is a teen shutterbug. Photography is his go-to hobby, trekking solo locally and regionally — hiking and photographing small historic towns and natural landscapes. McCandless, 18, lives in the Markle section of Allegheny Township and is a freshman studying environmental engineering at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. He was...
The Stroller, Dec. 13, 2020: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Is your non-profit organization going to have a fundraiser? Send information to The Stroller at least a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com. Please include a daytime telephone number. Children’s charity conducting calendar fundraiser Superheroes Believe in Miracles, a charity that serves children facing illness, disability or limitations is selling 2021...
Restaurants along Leechburg Road in Lower Burrell run the gamut of compliance with pandemic restrictions
For business owners like John Clark of Clark’s Diner in Lower Burrell, the new covid mitigation efforts instituted by Gov. Tom Wolf are as much of a threat to his workers’ livelihood as the virus itself. As a result, he’s ignoring them and allowing indoor dining to continue — in...
Police: Duo drives to West Deer nursing home, beats up woman and steals her phone
A Hampton woman is accused of driving a man and two girls to a West Deer nursing home and beating up an employee who was on her break, according to a criminal complaint. West Deer police said the victim called the police station Nov. 17 to report an assault that...
New $148,000 grant to replace old faulty waterlines in New Kensington, Lower Burrell
A $148,000 grant from the state Department of Community and Economic Development will help pay for a $400,000 project in New Kensington and Lower Burrell to replace three old waterlines that often break. The Municipal Authority of New Kensington was awarded the state grant to replace: • 1,300 feet of...
Tax increase, furloughs, contract on table as New Kensington-Arnold starts budget work
The New Kensington-Arnold School District may have to raise property taxes and furlough employees as it goes into a difficult budget at the same time it negotiates a new contract with its teachers union, the school board’s former president said. The district raised the property tax rate by 3 mills,...
The Stroller, Dec. 12, 2020: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Volunteers needed at Kiski Valley Cat & Kitten Rescue Kiski Valley Cat & Kitten Rescue in Apollo is seeking volunteers and donations. The organization is dedicated to the prevention of cruelty and neglect toward cats and kittens and provides shelter and necessary medical care until they can find their forever...
Leechburg man turns yard — and neighbors’ — into synchronized holiday light-and-music showVideo
Leechburg is shining bright thanks to the generosity of a Main Street resident. Clyde Lindsey is the creator of Leechburg Lights, the annual synchronized holiday light-and-music show now open for the 2020-21 season. It’s in its 13th year. Lindsey is a nationally recognized professional lighting programmer. What began as a...
Food truck owner hosts ‘ghost kitchen’ in Vandergrift
Tom Scanga, owner of Del Vecchio’s Sausage & Fries, is branching out this weekend with a ghost kitchen — a temporary, pop-up restaurant focusing on something completely outside of his specialty. Friday through Sunday, from 3 to 7 p.m., Scanga will be operating out of his commissary at 328 Lowell...
Former Leechburg police Chief Diebold granted re-parole
Former Leechburg police Chief Michael Diebold could soon be released from jail after a Westmoreland County judge agreed this week to grant his re-parole. Diebold, 43, has been in jail since Dec. 9, 2019, after he was accused of violating terms of his parole from a 9-to-23-month jail sentence for...
Upper Burrell Dollar General plans on hold because of development issues
Plans for a Dollar General store in Upper Burrell are on hold because of development issues flagged by township officials. Construction of the proposed 7,500-square-foot store along Route 780 near Dewey Drive has raised the concern of some residents because the vacant site where it would be built is in...
Kiski Township to create sewage authority to oversee $16M project
Kiski Township supervisors plan to establish the Kiski Township Sewage Authority next month to oversee a $16 million project to bring public sewerage to nearly 700 homes. That amounts to about half of township households, said township engineer Richard Lenhart of Senate Engineering. About 10% of the township residents have...
Police have suspects in Arnold teen’s shooting death in Tarentum
Allegheny County Police say they have identified suspects in the November shooting death of an 18-year-old man in Tarentum. Syncere Spruill, of Arnold, was shot shortly before midnight Nov. 22 in the 200 block of Conroy Way. He was pronounced dead at Allegheny Valley Hospital. The Allegheny County Medical Examiner...
Nonprofit looking for New Kensington, Arnold residents who want free internet service
A nonprofit is offering free internet service for New Kensington and Arnold residents, but so far not many are signing up. Meta Mesh Wireless Communities can take about 150 households in its one-year pilot providing free, wireless, high-speed internet service, but so far only 38 in New Kensington and Arnold...
Highlands senior recognized for work on car donated to Army veteran
A Highlands High School student who helped repair a car for a veteran is the second recipient of an award students created to recognize their peers. Ian Norris, 17, a senior from Fawn who attends Forbes Road Career & Technology Center in Monroeville, received the “Student Spotlight” award for December,...
The Stroller, Dec. 11, 2020: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Is your church or organization going to serve free takeout Christmas dinners? Send information to The Stroller at vndnews@tribweb.com. Please include a daytime telephone number. Pajama Project seeks pajama donations The Rotary Club of Leechburg and Interact Club of Leechburg Area High School are sponsoring the Pajama Project collection through...
DA’s office withdraws kidnapping charges filed against Arnold assistant fire chief
Criminal charges have been withdrawn against an Arnold assistant fire chief, who, along with his teenage son, was accused of kidnapping the son’s pregnant girlfriend and holding her against her will for over a month. The Westmoreland County District Attorney’s Office withdrew five charges, including kidnapping and burglary, that were...
Stocking stuffer rivalry between Riverview, Springdale school districts benefits the homeless
A rivalry is brewing between Riverview and Springdale students, but this time it’s a race to get on Santa’s nice list. The school districts are dueling to help the region’s homeless community by collecting small, stuffed stockings to deliver to shelters this holiday season. “There is no greater gift than...
The Stroller, Dec. 10, 2020: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Is your church or organization going to serve free takeout Christmas dinners? Send information to The Stroller at vndnews@tribweb.com. Please include a daytime telephone number. Saxonburg church to present Christmas cantata Saxonburg Memorial Presbyterian Church, 100 W. Main St., will present its annual free Christmas cantata in person and online...
