Valley News Dispatch category, Page 92
The Stroller, March 14, 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. Prom gown giveaway planned...
Burrell School District reconfiguration plans final; building renovations up next
After three months and more than a dozen meetings, the plans to reconfigure Burrell School District buildings are final. “They actually listened to the public, the stakeholders and the staff,” said school board President Rick Kaczor. “There was nobody in the room that had anything negative to say about the...
Plum School District eyeing 2.5% property tax increase as district moves to annual changes
A 2.5% property tax increase is included in the working draft of the Plum School District’s 2025-26 school year budget, Business Manager Ryan Manzer told the board Tuesday. That’s less than half of the 6.2% increase that district property owners were hit with for the current school year, and reflects...
Indiana Township mayor inducted into state association Hall of Fame
Indiana Township Mayor Darrin Krally can add another accomplishment to his public service resume: Hall of Famer. Krally was recently inducted into the Pennsylvania State Association of Township Supervisors’ Hall of Fame for his 20 years of service on his town’s board of supervisors. The nonprofit, nonpartisan member service organization...
Historic Hotel Saxonburg could be purchased within weeks, borough manager says
The Hotel Saxonburg’s unceremonious goodbye is looking more like a “see you soon.” Saxonburg Borough Manager Steven May told TribLive he expects Butler County’s oldest operating hotel, bar and restaurant to be on the market in a matter of weeks — “if it makes it that long.” He said at...
Work begins on West Deer housing plan on former church land
A housing plan is being built in West Deer on land that had been owned by the East Union Presbyterian Church, and its pastor hopes that the people who move in will take advantage of services the church has to offer. The Rev. James Ramsey is welcoming the church’s eventual...
Fox Chapel sets gold standard of care for feathered friends with top Bird Town honors
Fox Chapel Parks Commission members are celebrating recognition being bestowed by a statewide environmental group. The borough has set the gold standard in environmental preservation and educating people about birds, according to Bird Town Pennsylvania. The borough recently received the highest municipal recognition level, Gold, from the nonprofit group just...
The Stroller, March 13, 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. St. Patrick’s Day parade...
Allegheny Valley School District mulls $2 million turf field project
A roughly $2 million multiuse field in the Allegheny Valley School District could be ready this fall, if plans are approved by the school board next week. School directors Tuesday will consider an agreement with FieldTurf USA Inc. for the artificial turf project of the soccer/football field at Springdale Jr.-Sr....
Failed ATI contract blamed on wages, according to some United Steelworkers
A failed contract between United Steelworkers and ATI boils down to money and respect, according to some who voted against a six-year deal Monday. William “Scooter” Polczynski, a welder at Harrison’s Hot Strip Mill, said the contract wasn’t even worth looking at. “We’re working with molten steel every day and...
Oakmont woman sentenced to prison after embezzling $250K from employer
An Oakmont woman was sentenced to prison Tuesday after pleading guilty in federal court to bank fraud. The Justice Department said Christy Myers, 64, embezzled around $250,000 from her employer across five years. She was sentenced to two years and 10 months in prison and five years on parole when...
Gas line repair in Upper Burrell closes White Cloud Road; opening anticipated today
A gas main line issue that left 40 customers in the Upper Burrell area without service has been resolved, but White Cloud Road remains closed, according to authorities. Peoples Gas crews responded to the outage, which ran Sunday evening into Monday afternoon, said spokesman Nick Paradise. The Upper Burrell Volunteer...
Westmoreland course on gardening on a budget set to expand from New Kensington to Delmont
From soil testing to seed-saving, members of the Penn State Extension Master Gardener program are preparing to guide Westmoreland County residents through the process of growing their own vegetables. Spaces are limited for the free six-week Seed to Supper course at the Delmont Public Library beginning March 20. The Delmont...
Semper Gratus focuses 10th anniversary on autism and STXBP1 awareness
Cassie Snedecor said she grieved when her son Jack received a level three autism diagnosis almost 19 years ago. “It’s the autism nobody likes to talk about,” Snedecor said. “He’s not like Rain Man or the Good Doctor or any type of autism you see on television.” Jack’s diagnosis comes...
New Kensington’s latest lunch spot is an education in eating
Anyone looking to get into New Kensington’s newest lunch spot is going to need a reservation. The Culinary Corner Cafe at the Northern Westmoreland Career & Technology Center, next to Valley High School, began opening to the public for lunch on Tuesdays this month, with a different food theme weekly....
The Stroller, March 12, 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. Tickets available for annual...
Trib honors 6 employees who exemplify company values
Six outstanding Trib Total Media employees have been recognized with the CORE Value Award for their exceptional contributions and embodiment of the company’s core values: ownership, integrity, collaboration, accountability, respect and evolution. The employees — Bill Hartlep, Tim Otto, Chris Pastrick, Jessica Rocco, Justin Vellucci and Chris Yatcko — were...
Stormwater fee tabled, but stark fiscal challenges stand for Allegheny Township
A plan to provide dedicated funding for Allegheny Township’s stormwater system is on hold. On Monday, supervisors tabled a proposed ordinance that would charge most homeowners an $8 monthly stormwater fee after hearing some disapproval, but mostly confusion, from a packed room of residents. “I’m not sure if I’m for...
United Steelworkers vote down ATI contract
ATI and United Steelworkers are still without a contract. A tentative agreement was reached Feb. 28, just hours before the most recent contract was set to expire. But it failed to pass a union vote Monday. ATI spokeswoman Natalie Gillespie said company leadership is disappointed the union vote was unsuccessful....
Tarentum history museum hosts native author of ‘Gun Smuggling, Castro’s Cuba and the Pittsburgh Mafia’
Gun smuggling, Swiss bank accounts, Fidel Castro and the New Kensington mafia converge on the pages of Richard Gazarik’s newest book, a harrowing tale of local ties to the criminal underworld. In his seventh release, Greensburg resident Gazarik dives into declassified FBI files stemming from the mafia’s grip on New...
The Stroller, March 11, 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. 5K run to benefit...
Raising chickens costly but worth it: ‘It really is an investment’
The price of eggs may be through the roof, but that doesn’t mean you’ll save money with a chicken coop. While the popularity — and legality — of backyard chickens is spreading, the economics doesn’t add up for most people thinking of bypassing the grocer for their own hens. Just...
Vandergrift man with suspended license accused of hitting police car and fleeing
A Vandergrift man led police on a high-speed chase in New Kensington on Sunday after having been told by police not to drive his vehicle and later hitting a police car with it, according to arrest papers filed against him. Police charged Cristian Michael Brown, 25, with offenses including a...
Multi-community project finds little blight in West Leechburg
West Leechburg is in better shape than a lot of communities when it comes to blight. In the second phase of a multi-community blight study, the borough has only three properties considered to be blighted. The study is led by the Westmoreland County Planning Department with help from the Westmoreland...
Burrell graduate hands over reins of wellness 5K to current students
A Burrell alumna is passing the baton of coordinating a 5K race to six high school students. Grace Nesko, now a freshman at Shippensburg University, managed the 5K wellness run and walk the past two years at K-9 Officer Derek Kotecki Park in Lower Burrell. The race raises awareness and...
