October 22, 2021 |
By Sarah Turnbull | Posted in: White Oak News
White Oak borough will apply for a $250,000 grant to be used for economic development projects, the council announced at Monday’s meeting.
Council voted unanimously to pass this resolution, with council members George Dillinger and Joe Nagy being absent.
Offered by the Gaining Economic Development Tourism Fund — a branch of the Redevelopment Authority of Allegheny County — this grant provides financial assistance for economic projects to communities in Allegheny County.
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October 18, 2021 |
By Sarah Turnbull | Posted in: White Oak News
Members of the Young Rotarians of District 7305 help unload donations at McKeesport Agape Center. The charity, located on Lincoln Way in White Oak, opened a cafe in September. (Young Rotarians of District 7305 via Facebook)
When Kelly Doyle opened McKeesport Agape Center in 2019, she knew she wanted to love and serve her community like God.
In September, Kelly and her husband Mike expanded their mission by opening a restaurant, Cheese and MAC Café.
“The more people knew about us, the more requests we got. Our needs and cost kept going up, so we needed a way to raise funds. Plus, it’s a good play on words,” Doyle said.
Located on Lincoln Way next to PNC Bank, Cheese and MAC Café serves breakfast sandwiches, pastries, bagels, fudge, cheesecake and more. All the proceeds go to the McKeesport Agape Center.
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October 12, 2021 |
By Sarah Turnbull | Posted in: White Oak News
White Oak borough will consider adding three additional vacant homes to the list of structures already targeted for demoltion.
Under Pennsylvania’s Act 152, every county in the state can collect a fee for blight removal whenever a deed or mortgage is recorded at the courthouse. Borough manager John Palyo suggested using the revenue from that fee to tear down abandoned structures.
“If we’re budgeting funds for demolitions, why not do more? We could proceed with more properties even without grant money,” Palyo said.
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October 08, 2021 |
By Submitted Report | Posted in: Announcements, White Oak News
Mary, Mother of God Parish will host a Fantastic Fall Bingo Oct. 24 in the St. Angela Gym, 1640 Fawcett Avenue, White Oak, a spokeswoman said.
Doors open at 12 noon and the Early Bird game begins at 1 p.m. In addition to bingo, the event will feature a 50/50 raffle and basket auction. Food will be available for purchase.
Tickets are $30 and include 16 regular bingo games, four specials and a $1,000 jackpot. Individuals purchasing tickets prior to Oct. 24 will be entered into a special drawing.
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October 08, 2021 |
By Sarah Turnbull | Posted in: White Oak News
Dawn Lewandowski of North Huntingdon Twp. holds Artemis, one of the cats who were available for adoption at the White Oak Animal Safe Haven during the Sept. 25 Fido Food Truck Fest. (Sarah Turnbull photo for Tube City Almanac)
The White Oak Animal Safe Haven held its first Fido Food Truck Fest on Sept. 25.
Five food trucks — Lil Sista Sweets, Bull River Taco, Good to Go, Sweet Buzz Bean and Bistro and Truckin Triangles — gathered at the White Oak Volunteer Fire Dept.
According to shelter director Laura Massie, the festival was born out of a desire to switch things up, along with supporting the shelter.
“This is the first year we’ve done it…it’s brand new,” Massie said. “We usually do the Fido ball, but we had to switch things up because of COVID.”
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September 23, 2021 |
By Sarah Turnbull | Posted in: White Oak News
The borough building will be ready in time for Election Day, White Oak council announced Monday.
Borough engineer Kenneth Hillman told council that renovations are nearly complete.
“Flat roof work on the borough building will start tomorrow, Sep. 21. The insulation should arrive by mid-November. Signs are being constructed, the sidewalks and lighting are in…it’s just around the corner,” Hillman said.
In related news, plans for the borough’s 2022 street paving program are underway, and various properties are being surveyed, he said.
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September 15, 2021 |
By Sarah Turnbull | Posted in: White Oak News
Renovations on White Oak’s municipal and maintenance buildings are nearly complete, the borough’s engineer told council on Monday.
“Work on the borough building is 85 percent done, and the maintenance building is 80 percent done,” Borough Engineer Ken Hillman said at this week’s workshop meeting. “We’re just waiting on the approval of the rubber roof for the borough building, and we still need to do some gutter and flat roof work on the borough building.”
Hillman also announced that electrical work at Heritage Hill Pool has been in progress since after Labor Day.
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September 07, 2021 |
By Staff Reports | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News, North Versailles Twp. News, White Oak News
Demolition crews made short work of this abandoned building in Downtown McKeesport in 2018. (Tube City Almanac file photo for illustration only)
More than $1.9 million in economic development funding has been awarded across Allegheny County to demolish blighted, abandoned and unsafe structures, a county spokeswoman said, including 10 in the city and two each in White Oak and North Versailles Twp.
The grants, averaging $62,000, were awarded both to municipal governments as well as councils of government, county officials said.
Emphasis was placed on neighborhoods where clusters of vacant properties were in close proximity.
The funds are provided under Act 152, a 2016 state law that allows each Pennsylvania county to collect a fee for “blight removal” each time a deed or mortgage is recorded at the courthouse.
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August 30, 2021 |
By Sarah Turnbull | Posted in: White Oak News
Members of White Oak Rotary Club and staff and volunteers of White Oak Animal Safe Haven dedicated the facility’s new cat patio — catio — on Thursday. (Sarah Turnbull photo for Tube City Almanac)
The White Oak Animal Safe Haven dedicated its new catio Thursday evening.
Members of the White Oak Rotary Club, as well as shelter staff and volunteers, gathered at the shelter to thank the rotary club for its efforts in building the catio.
According to shelter founder Ina Jean Marton, “It’s an honor to be here again. The cats have more room and they love it. I want to thank the rotary and the shelter for all their hard work.”
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August 19, 2021 |
By Sarah Turnbull | Posted in: White Oak News
A member of the planning commission told White Oak Council to improve its methods of communication after they were left unable to answer questions about a personnel change.
At Monday’s meeting, planning commission member Glenn Beach expressed disappointment in how the situation was handled.
“I’m disappointed in how the council handles communicating with the planning committee. No one knew anything about the removal of the code officer. The planning members looked foolish because no one could answer the public’s questions. It’s absolutely inexcusable that we had to hear about it from a third party,” Beach said.
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