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August 14, 2019

Local Woman Qualifies For Olympic Swimming Trials

She never imagined she would have the chance to do what she loves on a world stage. Taylor Petrak, 2017 Lincoln High School Graduate, has qualified for the Olympic Swimming Trials. As a very young “fish in the water,” Taylor didn’t necessarily have her sights set directly on the Olympics. “I never had any specific goals of making it to the Olympics,” she said. “It was not on my radar.” But a wave of talent and speed now has the upcoming 2020 Tokyo Olympics in a major spot on Taylor’s radar. She qualified for the trials on July 23 posting…

August 14, 2019

74th Anniversary of ‘VJ Day’ Honored

The week, Mayor Anthony Court and World War II Veteran Samuel Teolis placed a wreath in Ellwood City’s Legion park commentating the 74th Anniversary of VJ Day (Victory over Japan) which is acknowledged on either August 14th or 15th as the anniversary ending of World War II. Mayor Court emphasized the strong ties of our community to its veterans, stating “We are proud and grateful to honor our veterans for their sacrifices and dedications to our great country.” On August 6, 1945, during World War II (1939-45), an American B-29 bomber dropped the world’s first deployed atomic bomb over the Japanese city of Hiroshima, effectively ending…

August 13, 2019

Council to Vote to Amend Hospital Zoning Ordinance

Ellwood City Council will vote August 19 to amend the hospital/medical district zoning ordinance that they originally passed in in a unanimous vote on May 20. They will vote to add to the definition of “Health Services” “facilities and residences included in a continuum of care entity.” Borough Manager David Allen said the wording basically boiled down to nursing homes. Solicitor Ed Leymarie said the move will resolve an appeal filed by Penn Med LLC, a lender who is seeking a more than $5 million judgement against Americore Health LLC, Ellwood Medical Center LLC, and Ellwood Medical Center Real Estate…

August 13, 2019

Route 351 Koppel Bridge Long-Term Closure Begins Tuesday in Beaver County

Pittsburgh, PA – PennDOT District 11 is announcing the long-term closure of the Koppel Bridge (Route 351) in Koppel Borough and North Sewickley Township, Beaver County, will begin Tuesday, August 13 weather permitting. Beginning at approximately 12:01 a.m. Tuesday, the Koppel Bridge will close to traffic for 72 consecutive days. Crews will conduct roadway approach work for the new construction through October 23. To allow the work to occur, all traffic will be detoured. Posted Detours West of the Bridge Take Route 351 to Route 18 (Big Beaver Boulevard) Take Route 18 southbound Turn left onto Route 588 (Eastvale/4th Street…

August 13, 2019

Graduates of BC3 New Workforce Development Program Guaranteed Job Interview

(Butler, PA) Graduates of a new two-week natural gas and oil safety training program offered by Butler County Community College and ESP Safety Consultants are guaranteed a job interview from a temporary agency that can place graduates in regional entry-level positions in the energy industry, according to a BC3 Workforce Development administrator. The field safety technician certificate program – held in partnership with ESP, a Homer City company whose services include Occupational Safety and Health Administration compliance, safety training and safety auditing – is scheduled for Monday through Friday from Sept. 9-20 in the Public Safety Training Facility on BC3’s…

August 12, 2019

SBA Offering Disaster Assistance To Victims Of Recent Flash Floodings

WASHINGTON – Pennsylvania businesses and residents affected by flash flooding on July 21-22, 2019 can apply for low-interest disaster loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration, Acting Administrator Christopher Pilkerton announced Friday. Acting Administrator Pilkerton made the loans available in response to a letter from Pennsylvania’s Gov. Tom Wolf on July 31, requesting a disaster declaration by the SBA. The declaration covers Allegheny County and the adjacent counties of Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Washington and Westmoreland in Pennsylvania. “The SBA is strongly committed to providing the people of Pennsylvania with the most effective and customer-focused response possible to assist businesses of…

August 12, 2019

Ellwood City Library Activities For The Week Of August 12

The Ellwood City Area Public Library offers a variety of weekly activities.  Information is available by calling the library at 724-758-6458. Activities taking place this week include WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 14 9:30 a.m. – “Coloring for Adults,” a weekly program that is free and open to the public. It is designed to help reduce the stresses of everyday life. All adults are welcome. Noon – “Bookworms Book Group,” the group will be discussing the book “The Candymakers” by Wendy Mass 1:00 p.m. – “Building Buddies,” a program of fun and learning for toddlers and preschoolers. This interactive program allows kids to…

August 9, 2019

ECASD Security Update: School Police Officer Replaced; Vestibule Completion Delayed

In an effort to make Ellwood City Area Schools more secure, The Ellwood City Area School Board—during the spring and summer months—hired two armed school police officers for the 2019-2020 school year and also voted to improve security vestibules at North Side, Hartman, and Perry Lower Intermediate. Updates, new votes occurred during this week’s ECASB’s agenda and regular meetings: School Police In July the board hired Robert Lagoon of Zelienople and Brad Koscinski of Grove City as the first armed officers to serve the school district. During the board’s regular meeting on Thursday the board voted to accept the resignation…

August 9, 2019

ECASB Approves Goals for Upcoming Year

During Thursday’s meeting, The Ellwood City Area School Board directors approved goals for the upcoming school year. A list of 25 goals was discussed at Monday’s Agenda Meeting and trimmed down to three major ones to focus on moving forward—many of the 25 were administrative type ongoing goals or goals that the board needs to work on internally. The top three: Continue to improve district climate by incorporating both small and large changes that can make a big impact. Look into using a school climate survey for the Intermediate Unit to identify and pinpoint areas where improvement is needed. Evaluate…

August 9, 2019

Chromebook ‘Surplus’ to Benefit Seventh and Eighth Graders

Seventh and Eighth graders in the Ellwood City Area School District will no longer have to “share”  Chromebooks. The announcement came during Monday night’s School Board Agenda Meeting on Monday night. Quickly after the announcement, School Director Renee Pitrelli said she felt the decision was made without board approval. Pointing out that this was the first time she had heard about this one to one Chromebook distribution. “The administration doesn’t make a decision for us,” she said during Monday’s meeting. Her point that board approval should be given for such decisions was met with explanation by administrators and school staff…