Valley News Dispatch category, Page 524
Freeport Area School District grades 6-12 to return to class full time, Buffalo Elementary on alert
Freeport Area School District students grades 6-12 will return to the classroom full time, despite warnings that one of the district’s school buildings may be forced to temporarily close after a covid-19 exposure. Beginning next week, middle and high school students will return to the classroom four days a week,...
Winter lantern festival resounding success for Fox Chapel Parks Conservancy
A glittering field of more than 500 lanterns sent a simple but solid message by the new Fox Chapel Parks Conservancy trying to raise awareness of the borough’s vast green space. “These are the community’s parks,” Councilwoman and Conservancy co-founder Mandy Steele said of the Jan. 8 event at McCahill...
Fox Chapel Area weighing increased in-person instruction for high school, Dorseyville Middle School
Fox Chapel Area School District officials said a decision to increase in-person class time for middle and high school students could come in early February. Superintendent Mary Catherine Reljac said there’s been no alternate guidance from the state regarding older students, despite last week’s recommendation by health and education experts...
Rotary club project to recognize Verona, Oakmont families with American flags
The Rotary Club of Oakmont-Verona plans to give residents of the twin boroughs an opportunity to commend or remember others with a bevy of American flags. “It’s a way to honor the people of the community and brings recognition to the community,” said Rotary past president Don Stoner. “It helps...
Allegheny Valley School District returning to hybrid learning next week
Allegheny Valley School Board voted unanimously this week to have students return to hybrid instruction starting Tuesday. Under the plan, students in grades K-12 will be divided into two groups — with one group attending in-person classes on Mondays and Thursdays and a second group attending in-person on Tuesdays and...
Springdale Township adopts budget with no new taxes
The Springdale Township Commissioners adopted a budget of nearly $1.5 million for this year that includes no increase in property taxes. The budget, which passed 5-0, keeps the tax rate at 6.5 mills. At that rate, the owner of a property assessed at $75,000, the township’s average property value, will...
County Hauling fires 2 after thefts from New Kensington residents
New Kensington’s garbage hauler fired two employees after residents reported thefts of a package and Christmas lights, the company and city officials confirmed Thursday. It makes for a troubling start for the new one-year contract between New Kensington and County Hauling, which council approved in December despite past concerns over...
After years of refurbishing, owners of the Addison House in Leechburg intend to open this year
The historic Addison House in Leechburg is set to reopen to the public after a five-year closure. The once-popular First Street eatery shut its doors in 2012 amid financial woes after the tragic death of co-owner Laura Stettmier in an October 2011 plane crash in West Virginia. John and Devra...
Deer Lakes returning to hybrid schedule
Deer Lakes School District will return to a hybrid instruction schedule Tuesday, with modified hours that will allow high school students to have nine periods of live instruction per day. Students have been learning remotely since November in response to rising covid-19 cases. Remote learning will still be available for...
Movie theater to reopen at Pittsburgh Mills
The shuttered movie theaters at the Pittsburgh Mills mall in Frazer will reopen this spring under new management that promises cheaper movie tickets. Mark McSparin, president of Michigan-based GQT Movies, confirmed Thursday that the company is taking over the former Cinemark space. It has a tentative opening date of March...
The Stroller, Jan. 15, 2021: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your non-profit’s meetings, fundraisers and community events in The Stroller. Send information at least a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com. Please include a daytime telephone number. Vandergrift Public Library participating in reading challenge Vandergrift Public Library is taking part in Beanstack’s Fourth Annual Winter Reading Challenge, sponsored by Simon...
Reservations required: In its 10th year, Leechburg church serves free meals
A Leechburg church congregation is continuing their love of helping others. A free Pot Love Dinner, offered to the public each month, has entered its tenth year at Cross Roads Community Presbyterian Church. The meal is normally served inside the church, but due to covid-19 restrictions, the meals are currently...
Some remnants of Leechburg’s trolley system buried under landslide debrisVideo
Leechburg’s trolley days are long gone, but memories and physical reminders remain more than eight decades after the last trolleys stopped running. Larry Boehm, president of the Leechburg Area Museum and Historical Society, invited the Tribune-Review to explore structures that remain from the old trolley system, including remnants of the...
Man taken to hospital after vehicle rollover in West Deer
A man was taken to a Pittsburgh hospital Wednesday after he fell asleep while driving and crashed into a utility pole in West Deer, according to police. Police Chief Jon Lape said emergency responders were called to the single-vehicle crash on Middle Road near Steeplechase Circle shortly before 6:30 p.m....
KDKA newscaster Rose Ryan Douglas announces her retirement
When Rose Rymarz was about to go on the air for the first time in her professional radio career, the program director at WKPA-AM/WYDD-FM in New Kensington had a suggestion. He decided she should use only her first name because he thought her last name, Rymarz, was too ethnic-sounding for...
Former Community Market in O’Hara will reopen as Goldfish Swim School
A long-vacant grocery store in Fox Chapel Plaza is making waves since the arrival of construction crews earlier this month. When the former Community Market spot reopens at the corner of Freeport and Fox Chapel Roads, long gone will be aisles of produce and paper products. In its place will...
Burrell schools fight Arconic assessment appeal that would result in $500K hit
Burrell School District and Upper Burrell plan to fight a real estate assessment appeal filed in a Westmoreland County court by Arconic Inc. that could reduce tax revenue to the school district by almost $500,000 annually. “We plan to fight this vigorously,” said Anthony Giglio, an attorney with Andrews &...
The Stroller, Jan. 14, 2021: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your non-profit’s meetings, fundraisers and community events in The Stroller. Send information at least a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com. Please include a daytime telephone number. Free produce distribution set in Natrona Building Block of Natrona will host its free Veggies for All and Cosmetics Closet outreach for residents...
New Kensington’s Thomas P. Bicanich Jr. was scholar, veteran and man of many talents and interests
A strong advocate for higher education, Thomas P. Bicanich Jr. never stopped learning. Over the years, Bicanich visited 49 of the nation’s 50 states. He explored each one thoroughly to learn what it had to offer, while pursuing a broad range of other interests and hobbies. His wife, Joanne Cecchi,...
Police: Men meet on Grindr, beat each other up in New Kensington
Two men who met on the dating app Grindr face assault charges after they got into a fistfight and bit each other after hooking up at one of the men’s houses, according to a criminal complaint. New Kensington police charged Ryan Christopher Grabigel, 40, of New Kensington with aggravated assault...
New Kensington-Arnold releases community survey as part of superintendent search
Members of the New Kensington-Arnold School District community are being asked to complete a survey about what traits they want in the district’s new superintendent. A link to the survey is available on the district’s website, nkasd.com. Administrators, community members, parents, staff and students are asked to complete it by...
Vandergrift authorities rescue 12-year-old boy from burning house
Quick action by Vandergrift police officers using fire extinguishers Tuesday afternoon likely saved the life of a 12-year-old boy trapped in his upstairs bedroom, a Vandergrift fire chief said. “They gave him a chance to survive. If it were not for the police using the extinguishers … there would have...
The Stroller, Jan. 13, 2021: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your non-profit’s meetings, fundraisers and community events in The Stroller. Send information at least a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com. Please include a daytime telephone number. Community Library of Allegheny Valley honored by Pa. Library Association Community Library of Allegheny Valley in Harrison was named a Gold Star Library...
State police: Harrison man who fled traffic stop was delivering meth
A Harrison man accused of fleeing from a traffic stop Monday night was delivering methamphetamine to someone before he was pulled over, according to state police. Police said a trooper tried to pull over a car driven by Sergio Andreal Davis, 28, because he was speeding and weaving on Route...
Free meals for Fox Chapel Area School District families doled out weekly at Blawnox firehall
Free grab-and-go meals will be available in Blawnox each Tuesday through Feb. 2 for Fox Chapel Area School District families. Sponsored by Backpack for Hunger and Fox Families Care, the meals will be served at the Blawnox firehall, 376 Freeport Road. “This is for anyone,” volunteer Lisa Bowden said. “There...
