Valley News Dispatch category, Page 459
Grocery store, car wash proposed for former New Kensington Kmart site
A developer wants to build a grocery store and car wash on the former Kmart site in New Kensington in what would be a $1.8 million project, according to a paperwork submitted to the city. Demolition of the former Kmart store on Tarentum Bridge Road began recently. The store closed...
Cheswick Community Day returns Sept. 11
Cheswick Community Day is returning after being on hiatus since 2014. The Cheswick Recreation Board will be hosting the event on Saturday, Sept. 11, at Rachel Carson Riverfront Park. During the event’s absence, the borough took over the Strawberry Festival in 2013 and last held it in 2019. The festival...
Lower Burrell man sentenced to at least 2½ years in prison for guns theft from city home
A Lower Burrell man has been sentenced to serve at least 2½ years in prison for the thefts of guns from a city home. Jordan Bradley Keibler, 27, pleaded guilty Wednesday to multiple theft counts and other offenses in connection with incidents Lower Burrell police said occurred in June. According...
The Stroller, Sept. 3, 2021: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your club meetings, community events and fundraisers for free in The Stroller. Send information at least a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com. Please include a daytime telephone number. Northmoreland Park Labor Day party planned The annual Labor United Celebration will be from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday and...
Fire destroys Guy’s Tavern building in Avonmore
Lisa Sturiale fought back tears Friday morning as she stood steps away from crews battling a fire that destroyed her family’s commercial building in Avonmore. Guy’s Tavern on Westmoreland Avenue erupted in flames around 2 a.m. Sturiale, who lives in Pittsburgh’s North Side, said the building was originally owned by...
Freeport Area to comply with mask mandate; 18 covid cases and 88 quarantined kids since start of schoolVideo
Freeport Area School District officials will enforce the state’s mask mandate despite outcry from some parents imploring the school board and superintendent to ignore state Department of Health’s orders. “Let it be up to us,” parent Megan Sproat told board members at a committee meeting Thursday night. “Let us have...
Faith-based nonprofit wants to use Brackenridge building to house homeless families
The Allegheny Valley Association of Churches in Harrison wants to convert a former personal care home in Brackenridge into a temporary refuge for homeless families. The Association of Church has an agreement to buy the former Applewood Personal Care Home in the 900 block of Morgan Street, said association Director...
Harmar food pantry still helping hundreds of families a week
Although the reliance on food pantries has lessened for many people who have returned to work during the pandemic, a significant need for food from the pantries still exists, according to an Alle-Kiski Valley food distribution coordinator. “During the pandemic we were assisting about 350 families each week,” said Michelle...
Neighbor Spotlight: O’Hara resident Howard Havlicsek is a decades-long Mr. Fix-It for Fox Chapel church
Editor’s note: Neighbor Spotlight is a monthly feature that aims to let our readers learn more about the people in their communities who are working to make them a better place, who have interesting stories to tell or who the community feels deserve “15 minutes of fame.” If you would...
The Stroller, Sept. 2, 2021: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your club meetings, community events and fundraisers for free in The Stroller. Send information at least a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com. Please include a daytime telephone number. Donations welcome for the Friendship Garden Food Pantry Donations for the food pantry in the Tarentum Friendship Garden can be dropped...
Plum School District’s Air Force JROTC has new instructor
Paul Nosek served this nation for more than 27 years in various capacities in the Air Force. The retired colonel from Northern Virginia has a new place to use his leadership skills and military experience: the Plum School District. Nosek, 50, was recently named the district’s Air Force Junior ROTC...
First day back: Burrell offers extra support to students and Chromebooks for all
The first day of school for the Burrell School District on Wednesday got off to a soggy start with flash flooding impacting the region. While some buses were rerouted because of flooded intersections, the students still made it to school, Superintendent Shannon Wagner said. “It is amazing to have our...
Deer Lakes School District reports 12 covid-19 cases, 123 people in quarantine
Deer Lakes School District has reported a dozen covid-19 cases and 123 people in quarantine since its first day of school, Aug. 25. The district is monitoring cases on its website with a tracker showing where each case is throughout the buildings. The tracker shows 10 cases reported in August...
Slide repair closes stretch of Burtner Road in Harrison
A portion of Burtner Road in Harrison has closed so crews can repair a slide in the area, PennDOT said Wednesday. Burtner Road is expected to be closed to traffic around the clock between Buchanan Street and Karns Road through late October, PennDOT said. The work was planned and is...
Flooding closes portion of Route 356 in Allegheny Township
Authorities closed a portion of Route 356 in Allegheny Township late Wednesday morning because of flash flooding from the remnants of Hurricane Ida. The closure began around 11:30 a.m. between LaBelle Vue Road and Park Road, by Northmoreland Park. PennDOT spokesman Jay Ofsanik said he expected to road to remain...
Body pulled from Allegheny River in Plum
First responders pulled the body of a man from the Allegheny River in Plum on Wednesday morning, according to Allegheny County Police. Police said they responded to the 100 block of Coxcomb Hill Road shortly after 10:15 a.m. after someone called 911 to report a body floating in the river....
Bull Creek in Fawn rising but holding steady so far
Bull Creek in Fawn Township swelled and rushed along its banks early Wednesday, but no flooding was reported before 10:45 a.m., officials said. “We’re watching it, but it’s holding so far,” township Secretary Pamela Ponsart said. Flooding was reported across the region as remnants of Hurricane Ida moved through. The...
Highlands superintendent urges students to wear masks prior to state mandate
Face masks remain optional in Highlands School District through Sept. 7, when a mandate requiring the wearing of masks in schools takes effect, but Superintendent Monique Mawhinney is urging families to have their children begin wearing them now. A message was sent to district families early Wednesday regarding Gov. Tom...
Foxwall EMS adds new state-of-the-art ambulance to fleet
Foxwall EMS has added a third ambulance to its roster and members are touting the vehicle as life-saving for both patients and providers. The $208,000 ambulance is equipped with a battery-operated cot loading system, a feature that will save first responders from heavy lifting. “Once we get the patient on,...
The Stroller, Sept. 1, 2021: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your club meetings, community events and fundraisers for free in The Stroller. Send information at least a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com. Please include a daytime telephone number. HOPE Center collecting supplies for its SAF-T kennel The Alle-Kiski HOPE Center offers a Sheltering Animals and Families Together (SAF-T) Kennel...
Plum’s Oblock Junior High has nearly 100 students quarantined due to exposure to covid-19
Plum School District has nearly 100 Oblock Junior High School students quarantined due to covid exposure less than two weeks into the new school year. The district’s covid-19 count was included on the school district website, which was updated Tuesday. First day of classes was Aug. 19. The district reports...
Trib launches expanded content initiatives for subscribers
More Westmoreland County and Alle-Kiski Valley content. That’s the goal behind two initiatives the Trib is launching this week. The two new features are: • Trib Extra Subscribers will get access to a special section on TribLIVE.com where they can find expanded news coverage, from regional and national news to...
North Apollo residents asked to take surveys Wednesday and Thursday to land grant
North Apollo representatives will go door-to-door Wednesday and Thursday to ask residents who live on two streets in the borough to fill out a survey on household information for a grant application for a proposed storm sewer project. Residents will be given the confidential surveys on North Ridge Drive and...
Springdale Township closes municipal building due to covid increase
The Springdale Township Municipal Building is closed to in-person visits as a result of the recent increase in covid-19 cases. Anyone needing to drop off or pick up documents at the facility can still do so but no one other than employees is allowed inside. Other business can be conducted...
New Kensington-Arnold students begin new school year
Most students in the New Kensington-Arnold School District returned to classes on Tuesday. The district’s kindergarten students at Martin Elementary are scheduled to start on Sept. 7. Screenings are being done by appointment only until Friday. The district had already decided on its own, before Gov. Tom Wolf’s announced mask...
