Valley News Dispatch category, Page 391
New Kensington-Arnold teachers accept new contract
New Kensington-Arnold School District’s teachers ratified a new contract Wednesday, a representative of the Pennsylvania State Education Association said. The teachers union and the school district reached a tentative five-year agreement Friday night, averting a strike that the teachers had announced would begin Monday. According to a joint statement from...
East Deer officially joins Allegheny Valley Regional Police Department
The East Deer Police have officially become part of the Allegheny Valley Regional Police Department. East Deer is joining Springdale Township and Cheswick, which created the combined police department in July 2019. East Deer’s addition goes into effect Friday. East Deer Commissioners Chairman Tony Taliani and Commissioner Rick Stoneburner will...
Arnold Council approves plan for Freeport Road gas station, convenience store
Arnold Council has approved plans for a gas station and convenience store on Freeport Road. Following a public hearing Tuesday, council voted unanimously in favor of a conditional use that Mike Thakkar, owner of Yashvi Oil, needs to turn the former auto repair shop at 1610 Freeport Road into a...
Still-closed playgrounds at Vandergrift parks vex kids and grownups alike
With the playgrounds in Vandergrift’s two parks yet to open this year, some residents are petitioning borough officials to take off the padlocks and let people in. Vandergrift resident and business owner Chloe Kruse created an online petition on Change.org about a month ago, asking borough officials to open the...
Suzanne Vega talks ‘Tom’s Diner,’ ‘Luka,’ ‘Lover Beloved’ and playing in OakmontVideo
Suzanne Vega recalls sitting backstage at “The Arsenio Hall Show” in 1990 when her manager told her, “I need to play this thing for you.” The “thing” was an unauthorized remix of her a cappella song “Tom’s Diner.” Her record label, A&M, wanted to sue the two British electronic music...
Local music legend Bill Deasy returns for show at The Oaks, with new album online for free
Bill Deasy wasn’t planning on making his new album, “If the Creek Don’t Rise.” Nor was he planning on playing a show featuring his new and favorite songs at The Oaks on April 22. But Deasy — the longtime singer, songwriter, solo artist and front man of The Gathering Field...
The Stroller, April 13, 2022: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your community events, fundraisers and club meetings for free in The Stroller. Send information at least a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com. Please include a daytime telephone number. United Way collecting personal items for shelters United Way of Southwestern Pennsylvania is collecting new full-sized hygiene products, care items and...
Graduation march, visits to former buildings to remain tradition at Highlands
The traditional “Pomp and Circumstance” graduation march by Highlands seniors will continue, albeit slightly modified. At the district school board meeting Monday, Superintendent Monique Mawhinney addressed rumors circulating about potential changes to commencement exercises, scheduled for June 3 at Golden Rams Stadium. Among the rumors: • The district is doing...
Remember When: Harwick mine explosion killed 179 miners and 2 rescuers
The Alle-Kiski Valley’s greatest industrial tragedy, 118 years ago, resulted in the founding of a national award that continues today. On Jan. 25, 1904, a huge explosion took place at the Allegheny Coal Co. mine in the Harwick section of Springdale Township. The explosion took the lives of an estimated...
Firefighters douse mattress fire in New Kensington dwelling
No one was hurt in a fire that broke out in the upstairs apartment of a New Kensington home Tuesday night, fire Chief Ed Saliba Jr. said. The fire, in a building on an alley paralleling the 800 block of Seventh Street, was reported around 10:30 p.m. The fire was...
Evergreen Road in Gilpin to close April 18 for bridge replacement
Evergreen Road in Gilpin will close April 18 from Pershing Avenue (Route 66) to Ice Pond Road. Evergreen Road is expected to reopen Aug 2. The bridge, which carries Evergreen Road over Brady’s Run, will be closed while crews replace the existing structure with a multi-girder bridge. Mekis Construction Corp....
The Stroller, April 12, 2022: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your community events, fundraisers and club meetings for free in The Stroller. Send information at least a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com. Please include a daytime telephone number. Food items needed for Leechburg weekend distribution The Leechburg Food Bank and Leechburg School District sponsor the Providing Alternatives to Hunger...
Building the Valley: Ales on 6th to bring extensive beer, entertainment options to Tarentum
A new bar and grill is set to open this spring along East Sixth Avenue in Tarentum. Ales on 6th, housed on the ground level of the Tarentum Hotel, is the venture of five cousins with ties to the Alle-Kiski Valley. “We want to bring something fun and new to...
Woman hurt, 2 toddlers safe after vehicle goes over steep hillside in Vandergrift
A woman was airlifted to a hospital Monday night, but her two toddler-age children were unhurt despite her vehicle crashing hundreds of feet down a steep hillside in Vandergrift, according to authorities. The 35-year-old woman, whose name was not released, was traveling along 28th Street about 9:30 p.m. when she...
Army Reserve engineers gather in New Kensington for deployment to Middle East
An Army Reserve company that specializes in building things left New Kensington on Monday for a deployment based in Kuwait. Police and firefighters from across the Alle-Kiski Valley helped with their sendoff as the roughly 150 members of the 340th Engineer Company left on tour buses from the New Kensington...
Pair face hundreds of animal cruelty charges after nearly 50 horses found starving in West Deer
Close to 300 charges were filed against the owners of nearly 50 horses, donkeys and a pig that humane agents said were starving, had serious medical problems and were living in squalid conditions in a West Deer barn. Authorities who visited the property to confiscate the neglected animals said they...
Kiski Area winter guard team captures gold medal at world championships
A Kiski Area School District color guard team struck gold during a recent international competition last weekend in Ohio. The 18-member Kiski Area Scholastic Open Winter Guard made history, winning a gold medal in the 2022 WGI (Winter Guard International) World Championships. “We could not be more proud of the...
‘It’s a way of life’: Fox Chapel officer devoted to life and service with police dogs
With the Fox Chapel police, Officer Robert Katich is well regarded for the K-9 program he started 23 years ago. But his renown in the field extends beyond the woodsy suburb. Over the decades, he has become a nationally recognized master dog trainer who has trained more than 1,000 dogs...
Ride for Homeless Vets fundraiser set to return to Alle-Kiski Valley
A June motorcycle trip by more than 1,200 riders will travel through the Alle-Kiski Valley and beyond to benefit homeless veterans. The 15th annual Ride for Homeless Vets is back after a two-year covid-related absence. “I started this little ride just wanting to get 100 people involved,” said Tom Grates,...
The Stroller, April 11, 2022: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your community events, fundraisers and club meetings for free in The Stroller. Send information at least a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com. Please include a daytime telephone number. Applications being accepted for Goodwill voucher program Goodwill of Southwestern Pennsylvania is seeking 501(c)3 non-profit organizations to apply to receive Give...
New Kensington natives return to hometown, make former church their home
After the last two of their combined six children graduated from college, Melissa Palumbo imagined she and her husband, Jim, would downsize their home. He found her a castle instead. “We walked through with a Realtor,” Melissa said. “I said, ‘Nope.’ ” But when the price came down on the...
Personal tragedy leads to new life, career for Animal Protectors’ shelter manager Mike Post
Coping with the grief that followed the death of his father took Mike Post’s life straight to the dogs. Post, 42, of Lower Burrell is the shelter manager at Animal Protectors of Allegheny Valley in New Kensington. It’s not where he thought life would lead him after graduating from Burrell...
Vandergrift’s 3-person chicken committee disbands
Vandergrift’s chicken committee, formed last August by officials proposing changes to the borough’s fowl ordinance, has disbanded. A proposed chicken ordinance was moving forward last September, with plans to amend an ordinance regulating the ownership of backyard chickens in the borough. The three-person chicken committee had included Councilwoman Christine Wilson,...
Kiski Area schools receive food service award from Pittsburgh Food Bank
The lunch ladies at Kiski Area School District are serving up more than just healthy meals. The Kiski Area School District food service department was recognized recently for its efforts in child food-related programs. The department of about 50 employees received a 2021 Child Hunger Hero Award from the Greater...
New Kensington Council awards 1st contract for new downtown playground
New Kensington Council has awarded the first of three contracts that will see a parking lot transformed into a new downtown playground. Council approved paying Derry Construction $32,175 to resurface the parking lot behind Peoples Library, along Barnes Street at Eighth Street. The city is paying for the development with...
