Westmoreland category, Page 629
President of Private Industry Council of Westmoreland-Fayette stepping down
Longtime Private Industry Council of Westmoreland-Fayette President and CEO Tim Yurcisin will step down this fall after 21 years in the role and nearly four decades with the PIC. Yurcisin has helped shepherd the nonprofit corporation from a $10 million budget when he took over to a $23 million budget...
Citing pandemic concerns, Greensburg bishop to offer public farewell in a virtual Mass
Citing the ongoing public health threat of the coronavirus, Bishop Edward C. Malesic will make his public farewell to the diocese’s 138,000 Roman Catholics in a virtual Mass. Officials with the Greensburg Diocese said Friday the Mass will be livestreamed at 3 p.m. Aug. 30 from Blessed Sacrament Cathedral in...
South Huntingdon man accused of threatening mother, firing gun after troopers arrived
A 30-year-old South Huntingdon man was arrested Thursday after allegedly threatening to shoot his mother with a 9 mm handgun and then firing the gun outside as state troopers arrived at the scene. Andrew C. Cyktor was arraigned before District Judge Chris Flanigan in night court on multiple charges of...
Greensburg’s new Green Beacon Gallery aims to encompass art, music, more
Three young entrepreneurs have ambitious plans for a new art and music space in downtown Greensburg. The name is painted on the window and art already fills the walls of the Green Beacon Gallery at 235 W. Pittsburgh St., but there’s no date yet for when the doors will open....
Witness’ credibility left up to judge to decide in Bolivar man’s murder appeal
A defense attorney for a Bolivar man serving 30 years in prison for the 2011 murder of his newborn daughter wants a judge to decide the credibility of a witness who recently came forward with potentially exculpatory evidence. If jurors in Clayton Mibroda’s 2013 trial had heard from the new...
Troopers: Intruder jailed after making threats against Unity homeowner
A Unity man said he discovered a woman inside his home Wednesday who initially refused to leave and then threatened to kill him, state police said. Troopers said when the Lightcap Road homeowner told Lisa M. McCracken, 56, also of Unity, to get out of his house about 8:45 p.m....
Loyalhanna woman sentenced to house arrest, probation in $127K theft from Greensburg electric firm
A Loyalhanna Township woman was sentenced Friday to seven years of probation for taking nearly $127,000 from her former employer. Deborah L. Baker, 53, told Judge Christopher Feliciani that the money went to support her husband’s painkiller addiction. “This money was being siphoned off solely for his habit,” attorney Dennis...
Musicians from Western Pa., other states booked for Latrobe’s virtual banana split festival
Musicians from the region and beyond are lined up for Tuesday’s virtual Great American Banana Split Celebration in Latrobe. Because of pandemic restrictions on large gatherings, the annual festival this year won’t have any public participation in downtown Latrobe. Instead, it will feature a day of entertainment and activities streamed...
Westmoreland County reports 18 new coronavirus cases
Westmoreland County had 18 new cases of covid-19 Friday, according to the state Department of Health. The county’s total cases are now 1,696 with 1,643 confirmed and 53 probable. The seven-day average for the county is 15 cases. Westmoreland has reported 287 coronavirus cases so far in August. Westmoreland County...
Defense seeks court’s help to get ballistics evidence in Loyalhanna murder case
Attorneys for an Indiana County man on death row for murdering three family members sought the court’s help on Friday to get firearm evidence to their ballistics expert. Attorney Brian Aston said he needs a court order to get evidence from the clerk of courts, state police and possibly the...
Irwin restaurant opens amid pandemic; state restrictions hurt eateriesVideo
Candy Zambo says it was just her luck that she tried to open a restaurant in downtown Irwin in midst of a pandemic. “I’ve wanted to do this. I’ve always loved the restaurant industry,” Zambo said, undeterred by the circumstances surrounding the opening of Candy’s Corner Cafe at 435 Main...
Jeannette VFW, water authority in long dispute over basement leakVideo
For the last year, Jeannette VFW Post 8240 Commander Frank Drury has spent two hours a week pumping water out of the flooded sub-basement of the club at 111 South 4th St. “Right now, I estimate that we’ve pumped more than 367,800 gallons since August 2019,” Drury said. “That’s with...
State hands out $50 million for $3/hour raises for frontline workers
Pennsylvania’s process for determining which companies with frontline workers in the battle against covid-19 will be reimbursed for hiking their workers’ wages by up to $3 an hour through late October has left some health care companies wondering how the decisions were made. “There’s not really a rhyme nor reason”...
More than 30 weigh in on Unity debate about backyard chicken regulations — some pro, some con
Unity’s supervisors on Thursday heard from more than 30 residents debating whether township zoning regulations should be changed to provide greater allowance for backyard chickens on smaller properties. Jeff and Kristin Kuhns are appealing a zoning violation notice stemming from the 20 chickens they’re raising on less than the minimum...
3 injured in Unity motorcycle crash
Three people are believed to have been injured and a small stretch of Route 982 was closed following a motorcycle crash Thursday night in Unity Township, according to Westmoreland County 911. The crash happened just after 9 p.m. near the intersection of Route 982 and East Mill Street. Latrobe police...
Group stages protest, march in downtown GreensburgVideo
A group of about 40 people held a protest Thursday evening at the corner of Main and Otterman streets in support of the Black Lives Matter movement. The group held up signs and chanted slogans invoking victims of police violence in cases such as those that led to the deaths...
Restaurant, tavern industry association meets in Hempfield, hopes for rollback of covid-19 restrictionsVideo
Westmoreland County restaurant and bar operators say the state’s limit of 25% indoor occupancy for dining establishments unfairly targets them as being responsible for the spread of the coronavirus. About 40 local industry members gathered Thursday at Ferrante’s Lakeview restaurant in Hempfield to share tales of how the state pandemic...
Trees blamed for record power outages across Pennsylvania in 2019, state commission says
The 52 power outages reported across Pennsylvania in 2019 marked a record high since the state Public Utility Commission began collecting reliability data 27 years ago, the agency reported. The “reportable outage events,” mainly caused by severe thunderstorms that downed trees, interrupted service to about 2 million customers statewide, according...
Judge again denies bail for jailed Pirates pitcher Felipe Vazquez
The offered sale of a $5 million Florida home as collateral to ensure future court appearances of suspended Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Felipe Vazquez was not enough to convince a judge to release him from jail. Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court Judge Scott Mears on Thursday rejected a second request for...
Greensburg Restaurant Week strives to provide ‘sense of normalcy’
Necessity is the mother of invention — or reinvention, in the case of this summer’s Greensburg Restaurant Week, running Monday through Aug. 30. “This Restaurant Week is less about an exclusive dining experience and more about driving business back to restaurants,” said Ashley Kertes, executive director of the Greensburg Community...
Westmoreland County posts 2nd largest covid-19 case increase of August
Westmoreland County added 20 new coronavirus cases Thursday, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Health. The new covid-19 cases, 18 confirmed and two probable, represent the second largest case increase in August. The largest increase this month came Aug. 8, when 23 cases were reported. As of Thursday, 96% of...
Black Lives Matter protest, march in Greensburg planned for Thursday evening
A protest planned for Thursday evening in Greensburg sent local police into short-notice preparation mode in the morning after learning about it through social media. The event is billed as a Black Lives Matter protest that will start at 6 p.m. at the Westmoreland County courthouse, followed by a three-block...
After 6 decades, Laurel Ballet founder closes school doors
After more than six decades of training ballet students, Eleanor Tornblom, owner and artistic director of Laurel Ballet in Greensburg, is calling it a career and closing her studio doors. “I’m 83, and I’ve done this all my life,” Tornblom said from her Greensburg home. “It’s over, and that’s a...
Music and food return to The Palace for Greensburg Restaurant Week
The courtyard of The Palace Theatre in Greensburg has been quiet this summer, with the move of the Thursday TGIS concerts to the grounds of the Greensburg Garden and Civic Center. But live music — and food — will return during Greensburg Restaurant Week. The Westmoreland Cultural Trust, which operates...
En plein air: Crabtree sunflower field inspires outdoor painting session for local artists
Crabtree, part of Westmoreland County’s rural landscape, is a long way from Italy and its country vistas of vineyards and olive groves. But it didn’t seem that way for some area artists on Wednesday. “It’s beautiful; it looks like Tuscany out here,” said art instructor Doreen Currie of Unity while...
