Valley News Dispatch category, Page 571
Oakmont retaining wall project along Allegheny River Boulevard could get more expensive
A retaining wall beautification project along Allegheny River Boulevard near the Oakmont and Verona border is underway. Apollo-based Santamaria Landscaping crews are about two weeks into their three-month effort to restore the wall near the viaduct between the two boroughs. Construction signs and traffic cones are used in the morning...
Plum’s Movies in the Park series concludes next month
Plum’s last installment of Movies in the Park this season is set for Aug. 8 at Larry Mills Park. The borough presents “Scoob.” Produced by Warner Animation Group, the film is a modern take on the Scooby-Doo franchise. It tells a story about the lovable mutt and his gang of...
Bill Fuller: Changes in dining restrictions hurt Big Burrito Restaurant business
Constant fluctuations in the allowed restaurant dining capacity prompted Big Burrito Restaurant Group to temporarily close all of its specialty restaurants, including Alta Via, Casbah, Eleven, Kaya, Soba and Umi, company President Bill Fuller said Monday. “It just isn’t worth it,” said Fuller, who furloughed 193 people. “We decided to...
Police: Tarentum man started fight with off-duty Pittsburgh officer at Harrison custard shop
A Tarentum man was arrested after getting into a fight with another man at a Harrison custard shop Sunday night. Harrison police said Jacob A. Fisher, 24, threatened the other man’s 5-year-old daughter and spit at him before punching him in the face at Della’s Frozen Custard, formerly Del’s Custard,...
Freeport Area High School students ace AP World History exams despite pandemic
At Freeport Area High School, every AP World History student scored a passing grade on this year’s AP exam amid unusually difficult circumstances. David DiSanti, the AP World History teacher at Freeport Area High School, said the course was historically difficult, even before the covid-19 pandemic forced schools to move...
Vandergrift muralist paints over racist graffiti at The Center
A Vandergrift artist created a mural with a message of empowerment and community last week, after a local community center was overwhelmed with hateful graffiti. Chloe Kruse, owner of The Center on Franklin Avenue, said the back of her building always has attracted some graffiti. But recently, Kruse said the...
2 accused of stealing $45K in state payments for providing care for Avonmore man
Two women are accused by police of taking $45,000 in payments from the state Department of Human Services for work they didn’t do while acting as caregivers for an Avonmore man, according to agents from the Attorney General’s office. Joan L. Foley, 64, of Avonmore, and her daughter Christie Lee...
The Stroller, July 20, 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@tribweb.com or The Stroller, Valley News Dispatch, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Food Truck event planned Wednesday in Apollo The Wheel Good...
Pitt student engineers, Habitat for Humanity partner to make video for Bolivian village
Members of the University of Pittsburgh’s chapter of Engineers Without Borders toiled in the heat Saturday and Sunday to help make life better for people nearly 4,000 miles away. The group gathered to build a reinforced concrete slab at the Habitat for Humanity ReStore in New Kensington as part of...
PennDOT antes up another $3 million to upgrade road at doorstep of proposed $70 million biz park in Harrison
The state announced it will pay $3 million to modify Route 366 (Bull Creek Road) just off Route 28’s Tarentum exit to pave the way for an estimated $70 million, 162-acre business park planned just over the border in Harrison. The business park, known as Harrison Point, still has numerous...
Health officials: Stay home while waiting for covid-19 test results
People who are awaiting covid-19 test results should presume they have the virus and self-isolate until they receive the results in order to mitigate the spread of the virus, health officials said. A question of personal responsibility in regard to the coronavirus pandemic was posed to health care professionals after...
The Stroller, July 19, 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@tribweb.com or The Stroller, Valley News Dispatch, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Oakmont Chamber of Commerce accepting orders for military banners The...
The Stroller, July 18, 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@tribweb.com or The Stroller, Valley News Dispatch, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Food distribution for veterans planned in Lower Burrell The Westmoreland...
Greensburg Diocese Bishop Malesic prepares for yet another leg on his journeyVideo
Roman Catholic Diocese of Greensburg Bishop Edward Malesic thought it was odd when he received a cellphone message from the Papal Nuncio on July 1 as he was traveling between Catholic schools to celebrate record scholarship contributions. Archbishop Christophe Pierre, the pope’s diplomatic envoy to Washington, D.C., asked Malesic to...
Washington Township man pleads guilty to 2018 assault on elderly woman, police during rampage
A Washington Township man pleaded guilty Friday to the assault of an elderly woman and against police during a rampage two years ago. David A. Gibson, 46, could face up to more than 20 years in prison by virtue of his pleas to four counts of aggravated assault, unlawful restraint,...
First Westmoreland prison inmate tests positive for covid-19
Westmoreland officials confirmed Friday that an inmate who was placed in custody last week at the county prison tested positive for coronavirus. This is the first confirmed case involving inmates or staff at the lockup. Warden John Walton said the inmate was arrested July 11 by New Kensington police and...
Kiski area authority uses $7.2 million windfall and 6.7% rate increase to pay for new projects
The Kiski Valley Water Pollution Control Authority is raising its rates to help pay for $11.5 million in system improvements. The average household that uses 10,000 gallons of water per quarter will pay a total bill of $87.50, about 6.4% higher than the current $82.22, starting with January’s bill. Officials...
Springdale Township buys cameras in attempt to catch vandals, illegal dumpers
Springdale Township has bought surveillance cameras that can capture high-resolution images to record license plates and are capable of facial identification to thwart vandalism, illegal dumping and other misconduct. The township has contracted with Secure Technical Solutions Inc., of New Kensington, for about $4,000 for three to four cameras and...
27-day closure of Saltsburg Road in Plum has lengthy detours
Drivers will have to contend with lengthy detours while a section of Saltsburg Road in Plum is closed for 27 days starting Saturday. While the posted detour for passenger vehicles is about 11 miles, the one for commercial truck traffic is more than twice as long. Saltsburg Road (Route 380)...
Highlands reopening plan includes 2 days in school, 3 days at home
Highlands School District students would be in schools two days a week and work remotely the other three days under the district’s tentative reopening plan. The district also would offer a full virtual learning option for families with children who cannot return to any in-person schooling in August, according to...
Plum residents show support for, opposition to school director over Facebook post
Plum residents had mixed reactions to a controversial post by a school board member in a private social media page. More than a dozen people came to Thursday night’s special meeting with many calling for the resignation of board member Amy Wetmore for her comments on the Black Lives Matter...
The Stroller, July 17, 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@tribweb.com or The Stroller, Valley News Dispatch, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Bus service reinstated in Oakmont and Verona Riverview Community Action...
Plum School District officials approve reopening plan, options for parents
Plum School District’s reopening plan gives parents a choice to maintain their children’s distance learning or send them back into school next month. The plan, which is available for review at the district’s website, was approved by an 8-1 vote at a special meeting Thursday night. School Director Michelle Stepnick...
Vandergrift pool to reopen Friday after possible covid-19 exposure
Days after closing due to a possible covid-19 exposure, Vandergrift’s Joseph A. Petrarca Pool is reopening Friday. The reopening was announced Thursday on the Vandergrift Pool Facebook page. Officials closed the pool July 11 after an employee was possibly exposed to the coronavirus. “To be clear, this is not a...
Lower Burrell fire company plans food-truck rally to fill fundraising hole
Lower Burrell Volunteer Fire Company No. 3 is looking to fill a pandemic-related hole in its budget by filling people’s stomachs. The department lost an estimated $12,000 to $13,000 when it had to cancel one of its largest annual fundraisers, the weeklong Fireman’s Carnival, because of the coronavirus pandemic, said...
