Laurel: To looking ahead. The Westmoreland County Chamber of Commerce announced Monday the launch of a $25,000 study to explore construction of a convention center.
“We feel the time is right to move forward with this next step,” Chamber President Dan DeBone said.
The preferred location would be somewhere along the Route 30 corridor between Irwin and Latrobe, with the focal point being the Westmoreland Mall.
The idea has been kicked around for years. The Ramada Hotel and Conference Center in Hempfield closed in 2015, with the building demolished in 2021 ahead of plans to build a Menards home improvement store. A new convention center was first proposed in the county’s 2018 comprehensive plan. It was raised again when the Monroeville convention center’s future was questionable.
A dedicated convention space is a smart idea worth exploring for Westmoreland County. It’s long overdue for someone to investigate it.
Lance: To overflowing problems. The dumpsters at the Valley Royal Court apartment complex in New Kensington are not something that should be a municipal problem.
The tenants pay rent. The rent and subsidies from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development pay the bills. The garbage gets collected. That’s how it should work.
The city, garbage hauler Shank Waste Service and even the property manager all agree. The mountain of garbage surrounding the three dumpsters Monday was due to Shank not being paid.
The mound was three to four weeks old as of Monday and would not be picked up until the hauler received money.
“Thank God it’s cold out,” city Clerk Dennis Scarpiniti said. “It would smell like New York City.”
The garbage finally was picked up Thursday, but that was still far too long to wait.
Laurel: To a start to the season. Many people like to ring in December with festive holiday movies. One classic favorite is “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation” with famed comedian Chevy Chase determined to give his family a “fun, old-fashioned family Christmas” complete with an enormous tree and a light display guaranteed to make Times Square jealous.
On Friday, Rivers Casino gave Pittsburgh an early Christmas present when it brought Chase to town to light the casino’s tree complete with all the movie’s “Drum roll, please!” glee — and the appropriate pair of high-powered extension cords.