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Mary Ann Thomas stories, Page 52

Mary Ann Thomas
Mary Ann Thomas 724-226-4691
Pope Francis, first Latin American pontiff, dies at 88
Oklahoma Borough set to remove toxic rubble from Belvedere Hotel fire scene
Oklahoma Borough now has the funds to demolish the Belvedere Hotel after a July 24 blaze reduced it to a pile of asbestos-contaminated rubble. The demolition plans do not include closing Route 66 near Orr Avenue and Apollo Bridge. That will spare the 11,000 cars that travel the busy stretch...
127-year-old Apollo church set to become new borough building 
After 127 years, First United Church of Christ in Apollo will close its doors with a final service Aug. 25. But the spirit that forged several major construction projects at the site will live on as the building is in the process of being donated to the borough for its...
Bon Air Elementary School softball field work expected to be completed this month 
The Burrell School Board on Tuesday night approved a $1,800 change order for extra material to fill in soft spots at Bon Air Elementary School softball field where renovation work is expected to wrap up at the end of the month. The $276,500 project includes replacing the outfield and baseline...
Huntley & Huntley meeting set for Tuesday on Allegheny Township Marcellus well
Huntley & Huntley Energy Exploration will hold a public meeting Tuesday to discuss the upcoming construction of the Porter well pad, an unconventional gas well located on private property along Willowbrook Road. The meeting will be held at 6 p.m. at the Markle Volunteer Fire Department social hall, 470 Joyce...
Housing development proposed in Buffalo Township
A Butler home developer is proposing single-story, multifamily homes on a 25-acre parcel on South Pike Road between the GetGo store and Route 28 interchange in Buffalo Township. Weaver Homes, the developer, will go before township supervisors at 7 p.m. Wednesday for a conditional use hearing for the property. The...
Lower Burrell gets parking lot; century-old cemetery gets needed upkeep 
A parking lot surrounded by graves might seem odd at a city hall, but in Lower Burrell, it’s benefiting the living and honoring the dead. The new parking lot — situated between graves next to the current police station along Bethel Street — is part of a $3.1 million renovation...
Watch out for invasive Northern Snakehead fish
The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission is warning anglers to kill and report an invasive fish known as the Northern Snakehead. There are no records of the Northern Snakehead in the three rivers in Southwestern Pennsylvania, according to Doug Fischer, non-game fisheries biologist with the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission...
New $245,000 section of Tredway recreational trail in Allegheny Township opens
The new 1.75-mile extension of the Tredway recreational trail winding along the River Forest golf course in Allegheny Township from the marina to under the Freeport Bridge is just about complete. This week, the recreational trail flanked by manicured greenery was ready for walking and biking. Allegheny Township and Senate...
Plans being made for removal of Belvedere Hotel's charred remains
State Rep. Joe Petrarca confirmed his office is leading efforts to kick off the cleanup of the charred, asbestos- laden remains of the Belvedere Hotel along Route 66 in Oklahoma Borough. A July 24 blaze swiftly destroyed the abandoned, almost 115-year-old hotel. The fire still is under investigation by state police....
Lower Burrell firefighters save kittens from a storm sewer
During a meeting of junior firefighters Sunday at Lower Burrell Volunteer Fire Company No. 3, someone asked if they really receive emergency calls about cats stuck in trees. “Yeah, we do it, but the stories about how it really happens are a bit exaggerated,” Brennan Sites, assistant chief, told the...
Audubon Society: Water quality in Buffalo Creek watershed worsening
A 10% spike in water quality impairment in just a decade in the Buffalo Creek watershed — an area known for its rich environmental quality and beauty — is among the findings of an Audubon Society report seeking final public comment. The Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania , which owns...
Police seek people seen near Belvedere Hotel minutes before fire broke out 
State police said Friday they want to talk with two people seen walking near the Belvedere Hotel in Oklahoma Borough shortly before it burned down last month. Security camera footage shared by state police briefly showed the two people walking before they disappeared from view near the hotel. The pair...
Hite Road bridge in Springdale and Harmar to close Friday night through weekend
PennDOT will close the Hite Road Bridge, over Route 28 spanning Springdale and Harmar townships, from 8 p.m. Friday through 5 a.m., Monday, weather permitting. Work crews will conduct bridge jacking and bearing replacement work. Additionally, rolling closures will occur on Route 28 in both directions as needed from Friday...
Starting in Pittsburgh, 981-mile Ohio River paddle benefits mental illness awareness
Three days’ worth of water and clothes and 15 days’ worth of food — check. Batteries and solar panels — check. Mirrored reflector tape on both sides of paddles — check. Joe Solomon was more than ready Thursday morning to launch from Pittsburgh’s Point State Park for a 981-mile kayak...
Collectors scrambling to get Apollo, Pa., moon landing postmark
Get them before some stamp collector in Missouri does. The hottest commodity out of Apollo is a 50th anniversary moon landing commemorative envelope and postal cancellation. Although the 50th anniversary on July 20 of Neil Armstrong’s historic leap for mankind has passed, the excitement has not, at least in Apollo....
Allegheny River lock 2 to close to all boat traffic for repairs
After years of chasing money for repairs, the Army Corps of Engineers is ready to start a $6.6 million project to fix the crumbling land wall of Allegheny River lock 2 near Highland Park. Recreational boaters and commercial traffic will be out of luck as the lock chamber will be...
Autistic musicians rock at Pittsburgh Blues and Roots Festival 
There was nothing not funky about the Spectrum’s version of “Play that Funky Music White Boy” at the Syria Shrine Center in Harmar on Sunday for the Pittsburgh Blues and Roots Festival. But there was an aura — something almost supernatural and powerful — that wowed the crowd. Maybe it...
Annual Pittsburgh Blues and Roots Festival heating up the summer
The Pittsburgh Blues and Roots Festival, scheduled for July 27-28 at the Syria Shrine Center in Cheswick, delivers again with a lineup of blistering blues talent. Those on the bill include national marquee acts Tommy Castro & the Painkillers, “Across the Universe” fame and Joplin-esque vocalist Dana Fuchs, Joe Grushecky...
Police: Man and boy both shot in the leg at Hays Manor in McKees Rocks
Allegheny County Police are investigating the Saturday shooting of an unidentified man, 27, and a boy, 17, both in the leg, Saturday in McKees Rocks. The Allegheny Housing Authority Police requested county police to conduct the investigation at the incident at the Hays Manor Apartment Complex along Locust Street. Both...
At Vandergrift’s Artfest, thousands showed they could be an artist for the day 
Several thousand visitors attended Vandergrift’s Artsfest on Saturday, where anyone was an artist, with children freestyle painting and adults throwing some clay on a potter’s wheel. Sponsored by the Vandergrift Improvement Program (VIP), Artsfest featured 37 artists, crafters and vendors selling paintings, jewelry, prints, leather work, home decor items, photography...
Video: In 10 minutes, massive fire decimated historic Belvedere Hotel 
It took only about 10 minutes for a massive fire to engulf the four-story Belvedere Hotel late Tuesday, according to the fire chief on the scene and a surveillance video from Naser Foods across the street. Firefighters on their way to the station could see that the blaze started behind...
Vandergrift paints the town Saturday for Artsfest
A 5-foot painting of Albert Einstein, 25 original artworks on palettes throughout town, a gallery of fine artwork, food trucks, live music and more are all on tap for Vandergrift’s Artsfest Saturday. Festivities will take place from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. along Grant Avenue, which will be closed to...
Allegheny County Health Department to disperse rabies vaccine bait for raccoons
The Allegheny County Health Department and U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Wildlife Services has issued an alert that it plans to distribute rabies vaccine bait across the county — including in many parks — between Aug. 5 and 9. The raccoon baiting program is in its 18th year. This year, the...
Options for trail from Oakmont to Boyce Park to be unveiled
Details of a proposed 10- to 15-mile trail from Oakmont to Boyce Park will be unveiled at a meeting Tuesday. Officials from four municipalities have been working to develop a recreational trail from the Allegheny riverfront in Verona, through Oakmont and Penn Hills along Plum Creek, to Boyce Park in...
Oaks Theater to host discovery session on bald and golden eagles
Wishful Wednesday Productions will present an evening of live music, local eagle photography and a discussion on the presence and differences between bald and golden eagles in Pennsylvania on Wednesday at the Oaks Theater, starting at 6 p.m. in Oakmont. The featured guest lecturer Chris Kubiak, education director for the...


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