Valley News Dispatch category, Page 332
New Kensington sanitary authority increasing rates by 1.7%
New Kensington residents will see a 1.7% increase in their sewage bills next year. That’s less than the 2.7% increase the Municipal Sanitary Authority of the City of New Kensington imposed for this year. Beginning Jan. 1, the authority will increase its rate for 100 cubic feet from $9.84 to...
The Stroller, Oct. 14, 2022: 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 a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com or The Stroller, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Tickets on sale for benefit spaghetti dinner A spaghetti dinner to...
Fire breathers, magic and trick-or-treat on tap for 3rd annual Freeport Halloween Festival
The third annual Freeport Halloween Festival will feature fire breathers, live entertainment, amusement rides, food, crafts and more Friday through Sunday. Admission is free for the festival, which will be held in the heart of Freeport at James E. Swartz Sr. Memorial Field. The town’s two previous three-day Halloween festivals...
Brackenridge playground slated for safety upgrade
The popular playground at Brackenridge Memorial Park will get a surface makeover to boost safety and cut maintenance costs. In a recent round of state funding, the borough received word that it will get about $95,400 from the Greenway, Trails and Recreation Program. “It will be used for safety improvements,”...
Harmar District 3 voters get new polling site
Some Harmar residents will have a new polling site beginning in November. Residents of District 3, who previously voted at the old public works garage along Russellton Road, will now cast their ballots at Pittsburgh’s Syria Shriners center. “In August, the township finalized the sale of 841 Russellton Road,” Manager...
Allegheny Township police: Man faces drug, gun charges after being detained at DUI checkpoint for expired registration
A Pittsburgh man faces drug and gun charges after Allegheny Township police said they found marijuana, cocaine and a loaded pistol when he was detained at a sobriety checkpoint for an expired registration. Larinzo Lamar Johnson, 21, of the 1300 block of Diana Street, North Side was charged with felony...
Allegheny Valley School District eyes ending lease with Springdale for use of Veterans field
The Allegheny Valley School District’s long association with Springdale’s Veterans Memorial Field could be in jeopardy. School directors Tuesday night decided to put the issue of terminating the lease with Springdale on the agenda for the Oct. 18 board meeting. The field, built in 1938 as part of the Works...
Free pumpkin giveaway planned in Vandergrift
Vandergrift’s youngest residents can get their hands on a free pumpkin during the fourth annual Vandergrift Great Pumpkin Patch. The free community event, sponsored by the Vandergrift Parent Project, is scheduled from noon to 3 p.m. Oct. 29 at Franklin Park in Vandergrift. “Our goal since starting the VPP is...
Warrants issued for Tarentum brothers for their role in ‘gun battle’ in Sheldon Park public housing in Harrison
Two brothers from Tarentum have been charged with attempted homicide, as they are accused of shooting at people in a Sheldon Park apartment early Thursday in Harrison. Troy Vickers, 30, and Brian Vickers, 19, are each also charged with aggravated assault, reckless endangerment, conspiracy and firearms violations in what Allegheny...
Arnold rejects request to label convenience store a restaurant to allow for alcohol sales
Arnold Council dealt a significant setback to a convenience store owner’s plans to sell beer and wine at a new store on Freeport Road. After a public hearing Tuesday, council voted unanimously against Yashvi Oil owner Mike Thakkar’s request for a conditional use for his planned gas station and convenience...
The Stroller, Oct. 13, 2022: 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 a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com or The Stroller, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Halloween event to benefit Animal Protectors Animal Protectors of Allegheny Valley...
First regional police force on patrol in Armstrong County, covering Freeport and Gilpin
Residents of Gilpin and Freeport officially have a new regional police department. The Southern Armstrong Regional Police Department held a pinning and inaugural first shift ceremony Wednesday morning at the Gilpin Municipal Building. The new police force combines the Freeport and Gilpin police departments, providing 24-hour police coverage for both...
Aspinwall Council adopts ordinance regulating outdoor business operations in the borough
Aspinwall Council adopted an ordinance on Oct. 12 that prohibits all outdoor business, commercial and trading activities in the borough from 10:30 p.m. to 7 a.m. Sundays through Thursdays and midnight to 7 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays. The vote was 5-2 with council President Tim McLaughlin and Councilwoman Mary Hancock...
Boyfriend pleads guilty for intentional crash that left 4 trapped in overturned vehicle
Just before Jamar Freshley was escorted out of a Westmoreland County courtroom he turned to tell his girlfriend, “I love you.” Freshley, 33, of New Kensington, pleaded guilty Wednesday to aggravated assault and other offenses. Police said he slammed his car into the vehicle driven by his girlfriend last Oct....
Route 28 work continues in East Deer
Single-lane restrictions along Route 28 in both directions near the structure over Crawford Run Road in East Deer have been in place since mid-September as crews from Swank Construction Co. perform roadway reconstruction and bridge deck rehabilitation. Restrictions were recently extended until Friday, Oct. 14. The work is part of...
Remember When: Polish immigrants built St. Ladislaus Church
The latest round of church closings within the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh includes the iconic St. Ladislaus Church in the Natrona neighborhood of Harrison. The final Mass was celebrated Thursday, Sept. 29. But a group has emerged wanting the diocese to keep the building and have it declared a holy...
Burrell School District to offer indoor bocce through program with Special Olympics
The Burrell School District will offer inclusive, co-ed bocce for students with and without cognitive disabilities thanks to Special Olympics Pennsylvania. The school board recently approved the program with Special Olympics, which will pay for the team’s expenses for the first two years, including uniforms, and provide expertise to a...
Summit Hose celebrates members for 50-year milestone
Tarentum resident David Kengor’s life changed forever just by hanging out with friends at a pizza shop across from the Summit Hose fire hall. “We were all young teenagers, and some of the firefighters came over and said they were starting a junior department — the first one in the...
Shady Side Academy junior honored for his volunteer work supporting area refugees
A middle-school assignment evolved into a meaningful mission for Shady Side Academy junior Deven Nahata. While in seventh grade at SSA, his teacher assigned individual student projects with a social-based focus. “I did some Google searches for Pittsburgh nonprofits because I was really interested in the refugee crisis and found...
The Stroller, Oct. 12, 2022: 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 a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com or The Stroller, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Cub Scouts to host youth fishing derby Deer Lakes Cub Scout...
New Kensington-Arnold 2nd graders present $450 donation to Animal Protectors
A donation from students at a New Kensington-Arnold elementary school will help a New Kensington animal shelter in many ways, the president of the shelter’s board of directors said. Second graders at H.D. Berkey Elementary School in Arnold collected $450 through a coin drive the week of Sept. 26, teacher...
Judge dismisses insurance fraud charge from Bell arson case
A Westmoreland County judge has ruled there was not enough evidence to support a criminal charge of insurance fraud against a former Bell woman accused in the torching of her home two years ago. Following a pretrial hearing Tuesday, one felony count was dismissed in the ongoing case against Britny...
Allegheny Township woman tasered in police stop pleads guilty to assault
An Allegheny Township woman was ordered to serve up to 23 months in jail in connection with an incident last year in New Kensington in which she punched and kicked a police officer. Cally Jade Mills, 30, pleaded guilty in four criminal cases, including an incident last Nov. 30 that...
Plum High School buys bikes for physical education classes, cycling club
Plum High School students have new bicycles to ride in physical education classes that will also be used for a new cycling club. The district recently bought 38 Giant Talon 2 mountain bikes from The Bike Lab, a bicycle shop in Plum. The total cost was $20,345, money for which...
Building the Valley: Lower Burrell’s Sharpe Auto Repair back in business after 2021 fire
In July 2021, Arthur “Artie” Grazier vowed to rebuild his Sharpe Auto Repair in Lower Burrell after an overnight fire destroyed his business. Almost a year later, the auto repair shop owner made good on his promise. “The big thing was that nobody was hurt, and, that I will always...
