Westmoreland category, Page 138
Abandoned puppies found in Unity Walmart parking lot
A Westmoreland animal shelter is asking for information after a bin of puppies was found abandoned Monday morning in a store’s parking lot. Action for Animals Humane Society posted a photo on social media, explaining how the puppies were found. The post said they were left in the Unity Walmart...
City planning commission to review plans for Latrobe Sheetz store update
Sheetz is planning an update and reconstruction next year of its convenience store at Route 982 and Ligonier Street in Latrobe. The city’s planning commission is expected to review plans for the project at its July 1 meeting, but council members got an early look during their session this week....
Property taxes to jump 5% to support Hempfield Area budget
Property taxes in Hempfield Area School District will be going up nearly 6% to support a 2024-2025 budget approved Monday by the school board. The $109.6 million budget will increase the district’s tax rate from 85.76 mills to 90.76 mills. It was approved in an 8-1 vote, with board member...
Unity firefighters set 6-month trial for paid daytime crews
The seven volunteer departments in the Unity Township Fire Bureau are investing in their personnel to ensure they have crews available to respond to emergencies. Beginning July 1, the departments are launching a duty crew program for a six-month trial. Their aim each weekday is to have one fire truck...
Westmoreland increases capacity at reopened juvenile detention center
The Westmoreland County juvenile detention center in Hempfield has hired enough staff to double its capacity three months after a limited reopening in March, officials announced Monday. The detention facility that makes up half of the Regional Youth Services Center was temporarily shuttered last year amid a series of negative...
Mutual Aid EMS planning July 5 blood drive
Mutual Aid EMS is hosting a blood drive July 5, two months after paramedics became the first in Westmoreland County to carry blood to emergencies. The drive, in partnership with the American Red Cross, will be held 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the agency’s EMS base at 561 W....
Directors nix proposed sale of former Jeannette school site, seek development of property
A tentative plan to sell long-vacant property in Jeannette to the Westmoreland County Housing Authority has been nixed. Jeannette City School District directors this month voted against the sale that tentatively called for the housing authority to pay $28,000 for the land. Superintendent Matt Jones said the property remains for...
Jeannette City School District holds line on taxes in $24M budget
The millage rate for Jeannette City School District property owners will remain steady for the 2024-25 school year. School directors this month unanimously approved the $24 million spending plan. A deficit of about $615,000 will be covered by the district’s fund balance, which sits around $6 million. Increased costs related...
Memorial 5K in memory of Mike Reese set at Mammoth Park
An event in memory of the late state Rep. Mike Reese is set for July 6 at Mammoth Park. The Mike Reese Memorial 5K — Roast, Run and Family Fun is $50 for adults and $25 for people under 21. The donation includes the run, food, drinks and entertainment. Youth...
PlumLine Nursery marks 50th anniversary
At Bill Tribou’s funeral in 2010, one of the speakers said that you could see a little bit of PlumLine Nursery anywhere you go in Plum. Driving around nearby neighborhoods like Holiday Park or Summerville Estates — which were growing right alongside the nursery and landscaping business Tribou founded in...
Service coordinators provide lifeline for Westmoreland housing authority residents
For Trish Walch, living at Odin View Apartments in Hempfield is a dream come true. It’s in large part a nod to the Westmoreland County Housing Authority building’s service coordinator who plans a multitude of activities while serving as a sort of personal assistant to residents who need assistance figuring...
Westmoreland housing authority’s newest apartment building set to open in July
The first tenants at the Westmore- land County Housing Authority’s newest community are expected to move to their new homes next month. Officials confirmed this week that construction of Grand View Senior Residences in Irwin is set to wrap up in July. “We’re more than 90% complete, and we’re looking to...
Jeannette Glass plant had a glimmer of hope in 1983
(Editor’s note: “From the archive” is a recurring series highlighting vintage photos submitted by community members or gathered from the Tribune-Review’s files. If you have a photo you would like to see featured here, please contact gtrcity@triblive.com.) It seemed as though the Jeannette Glass plant might restart four decades ago,...
Poison, deer prevention projects earn kudos for local Master Gardeners
Penn State Extension’s Westmoreland County contingent of Master Gardeners is planting more than just flower and vegetable seeds. For many years, the group also has instilled in local schoolchildren awareness to steer clear of pesticides and other poisonous household products. It’s an effort that now has earned them plaudits from...
Manor to host expanded Community Day celebration in August
Manor is one step closer to making its Community Day celebration an annual tradition again. The festival was hosted by the local fire department every Labor Day for about 80 years before it ceased in 2002. The borough revived the tradition last year. Last year’s event drew about 1,000 people....
Murrysville police chief to retire after 40-plus years in law enforcementVideo
Tom Seefeld isn’t looking forward to waking up at 4:30 a.m. for no reason come July. “I’m a scheduled, structured person,” he said “I don’t know what it is to sleep in.” Seefeld, 65, will retire as chief of the Murrysville Police Department at the end of June, wrapping up...
Westmoreland transit authority votes to increase driver wages; eyes shared-ride fare increase
Residents who use the Westmoreland County Transit Authority’s shared-ride program will see a fare increase effective this fall following approval of the authority’s 2024-25 budget Thursday. Details of the fare increase will be presented at the authority’s board meeting in July, said Deputy Executive Director Ashley Cooper-Brounce. The shared-ride service...
PennDOT plans multiple detours for Route 711 closure south of New Florence
A PennDOT bridge project is scheduled to close a section of Route 711 south of New Florence beginning Monday. The closure will be in place through early July between Creek Road in Fairfield, near Mirror Lake Campground, and Clark Hollow Road in St. Clair . A series of posted detours...
Hempfield man sentenced after being accused of leaving obscene, racially charged voicemails for members of Congress
A Hempfield man was sentenced to two years of probation this week in connection with dozens of obscene and racially-charged voicemails police said he left for members of Congress. Mark Eugene Ray, 64, pleaded guilty to ethnic intimidation and harassment. A second count of harassment was dismissed. Judge Timothy Krieger...
Avonmore man who died in Export shooting will be remembered with luncheon
A man who was fatally shot in Export this week will be remembered at a luncheon on Sunday, according to his obituary. Police said Daniel T. “Slim” Chicka Jr., 65, of Avonmore, had been in a dispute over parking with another man when he was shot Tuesday on Madison Avenue....
New Alexandria firefighters spring into action to contain fire at neighbor’s home
A firefighting father and son duo came to the rescue Friday morning when fire broke out at the home of a next-door neighbor in Derry Township. New Alexandria fire Chief Andrew Kolano credited the quick action of his department’s safety officer, Watson Smith Jr., and the officer’s son, fire Sgt....
Driver sought in connection with South Greensburg road rage incident
Police in South Greensburg are seeking help to identify a driver who they said was involved in a road rage incident this week. The man was driving an older model maroon or burgundy Chevrolet Equinox near the intersection of Route 119 and Huff Avenue Wednesday when authorities said he got...
Nurse accused of diverting nursing home patients’ medications for personal use
A nurse is accused of taking prescription painkillers and medication for anxiety and panic disorders from 13 nursing home patients in Baldwin, North Huntingdon and McCandless. Monica Blackwell, 41, of Pittsburgh’s Hill District, told the state attorney general’s agents that she took the medications for her own use, according to...
North Huntingdon seeks to fill assistant manager post
North Huntingdon officials want the township to have an assistant manager, a position that has gone unfilled since the former assistant retired in April 2023. Township commissioners this week voted to advertise the position at a salary range of $70,331 to $115,272. North Huntingdon has been without an assistant manager...
Suspect charged with attempted homicide in Uniontown shooting that injured 2
A Uniontown man is charged with attempted homicide and aggravated assault in a June 11 shooting in the city that injured two men. State police allege Santana Jones, 21, is one of two men who opened fire on two other men at about 3:30 p.m. outside a home on Varndell...
