Joe Napsha stories, Page 38
Coal-fired Homer City power plant closing; future dim for 2 other regional facilities
The iconic Homer City coal-fired power plant, with its four tall smokestacks and three cooling towers north of Route 22 in Indiana County, will be shutting down over the next three months. Two other coal-fired power plants in Indiana and Armstrong counties could be following the same closure path in...
North Huntingdon seeks opioid settlement funds for drug prevention program
The North Huntingdon Police Department hopes to provide an educational program in Norwin’s elementary, middle and high schools beginning this fall. The effort — funded by money from Westmoreland County’s opioid settlement — would be aimed at preventing substance abuse by students. Chief Robert Rizzo proposed to the North Huntingdon...
‘Don’t be afraid to go for it’: More women are owning businesses, but challenges remain
Angela Merendino was a graphic designer for Kennametal in Unity, operated a freelance business on the side and was an adjunct professor at Seton Hill University in Greensburg. She wanted something different. “I just wanted to create a business that was steeped in health,” Merendino said. That desire was spurred...
Norwin students address commercial truck parking, win regional PennDOT contest
A team of three Norwin High School students won a PennDOT regional contest after designing a solution to the lack of parking for commercial trucks along interstate corridors. The proposal from Nicholas Cormas, Gabriel Conboy, and Caden Hoffman was selected as the regional winner for schools in Westmoreland, Fayette, Washington...
Norwin briefs: Medicine take-back program; trails meeting; Fight the Blight fundraiser
Area police to participate in medication take back program North Huntingdon police will join departments in Murrysville and Penn Township in participating in the national Prescription Medication Take Back Day Program from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. April 22. North Huntingdon police will accept the unneeded and outdated medications —...
ABBA disco party fundraiser slated for Kidney Foundation, women’s shelter
A North Huntingdon restaurant and brewery are teaming up to provide tacos and a salsa bar and alcohol at an ABBA Disco Party fundraiser for the National Kidney Foundation of Western Pennsylvania and Hearth women’s services in Pittsburgh from 7 to 11 p.m. April 15 at the Elements Event Center,...
$1 million lottery ticket sold in Greensburg; winner first thought it was worth $1,000
A Greensburg-area man who is a regular lottery ticket buyer thought he was lucky when he learned he had bought a winning Mega Millions Pennsylvania Lottery ticket Friday — but not as lucky as he turned out to be. “He did not know he had won” $1 million when he...
North Huntingdon church sponsors program to welcome immigrants
An effort to make immigrants welcome in the Norwin community where they are a distinct minority is being launched by a North Huntingdon church. “We want them to see what’s best about this community. We want them to stay here and raise their families here,” said Pastor Nick Poole, lead...
North Huntingdon, Mt. Pleasant celebrating 250th anniversary
North Huntingdon and Mt. Pleasant Township officials celebrated the 250th anniversary of the founding of their municipalities Thursday with speeches on their history, colonial reenactors, an Abraham Lincoln portrayer, a commemorative coin and a new municipal flag. Huntingdon Township was founded when Westmoreland County was founded 250 years ago on...
Norwin area: ROTC group to hold memorial march; trails group meeting, youth shooting day, church fundraiser and more
Norwin ROTC unit sponsors Bataan Memorial March fundraiser The Norwin Air Force Junior ROTC unit is sponsoring the Bataan Memorial March along the Westmoreland Heritage Trail at 9 a.m. April 29. The march for runners and walkers begins at the trailhead near Trafford’s B-Y Park. Registration begins at 8 a.m....
Routes 30, 130 improvements needed, Norwin town hall participants say
Norwin-area residents told local and county officials improvements are needed to routes 30 and 130 to ease traffic congestion and improve safety. About 20 residents attended a meeting this week organized by Irwin Councilman Tyler Baum, who said he views the communities as being connected through the transportation routes. “Our...
Sen. John Fetterman says severe depression made him ‘indifferent’ to livingVideo
U.S. Sen. John Fetterman of Braddock opened up on national television Sunday about the severe depression that put him in a hospital and left him unable to get out of bed after his November election victory. He said he was “indifferent” to living — not to the extent of harming...
Fire guts Springdale townhouse
A Springdale townhouse was gutted by fire Saturday night, and two adjacent units sustained smoke damage as a result of the blaze, a Springdale official said. No one was reported injured in the fire at the townhouse complex along South North Street, said Bruno Moretti, emergency management coordinator for Springdale....
Man stabbed on Pittsburgh’s Observatory Hill
A man was stabbed in the neck and back Saturday afternoon in Pittsburgh’s Observatory Hill neighborhood, city police said. The victim was hospitalized in critical condition after being stabbed multiple times in the back shortly after 5 p.m. at a residence in the 300 block of Delaware Street, police said....
Trout group seeks to work with state on improving Linn Run watershed
A trout fishing organization wants to work with state conservation officials on projects that can maintain and improve seven-mile-long Linn Run and its watershed. The stream is a high-quality habitat for trout in Ligonier and Cook townships in eastern Westmoreland County. The hope of the Forbes Trail Chapter of Trout...
Concrete base in place at Westmoreland courthouse parking, plaza project
Trucks continuously pulled in front of the Westmoreland County Courthouse in Greensburg early Saturday and through the morning to feed thousands of cubic yards concrete that formed the base for a new courtyard plaza. Some 50 laborers were directing the 4-inch hose that spewed the concrete pumped from two giant...
High winds down trees, wires Saturday; Almost 17,000 still without power Sunday afternoon
The region’s two electric utility companies still have about 16,800 customers without power in Western Pennsylvania on Sunday afternoon as a result of storms that blew through Southwestern Pennsylvania on Saturday, with intense winds taking down trees that cut power lines and broke utility poles. West Penn Power in Greensburg...
Building collapses in Mt. Oliver
A building collapsed along Brownsville Road in Mt. Oliver Friday, the borough’s fire department reported. There were no reports of injuries as a result of the collapse of the building in the 300 block of Brownsville Road. A Mt. Oliver fire department official could not be reached for comment Saturday...
New Stanton warehouse construction continues; operator remains unidentified
Motorists traveling along the Pennsylvania Turnpike near New Stanton or along Arona Road parallel to the turnpike can see what a $120 million warehouse project covering more than 1 million square feet looks like. The walls have been constructed, and doors for loading docks are visible. The extensive earthmoving that...
Sewickley Township library prepares to reopen, plans for a new building
Sewickley Township Public Library officials are moving forward with plans to build a library adjacent to H.W. Good Elementary School in Herminie. The estimated cost of a new facility could be around $1 million, said Marci Suggars, library board president. A capital campaign and government funding could cover the cost,...
Lamp Theatre plans Disco Ball gala
A New York City Studio 54-inspired 70’s-themed Disco Ball is planned by the Lamp Theatre Corp. for its annual fundraiser gala featuring dinner, dancing and games on April 29 at Stratigos Banquet Centre, Colonial Manor Road, North Huntingdon. The Lamp Theatre Corp., the non-profit operating The Lamp Theatre in Irwin,...
Civil War vets’ descendants buried at old Brush Creek Cemetery sought
Descendants of Civil War veterans buried in the Brush Creek Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church Cemetery on Leger Road in North Huntingdon, are being sought to determine if they plan to attend a Memorial Day service on May 28 during which the new headstones for 15 Civil War veterans will be...
Norwin area: Democrats to meet candidates; Immaculate Conception to hold card party; St. Agnes to hold Easter egg hunt and more
Norwin-Penn-Trafford Democrats to meet The Norwin/Penn Trafford Area Democrats will have the chance to hear the Democratic candidates running in the May 16 primary for the party’s nomination to local, county and state offices, during a meeting at 6 p.m. April 6 at the Norwin Public Library, Caruthers Lane, Irwin....
Penn-Trafford area briefs: St. Barbara to hold bingo, P-T athletic director earns certification
St. Barbara Parish to hold bingo St. Barbara Parish on Raymaley Road, Harrison City, will host bingo at 6:45 p.m. April 13. The bingo will feature a Must-Go $1400 jackpot; games with a prize of $110; winners of specials get $110; and the winner of the all-nighter gets $1,700. The...
North Huntingdon police to step up Route 30 patrols to cut down on crashes
North Huntingdon police plan to step up traffic enforcement along a 1.5-mile stretch of Route 30 from Carpenter to Malts lanes in the western end of the township after numerous crashes there, including at least six fatalities in the past five years. “That corridor is dangerous,” North Huntingdon police Chief...

