Norwin area happenings through Nov. 24

Veterans Day changes made at Post 781

The coronavirus pandemic and restrictions on large gatherings forced changes to the annual Veterans Day celebration at the J. Howard Snyder Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 781, 100 Billott Ave., North Huntingdon.

Instead of a large gathering inside the VFW post, Commander Kory Bulloch said the ceremony at 11 a.m. Nov. 11 will be held outside at the new flagpole, which will be dedicated to the late Don Kattic, former longtime commander of the post.

Kattic, who was post commander for 20 years, served with the Marine Corps during the Korean War. He died in January at 87.

A small luncheon will be available for VFW members following the ceremony, Bulloch said.

Church to host Narcan, Deterra distribution

The Westmoreland County Drug & Alcohol Commission, North Huntingdon EMS Rescue, Sage’s Army and SPHS Behavioral Health will host a Nov. 12 drive-thru distribution for Narcan (naloxone) and Deterra drug deactivation bags.

It will be from 4 to 5:30 p.m. at the parking lot of Calvary Church, 8653 Pennsylvania Ave. in Irwin.

Instruction on administering Narcan will be provided. There is no cost.

While physicians may prescribe Narcan proactively with opioids to minimize the risk of chemical dependency, it is most frequently used in emergency situations.

New emergency management coordinator named

A retired North Huntingdon police officer is the municipality’s new emergency management agency coordinator.

Township commissioners unanimously appointed Robert Dippolito on Oct. 21 to the post, succeeding Gene Komondor, who resigned in September after serving 13 years in the role.

Dippolito retired in May 2019 after serving 29 years on the police force.

Five people applied for the position, including three from out of state, said Commissioner Zachary Haigis, board president. He speculated those applicants did not realize it is an unpaid position.

Police, township agree on contract extension

North Huntingdon police officers agreed to a wage freeze next year followed by pay raises of 2% in 2022, 2.5% in 2023 and 3% in 2024 under a four-year contract extension reached with the township.

Township commissioners unanimously approved the contract that township Manager Jeff Silka called a “fair agreement” that covers 27 officers. The officers agreed to a wage freeze next year, Silka said, because they realized the township has lost revenue because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The current contract expires at the end of the year, Silka said. Bargaining between police and the township began in July.

Patrol officers will work 12-hour shifts and 84 hours over two weeks, while detectives and lieutenants can be assigned a modified work schedule to accommodate working 84 hours every two weeks, according to the agreement.

New officers hired as junior patrol officers will receive 70% of a senior officer’s pay for their first year, increasing annually until reaching 100% in their fifth year of service.

Faulty parking meters need to be calibrated

Irwin police will not write tickets for vehicles parked in spaces with an expired meter until the machines are recalibrated.

The decision to suspend meter ticket writing was prompted by a Westmoreland County Bureau of Weights and Measures’ inspector finding faulty meters in a group of about a half-dozen checked recently in a parking lot off Main Street, police Chief Dan Wensel said.

Most of the parking meters are in the downtown business district.

Wensel said the borough will have its parking enforcement officer get certification from the state in calibrating parking meters “as soon as possible.”

In the meantime, patrols will continue to enforce rules for motorists who buy monthly parking permits as well as for the two-hour parking limit on Main Street.

It will be up to borough council to decide whether to reimburse motorists who received parking tickets because the meters were faulty, Wensel said.

Draft of backyard chicken rules OK’d

After months of wrangling over what rules North Huntingdon should adopt to regulate pet chickens in residential areas, the township commissioners authorized the planning department staff to write rules to permit chickens as a conditional use.

Commissioners will consider adopting the conditional-use permit rule while keeping the existing ordinance requiring a 10-acre parcel for chickens. They voted 6-1 in October to authorize the writing of the ordinance, with only Commissioner Eric Gass opposing. Gass said after the vote that he mistakenly voted against it.

A majority of the commissioners were unable to agree on changing the existing ordinance to allow chickens on parcels less than 10 acres.

West Newton Library to sell pies

The West Newton Library is selling pies made by Gary Johnson’s Gingerbread Bakery on Second Street as a fundraiser.

Order forms will be available in the bakery at 111 S. Second St. or the library at 124 N. Water St., at westnewton@wlnonline.org and on the library’s Facebook page.

Pumpkin, apple, sugar- free apple, Dutch apple, cherry, Dutch cherry, peach, blueberry, chocolate cream, lemon meringue and coconut cream pies are available for $12. Pumpkin rolls are $10. The deadline for ordering is Nov. 21.

Payment and order forms can be dropped off at the bakery or mailed to the library at P.O. Box 221, West Newton, Pa. 15089.

The pies can be picked up at the bakery from noon to 6 p.m. Nov. 24.