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Valley News Dispatch category, Page 31

Pope Francis, first Latin American pontiff, dies at 88
New Kensington-Arnold School Board schedules special meeting for budget vote
A vote this week will reveal if New Kensington-Arnold School District will seek to raise property taxes by more than its state-imposed limit for the 2025-26 school year. The board is scheduled to hold a special meeting at 6 p.m. Tuesday in the boardroom at Valley High School “for the...
Harbor Freight opens New Kensington store, plans grand opening event
Harbor Freight opened its new tools store in New Kensington this week, marking another step in the redevelopment of Riverview Plaza following the closing and demolition of the Kmart department store. The Tarentum Bridge Road store is the company’s fourth in Westmoreland County and its 67th in Pennsylvania, Harbor Freight...
Fox Chapel officially designated as a ‘Bird Town’
Fox Chapel is officially being recognized for its environmental efforts, especially pertaining to birds. Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania wildlife habitat educator Nick Stahlman recently presented borough council with a certificate from Bird Town Pennsylvania and the Pennsylvania Audubon Council as an official Bird Town. Stahlman also presented new Bird...
Oakmont budget raises taxes 33%
Oakmont property owners will be paying 33% more in real estate taxes this year. Oakmont Council passed a budget calling for a real estate tax increase of 1.22 mills, taking the rate from 3.73 to 4.95 mills. That means a home at the borough’s median assessed value of about $153,000...
Zynka Gallery marks 5 years of showcasing art in Sharpsburg
It’s a thrill for Jeff Jarzynka when the glass doors of his Sharpsburg art gallery are ajar and something inside catches the eye of a passerby. “The doors are open wide all summer, and you’ll have kids running up the street who stop and ask, ‘Is this a museum? Can...
Tarentum to tow vehicles in no-parking zone
Motorists who park in a no-parking zone at the intersection of East Street and West 10th Avenue in Tarentum have run out of chances. Moving forward, vehicles will be towed and violators will be responsible for costs. “We’re having a problem with people not complying,” Mayor Bob Lang said. “We...
Home for struggling women to rebuild, improve lives approved in Arnold
Arnold officials have approved a woman’s plan to turn a house in the city into a place where struggling women can be safe while rebuilding their lives. The three-member zoning hearing board attached several conditions to its approval of city resident Amanda Wheeler’s use of the house in the 1700...
Burrell’s Huston Middle School delays classes after equipment failure leads to smoke
Charles A. Huston Middle School in Lower Burrell operated on a two-hour delay Thursday morning after an air-handling unit malfunctioned. “We had an air handler failure on the roof of the kitchen,” Superintendent Shannon Wagner said. “The fire department responded to the situation and identified it was an equipment failure...
The Stroller, Jan. 9, 2025: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your non-profit’s community events, fundraisers and club meetings for free in The Stroller. Send information at least two weeks in advance to vndnews@triblive.com or The Stroller, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Follow the Stroller on X at @VNDStroller. Westmoreland Museum of American...
Nonprofit founded in 1928 looks to bolster membership, awareness among Fox Chapel-area municipalities
A community-based nonprofit is looking to boost membership and raise awareness throughout the Fox Chapel-area communities it has served for almost 100 years. The District Association of the Fox Chapel Area raises funds that are donated directly back into the communities in the Fox Chapel Area School District — Aspinwall,...
Dick’s Sporting Goods construction begins at The Waterworks
The new Dick’s Sporting Goods store at The Waterworks near Aspinwall is expected to open this summer. The new store is located in the shopping center’s former Walmart anchor space. It is unclear what that means for the Dick’s store at the Pittsburgh Mills mall — just nine miles away...
Lower Drennen slide repairs eyed by Upper Burrell officials
Upper Burrell plans to move forward with slide repairs on Lower Drennen Road. Supervisors authorized the township’s engineer, Michael Moore of Bankson Engineers, to prepare bid documents for repairing two slides along the road. “We’re going to get that fixed, finally,” said supervisors Chairman Ross G. Walker III. According to...
The Stroller, Jan. 8, 2025: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your non-profit’s community events, fundraisers and club meetings for free in The Stroller. Send information at least two weeks in advance to vndnews@triblive.com or The Stroller, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Follow the Stroller on X at @VNDStroller. Free advice available for...
Valley High School set to reopen after broken boiler fixed
Students are expected to return to classes at Valley High School on Wednesday after the New Kensington school was closed for the past two days. While the New Kensington-Arnold School District was among many across the Pittsburgh region that closed Monday because of the threat of significant snow, its high...
2 children among 5 hurt in 5-vehicle crash involving Plum school bus
Two children were among five people taken to area hospitals after a five-vehicle crash that included a Plum school bus Tuesday afternoon, according to borough police. The crash, at Golden Mile Highway (Route 286) and South Duane Drive was reported shortly after 3 p.m. The circumstances of the crash were...
Frazer promotes Sgt. Aaron Scott to police chief
Not much will change for Frazer police Sgt. Aaron Scott after being promoted to chief this week. “It’s just a new uniform and a different badge,” he said. “It’s still work as usual.” Supervisors approved the appointment eight months after the death of former Chief Terry Kuhns. Scott, 39, had...
Kiski Township passes 32% real estate tax hike
The Kiski Township supervisors have settled on a 32% property tax hike to balance this year’s budget. After a brief negotiation, the board opted for a 1.75-mill increase, raising the millage rate from 5.5 mills to 7.25 mills. The owner of a home assessed at the township’s median value of...
Oakmont couple wins tickets to Super Bowl
Jeanine Gevaudan was born and bred a Pittsburgh Steelers fan. “Growing up, on Sundays we were at my grandma’s house watching the games, there’d be a big spread — it was always Steelers Sunday,” said Gevaudan, 52. In her adulthood, Gevaudan is a season ticket holder. Coming from a family...
Plum community rallies to get bicycle for carless teen so he can make calls as junior firefighter
Kevin Butler has not known 17-year-old Elijah Mendez for long, but the Plum High School senior has made an impression. Butler, a master sergeant with the school’s Air Force Junior ROTC program, met Mendez in August when he became a cadet. “He’s a very kind, thoughtful, on-point young man. He’s...
The Stroller, Jan. 7, 2025: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your non-profit’s community events, fundraisers and club meetings for free in The Stroller. Send information at least two weeks in advance to vndnews@triblive.com or The Stroller, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Follow the Stroller on X at @VNDStroller. Lower Valley Food Bank...
Snow doesn’t mean postponements for W.Pa. school districts, although some still opt to cancel
Before snow started to fall Sunday night, many Western Pennsylvania school districts made the decision to cancel Monday’s classes or shift to remote instruction. Districts opting to use a flexible instruction day asked students to use computers to complete schoolwork from home. Students in districts that canceled classes enjoyed what...
Local Remedy Brewery values community support in Oakmont
After almost a year of work, Local Remedy Brewing opened its home on Allegheny Avenue in Oakmont on Friday. “It’s definitely been an eventful and fun summer,” Local Remedy President Matt Synan said. Synan began brewing with his friends in the basement of his Cheswick home. After successfully selling their...
The Stroller, Jan. 6, 2025: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your non-profit’s community events, fundraisers and club meetings for free in The Stroller. Send information at least two weeks in advance to vndnews@triblive.com or The Stroller, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Follow the Stroller on X at @VNDStroller. Free lunch planned at...
Longtime Pittsburgh-area architect, artist Syl Damianos gifts last large-scale work to Longwood at Oakmont
A large sculpture adorning the wall of a dining room at Longwood at Oakmont is something of a penance for its creator, Sylvester “Syl” Damianos. Damianos, 91, and his wife of 67 years, Eva Lu, moved from their home of 53 years in Edgewood to a country home at the...
Farmers market to join shuttle service in increasing access to food in New Kensington
A new farmers market could join an existing shuttle service as an additional option to provide access to food for people in New Kensington. The New Ken Downtown Partnership plans for the weekly market to be held from 9 a.m. to noon Saturdays from April 19 to Oct. 25 at...


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