Westmoreland category, Page 156
Fire at Unity shopping plaza damages multiple businesses
Jackie Tustin was treated like family when she worked once a week at Roadman’s Country Living Shoppe in Unity. “This isn’t my full-time job. It’s my fun job,” she said. But she and a few other employees are out of work, at least for now, after a fire Tuesday severely...
Election primer: What to know heading into the 2024 primary
There’s no way around it: This year’s Pennsylvania primary lacks much intrigue. The presidential contenders from both major parties clinched their nominations weeks ago. The state’s U.S. Senate race also has only one nominee for each party: incumbent Democratic Sen. Bob Casey and Republican David McCormick, a former hedge fund...
Regional surveillance system will record license plate images on major roads
Five years after toddler Nalani Johnson was kidnapped and murdered, license plate readers that law enforcement officials say could have saved her will be installed in numerous municipalities across Westmoreland County. The readers will be part of a multicounty surveillance network spearheaded by district attorneys and local law enforcement officials....
After hiring new architect, Hempfield ‘moving forward with a stronger team’ for renovation project
A new architect was hired Monday to work on Hempfield Area School District’s long-stalled high school renovation project. The school board hired Crabtree, Rohrbaugh & Associates of Mechanicsburg to replace Bellevue-based Core Architects, which resigned from the district’s high school renovation project in February. The district’s solicitor and administration will...
Texas trucker returns home after hit-and-run guilty plea
A Texas truck driver was scheduled to jet home Monday night to Dallas after serving nearly 16 months in the Westmoreland County Prison for a hit-and-run crash in the parking lot of a Hempfield auto parts store. Quantae M. Beavers, 26, pleaded guilty to charges of aggravated assault, simple assault,...
Volunteers plant 256 trees at Hempfield Park on Earth Day
West Penn Power Green Team volunteers planted 256 trees at Hempfield Park on Monday — Earth Day. The volunteers also distributed free trees in Jeannette last Friday. The tree giveaway and planting are part of West Penn Power parent company FirstEnergy’s effort to plant trees in its service area, said...
Game commission plans insecticide spraying on state land
The Pennsylvania Game Commission plans to spray insecticide on game lands in the southwestern part of the state in an effort to control invasive insect the spongy moth. Statewide, more than 123,000 acres of game lands will be targeted in late April and May, just as egg masses hatch. Spraying...
Greensburg police seek information about abandoned dog
Greensburg police are looking for the owner of a dog that was found Sunday night chained to a fence or railing at Rohrer Street and Westminster Avenue. The canine was found just after 9 p.m. and no neighbors recognized it, said Police Chief Charles Irvin. It was abandoned sometime during...
‘It’s life-changing’: Collegiate, high school esports programs on the rise
Brayden Seech has been playing video games since he was in elementary school. He started with Nintendo’s Wii and DS devices, shifting into Xbox and PC games as he got older. Now, as a 17-year-old senior at Penn-Trafford High School, Seech has earned a college scholarship to continue his hobby...
Westmoreland transit launches real time bus tracking
The Westmoreland County Transit Authority this month launched a mobile phone application that provides riders with real-time tracking of local buses. The MyStop app allows passengers to receive updates on bus locations and estimated arrival times along the agency’s route system that includes commuter service to Pittsburgh and local service...
Greater Latrobe logs on with esports club program
It’s game on at Greater Latrobe Senior High. “I’ve been playing since I was old enough to remember,” Jesse Simonovitch said of the Super Smash Bros. video game he plays competitively as part of a new esports club organized this year at the school in Unity. The senior wants to...
‘It means everything to me’: Penn-Trafford track athlete raises money for elementary school playground
After breaking Penn-Trafford’s discus record and placing third in the state last year, Matthew Sarnowski returns to the throwing circle this track and field season with lofty goals. But that is not Sarnwoski’s only reason for throwing well this spring. The Penn-Trafford senior’s performance is driving a fundraiser for his...
Westmoreland happenings: Bingo for Babies, food drive, color run, more
Fundraisers • Manor Lions Club will collect nonperishable food and monetary donations for the Manor Food Pantry while polls are open April 23 at the borough polling place. Those who vote by mail and wish to contribute can email Joy Clontz at jrare4@comcast.net. • Community Revitalization of West Newton will...
It’s personal for many: UPG Relay For Life raises $7K in battle against cancer
Dennis Rosatti of Hempfield and his son, Bryan Rosatti of Irwin, share a lot in common, not the least of which is both being cancer survivors. The elder Rosatti, 66, was diagnosed as a teenager with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma — a cancer that starts in the lymphatic system, which is part...
Voting precincts remain inaccessible to some disabled voters in Westmoreland County
Adam Halfill’s job description doesn’t include heavy lifting. But when Halfill reports to work Tuesday as the judge of elections at Greensburg Hose Company No. 3, he understands the job could involve the use of a little muscle. “Voters have to come down four or five steps to get into...
Hempfield Project 18 civics class honored by local, state government for 50th anniversary
Students and leadership with Hempfield Area School District’s hands-on civics class, Project 18, were honored with proclamations from state and local government officials at a school board meeting this month. The elective class is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. It was originally spearheaded by the state after 18-year-olds were...
Greensburg Salem students recognized for work at leadership conference
A group of Greensburg Salem juniors brought home the gold at a state leadership and career organization conference. The Greensburg Salem chapter of Family, Career and Community Leaders of America competed in leadership project presentation events at the March 19 competition in Lancaster. Students Lisa Leeman, Brenna Kohl and Karma...
Hempfield Mini-THON raises more than $61K for childhood cancer research
Hempfield Area students raised more than $61,500 for the Four Diamonds nonprofit through their 2023-2024 Mini-THON fundraisers that culminated in a 12-hour event on April 5. Mini-THON, a high school version of the popular Penn State fundraiser that raises money for pediatric cancer patients and families, raised $57,600 last year...
‘If not me, then who?’: Greensburg helicopter restoration project honors Vietnam War veterans
Stephanie Redovan was walking in Lynch Field Park in Greensburg and she noticed the Army helicopter dedicated to a Vietnam War veteran needed some TLC. “The thing that kept echoing in my head was, ‘If I don’t do this, who’s going to do it?’ ” said Redovan, 34, of Jeannette....
Coroner reports driver in Fayette crash that killed 5 had cocaine in his system
The driver involved in a three-vehicle crash in late March that killed himself and four others, including an infant, had cocaine in his system at the time of the collision, the Fayette County coroner reported Saturday. All five people killed in the March 26 crash on Route 40 were from...
The Kitchen by Vangura will bring back memories of the Primadonna restaurant
Many people who dined at the former Primadonna restaurant in McKees Rocks can recall walking in the door and immediately being greeted by the owner. Joe “Joe Joe” Costanzo Jr. would approach with arms wide open and a hearty laugh. Minutes later, guests were seated and out came a heaping...
Road projects to trigger monthlong detour in Mt. Pleasant Township, lane restrictions near Donegal
Road projects set to begin on Monday, April 22 will result in a detour on Boyer Road in Mt. Pleasant Township and lane restrictions on Route 711 in the Donegal and Stahlstown areas, according to PennDOT. Boyer Road is scheduled to close at 7 a.m. Monday between Hecla Road and...
North Huntingdon aiming to rewrite backyard chicken rules after flap over fowl
North Huntingdon officials plan to create new rules for keeping backyard chickens in an attempt to balance the rights of those who want them against those who cry foul over the fowl. Township commissioners this week voted to repeal an ordinance that allowed chickens to be kept in residential neighborhoods...
Hempfield man accused of seeking to pay to have his sister murdered
A Hempfield man is charged with attempting to hire someone to kill his sister, apparently motivated by a proposed change in the family estate. Westmoreland County detectives and sheriff’s deputies arrested Peter John Cute, 63, Friday afternoon after he met with a man that Cute allegedly offered to pay to...
Latrobe man will serve at least 15 years in prison for Derry Township dagger, bat attack
A Latrobe man was ordered to serve 15 to 30 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to charges related to a brutal assault in Derry Township that left three people severely injured. Westmoreland County prosecutors say Nicholas McIntyre broke into the Fourth Street apartment where his former girlfriend and...
