Mary Ann Thomas stories, Page 39
Support grows to toughen penalties in Pennsylvania for boating while under the influence
Those who are boating while under the influence of alcohol or drugs may face penalties similar to those for people who are caught driving under the influence as measures to stiffen the law are gaining support in the Pennsylvania Legislature. The state House and a state Senate committee overwhelmingly passed...
Legislation would allow Pa. fishing licenses to be displayed on mobile devices
State Sen. Jim Brewster, D-McKeesport, is calling for Pennsylvania to modernize fishing licenses so anglers can display them on mobile devices. Anglers now have to carry paper licenses. Senate Bill 1074, authored by Brewster, would delete the phrase “written in ink” so that an angler could use his or her...
Goat yoga, dinners in the field for easy social distancing in Butler
A lineup of outdoor events is planned in June at Freedom Farms in Butler County’s Middlesex Township, including goat yoga this Saturday and a barbecue dinner with beer on Sunday. With Butler County going to the green phase of Gov. Tom Wolf’s reopening plan on Friday, Freedom Farms had events...
Apollo swears in 2 new council members following resignations
Two people have been sworn in to fill Apollo Council seats vacated by members who resigned over differences with council’s leadership. Councilwomen Ashley Stiffy and Nancy Walker resigned in April over a number of issues, including the removal of Stiffy from the public safety committee over hiring procedures for part-time...
Kayaking the Kiski is surging in popularity in the age of covid-19
Hundreds of kayaks have taken to the Kiski and Youghiogheny rivers over recent weekends while a Pittsburgh store specializing in kayaks reports a surge in sales. “You can’t get more naturally social distanced than you can in a kayak,” said Chris Kaminski, co-owner of 3 Rivers Outdoors Co. in the...
Swimming to open June 6 at Pennsylvania state park beaches
Pennsylvania will open 58 beaches in state parks for swimming June 6, with state park pools to begin opening a week later, the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources announced. Pools at parks in counties under yellow or green pandemic phases will open June 13. Pennsylvania has 121 state parks....
Bear sightings on the rise in Western Pennsylvania
Young black bears are on the move in Western Pennsylvania. The Pennsylvania Game Commission reports that bear sightings are up this year, thanks in part to cooler-than-usual temperatures in May that brought more bears out during the daytime and also because more people have been staying home because of the...
Cheswick goes back to in-person council meetings
Cheswick Council passed a resolution Wednesday to hold its public meetings in person at the spacious Cheswick Volunteer Fire Co. hall. Council met at the fire hall Wednesday night, with borough officials and two members of the public attending. The vote retroactively authorized that meeting and future ones to be...
PennDOT again extends expiration for driver’s licenses, permits, ID cards to June 30
The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation will again grant an extension for the expiration of driver’s licenses, identification cards and learner’s permits because of the continuing covid-19 restrictions. Driver’s licenses, photo ID cards and learner’s permits set to expire on March 16 or after have been extended until June 30. Gov....
Allegheny Valley’s former Colfax school building on market for $1.9M
The former Colfax Upper Elementary School in Springdale is on the market for $1.9 million. Allegheny Valley School Board last week entered into a six-month contract with commercial real estate agent CBRE, Inc. to see if there is interest in the shuttered building. The school board agreed to sign an...
Many municipalities finally get to roadwork after pandemic-related construction pause ends
With local asphalt plants back in business, that means road patching and paving season is finally here for municipalities across the region — including Lower Burrell and its new public works director. “We are behind schedule because of the coronavirus, but we do have our paving plan finalized,” said Todd...
Northern Snakehead ‘Frankenfish’ moves farther into lower Susquehanna River near Lancaster
The Northern Snakehead fish, an aggressive invasive species that displaces local fish, has moved deeper into Pennsylvania’s lower Susquehanna River outside of Lancaster. The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) issued a statement Friday urging anglers to report and kill any invasive Northern Snakehead caught in the lower Susquehanna River....
Lower Burrell apartment fire that displaced at least 34 remains under investigationVideo
Tom Haley lost more than belongings when fire tore through Lower Burrell’s Cedar Crest Apartments on Thursday, displacing him and at least 33 other residents. Haley said he moved multiple times while his late wife, Shirley, was in nursing homes, but he settled in at Cedar Crest after moving there...
Cheswick Council president to step down
Cheswick Council President Paul Jack said Thursday he is resigning to give someone else a chance to serve. “I’ve completed everything I wanted to complete. If I leave now, they can put someone in there who can be in office for a better part of a year and decide if...
Fire at Lower Burrell apartments leaves at least 25 people homeless
More than 25 people are homeless after a fast-moving fire Thursday afternoon destroyed the third floor of the Cedar Crest Apartments along Puckety Church Road in Lower Burrell. No one was injured. The fire likely started in the building’s attic and burned for a while before breaking out into a...
Tractor-trailer filled with Frito-Lay brand chips and more donated to Feeding Freeport
The Feeding Freeport drive-by meal program got a boost from Frito-Lay with a semi tractor-trailer loaded with Doritos, baked Ruffles potato chips, popcorn and more, much of it in individual servings. Feeding Freeport is a pop-up community effort that’s been at work since March 17 helping area residents impacted by...
Who’s the baby daddy? Love triangle drama at Pitt peregrine falcon nest
With two male suitors for one female, and two eggs to tend, uncertainties abound at the top of the University of Pittsburgh’s Cathedral of Learning, the region’s most popular nesting site for the peregrine falcon. The drama of peregrine falcon couples in Oakland, Downtown Pittsburgh, Tarentum and elsewhere is closely...
White-tail deer fawn whines for mother on Murrysville webcamVideo
A rite of spring is the birth of hundreds of thousands of white-tailed deer in Pennsylvania with most fawn born within a week of Memorial Day, according to the Pennsylvania Game Commission. It’s not surprising that wildlife webcams in Murrysville captured footage of what looks to be a newly born...
Allegheny Township personal care home hit with unknown number of covid-19 cases
An outbreak of covid-19 cases has been reported for the Pleasant Ridge Mature Living personal care home in Allegheny Township, although authorities aren’t releasing the number of cases or if there have been any deaths. At least not yet. The Pennsylvania Department of Health plans to start releasing Monday the...
Springdale fire department’s jubilee canceled but ‘take and bake’ pizza offered
A social event for 91 years, the Springdale Volunteer Fire Department’s jubilee is canceled this summer because of coronavirus pandemic restrictions. Will it be the fireworks, the parade or amusement rides that thousands of patrons will miss the most? Likely everything, said Michael Ziencik, a borough councilman and treasurer of...
No license required: Free fishing day May 24, local lawmaker wants more
What’s better than two days a year of free fishing without a license? Four days of free fishing. State Rep. Bill Kortz, D- Dravosburg, wants to double the number of free fishing days in the state from two to four. As it stands now, the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission...
Hand sanitizer giveaway planned for Allegheny Valley School District residents
A Cheswick councilman whose company specializes in chemicals is planning to give away two free eight-ounce bottles of hand sanitizer per household for Allegheny Valley School District residents. The distribution will run from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. May 22 at the Springdale Volunteer Fire Department hall, 845 Lincoln Ave....
2 hurt when train strikes van in Cheswick
Two occupants of a van were taken to UPMC Presbyterian hospital Wednesday morning after a train clipped the vehicle at the Blockdale Street crossing off Pittsburgh Street in Cheswick. The incident happened just before 7:30 a.m. The Norfolk Southern crossing remained closed late Wednesday morning as authorities investigated. Allegheny Valley...
Allegheny Valley School Board considers $26.6 million budget with no tax increase
The Allegheny Valley School Board is expected to vote Tuesday, May 19 on a preliminary budget for next school year that does not include a property tax hike. The 2020-2021 preliminary budget amounts to $26.6 million. The school real estate tax rate will hold at 20.8377 mills. The owner of...
Springdale man again accused of striking borough worker with vehicle
A Springdale man is accused of hitting a borough worker with his vehicle for the second time in less than a year. Springdale police Chief George Polnar said the latest incident happened Friday when Andrew Palyarik, 68, drove at the worker as he was repairing a drain on Colfax Street....
