Valley News Dispatch category, Page 206

When Deer Lakes High School drama and choir teacher Matt Derby sought student volunteers to sing 1940s songs for an event in Tarentum, he found his 21st-century students knew more of the tunes than he thought they would. Marianna Vergerio, 17, recognized “At Last” from the America’s Got Talent. Young...

For the third time in eight years, East Deer commissioners have cut real estate taxes for residents and businesses. That news emerged Thursday as the commissioners approved a preliminary budget for 2024. “There will be a real estate tax cut in this budget of 0.25 mills,” Commissioners Chairman Tony Taliani...

Gray skies and rain falling would seem to be perfect weather for a Halloween event. For the folks involved with the Fall Fun for Youth event Saturday at the Natrona Park and Playground on River Avenue, the gloomy weather prevented the kids, 3-year-olds up to high schoolers, some 40 in...

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. Annual lottery ticket fundraiser to aid Animal Protectors Animal Protectors of...

Leechburg has taken recycling into its own hands. The Kiski River town in Armstrong County operates its own recycling center with an all-volunteer staff of about a dozen dedicated people from the Leechburg, Apollo and Allegheny Township areas, said Leechburg Council President Tom Foster. And it has been doing it...

Springdale police say a fight between two men last week at Dollar General led to one dispatching pepper spray at the other, causing the store to be evacuated. On Thursday, police charged William Stephen Korbe, 59, of Cheswick and Donald William Brownlee, 64, of Springdale with simple assault and disorderly...

The court case to block the implosion of the boiler house at the former Cheswick Generating Station in Springdale is expected to resume Monday. Last month, 16 Springdale residents filed an injunction against the companies that were scheduled to perform the implosion at the site. The boiler house was scheduled...

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. Community development workshop offered The Westmoreland County Redevelopment Authority and Land...

Harrison police are sporting a new hue for October. Bright-pink uniform patches are intended to raise awareness for the battle against breast cancer, Chief Brian Turack said. “People are already talking about it, so it’s working,” he said. The department is participating in the Pink Patch Project, founded in 2013...

Superintendent Ian Magness will lead the Freeport Area School District for five more years. The school board approved a new contract that will keep Magness at Freeport Area until October 2028. “I am humbled and grateful that the school board is giving me an opportunity to lead the district for...

Tarentum has experienced eight water main breaks in the past two months. Ninety percent of the pipes at the water distribution plant are 100 years old. “Our system is failing,” Manager Dwight Boddorf said. “Anytime we go to replace something, there’s a high chance of collapse.” Officials are trying to...

It was from the shape of a swimming pool that Valerie Lepage realized her friend and colleague, Jackie Thomas, was among those affected by the August house explosion in Plum. The pool was all that was left of the Thomas home, which burned after the house of Paul and Heather...

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. NK Salvation Army to offer holiday assistance, coats The New Kensington...

Oakmont Borough officials notified residents about 4 p.m. Thursday of a water main break at the intersection of Pennsylvania and Allegheny avenues. Traffic backups are expected while the break is being repaired. The Oakmont Water Authority and Oakmont police were not immediately available to provide an update....

The Aspinwall Council race has six candidates vying for three, four-year seats in November. Republican incumbent and current council president Tim McLaughlin and Democratic incumbents Patti McCaffrey and Heth Turnquist are joined in the political battle by Republican challengers Terry Taylor and Louis Curcio Jr. and Democrat Mark Chimel. Here...

Andrew Bischof, the former Arnold volunteer firefighter charged with arson in connection with four fires in Arnold and New Kensington earlier this month, waived his preliminary hearing Thursday morning before District Judge Frank J. Pallone Jr. Police accuse Bischof, 21, of setting four houses on fire the weekend of Sept....

Four candidates are vying for three open seats on Fox Chapel Council. Incumbent Betsy Monroe is on the Democratic ticket. Candidate Michael Pohl is running as a Republican. Incumbent Fred Leech and candidate Jonathan Colton earned enough votes in the spring primary to be placed on both the Democratic and...

Pennsylvania’s Liquor Control Board has granted East Deer’s request for the township to enforce its own noise ordinance, as a concert venue at Pittsburgh Brewing Co. plans to open next summer. East Deer established its own noise ordinance in June and sought the exemption from the LCB because of Pittsburgh...

A tradition more than four decades old is going strong to help the A-K Valley’s most needy. A Walk for Hunger, set for Sunday in Harrison, aims to raise money to buy boxed meals, peanut butter, pasta and other shelf-stable items for local food pantries. The walk is sponsored by...

West Deer police arrested a Vandergrift woman after she told them she left her two toddlers unattended because she thought her estranged father broke into the basement to harass her. Ashley Dawn Miller, 25, of the 100 block of Custer Avenue was charged with two felony counts of endangering the...

Aspinwall officials are making changes to access and regulation of the borough’s dog park. Dogs can roam free in the Aspinwall Recreation Area ball fields Nov. 1 through March 31. The infields are fenced off to limit damage to the baseball playing area. Residents and nonresidents will have to register...

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. 1940s USO dance planned Saturday in Tarentum The Tarentum Elks and...

It took several Arnold residents only minutes to raise questions about City Council’s approval of a new police officer hiring Tuesday. Council voted, 4-1, to hire Joseph Martino II, 35, who previously worked as a police officer in New Kensington. In October 2020, Pittsburgh police accused Martino of beating up...

The inaugural class of the Sharpsburg Sports Hall of Fame will be inducted later this month. A banner with the names of the inductees will be raised high into the rafters of the Linden Gym during halftime of the youth basketball game between the Sharpsburg Wolves and Caveman AAU on...