Valley News Dispatch category, Page 259
Tarentum officials take steps to advance plan for combining police departments with Brackenridge
Tarentum Council took another step Wednesday in assuming police services for Brackenridge. By a 6-0 vote with Kevin Bertocki absent, council authorized advertising two ordinances that will allow it to absorb Brackenridge’s three full-time officers and equipment into the 10-member Tarentum Police Department. The first ordinance enables the borough to...
New Kensington Bridge to close for 6 weeks starting in July
A scheduled closure to the New Kensington Bridge will happen a year sooner than expected. The six-week closure is tentatively scheduled for July 17, with July 24 as a backup date, according to PennDOT spokesperson Steve Cowan. Motorists also can expect the section of Freeport Road passing under the bridge...
Foundation pays mortgage on home of fallen Brackenridge police Chief Justin McIntire
A foundation created after the 9/11 terrorist attacks announced Thursday that it paid off the mortgage on the home of Brackenridge police Chief Justin McIntire, who was killed in the line of duty early this year. The mortgage on the Brackenridge home McIntire shared with his wife, Ashley, and their...
Oakmont Greek food festival serves record crowds, meals
Officials and parishioners of the Dormition of the Theotokos Greek Orthodox Church are celebrating after a record-setting weekend of the Oakmont Greek Food Festival. Tens of thousands of people participated in the post-pandemic party and fundraiser June 23-25. “This year was a record year for us, and we prepared food...
New Kensington police say suspect wanted on 2 warrants arrested after accosting man at his home
New Kensington police filed drug charges against a man who was wanted on multiple arrest warrants after someone at his apartment called 911 to report that he was being accosted. Daevar Lamont Stevens, 24, of the 1600 block of Woodmont Avenue in Arnold was charged with a count of felony...
Groundhog wreaks havoc on Sheldon Park Community Garden in Harrison
The Sheldon Park Community Garden lost almost 100 crops Tuesday after a groundhog made its way into the garden and ravaged the planter boxes. Drew Jonczak, the primary gardener at the Sheldon Park Community Center in Harrison, where the garden is located, said the groundhog managed to get through the...
Slide repair to close Leechburg Road in Plum into mid-August
PennDOT plans to close another Plum road to repair a slide, a spokesman confirmed Thursday. Leechburg Road will be fully closed between New Texas and Unity Center roads from July 5 through mid-August, spokesman Steve Cowan said. Traffic on the road has been restricted since June 9, when a temporary...
New Sharpsburg Sports Hall of Fame in the works; nominations sought for inaugural class
Nominations are being sought for the inaugural class of Sharpsburg’s new Sports Hall of Fame. Launched this year by Councilwoman Kayla Portis, District Judge Matthew Rudzki and volunteers with the Sharpsburg Historical Commission, about 14 nominations had been received as of June 14. There is no deadline for submissions. The...
The Stroller, June 29, 2023: 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. Free tuition reimbursement offered for nurses Concordia Lutheran Ministries will host...
New Kensington considering updated regulations, new fees for restaurants, food trucks
New Kensington is revamping fees paid by restaurants and food trucks in an effort to emphasize food safety. City council is considering an ordinance that would bring the city into compliance with the state’s food laws, health officer Patrick McGuire said. “It makes the licensing and enforcement in compliance with...
Saints of the Valley vacation Bible school teaches kids about namesakes for local churches
Most churches base their vacation Bible schools on cookie-cutter programming from national suppliers, but, at Saints of the Valley, campers will get an experience specific to the Alle-Kiski Valley. Each day of the program focuses on a different patron saint for one of five Catholic churches in the region —...
Woman accused of attacking McDonald’s coworker with headset ordered to stand trial
A former employee at the McDonald’s restaurant in Lower Burrell was ordered to stand trial on charges of assaulting a new co-worker by hitting her in the head with a $900 drive-thru window headset. Nicole Monique Brundage, 37, of the 200 block of Freeport Road in New Kensington, was charged...
The Stroller, June 28, 2023: 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. Household, personal items needed at Allegheny Valley Association of Churches The...
Gilpin family celebrates million-dollar lottery win in Allegheny Township
A Leechburg Area High School senior is having a summer to remember. Summer St. John, 17, celebrated the news Tuesday of her mother’s million-dollar lottery win with a commemorative check presentation at the Giant Eagle in Allegheny Township. Summer and her parents, Paul and Tricia St. John, shared hugs, smiles...
Sharpsburg fills council vacancy
Sharpsburg officials tapped the executive director of a nonprofit organization as the borough’s newest councilman. David Breingan, 34, was appointed unanimously on June 22 to fill a seat vacated by Councilwoman Carrie Tongram. Tongram announced her resignation in May and formally stepped down June 15. The Democrat was in the...
It’s official: Harrison has a new police chief
Harrison police Sgt. Brian Andrew Turack officially is the department’s new chief. Turack was sworn in at Monday’s commissioners meeting. He has been serving alongside retiring Chief Michael Klein since May, when commissioners appointed Turack to the chief’s post. Klein has been the chief for the past 29 years. His...
Aspinwall considers raising $100 business privilege tax to $500
Aspinwall officials are considering raising the borough’s annual business privilege tax from $100 to $500. Councilman Heth Turnquist, chair of finance and personnel, pitched the idea as a way to generate more revenue for the borough instead of raising real estate taxes, which have remained steady since 2019. The business...
Industrial development agencies finalize venture to redevelop New Kensington park
Westmoreland County Industrial Development Corp. and the Regional Industrial Development Corp. finalized a joint venture to redevelop the New Kensington Advanced Manufacturing Park. Westmoreland County commissioners and IDC directors Sean Kertes, Doug Chew and Gina Cerilli Thrasher approved the partnership with RIDC, which has agreed to the terms. “We’re extremely...
The Stroller, June 27, 2023: 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. ‘Encanto’ to be featured Friday at Hartwood Acres The free Allegheny...
PennDOT plans daily, 10-hour closures of Campbell Road in West Deer
A West Deer road is scheduled to be closed 10 hours a day, each day, from Tuesday through Friday, PennDOT announced Monday. Weather-permitting, Campbell Road will be closed to traffic from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. between Saxonburg Boulevard and Route 910 while crews are leveling the road and paving....
Registered sex offender accused of sexually assaulting woman in restroom at Apollo park
An Apollo man who is a registered sex offender is charged with sexually assaulting a woman in a portable restroom at Owen’s Grove Community Park. Joshua Allen Gibbon, 22, of 400 block of Woodward Avenue was charged with felony counts of aggravated indecent assault, sexual assault and criminal use of...
Vandergrift’s 1st female mayor remembered for her dedication, kindness and work ethic
A former Vandergrift mayor and longtime Leechburg Area School District educator is being remembered as a dedicated servant in two neighboring communities. Barbara Jo (Sendry) Turiak died on June 20, 2023 at Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh. She was 70. Turiak lived in Vandergrift for more than 19 years, often...
Diamond Antiques building gets makeover ahead of 100th anniversary
It’s hard to miss the new and improved Diamond Antiques building in Tarentum. Painted bright white, the formerly drab brown building sticks out along the Sixth Avenue business district. The storefront is appointed with a stark black-and-white striped awning “There’s been so many comments, and everyone seems to love it,”...
The Stroller, June 26, 2023: 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. Dog treats needed by Animal Protectors Animal Protectors of Allegheny Valley...
Retiring New Kensington-Arnold principal to head science foundation’s effort in city
New Kensington native Nicole Roberts is ready to retire from her more than three-decade career in public education — but not from being an educator. Roberts, 54, is retiring effective Sept. 11 as principal of H.D. Berkey Elementary School in Arnold. She will continue working as program director of the...
