Joe Napsha stories, Page 6
Struggling Strawpump station to receive half its fire tax fund allocation from township
North Huntingdon has given the Strawpump Volunteer Fire Department an incentive to continue work to regain its place in the community. That would mean an acceptable fire insurance rating that would allow it to reclaim its service territory. The township would help the effort by agreeing to provide one-half of...
Judge halts demolition of Homer City plant over contract dispute
Demolition at the site of a planned $10 billion project with a 4.5-gigawatt natural gas-fired plant near Homer City that would power a data processing center has been halted. Frontier Industrial Corp. of Buffalo, N.Y., was granted a preliminary injunction by Allegheny County Judge Philip A. Ignelzi. It prevents Homer...
Irwin seeks student for junior council program
Irwin is seeking a high school or college students in the upcoming school year to serve as a junior council person who will have the opportunity to learn about the many facets of municipal government and possibly become a future leader of the borough. The junior council person program will...
Sheetz plans reconstruction of 2 North Huntingdon stores
Sheetz Inc. plans to demolish its two convenience stores along Route 30 in North Huntingdon to update them. The Altoona-based convenience store chain plans to demolish stores at the intersection of Route 30 and North Thompson Lane and one at the intersection of Route 30 and Carpenter Lane. Sheetz will...
Flight 93 Memorial organization seeks up to $500K for 25th observance
Friends of Flight 93 National Memorial has plans for several projects and a fundraising campaign with a goal of between $300,000 and $500,000 in preparation for the 25th anniversary of 9/11 next year. United Airlines Flight 93 crashed into a former Somerset County strip mine on Sept. 11, 2001, after...
North Huntingdon SWAT truck used in bank robber film
A piece of North Huntingdon’s police department is playing a role in a Hollywood movie being shot in Pittsburgh. The township’s Special Weapons and Tactics vehicle has been used in the filming of “How to Rob a Bank,” said Harry Faulk, township manager. The North Huntingdon name on the SWAT...
Proposed land development ordinance to boost review fees
Developers proposing big projects and property owners looking to subdivide their land may have to pay more to have the Westmoreland County planning and development department review their plans. The proposed subdivision and land development ordinance that the Westmoreland County commissioners will consider approving July 31 would include raising fees...
Norwin area: Homes sought for holiday tour; Norwin student wins gold medal
Historical society seeks homes for holiday tour The Norwin Historical Society is seeking homes in the Irwin, North Irwin and North Huntingdon for its annual Homes for the Holidays House Tour on Dec. 6. Homes of any age — new, old or historic — are eligible to be part of...
Donegal area mine expansion challenged; opponent says it will harm environment
An environmental group wants the state to revoke a mining company’s permit to bore underneath the Pennsylvania Turnpike near Donegal to access some 1,425 acres of coal, claiming that expanded operations would harm the water and land. The Mountain Watershed Association of Melcroft stated in its June 27 appeal to...
Judge denies request for change in $1M bond on woman accused in Greensburg Beverage estate theft
A 26-year-old Murrysville woman accused of participating in a scheme to defraud her aunt of a $4.4 million estate settlement will remain in the Westmoreland County Prison after she lost her bid Monday to have her $1 million bond reduced. Angela Lynne Valesky was returned to the prison after Westmoreland...
Irwin Park summer concert series opens with alternative rock band
Irwin’s annual Concert in the Park series at the Irwin Park amphitheater returns this summer, with the first concerts slated for Sunday . Irwin will kick off its five-show Concert in the Park series at Irwin Park amphitheater off Pennsylvania Avenue and Main Street with Alt Rocks, a 1990s and...
Former Tribune-Review business, real estate writer Ron DaParma ‘could cover anything’
Ronald L. “Ron” DaParma, a longtime business editor and business writer for newspapers in McKeesport, Greensburg and Pittsburgh, had the ability to cover a broad spectrum of topics, whether it was real estate, Pittsburgh’s banking behemoths, small business, or steel mill operations and the steelworkers who labored in those factories....
North Huntingdon to accept letters of interest to fill 7th Ward seat on board
North Huntingdon officials are accepting letters of interest from voters in the township’s Seventh Ward to fill the short-term vacancy of a commissioner who is retiring at the end of the month. The June 30 retirement of Commissioner Eric Gass will give the remaining six commissioners 30 days to fill...
No fare hikes in $17.9M Westmoreland transit budget
Westmoreland County bus fares will stay the same in the next year, officials said this week. Westmoreland County Transit Authority will maintain its fees for the fiscal year that begins July 1 under a $17.9 million budget, Alan Blahovec, executive director, told the authority board Thursday. The board unanimously approved...
Delusions from supplement overdose may have caused man to stab mom, attorney said
A Mt. Pleasant Township man accused of stabbing his mother multiple times was delusional when the incident took place at their residence in 2023, his attorney said Thursday. Psychiatrists examining Kort Eckman, 47, found that Eckman’s delusions on Oct. 3, 2023, may be linked to his taking numerous over-the-counter supplements...
Attorney weighs self-defense vs. accident in Penn Twp. shooting trial
The attorney for a woman accused of shooting her then-boyfriend in 2022 in Penn Township said Thursday he has not decided whether he will argue in her trial next month that the shotgun accidentally discharged or that his client acted in self-defense. Attorney Brian Aston told Westmoreland County Judge Scott...
Housing authority seeks sponsor to fund 9 cottage-style residences in Irwin
The Westmoreland County Housing Authority plans to seek another sponsor for a state application to fund the $2.3 million construction of nine cottage-style houses next to the Grand View Senior Residences. Irwin Borough declined the opportunity. The borough council last week rejected the housing authority’s request that the borough sponsor...
North Huntingdon to consider plans for reconstructed Sheetz store along Route 30
Sheetz Inc. plans to demolish its convenience store along Route 30 east of the Pennsylvania Turnpike in North Huntingdon this year and start construction in January on its replacement with a drive-through window, a Sheetz spokesman said. The new store at the intersection of Route 30 and North Thompson Lane...
Paid family leave: Potential blessing for Pa. workers, challenge for employers
Meagan Paul of Lower Burrell would have loved to have had a paid leave program when her son, Sullivan, was born and she was working. “I didn’t have it. … You feel like you are committing a crime by taking 12 weeks of unpaid leave,” Paul said during a recent...
West Newton woman accused of stealing $82K in lottery tickets
A West Newton woman is accused of stealing about $82,000 worth of Pennsylvania Lottery tickets from December 2024 to June 12 from the Hempfield gas station where she worked, according state police. Cheryl C. Keller, 52, of North Second Street, allegedly took the lottery tickets from the BP gas station...
Romeo resigns from Irwin council; Gass to resign in North Huntingdon
Officials will be seeking replacements for an Irwin councilman and a North Huntingdon commissioner who are resigning from their positions this month. In Irwin, Ron Romeo last week submitted his resignation to council, effective June 15. Romeo’s term expires Dec. 31 and council is accepting letters of interest from residents...
State park camping reservations on the increase
Camping at the 1,250-acre Keystone State Park in Derry Township has been a family affair for decades for Jackie Donkin of Penn Hills, who was there this past week with her daughter-in-law Erin Donkin of North Allegheny and her brother, Tom Ruefle of Plum, and her seven grandchildren. “This our...
Saint Vincent College projects building sustainability
It was a day of celebration for Saint Vincent College on Friday, with a ceremonial groundbreaking for two building projects and a topping-off ceremony for its new $20 million athletic facility. A watchword for the ceremonies that drew more than 120 people to celebrate the pending construction of the two...
Missing Upper Burrell man with dementia found safe
An Upper Burrell man was found safe Friday morning, a day after he was reported missing, according to state police. Police and firefighters spent several hours Thursday evening looking for Harry Radaker, 69, after he was last seen around 4:15 p.m. near Alcoa Lab Lodge in Upper Burrell. They searched...
Irwin to spend $1.1M to renovate new borough building
Irwin residents will have a newly renovated borough building as the town council has awarded about $1.1 million in contracts for an extensive remodeling of a 114-year-old structure on Main Street. Council on Wednesday approved five construction contracts and one asbestos abatement contract to convert the former Rosendahl’s Appliance Center...
