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Changes coming to river lock service
A hearing about changing the schedule of lock operations on the Allegheny River will be sponsored by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Pittsburgh District, at 7 p.m. Wednesday at Ford City High School, 1100 Fourth Ave.
The changes will restore operations 24 hours per day, 7 days a week at the first three locks on the Allegheny but reduce service to commercial appointment lockages only and have no recreational service at Locks 6 and 7. The changes would take effect before the end of the year.
The changes are the a result of the Corps' nationwide effort to reduce costs by standardizing lock service levels based on usage. Traffic volumes will be reviewed annually and adjustments in the levels of service will be made if needed.
There will be no change in service at Lock 5 in Freeport, which will remain at two shifts a day, seven days a week - 7 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. through Dec. 2; and 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. from Dec. 3 to May 5, weekdays only. The lock will be close on federal holidays.
Lock 2 at Highland Park, C.W. Bill Young at New Kensington and Lock 4 at Natrona will change from two shifts per day to 24/7. Locks 6 in Clinton near Freeport and Lock 7 at Kittanning will be available to commercial traffic by appointment only and will not provide recreational lockages.
Last year, service at Allegheny River Locks 8 and 9 were reduced to commercial appointment lockages only and to no recreational lockage service because of budgetary cuts.
Bakerstown Road restrictions
Work to replace inlets and a drain pipe has restricted traffic on Bakerstown Road.
The project, which began this week, is occurring between Route 28 and Saxonburg Road.
Traffic is being reduced to a single lane alternating use in the work area from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., as needed, weekdays through Oct. 26. Flag crews are controlling traffic. The contractor is Allison Park Contractors Inc.
HALLOWEEN
Flaunting hauntings
Various activities are planned in the North for Halloween:
• Pine - Halloween in the Park will include games, ghost stories, a bonfire, a costume parade, a corn maze, crafts and face painting from 2 to 5 p.m. Saturday in the Pine Park gazebo, 100 Pine Park Drive. The cost is $3. Information: 724-625-1636.
• Hampton - Lantern tours, a family-oriented Halloween program, will be offered from 6 to 9:30 p.m. Saturday and at the same time Oct. 27 at Depreciation Lands Museum, 4743 S. Pioneer Road. Visitors can tour the museum and cemetery by candlelight and search for Deacon, the museum's resident benevolent ghost. Costumed guides and demonstrators will be in every building, and cookies and hot cider will be served. There will be scary stories after 8:30. Admission is $5 for adults, $3 for children. Information: 412-486-0563.
• Richland - Northern Tier Library, 4015 Dickey Road, will host a program by the Steel City Ghost Hunters at 7 p.m. Monday. The group will discuss its findings from Hill View Manor in New Castle, a home for the aged and chronically and mentally ill that closed in 2004 and is believe to be populated by the spirits of its former residents. Registration: 724-449-2665.
• Zelienople - Ghosts of Southwestern Pennsylvania will be discussed by Pittsburgh author Thomas White at 6:30 p.m. Monday at Zelienople Area Public Library, 227 S. High St. Registration is appreciated, but not required for the free program. Information: 724-452-9330 or zelienople@bcfls.org.
Chatham University gets grant
A $7.5 million grant from the Richard King Mellon Foundation was announced during the ground-breaking ceremony last Thursday for the initial phase of the school's new Eden Hall Campus, which is being constructed from the ground up for sustainable development, living, and learning.
Since 2008, more than $28 million has been raised for the project - $14.1 million for construction and $14.5 million for planning, academic development, and programming.
As a sustainable campus, Chatham will design buildings that will incorporate high performance and integrated design. The buildings will be monitored to determine energy consumption, allowing them to be laboratories for researching and testing best energy-saving measures in public buildings.
The initial stage of construction consists of the development of field labs, classrooms, a dining hall, a cafe, an amphitheater, a mosaic garden and infrastructure development to be complete by fall 2013.
Book is honored
A book written by Sara Kajder of Forest Hills, who is a Shady Side Academy Middle School English teacher, was honored with the James N. Britton Award, sponsored by the Conference on English Education of the National Council of Teachers of English.
Mrs. Kajder's book, "Adolescents and Digital Literacies: Learning Alongside Our Students," explores how technology is allowing for new teaching opportunities. Throughout the book, Mrs. Kajder, who has a doctorate, used interviews and classroom experience to show how integrating technology can lead to enriched literacy learning.
She will receive the award Nov. 16 at a luncheon in Las Vegas as part of the national council's conference, where she will participate for the 10th year as a speaker, round table participant and session chair.
The award is given to English teachers who "promote reflective inquiry and raise questions about teaching and learning in their specific teaching environments," and is given annually to encourage the development of English teachers. Mrs. Kajder began teaching at Shady Side Academy in August.
Celebration welcomes veterans
Students will perform a play and the chorus, the band and the cheerleaders will perform during Shaler Area Middle School's 14th annual Celebration of Veterans breakfast and show at 8:30 a.m. Nov. 7 in the school, 1810 Mt. Royal Blvd.
Veterans are invited to share experiences with students and to help their understanding of the American military by completing a survey.
Reservations are necessary to attend the program. Information, 412-492-1200.
First Published October 18, 2012 7:21 am
