Joyce Hanz stories, Page 48
2 dozen Arnold Manor residents displaced by fire expected to return to high-rise Tuesday
Residents displaced by a fire Thursday at Arnold Manor public housing in Arnold are expected to return to their apartments next week. The 76-unit high-rise complex, built in the 1970s, was evacuated about 2 p.m. Thursday when a fire erupted in apartment No. 411. The American Red Cross and a...
2nd injection well project in Plum faces opposition from residents, borough officials
Plum officials, environmental groups and some area residents are organizing to prevent a second wastewater injection well project in Plum. Borough Council President Dave Odom led a two-hour public information session Wednesday evening at the Plum Community Center. The Sedat 3A wastewater injection well, at 1815 Old Leechburg Road, began...
Washington County man gets a leg (lamp) up on Christmas decorations
Matthew Pagac, 32, of Centerville, Washington County, has a leg up on Christmas decorating. Pagac built a custom illuminated “leg lamp” for his front lawn, installing it Saturday. He said he was inspired to “go big” with his holiday decorating because it’s his daughter’s first Christmas and he was inspired...
Crossing-guard shortage in Vandergrift forces police officers into duty
A shortage of school crossing guards in Vandergrift has forced more borough police officers to step off their beats to cover the shifts. The schedule became tighter last month with the resignation of full-time crossing guard JoAnn Hazlett. The borough now has four full-time and one part-time crossing guards. Previously,...
Fox Chapel Newcomers Club celebrates the holiday
The Fox Chapel Newcomers Club held its holiday luncheon on Dec. 3 at the Fox Chapel Field Club with about 65 people attending. For more than 40 years, the club has welcomed new residents to the Fox Chapel Area. Hope Beukema and Dawn Gibel met in 2011 at a Fox...
Vandergrift Council appoints new member to fill vacancy
Vandergrift Council on Monday appointed Daisha Clayton to the seat left vacant by the resignation of Karen McClarnon last month. Clayton said she wanted to join council because she has a vested interest in the borough. “I reside here. I work here. My children go to school here. I love...
No injuries in Fox Chapel fire
There were no injuries when fire tore through a Fox Chapel home Monday afternoon. Fox Chapel police Chief Michael Stevens confirmed everyone escaped the home safely. Fire crews from several surrounding communities responded to the fire shortly after 1 p.m. along Hunt Road, with more than a dozen emergency vehicles...
Vandergrift Council passes 2022 budget with no property tax increase
Vandergrift residents will not see a property tax increase next year. Council passed a final $2.4 million budget Monday. The real estate tax rate will remain at 28 mills. The borough’s budget projects revenue of about $2.2 million and expenses totaling $2.4 million. The difference will be made up from...
Kiski Area welding students show their skills at Weld Off competition
Two Kiski Area High School seniors were among the competitors in the 40th annual Weld Off on Friday, sponsored by the American Welding Society. Phillip Miller and Nathaniel Potanko, fourth-year students in the welding program at Northern Westmoreland Career and Technology Center in New Kensington, welded for several hours at...
Jingle Bell Rock to ring out at Casino Theatre in Vandergrift
A rockin’ Christmas concert is coming to Vandergrift. The annual Jingle Bell Rock holiday fundraiser concert returns to the Casino Theatre on Saturday after being canceled last year because of the pandemic. The concert will start at 7:30 p.m. Keeping closer to family-friendly event than epic rock show, the music...
A dip into the past: Melwood pool holds memories but no water
Motorists passing an expansive concrete area along Melwood Road in Allegheny Township may ask themselves, “What’s That?” Once a popular community pool and entertainment destination, Melwood Park Pool is empty, overgrown, dilapidated and faces an uncertain future. The pool opened in 1926, measures 100 by 300 feet, and was owned...
Coffee With Cops planned in Fox Chapel
Newly appointed Fox Chapel Police Chief Michael Stevens is on a mission to promote unity in the borough. A “Coffee With Cops” meet-and-greet is scheduled from 9 to 11 a.m. on Dec. 10 at the Cooper-Siegel Community Library, 403 Fox Chapel Road. “The purpose of the coffee with cops is...
Unlocked vehicles targets of theft in Shaler and Aspinwall area
Police in several communities are imploring residents to lock up after a rash of thefts from unlocked vehicles. “We had 18 reports this week — that’s a high number,” said Shaler police chief Sean Frank. “I want to stress these were not vehicle break-ins, that means a car is locked....
Cyberattack forces closure of Butler County Community College on Monday and Tuesday
Butler County Community College will be closed Monday and Tuesday in response to a ransomware attack on its computer systems, the college announced Sunday night. The main campus in Butler Township and additional locations in Cranberry, Lawrence, Jefferson and Mercer Counties and remote and online classes will be closed as...
Vandergrift Holiday Festival and Parade returns
Vandergrift is rolling out a three-day holiday welcome mat. The 2021 Vandergrift Back When Holiday Extravaganza festival returns Dec. 3-5. Founder and organizer Denise Lewandowski-George launched the event last year — despite a pandemic. Many Vandergrift residents were disappointed when the annual holiday parade sponsored by the Vandergrift Improvement Program...
Nouveau PGH, an upscale consignment shop for women and kids, opens in Aspinwall
It’s out with the old and in with the new-to-you in Aspinwall. Nouveau PGH is a new designer consignment store offering upscale women’s and children’s clothing, shoes, jewelry and accessories. It’s located at 21 Brilliant Ave. Owner Jessica Rehling Vukmir of O’Hara owns Dovecote, which is located right across the...
Small shops in Alle-Kiski Valley go big on Small Business Saturday
Debbi Young has never gone Black Friday shopping. Instead, the Leechburg resident prefers to shop locally on Small Business Saturday. “It’s our tradition — when the boys go hunting, the girls go shopping,” Young said. “I grew up shopping for my clothes and everything in downtown Leechburg and I think...
Feast of friendship served across Alle-Kiski Valley on Thanksgiving
This Thanksgiving, Freeport native Jean Urik kept her kitchen clean. She and Don Hines of Butler enjoyed a free holiday turkey meal with all of the trimmings at St. Mary’s Parish on High Street in Freeport. “It’s hard to cook Thanksgiving for just two people without having a ton of...
Vandergrift councilwoman suing borough officials resigns her seat
Vandergrift councilwoman Karen McClarnon has resigned her position. McClarnon submitted a letter of resignation, effective immediately, to council President Kathy Chvala and borough secretary Steve Delledonne. Council approved McClarnon’s resignation during a special meeting Wednesday afternoon. Borough solicitor Larry Loperfito was absent. McClarnon did not attend the meeting and declined...
Police serve up lunch for Kiski Area elementary students
Three Washington Township cops were serving it up Wednesday at Kiski Area Upper Elementary School, but there were no warrants involved. “It’s lunch with the law,” joked police Chief Scott Slagle. Slagle, joined by Officer Kenneth Hollis and Sgt. Vince Surace, served lunch to almost 550 students. The annual event...
Friends of Washington Township man killed in wrong-way crash to hold fundraiser for family
A fundraiser for a 22-year old Washington Township man killed in a wrong-way crash is planned for this weekend in Oklahoma Borough. Zeth Charles Reber died on Nov. 14 when his car was hit by a minivan traveling the wrong direction on State Route 380 in Washington Township. The driver...
Vandergrift Market opens for holiday shopping every Saturday, supporting local businesses
A holiday market has returned to historic Vandergrift. Vandergrift Market offers many vendors Saturdays on the lower-level floor of the former J.C. Penney department store at 134 Grant Ave. Market hours are 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. every Saturday through Dec. 18. In its second season, volunteers with the Vandergrift...
With furry friends and kind words, Kiski Elementary students learn to cope with grief
While adults know that grief is part of life, elementary school kids might just be learning. Counselors in the Kiski Area School District are working to help students cope with their feelings. A daylong grief-themed program was presented Thursday at all four elementary schools as part of Children’s Grief Awareness...
Crowd gathers to remember New Kensington police Officer Brian Shaw, killed on duty 4 years ago
More than 100 people gathered Wednesday evening outside New Kensington City Hall to honor the life of fallen New Kensington police Officer Brian Shaw. New Kensington Mayor Tom Guzzo led a memorial service near the Brian Shaw Memorial outside City Hall on the fourth anniversary of Shaw’s death. Shaw was...
Peeps at Shady Side Academy rule the roost
Meet the new chicks of Shady Side Academy. Momo, Dawn, Cricket and Pippy are four peeps hatched from an incubator Oct. 11 in Bonnie Maxwell’s biology class at the middle school campus in Fox Chapel. “Momo is ruling the roost,” said sixth-grader Amalia Guttridge. “Chickens are so cool, and they...
