Patrick Varine stories, Page 42
March for Parks will raise money for park, trail projects
For more than two decades, Westmoreland County residents who use and enjoy the area’s parks have taken part in the spring March for Parks, to raise money for projects across the county’s park system. This year’s event will be March 23, 10 a.m. at Twin Lakes Park east of Greensburg....
Local, international dance companies offer differing takes on ‘Alice in Wonderland’
When Alice makes her journey to the fictional Wonderland in Lewis Carroll’s 1865 children’s novel, the world is a wild reflection of what she has known up to that point as reality. The story’s underlying theme of a journey of self-discovery makes it ripe for interpretation. Two of those interpretations...
Xylazine’s role in Westmoreland overdoses continues to surge, coroner’s report shows
A veterinary sedative that can’t be counteracted with anti-opioid medication contributed to 42% more deaths in 2023 than the year before, continuing a troubling trend even as Westmoreland County’s overall overdose figures decline. Accidental drug overdose deaths continued to drop in 2023, but the number of deaths caused by xylazine...
Get your St. Patrick’s Day playlist readyVideo
Grab your best green hat and pour a Guinness — although, were it me, we’d be pouring a Murphy’s Irish Stout, but I digress — and let’s put together an appropriate playlist for St. Patrick’s Day. Being that the holiday falls on a Sunday this year, let’s start the occasion...
Nonprofit acting troupe will hold auditions in Unity
Storyz Studios, a nonprofit theater company, will host auditions for its upcoming production of a murder mystery, “Whispers in a Dark Manor: A Whodunnit.” Auditions will take place March 21 from 7-8:30 p.m. and March 23 from 2-4 p.m. at the SpringHill Suites, 115 Arnold Palmer Drive in Unity. Auditions...
Murrysville area: Chess tournament, chili cook-off, Woman’s Club fashion show and more
Email news briefs and event listings to pvarine@triblive.com. Upcoming Murrysville library events • March 23: Children’s chess tournament at 9:30 a.m. The competition will have two divisions, grades 1-4 and grades 5-8. First- and second-place winners will advance to the county competition on April 13. Participants are asked to arrive...
Delmont to pursue litigation against detention pond contractor
Delmont council members authorized their solicitor to take legal action against a Latrobe construction company hired to perform work in the Apple Hill neighborhood. Council contracted with Butz Masonry and Excavation in 2021 for a detention pond project between Dogwood and Stotler drives. Nearby residents, who were initially upset at...
Monroeville area: Senior driving class, free Easter dinner, car show, more
Email event listings and news briefs to pvarine@ triblive.com or bpoole@triblive.com. Senior driver class Juniper Village at Forest Hills will host a Seniors for Safe Driving class April 16 that offers participants a chance to receive a discount on their car insurance. Drivers 55 and older can lower their car...
2 injured in Route 30 crash in Ligonier Township
Two drivers were injured Thursday morning when their vehicles collided on Route 30 in Ligonier Township. A man who was driving an SUV was taken by ambulance to Conemaugh Memorial Medical Center in Johnstown with non-life-threatening injuries, according to Ligonier Valley Police Sgt. James Friscarella. He said a woman who...
Delmont moves ahead with sewage line relocation project
Delmont officials are moving ahead with plans to address a sewage-related state consent order, after winning a court battle to condemn and secure roughly a half-acre of property in Salem Township. As part of a consent order finalized with the state Department of Environmental Protection in April 2020, borough officials...
Historical program will focus on former Turtle Creek Valley Railroad line
The Export Historical Society will host a free program March 24 on the history of the Turtle Creek Valley Railroad. Younger residents will recognize it — or at least the section running through Export — as the Westmoreland Heritage Trail, but originally the line ran west to Saunders Station in...
Food bank cancels Monroeville distribution scheduled for Wednesday
Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank officials announced that their regular distribution date this week in Monroeville has been canceled due to unforeseen circumstances, according to a news release. Food bank clients can visit PittsburghFoodBank.org/gethelp or call 412-460-3663 for information on other food resources throughout the Pittsburgh area....
Body shop developers offer additional conditions, but no reprieve for upset Murrysville neighbors
More than 250 Manordale Farms residents in Murrysville signed a petition in opposition to an auto body shop proposed for a neighboring property. The petition was presented to council members at this past week’s meeting. Attorneys for the municipality and developer, however, told council that Caliber Collision’s proposal is a...
Export officials prepare for road construction season
Road construction season is just around the corner, and Export officials are lining up projects they want to address in the coming months. Mayor Joe Zaccagnini said he is waiting on Peoples Natural Gas officials to finish restoring parts of Roosevelt Street, Dent Avenue, Pierce Street and Lee Avenue after...
Erie prepares for crush of solar eclipse enthusiasts
On Monday, April 8, Erie residents will discover the impact just a few minutes of darkness can have. Depending on how many people travel to Erie for the upcoming total solar eclipse — local tourism officials are estimating anywhere between 50,000 and 200,000 — the city of just over 94,000...
Western Pa. libraries gearing up for eclipse with free glasses, activities
Here is a list of upcoming programs across the region focused on the April 8 solar eclipse: • March 18: Pre-eclipse event at 6 p.m. Mt. Pleasant Area Library, 120 S. Church St. Registered attendees will receive eclipse viewing glasses. Families with multiple children should register each separately to ensure...
Handling mental illness is complicated at all levels of criminal justice system
As Terrance Kurhansky’s case made its way through Pennsylvania’s criminal justice system, it became clear to his attorney and the presiding judge that their options were limited, and none of them was ideal. Kurhansky, 83, was charged in 2019 with attempting to murder his neighbor. Police said he used a...
Old William Penn bridge in Murrysville has weight rating reduced to 6 tons
Vehicles over 6 tons will be temporarily unable to use a small bridge carrying Old William Penn Highway over Turtle Creek in Murrysville, after the bridge’s weight rating was reduced for the second time in the past few years, according to municipal officials. “It’s an immediate concern and it’s something...
Speed-monitoring cameras are making Pa. highway work zones safer, officials say
The strategic placement of speed-monitoring cameras along Pennsylvania highways helped to reduce speeding and crashes in work zones over the course of a five-year pilot program by PennDOT and the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission. Now, officials are rebooting speed enforcement with the cameras on a permanent basis with a goal of...
Murrysville area: Leaf collection, Pi Day at Delmont library, Symphony East and more
Email news briefs and event listings to pvarine@triblive.com. Franklin Regional band to host breakfast fundraiser The Franklin Regional Panther Band will host a March 16 pancake breakfast fundraiser in Murrysville. It will be from 8-11 a.m. at First United Methodist Church, 3916 Old William Penn Highway in Murrysville. Tickets are...
Monroeville area: Origami workshops, community Easter dinner, Symphony East, more
Email event listings and news briefs to pvarine@ triblive.com or bpoole@triblive.com. Origami workshops The Monroeville Public Library will host a series of origami workshops beginning March 20 with instructor Madonna Yoder. Sessions will be March 20, April 3 and April 17 at the library, 4000 Gateway Campus Blvd. Yoder will...
‘Wall of Caring’ art installation comes to Forbes Hospital
Visitors to Forbes Hospital in Monroeville between now and April 3 may pass by what appears to be a wall of medical scrubs that are awaiting their turn in the laundry. It bears a message of “We See You” in its center, and it is an art installation created with...
Mt. Pleasant council wants better communication with local Little League
Mt. Pleasant officials asked for improved communication from the Mt. Pleasant Area Little League at their council meeting Monday night. Council voted unanimously to approve Silvis Landscaping to mow the baseball fields at Willows Park twice monthly at a cost of $260 per visit. Borough officials also asked that the...
What to look for in solar eclipse glasses
You don’t become the world’s leading manufacturer of paper glasses by being unprepared. That’s why employees at American Paper Optics, tucked into a corporate office park in the southwest corner of Tennessee, have been busy for the past two years preparing for the April 8 solar eclipse. “We’ve been doing...
Community meetings will help shape future trail through Turtle Creek Valley towns
Trails have played an important role in connecting communities — in a physical sense, through use of the trails, but also in an economic sense, attracting people who are looking to grab a bite to eat or just check out a new area. The nonprofit Friends of the Riverfront group...
