Erie Times-News (Erie, PA) articles from August 2007

Erie Times-News (Erie, PA) archives from August 2007

Work to start on city condos.
August 1, 2007

It's built; now, can it be sold?
August 1, 2007

Millcreek to keep Sara's fires burning.
August 1, 2007

Bayfront project built on minority hiring.
August 2, 2007

Ludrof to step down as CEO of Erie Indemnity Co.
August 2, 2007

Dash 8 aircraft doubles flyers' fun.
August 2, 2007

Adventure path.
August 2, 2007

Athletic complex clears zoning hurdle.
August 2, 2007

Slight delay fuels worry.
August 3, 2007

Showcase evening.
August 3, 2007

Art of healing.
August 3, 2007

Focus on moms, babies.
August 3, 2007

Tumult at the top at Erie Indemnity Co.
August 3, 2007

Crawford's field of dreams faces financial reality.
August 3, 2007

United Way takes action in identifying needs.
August 3, 2007

Erie, Pa.-area food bank provides hope for the hungry.
August 4, 2007... Byline: Sharla Bardin Aug. 4--Food from the Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest Pennsylvania packs more than nutrition. It comes loaded with care. Vanessa Naylor, of Erie, noticed the compassion when she volunteered with the...

Conneaut Lake Park opens Beach Club.
August 4, 2007... Byline: Tim Hahn Aug. 4--CONNEAUT LAKE -- A handful of people who beat the heat by swimming off Midway Beach at Conneaut Lake Park were given a bit of good news Friday afternoon. The bar would open at 4 p.m. "I'm going to buy her...

Erie, Pa., park is city's new arts hot spot.
August 4, 2007... Byline: Gerry Weiss Aug. 4--As the shadows of dusk settled across Frontier Park, Ann and John Jensen nestled into their macrame lawn chairs, opened a bag of popcorn, and absorbed the tranquil scene that surrounded them. Children...

Erie Times-News, Pa., business buzz column.(Column)
August 5, 2007... Byline: Michael Regal Aug. 5--National Fuel Gas Distribution Corp. has awarded Clarion University of Pennsylvania nearly $164,000 to create a new energy laboratory. The laboratory, which will feature a microturbine that uses natural...

Casino cash for college?
August 5, 2007... Byline: Kevin Flowers Aug. 5--Erie County Executive Mark DiVecchio wants to use $500,000 from the county's share of gaming revenues as seed money for a community college. DiVecchio is among the local officials pushing hardest for a...

Revved-up runway.
August 5, 2007... Byline: Kara Rhodes Aug. 5--Runway 20 looked more like a driveway than a taxiway Saturday. More than 75 gleaming cars were parked along Erie International Airport's runway for the Lake Erie Classic, which ends at 6 p.m. today. This is...

Fair, just like it used to be.
August 5, 2007... Byline: Tim Hahn Aug. 5--COCHRANTON -- The seductive smell of powdered sugar meeting golden, oil-fried dough will soon waft its way from the little blue building tucked tight amid a collection of bigger structures at the end of River...

100 years of GE in Erie.
August 5, 2007... Byline: Jim Martin Aug. 5--It began 100 years ago with a promise spelled out in the bold words of a page-one headline. The Aug. 7, 1907, edition of the Erie Daily Times delivered the news: "General Electric plant will come to Erie for...

City's eyes turn to rental units.
August 5, 2007... Byline: George Miller Aug. 5--The city of Erie's rental-inspection program is about to begin. Inspections could begin as soon as Monday, according to Russell Smith, coordinator of the program for Building Inspection Underwriters Inc.,...

Teachers must adjust, too, or be left behind.
August 5, 2007... Byline: Erica Erwin Aug. 5--When David Swanson decided he wanted to be a teacher, he thought all he'd have to do was go to college and get a teaching certificate. "It was that simple," said Swanson, 25, now a special-education teacher...

Vernon Township project sees lots of success.
August 6, 2007... Byline: Tim Hahn Aug. 6--MEADVILLE -- Crawford County development officials took a gamble in offering smaller industrial lots across from the Crawford County Industrial Park west of Meadville. The gamble has paid off: The Crawford...

Eyes on I-90 bridges.
August 7, 2007... Byline: Jim Carroll Aug. 7--Inspecting the underside of the twin 160-foot-high bridges that carry Interstate 90 over Six Mile Creek in Harborcreek Township is no easy job. But state officials want it done again, and quickly. Those...

New leader appointed at fledgling incubator.
August 7, 2007... Byline: Erica Erwin Aug. 7--When Russell V. Combs Sr. enrolled in a seminary in Dayton, Ohio, more than 30 years ago, he imagined he would help foster the spiritual lives of children through Protestant education. Today, as the new...

The answer: 12 percent.
August 7, 2007... Byline: Sharla Bardin Aug. 7--Kathleen Horan knows she alone can't reduce the poverty level in the community. No one individual or group can. Together, though, it's a different story. "We are our brother's keepers," said Horan, of...

3 down, 11,997 to go.
August 7, 2007... Byline: Kevin Flowers Aug. 7--Charles Fischer has no problem with the city of Erie's rental inspection program -- even though it is taking money out of his pocket. "I keep my places up, just like I would if I was living there myself,"...

A shore thing.
August 7, 2007... Byline: John Guerriero Aug. 7--At Lighthouse Beach, visitors didn't hear the usual call from nature -- gulls crying for food or waves washing the shore in rhythmic routine. Instead, they heard the muscular noises of engines, the...

Facing foreclosure.
August 8, 2007... Byline: George Miller Aug. 8--The number of foreclosures in Erie County continues to climb. The Erie County Sheriff's Office is on its way to a record year, surpassing the high of 636 set in 2006. The office has 658 on the docket...

Saving on gas.
August 8, 2007... Byline: Jim Carroll Aug. 8--Don Hohman doesn't worry too much when pump prices hover around $3 a gallon. Why should he? Hohman drives a hybrid Toyota Prius and can squeeze more than 50 miles out of a gallon of gas. "My last...

Community Shelter Services in need of school supplies.
August 8, 2007... Byline: Cornell Green Aug. 8--Community Shelter Services wants to send local children back to school with the necessary clothing and supplies. But it needs your help. Sponsors and donations are lagging behind the 2006 pace for the...

Our paychecks are growing, but not by much.
August 8, 2007... Byline: Jim Martin Aug. 8--Our paychecks are getting bigger, but they're still not keeping pace with the rest of the country. That's the upshot of a newly released report by the Bureau of Economic Analysis at the U.S. Department of...

Deal up in the air.
August 9, 2007... Byline: Jim Carroll Aug. 9--There is a new "for sale" sign hanging on the German airport that Erie officials tried in vain to acquire. Owners of the Cottbus-Drewitz Airport in eastern Germany have started an international marketing...

Meadville man masters machines.
August 9, 2007... Byline: Tim Hahn Aug. 9--MEADVILLE -- Jeremy Graff admits to having sweaty palms as he waited to pit his manufacturing skills against 12 other competitors in early May. "Probably the toughest part was getting over the nervousness and...

Former mayor Filippi to fight ruling on fees he seeking to have city pay.
August 9, 2007... Byline: George Miller Aug. 9--Erie's former mayor has vowed to keep alive his court battle to force the city to pay $370,000 in legal bills. Rick Filippi said he expects to appeal the dismissal of his lawsuit that seeks to force the...

Lord Corp. commits to region with Cambridge Springs addition.
August 9, 2007... Byline: Tim Hahn Aug. 9--CAMBRIDGE SPRINGS -- A rectangular-shaped office addition less than one-tenth the size of the existing plant might not seem like a major project at Lord Corp.'s Grant Street facility. But the 6,500 square feet...

Tax policy meant to inform.
August 9, 2007... Byline: David Bruce Aug. 9--Three mentally disabled siblings lost their Erie home in 2006 because they didn't understand that they had to pay taxes on the property. Erie County Executive Mark DiVecchio wants to make sure it doesn't...

Bridge part is suspect.
August 10, 2007... Byline: Jim Carroll Aug. 10--State bridge inspectors already planned to check the gusset plates when they re-examine the spans that carry Interstate 90 over Six Mile Creek later this month. But news out of Minnesota might prompt them...

Penncrest School District will close Cussewago Elementary School.
August 10, 2007... Byline: Tim Hahn Aug. 10--CAMBRIDGE SPRINGS -- In the end, Cussewago Elementary School went away quietly. After months of hearing heated pleas to save the small elementary school on the eastern edge of the Penncrest School District,...

Runway plan in peril?
August 11, 2007... Byline: Jim Carroll Aug. 11--The ante has gone up again on Erie International Airport's runway extension plans, and it has gone up dramatically. The airport and local governments will have to come up with much more than the previously...

Pairs plan condos on the water.
August 11, 2007... Byline: George Miller Aug. 11--A three-unit condominium is being proposed for western Presque Isle Bay in the city of Erie. Two couples, Michael and Barbara Haggerty of Millcreek Township and Daniel and Becky Veith of Edinboro, are...

Horse sale trots into county.
August 11, 2007... Byline: Tim Hahn Aug. 11--MEADVILLE -- Morris Waid credits a bunch of Canadian horse traders with helping to fill the Crawford County fairgrounds with Belgians, Clydesdales and Percherons. Well over 100 draft horses are registered to...

More money for runway expansion due soon.
August 11, 2007... Byline: Jim Carroll Aug. 11--There might still be questions about the financing needed to complete Erie's runway extension project, but more money to get it started is expected to roll in later this month. In fact, the latest infusion...

Market woes don't worry experts.
August 11, 2007... Byline: Jim Martin Aug. 11--It wasn't so much a pre-emptive strike as a gentle request to take a deep breath and relax. Call it what you will, but Greg Bush, chief executive of Patterson Bush Financial in Meadville, was working the...

Bids and pieces.
August 12, 2007... Byline: Kara Rhodes Aug. 12--Auctioneer Tim Rocco staccato-stepped through the next item up for bid as Matt Lebowitz admired the ship auger he had just purchased for $10. "Someone held this doing something I can't imagine," he said....

Erie Times-News, Pa., business buzz column.(Column)
August 12, 2007... Byline: Michael Regal Aug. 12--Sales figures from the Greater Erie County Board of Realtors shows real estate sales for July were up from July 2006. During the months of July, there were 498 sales, valued at $84.76 million. A year earlier,...

Proud operator.
August 12, 2007... Byline: Jim Martin Aug. 12--First, Jonathan and Ashley Kennedy moved to Erie from Maryland. Then they bought a house. Now they're making plans for the arrival of their first child in October. Did we mention his new restaurant...

Compulsive gamblers can lose more than money.
August 12, 2007... Byline: John Guerriero Aug. 12--Jim Pappas was holding a gun to his head when his wife entered their recreation room to tell him that she would be starting dinner. That wasn't the first time his gambling addiction brought him to that...

Trail of cash.
August 12, 2007... Byline: Kevin Flowers Aug. 12--For more than five years, the money flowed mostly west to east, from some of Erie County's more affluent areas to some of the city of Erie's poorest neighborhoods. And then the money -- at least $4.5...

Law comes with hefty price.
August 12, 2007... Byline: Erica Erwin Aug. 12--The No Child Left Behind Act, which requires all of America's public school students to be proficient in reading and math by 2014, isn't just ambitious. It's expensive, too. And five years after President...

Visual education.
August 13, 2007... Byline: Erica Erwin Aug. 13--In this picture, a boy with dirty feet, big black eyes and a bright orange shirt is spooning rice out of a bowl while a chicken pecks at his feet. In another, a third-grade boy stands in front of a huge...

Mixed-use development McAllister Place on hold.
August 13, 2007... Byline: George Miller Aug. 13--Delays in completing the Erie County Convention Center hotel have pushed back plans for the $25 million McAllister Place on East Dobbins Landing. The Erie-Western Pennsylvania Port Authority had hoped...

Predatory lending 'huge problem' in Erie.
August 13, 2007... Byline: Kevin Flowers Aug. 13--Erie looks pretty good to a predatory mortgage lender. The city has plenty of low- and moderate-income residents, and thousands of senior citizens with considerable equity in their homes. Many other...

Penelec goal: keep juice flowing.
August 14, 2007... Byline: Robb Frederick Aug. 14--Four years ago, hot weather and high demand maxed out an electric plant near Cleveland. A line sagged. A circuit shorted. The power load shifted, rippling across Ohio and Michigan and into Canada, where the...

City sets up for annual festival.
August 14, 2007... Byline: George Miller Aug. 14--Get ready to celebrate. City of Erie crews are setting up for CelebrateErie, which begins Thursday and runs through Sunday. "Everything is on schedule," Mayor Joe Sinnott said. "Everybody is working...

More call about home sales.
August 14, 2007... Byline: Kevin Flowers Aug. 14--More Erie residents are coming forward with concerns about their own home-buying experiences, in light of the local federal criminal investigation into suspected mortgage and housing fraud. Officials at...

Conneaut Lake Park board gets help from county.
August 14, 2007... Byline: Jim Martin Aug. 14--MEADVILLE -- The Blue Streak is parked in its station. The carved wooden horses of the merry-go-round await riders in the dim light of the carousel. But even now -- with most of the publicly owned facility...

U.S. Rep. English eyes interstate toll alternatives.
August 14, 2007... Byline: John Guerriero Aug. 14--U.S. Rep. Phil English suggested alternatives to tolling Interstate 80. He expressed frustration over the latest report of escalating costs for the planned runway extension at Erie International Airport....

Replenishment ahead of schedule.
August 15, 2007... Byline: John Guerriero Aug. 15--One beach down, four to go. Showman Excavating of Waterford Township replenished Beach 10 at Presque Isle State Park in just five days with sand it removed from Lighthouse Beach. Now it's waiting...

Spans 'deteriorating'.
August 15, 2007... Byline: Jim Carroll Aug. 15--Problems with the twin bridges that carry Interstate 90 over Six Mile Creek in Erie County came out in black and white Tuesday. The two steel deck truss bridges were among four in the state listed as having...

Good, bad of Erie economy.
August 15, 2007... Byline: Jim Martin Aug. 15--Our homes cost less, our commutes are shorter, and there's less crime. Consider those a few of the advantages of living in Erie County. It's a good thing. Because we're making less money than the average...

No easy answers for regionalism.
August 15, 2007... Byline: George Miller Aug. 15--Erie County Executive Mark DiVecchio knows firsthand the difficulty of getting cooperation among local governments for consolidation or shared services. He said the county's public safety building, now...

Findings mixed on smoking-ban impact.
August 15, 2007... Byline: George Miller Aug. 15--The economic effect of smoking bans on restaurants and bars is still hazy. Three people with experience on the topic offered different conclusions Tuesday at the sixth Economic Research Institute of Erie...

Youth agency has $464,000 budget shortfall.
August 15, 2007... Byline: Jim Carroll Aug. 15--MEADVILLE -- Crawford County officials were worried that child welfare costs could bust the budget this year. On Tuesday, they heard those fears were well founded. Crawford County Commissioners will...

Cathedral Prep athletic complex sprints ahead.
August 16, 2007... Byline: George Miller Aug. 16--The starting gun can sound for Cathedral Preparatory School's proposed athletic complex. The project can now move forward as a result of Erie City Council's approval Wednesday night of a zoning-law change...

Erie County Fair set to open, despite its lingering 'issues'.
August 16, 2007... Byline: Kevin Flowers Aug. 16--WATTSBURG -- The Wattsburg-Erie County Fair -- which has faced serious financial trouble in the past -- will go on as scheduled this year, the event's treasurer said. Sara Ellsworth, who is in her first...

Erie School District earns a nope on adequate yearly progress assessmnt.
August 16, 2007... Byline: Erica Erwin Aug. 16--The Erie School District did not meet federal academic progress targets in 2006-07, according to preliminary results from the state Department of Education. Pending the results of an appeal, schools within...

Tire plant: You'll like us.
August 16, 2007... Byline: Jim Carroll Aug. 16--Sponsors of a proposed $150 million tires-to-energy plant Wednesday promised their project will be an economic blessing and not an environmental curse. Officials of Erie Renewable Energy LLC said the plant...

Erie convention center wows meeting planners.
August 17, 2007... Byline: Kevin Flowers Aug. 17--The statewide librarian's group that Kim Snyder represents has not held its annual meeting in Erie since 1989. That could change soon, now that Snyder has seen the new Bayfront Convention Center up close....

Erie Reserve unit due home.
August 17, 2007... Byline: Robb Frederick Aug. 17--The 329th Medical Company, a U.S. Army Reserve unit, will return to Erie in September, ending more than a year of service in Iraq. Unit staff confirmed the plans this week. That lifted the mood at...

Bar panel to reconsider election nod.
August 17, 2007... Byline: Lisa Thompson Aug. 17--The Pennsylvania Bar Association plans to rethink its recommendation that voters in November retain Superior Court Judge Michael T. Joyce for another 10-year term. A Bar Association commission that weighs...

DiVecchio names choice for county finance chief.
August 17, 2007... Byline: Kevin Flowers Aug. 17--Erie County Executive Mark DiVecchio thinks he's found the county's new finance director. DiVecchio is recommending that Erie County Council approve the hiring of Girard native James R. Sparber to the...

Produce paradise.
August 17, 2007... Byline: Valerie Myers Aug. 17--TITUSVILLE -- Town leaders are sowing seeds they hope will grow into a market house. Titusville Area Chamber of Commerce and Titusville Renaissance are coordinating a downtown farm market this summer and...

Racing's winner: Us.
August 20, 2007... Byline: John Guerriero Aug. 20--Presque Isle Downs & Casino converted 273 acres of undeveloped land into a pulsing casino with 750 employees. Now the company is getting ready to open the horse racing side of the business. And that...

Pre-release center's cost rises $1.1 million.
August 21, 2007... Byline: Kevin Flowers Aug. 21--Erie County's new prison pre-release center will cost about $1.1 million more than expected. County officials want Erie County Council to approve more money to the project. The facility, including...

Slots fueling horse racing.
August 21, 2007... Byline: John Guerriero Aug. 21--CLEVELAND -- In the well-worn first floor at Thistledown Race Track, horse racing fan Harold Greenberg asked aloud: "Why is Ohio always the last one?" Greenberg, 65, of the Cleveland suburb of Shaker...

Specialist to lead Erie charter school.
August 22, 2007... Byline: Erica Erwin Aug. 22--A "turnaround specialist" has been hired for the Robert Benjamin Wiley Community Charter School. The school failed to reach federal academic progress targets in 2006-07 for the fifth consecutive year. It is...

Sound the alarm.
August 22, 2007... Byline: Steven M. Sweeney Aug. 22--There's Richard Robb playing in his museum again. The 79-year-old retired Erie fire chief had just set off an example of an old-time call-box system in the Erie Firefighters Historical Museum. The...

Koehler project moving.
August 22, 2007... Byline: Kevin Flowers Aug. 22--The long-stalled Koehler Brewery Square project has changed once again -- and it is moving across State Street. The project's developers now plan to remake the former Erie Brewing Co.'s office building,...

K.E.E.P. the heat on tire plant.
August 22, 2007... Byline: Jim Carroll Aug. 22--Good intentions aren't enough for Bobbi Dzuricky. Dzuricky said she lives too close to the old International Paper Co. site to take company officials' word that the tires-to-energy plant they want to build...

OCY employees decry poor morale.
August 22, 2007... Byline: Kevin Flowers Aug. 22--Low pay. Heavy stress. Big caseloads. These are key factors spawning job turnover at the embattled Erie County Office of Children and Youth -- and the agency's workers want county officials to...