Westmoreland category, Page 401
Hempfield is latest district to face book ban challenge
As a frenzy of book challenges rocks the nation at an unprecedented rate, local school districts are facing heightened scrutiny over which texts are made available in their libraries. This week, a Hempfield Area School District committee will review a policy that determines how school materials are reevaluated after two...
Accused Jeannette shoplifter arrested on multiple criminal charges after return trip to store, police say
A suspected shoplifter’s return trip Tuesday to a Dollar General store in Jeannette ended in the man’s arrest on multiple felony drug delivery and possession charges when police said they discovered him with crack cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine and prescription opioid medication. Police said they seized nearly a brick of heroin,...
Jeannette may move property maintenance officer to full time
Jeannette Council is considering bumping its part-time property maintenance officer up to full-time status. The group discussed the move during an executive session this week and might vote on the matter at a session Thursday. Council in September hired Vincent Pascarella of New Stanton, resurrecting the job that fell in...
East Huntingdon man facing more fraud charges over money taken for work not done
Home improvement fraud charges keep racking up against an East Huntingdon man who was arrested Monday in connection with nearly $49,000 taken from eight Westmoreland County residents. It’s the 10th such case filed against him in Westmoreland and Fayette counties in the past year, according to online court records. Jason...
Hempfield School Board decides to tear down existing high school to its bare bones, building up from there
Hempfield leaders are moving forward with a multimillion-dollar project that will involve tearing down the high school to its structural system and replacing everything as new. School board members voted 8-0 Tuesday night to overhaul the 66-year-old building rather than renovate the existing structure or build a new school. Board...
Westmoreland courthouse structural concerns identified in January; collapse threat not imminent
Engineers in late January found deteriorating structural beams in a parking garage below the Westmoreland County Courthouse in downtown Greensburg. County officials said Tuesday that while urgency is needed to make repairs, there is no imminent threat of collapse. Core samples taken in October found evidence of deteriorating beams from...
Greensburg YMCA to hold indoor triathlon
Competitors will get a chance to get into the season by swimming, riding a stationary bicycle and running or walking on a treadmill this weekend in the Greensburg YMCA Indoor Triathlon. The competitors will swim 400 yards at the YMCA pool, a nine-mile bicycle ride and a two-mile run or...
Saint Vincent weightlifter Amanda Serapiglia wins bronze at national event
She majors in biochemistry, but Saint Vincent’s Amanda Serapiglia also experiments in another discipline. The junior from Trafford is bringing home a bronze medal after competing in the Arnold Sports Festival’s USA Weightlifting National University Championships in Columbus, Ohio. Serepiglia, a 20-year-old cross-fitter, took third in her weight division while...
Westmoreland Museum appoints new curator of American art
The Westmoreland Museum of American Art has announced the appointment of a new curator. Jeremiah William McCarthy will begin his role as Curator of American Art on April 19, succeeding Chief Curator Barbara L. Jones. She is retiring after nearly 27 years at the Greensburg museum. “I look forward to...
Troopers serving warrant in Indiana County say suspect had heroin, cocaine, marijuana, meth
A state police fugitive task force learned a man wanted for skipping court hearings was hiding out in a Blairsville apartment March 2, where they descended and found him atop “a second-story roof walkway on the roof and looking to escape by climbing a brick wall,” Trooper Stephen Limani said....
2nd man arrested in bail scam that targeted Hempfield woman
A second New Jersey man has been arrested in connection with a bail scam that duped a Hempfield woman out of thousands of dollars. Noel Medrano-Abreu, 29, is being held in the Westmoreland County Prison without bail. He was arraigned Tuesday, with the help of an interpreter, on two conspiracy...
Dewey Bunnell excited to bring rock group America to Greensburg on 50th anniversary tourVideo
We can be thankful to England for a lot of things, especially for America. No, not the country. After all, we fought for that. I’m talking about America the folk-rock group, the band that produced hit songs like “Ventura Highway,” “I Need You,” “Tin Man” and of course “A Horse...
Fort Ligonier program looks at Gen. John Forbes’ place in history
Fort Ligonier will commemorate the anniversary of the death of Gen. John Forbes with a special program at 6:30 p.m. Friday in the Center for History Education at the historical complex at routes 30 and 711 in Ligonier. “This new event is meant to shine some light on the man...
Portrait of Patsy: Singer brings country legend’s spirit to Hampton
Music was the order of most days at the Rhodes house in South Greensburg. “Dad would play guitar and sing. My mother would harmonize while she was doing dishes,” Cathi Rhodes said. “I thought everyone grew up this way. I’d go to some of my friends’ houses, and I’d say...
Franklin Regional ‘pauses’ teaching of novel about Iranian Revolution after complaints
Franklin Regional School District is “pausing” use of a novel in a freshman honors English course after school board members asked administrators to review its use amid concerns from some residents in the district. “Persepolis,” Marjane Satrapi’s graphic novel about growing up as a 10-year-old girl amidst the Iranian Revolution...
Students from 8 school districts compete at Saint Vincent’s Pasta Bridge Engineering Competition
Nineteen teams of students from eight school districts in Western Pennsylvania were hoping to keep things “al dente” Monday night at the 15th annual Pasta Bridge Engineering Competition, held at Saint Vincent College. That wasn’t the case for one of three Norwin students teams. “We had some issues with the...
Structural repairs to closing of Westmoreland Courthouse entrance, courtyard
Courthouse Square and the Main Street entrance to the Westmoreland County Courthouse will be closed for at least six months to repair structural issues on the lower two underground parking levels below the government complex in Greensburg. Commissioners on Tuesday are expected to award a $7 million emergency contract for...
Trial begins for Washington Township couple sued by friend paralyzed in swimming pool accident
Lawyers for a Vandergrift man who suffered a broken neck and spinal cord injuries in a swimming pool accident at a friend’s Washington Township home in 2013 on Monday asked a Westmoreland County jury to award him more than $9 million in damages. Jurors will spend the next week hearing...
Westmoreland Performing Arts troupe shoulders weighty Sam Shepard drama
The Westmoreland Performing Arts professional company will make its debut with Sam Shepard’s Pulitzer Prize finalist drama, “True West,” playing March 17-19 at the Greensburg Garden and Civic Center. “True West” examines the fraught relationship between screenwriter Austin and his older brother Lee, with the action unfolding in the kitchen...
Madison woman killed in crash on Arona Road in Hempfield
A 57-year-old Madison woman was killed in a head-on collision Monday on Arona Road in Hempfield, according to the Westmoreland County Coroner’s Office. Two others were hurt in the crash, according to township firefighters. Dawn E. Coyne was pronounced dead at 12:32 p.m. at Excela Health Westmoreland hospital in Greensburg,...
Bushy Run Battlefield to celebrate state charter day in Penn Township on Sunday
Pennsylvania’s birthday, 341 years and counting, will be celebrated this weekend at the Bushy Run Battlefield, site of a crucial 1763 battle during Pontiac’s War along what is now Route 993 near Harrison City. From 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, complimentary guided tours of the museum and battlefield will...
Irwin man accused in stabbing
An Irwin man was arraigned Monday on police accusations that he used a steak knife to stab a man multiple times, according to court papers. Eric A. Perez, 39, is charged with aggravated assault, terroristic threats and simple assault. Borough police were called to Maple Street and Mulberry Lane at...
Westmoreland blight remediation seminar set for April
Westmoreland officials believe there are more than 1,200 dilapidated buildings scattered throughout the county’s 65 municipalities and next month will kick start an effort to remove that blight. The county’s Redevelopment Authority will conduct a daylong “boot camp” April 22 at Westmoreland County Community College for local leaders to address...
Historical society works to preserve 19th century iron furnace near New Florence
A stone pyramid with steep, angled sides rises 35 feet above a back road just outside New Florence. Though silent now, it was humming with activity in the mid 1800s when it was a vital part of Westmoreland County’s early iron industry. Laurel Hill Furnace, at 114 Wyoming Lane, off...
Delmont officials headed to court over eminent-domain request for sewage project
A Westmoreland County judge has ordered an evidentiary hearing as Delmont officials continue trying to condemn land in neighboring Salem Township, where they are planning a multi-million-dollar sewage project over the objections of the property owners. Delmont is invoking eminent domain in order to obtain a permanent easement on Salem...
