Valley News Dispatch category, Page 676

Lower Burrell police said a traffic stop last Thursday turned up nearly a half-ounce of crack cocaine and resulted in the city’s second crack-related arrest in eight days. “For us, this is unusual. Crack in this amount hasn’t been seen in Lower Burrell for 20 years,” said police Chief Tim...

Plans for a new, unconventional natural gas well pad are underway for the Hephaestus well pad project on Merwin Road near the intersection of Whitten Hollow Road in Upper Burrell. Civil & Environmental Consultants of Murrysville is currently working on the application to the state Department of Environmental Protection from...

Tarentum police arrested a man Sunday who is accused of pulling a knife on another customer at the Praha Hotel who, police said, responded by drawing a gun. The incident happened shortly before 6 p.m. Sunday at the bar at Corbet Street and East Fourth Avenue. In a criminal complaint,...

Officials from Allegheny Valley Hospital celebrated Donate Life Month on Monday with a flag-raising ceremony. National Donate Life Month is celebrated every April to encourage people to register as organ, eye and tissue donors and to honor those whose organ donations have saved or extended other people’s lives. Across the...

Lower Burrell officials are asking residents to be cautious when approached by door-to-door salespeople and vendors. The city’s Facebook account said some companies are going door-to-door without a permit and being overly aggressive with residents. Residents are advised to make sure door-to-door salespeople and vendors have proper, city-issued permits. A...

Two men were hurt Sunday in a one-vehicle crash on Little Deer Creek Road in West Deer that knocked out power in the area. Power had been restored to the more than 300 affected customers in West Deer, Frazer and Fawn, according to West Penn Power. According to West Deer...

Adeline Brown spent her life dedicated to serving the only place she ever called home — Oakmont. As a first-generation American, she took pride in the town her parents emigrated to from Italy in the early 1900s. She served as Oakmont’s secretary beginning in 1947 at only 18 years old...

A bounty of wildflowers in April is a good reason to get out there and find those lush patches of spring beauties. Now through May is the time to see wildflowers in the Alle-Kiski Valley. “The show is spectacular with trillium and the bluebells when they are concentrated,” said Deborah...

It’s been nearly a year since a new owner bought the Pittsburgh Mills mall in Frazer, touting plans to redevelop the struggling, 14-year-old facility. Despite the owner’s hopeful nature in May, township officials say they still haven’t met or had any communication with Long Island-based Mason Asset Management and are...

When Linda Littleton and Karen Hirshon are on stage, no words need to be spoken. “We understand each other so well, all we need to do is give each other a look during a concert, and we just know what it means,” says Littleton. “Our personalities clicked the minute we...

A West Deer priest has been placed on administrative leave after he admitted to inappropriate behavior with a minor that didn’t involved sexual contact, according to the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh Bishop David Zubik placed the Rev. Thomas Wilson, 74, on leave, according to a diocesan news release sent...

A Boy Scout pointed out a big worm in the freshly placed compost, and Widgie Carson picked it up. “They’re not like a snake,” she said to a few Scouts she was giving tiny red beets to plant. “They won’t hurt you.” The Scouts, members of Troop 180, and Carson,...

The Harmar bald eagles reportedly welcomed a newly hatched eaglet early Friday in their nest on a hillside above Route 28. Confirmation was still pending Saturday morning from the Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania. Without the benefit of a live webcam, observers including a photographer documented the birds likely feeding...

Two Vandergrift men and a teen are charged with armed robbery and other counts in the holdup of another resident. Officer Bill Moore said the incident took place Friday afternoon along the 100 block of Custer Avenue. He said the victim, a man in his early 30s, went to visit...

The Upper Burrell supervisors are considering adding a 2-mill fire tax in what would be the township’s first tax increase in more than a decade. Supervisors are expected to vote on the new tax when they meet May 1. Upper Burrell’s real estate tax rate is 10 mills. At that...

The USDA Farm Service Agency has loans available for under-served groups and beginning farmers in Allegheny, Armstrong and Butler counties. The U.S. Department of Agriculture defines under-served farmers as those who have been subjected to racial, ethnic or gender prejudice. For program purposes, USDA targeted under-served groups are women, African...

While volunteer fire companies are famous for their fish fries and bingos, they do come up with some original fundraisers, too. More than 25 years ago, the Washington Township Volunteer Fire Company presented its first auto parts swap meet and it continues to go strong many years later. Their upcoming...

Lower Burrell Council awarded a contract of nearly $356,000 to Marc Service Inc. to handle heating, ventilation and air conditioning work for the $3.1 million renovation of City Hall that’s expected to begin this month. Marc Service Inc. of Windber turned in the “lowest responsible bid” among four bidders, according...

The Upper Burrell supervisors tabled a proposal to require inspections of rental units after some residents who are landlords complained about the proposed regulations and potential costs. After a draft of the inspection proposal circulated, township landlords such as Pearl Jones asked supervisors to reconsider passing it Wednesday. Supervisors Chairman...

The Apollo-Ridge Education Foundation is holding its Big Spring Cleanup in the borough on Saturday, April 13. Volunteers are needed. Cleanup organizers are also looking for a few more pickups for hauling. Volunteers are asked to meet at 9 a.m. at the Apollo Plaza near the stone arch. The cleanup...

Thirty-one soldiers who participated in the Thunder Run mission near Baghdad on April 5, 2003, received the Silver Star for valor. Only one of them — Army Staff Sgt. Stevon Booker of Kiski Township — has had that award upgraded to a Distinguished Service Cross, the military’s second-highest honor, according...

Allegheny Technologies Inc. secured a $45 million contract for a pipeline project in South America, and it comes at a time when the company is hiring new workers in the Alle-Kiski Valley. The specialty steelmaker’s $1.1 billion hot rolling mill and processing facility in Harrison played a key role in...

State Department of Environmental Protection officials are investigating complaints of well water contamination in Plum. The department received two complaints in August, a few months after the drilling for natural gas at Monroeville-based Huntley & Huntley Energy Exploration’s Midas well pad on 92 acres near Coxcomb Hill Road in the...