Thursday, March 6, 2008

Will the Democratic candidates for president visit Central Pennsylvania?

LEWISBURG – Now that Pennsylvania is such an important primary in the race for president, will the Democratic candidates visit the Central Susquehanna Valley? 

Jim Buck of Lewisburg is the representative for the state democratic committee in Lewisburg and says he expects to at least see representatives from both the Clinton and Obama campaigns in the region, but would hope for more. The candidates have been invited to a Spring Democratic Dinner on Saturday April 5^th in Lewisburg and a Democratic breakfast on April 19^th.  Whether or not they attend, Buck says it’s a good time to be a Democrat.

Buck isn’t sure which candidate he will vote for, but says either will make a good contender for president.  He spoke recently to Congressman Chris Carney, who is a super delegate and Carney maintains that he will wait to endorse a candidate until after the primary on April 22^nd. 

Harrell parole hearing continued to June

SUNBURY – The man suspected of killing another man and a woman in Sunbury in January remains in custody awaiting a parole hearing.  39-year-old Michael Harrell is being granted a continuance until June for an alleged parole violation, in a decision Thursday by Northumberland County judge Charles Saylor.  Harrell pleaded guilty to a simple assault in 2006.  To date, he has not been charged with the double homicide. 

District Attorney Tony Rosini says the investigation into the shooting deaths is continuing.  The bodies of 24-year-old Crystal Scholl-Gordon and 25-year-old David Moore were found in a North Fourth Street apartment January 18^th.  (Matt Farrand) 

Greater Susquehanna Valley Chamber of Commerce hands out annual awards

SELINSGROVE – The Greater Susquehanna Valley Chamber of Commerce honored businesses and volunteers during their 2007 Annual Meeting and Awards Banquet Thursday.  Baylor-Hamm Companies was named the Business of the Year.  They run Lewisburg companies The Country Cupboard, Best Western Inn, Country Inn and Suites, Damon’s Grille, Brookpark Associates and Limestone Run Associates.

The award for Small Business of the Year was handed out to Kreamer Feed, which is a family run agricultural company for over 60 years.  Community leader and volunteer Ted Silker was awarded the Karen Hackman Star of Excellence Award.  Past Chamber Board member Rue Rothermel was given the Dan Foss Heritage Award. 

All the awards were handed out during a luncheon at Susquehanna University.  The keynote speaker for the event was Nelson Lauver, a nationally syndicated journalist and host of The American Storyteller Radio Journal. (Sara Bartlett)   

UGI Utilities to buy PPL gas businesses

ALLENTOWN -- PPL Corporation’s natural gas business will be under new ownership, possibly by the end of this year.  PPL says they’ve signed a definitive agreement to sell PPL Gas Utilities to UGI Utilities.  The deal reportedly involves $268 million in cash plus working capital.  PPL Gas Utilities serves about 76,000 customers state wide, and the gas business represents about 1.0% percent of their overall earnings.

The transaction depends on regulatory approval by Public Service Commissions in both Pennsylvania and Maryland, and by the FTC.  PPL stock is down about 1.4% percent in midday trading.  (Matt Farrand)

Fire that damaged a home in Union County has been ruled accidental

COWAN – Fire that damaged a home near the village of Cowan in Union County has been ruled accidental in nature.  State police fire marshal Norman Fedder says the fire started at a home on Centennial Road in West Buffalo Township on Tuesday.  The fire started in the living room and was set off by a heater.  Damage is estimated at $60,000.  The home is owned by 39-year-old James Bender and was occupied by 28-year-old Amanda Laraby.  There were no injuries reported.  (Ali Stevens)

Creek rescue reported

Three injuries reported after a crash in Northumberland County

Penn State student research posted in council chambers

SUNBURY – Sunbury residents are being encouraged to take a look at the results of months of work by Penn State landscape architecture students. Printed plans to enhance parks and public thoroughfares are now posted on the walls of city council chambers.

They include ideas to revise urban signage, traffic flow, and the function of areas such as Cameron Park. Historic Architecture Review Board President Ed Sickora says the group did their homework. Sickora says plans to integrate Cameron Park into riverfront development were especially timely, in that the new riverfront parkland will allow for improvement of the older park.

First drafts of their plans were unveiled to the public Wednesday night. PSU professor Dr. Caru Bowns says her students are giving the city a collection of fresh ideas. They first surveyed residents, then worked what they collected through the winter months. Plans revised to reflect public comment will be offered in about six weeks. Observers hope neighborhood groups will qualify for grants to put some of those ideas into place. (Matt Farrand)

Dow advances, local stocks mixed

NEW YORK (AP) - Stocks ended modestly higher, but losers outnumbered gainers among issues of local interest. The primary developer of the Monroe Marketplace in Hummels Wharf gained a fraction. The Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust closed at 25.56. Sara Lee and PPL were also up marginally. But, banking stocks again fell nearly a percentage point or more.

Sovreign Bank closed at 10.63, M&T Bank ended the day at 78.61, Omega Financial closed at 27.48, and FNB was down more than 2.8% percent to 13.59. Weis Markets fell nearly three percent to 32.22. Conagra and Community Health Systems were also each down a fraction.

The Dow rose 41 points to finish at 12,254. The S&P rose nearly 7 points and the NASDAQ added 12 and a-half. The major indices shook off dramatically higher oil prices, after OPEC said it would leave production levels steady and the US government told of a surprise drop in crude stockpiles. April crude oil futures rose $5 a barrel to a new record above $104. (Matt Farrand)

Family at home notices garage fire, escapes uninjured

TREVORTON – Brian Foust of Trevorton says his family thought something was burning nearby when they sat down to dinner Wednesday. Turns out, it was the storage shed directly behind their house. Firefighters responded to the West Railroad Street site and Brian says thankfully, the only losses they had was material in their shed. He says most of the material inside was of more sentimental value than anything.

Firefighters say the fire may have been electrical in nature and the investigation continues. However, Brian Foust thinks a four-legged intruder may have played a role, as a red squirrel had been living inside the shed and may have chewed through an electrical wire. The residence and storage shed is less than ten feet from a commercial garage in Zerbe Township.

Trevorton Fire Company was assisted by Upper and Lower Augusta Township crews, along with Elysburg and Coal Township Fire Departments. Firefighters took about an hour and-a-half to take care of the fire that was first called in at about 5:20pm. (Matt Farrand)

Accidental death at Snyder county construction site

HUMMELS WHARF – State Police say a Huntingdon County man is dead after an accident at the Monroe Marketplace construction site in Hummels Wharf. 38-year-old Ronald Collins of Mount Union was walking along side a forklift, when he was run over by a rear tire.

A Snyder County coroner pronounced Collins dead, apparently due to head injuries. The accident was reported at about 9:30 Wednesday morning. Ground was broken on the project last summer and developers hope to have some tenants open for business later this year. (Matt Farrand)

Flooding in Union County

LEWISBURG – Bull Run started causing flooding problems in Lewisburg Tuesday night and several roads remain closed in the area. Tom Hess, director of Emergency Services in Union County says they have been busy for the last 24 hours due to local flooding from Bull Run and Penns Creek. There were a number of road closures and a number of residential homes flooding.

Several cabins are surrounded by water right now. Hess says things will take longer than normal to recover, because the river is continuing to rise because of water coming from upstream, and that will not crest until tomorrow.

That will slow the tributaries from getting back within their banks as quickly as they normally do. He adds that safety on the roads is imperative and don’t drive through water. Residential flooding continues today, with emergency services handling pumping out basements and assisting residents. (Ali Stevens)

Flooding in Snyder County

PENNS CREEK – Homes and vehicles are flooded and roads are closed, due to Penns Creek and Middle Creek overflowing their banks. In the community of Penns Creek, homes along Penns Creek Drive are flooded and a firefighter says it will take some time for the water to recede.

Snyder County Commissioner Malcolm Dirk was warning employees at the courthouse to move their cars as Middle Creek overflowed in Middleburg, covering a portion of the parking lot at the Snyder County Courthouse. He says they are monitoring the situation through EMA interim director Chad Aucker.

Flooding has also caused problems along Route 204 and Mill Road in Selinsgrove, along Penns Creek in New Berlin and along 522 between Middleburg and Beavertown at Middle Creek. (Ali Stevens)

Second Assistant DA hired in Snyder County

MIDDLEBURG – Snyder County has hired a second Assistant District Attorney. Commissioners and DA Michael Sholley had been butting heads about filling the position, but on a 2-1 vote Tuesday, Troy Scott was hired. Commissioner Richard Bickhart cast the lone ‘no’ vote, saying that the county did not need two assistant DA’s.

Sholley disagreed saying, even though he is full-time, the demands of covering four courts can’t be covered with just one assistant. Scott, who owns a private law practice, has signed on to a benefit-free one-year contract, making $23,918 a year. (Sara Bartlett)

Assistant principal in Shamokin Area School District succumbs to cancer

SHAMOKIN – After a battle with cancer, Shamokin Area Elementary School assistant principal Patti Ann Catizone has passed away. Catizone was 53. She died Monday at her home in Gowen City. Catizone was a teacher in the Shamokin Area School District for 27 years before becoming assistant principal at the elementary school in 2004. A memorial visitation will be held from 5:00p.m. -9:00p.m. Thursday in the Shamokin Area Junior-Senior High School auditorium and a mass will be held Friday at noon at Our Lady of Hope Church in Coal Township. (Sara Bartlett)

Construction begins on Route 11/15 next week in Monroe Township

SHAMOKIN DAM – Roadwork is set to begin next week in Monroe Township, Snyder County in connection with the construction of the Monroe Marketplace. The construction will impact traffic patterns and lane restrictions may be posted. The work is scheduled to begin next week and take place Sunday through Thursday from 8:00p.m. to 6:00a.m. The work is expected to continue for several months. (Sara Bartlett)

Latest Pennsylvania news, sports, business and entertainment:

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) - Suspended Penn State defensive tackle Chris Baker has been cleared by a university judicial affairs panel of wrongdoing during a fight.  The decision has no direct bearing on the criminal case against Baker. He is awaiting trial on charges including felony aggravated assault in connection with the Oct. 7 fight on campus in which one man was hurt.  Defense attorney Karen Muir says the panel's ruling shows her client is "the wrong guy" and she hopes prosecutors will "exercise common sense." Centre County District Attorney Michael Madeira did not immediately return messages seeking comment.  Prosecutors have alleged that Baker, along with two other players, beat up a man during a fraternity dance at the student union. The victim was treated at the scene.    

SCRANTON, Pa. (AP) - Times-Shamrock Communications says a fourth generation of the family that owns and operates the diversified media company will take over in January.    The company's flagship paper is The Times-Tribune of Scranton.  Times-Shamrock has properties in 10 states, including 40 print publications, 17 radio stations and a distribution company.  Times-Shamrock has been operated by brothers Edward, George and William Lynett and their sister Cecelia Lynett Haggerty since 1966. In January. 61-year-old William Lynett is to be joined by 39-year-old W. Scott Lynett, 35-year-old Robert Lynett, 36-year-old George Lynett Jr. and 37-year-old Matthew Haggerty. The four will be chief executive officers.

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) - A message on a postcard from Ernest Hemingway to his father foreshadows the life-changing experiences that would become the foundation for "A Farewell to Arms."  The words on the postcard dated June 9, 1918, are simple, yet ominous. Hemingway would be shot a month later while serving as an ambulance driver during World War I in Italy. He wrote: "Everything lovely. We go to the front tomorrow. We've been treated like kings."  The handwritten postcard is part of a collection of 100 telegrams, letters and other correspondence from Hemingway acquired by the Penn State University Libraries from the author's nephew, Ernest Hemingway Mainland. Some of the material is now on display at the university's Paterno Library.

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - If you've ever wanted to be a secret shopper, or if you need a part-time job paying an extra $500 or more a week, this is not your chance.  Unfortunately, authorities say hundreds of people have fallen victim to a scam in which they think they're signing up to get a tidy paycheck to evaluate retailers.  The Pennsylvania attorney general's office says it began receiving complaints late last year about such schemes.  The complaints include a company called Master Research Incorporated in Canada.  The letters or advertisements look official, containing telephone contact numbers and more.  Victims who received checks were told to cash them and then wire money back to the scammers as part of a training mission to evaluate a check-cashing outlet.  But the checks bounced, leaving the victims on the hook for the amount of the cashed checks.

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - Here are the winning numbers selected Thursday in the midday Pennsylvania State Lottery drawing:

 Daily Number

     0-8-1

 Big 4

     7-6-9-8

 Treasure Hunt

     1-18-22-25-30

     (Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press.  All Rights Reserved.)