Route 208 road work

Route 208 road work
MERCER, Pa. -- There will be road work on Pa. Route 208, Barkeyville Road, between Pa. Route 173/Grove City and the Venango County line from Monday through next Friday, weather permitting. Work will include driveway adjustments, paving and cleanup.
The work will require some lane closures. Delays may occur, which could cause traffic to back up in and approaching the work areas. PennDOT asked motorists traveling through the construction area to slow down and be alert for changing work zone conditions.
Drug program recognition
YOUNGSTOWN -- The Mahoning County Juvenile Court's residential substance abuse treatment program will be featured at two upcoming conferences.
Michael Flatley, clinical manager, will present an overview of the program at the Ohio Department of Alcohol and Drug Addiction Services workshop June 9 at Bowling Green State University.
Flatley also will discuss the program June 11 at the 16th annual National Juvenile Services Training Institute in Indianapolis.
"I am gratified that our program is being recognized nationally and by the state of Ohio," said Judge Theresa Dellick of juvenile court, who said the program is the only one of its kind in Ohio and only a few in the nation.
Grant for hotel project
YOUNGSTOWN -- Mahoning County has received a $470,000 grant from the Ohio Department of Development to assist with development of 32 acres in Canfield Township. The funds will help pay for installation of 2,700 linear feet of water and sewer lines, and for flood and drainage improvements to the property.
The infrastructure improvements will allow for construction of a Bob Evans Restaurant and a Hampton Inn, just east of the Sheetz service station-convenience store at the corner of South Raccoon Road and Route 224.
The $64 million project is expected to create 74 jobs. The grant is through the state's Small Cities Community Development Block Grant Economic Development Program.
Tree planting ceremony
HUBBARD -- Rotary Club of Hubbard is having a ceremony to plant two Liberty elm trees at Harding Park at 1:30 p.m. Monday, in honor of the Centennial of Rotary International.
Members of the Hubbard Rotary will be present, along with the Hubbard Township trustees, the Harding Park Board members and members of the city administration.
The trees were acquired from the Elm Research Institute, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the restoration of the American elm. Since Dutch elm disease was first found in Ohio in the 1930s, it has destroyed more than 100 million elm trees in the United States.
Bell restoration
MINERAL RIDGE -- A bell given to Weathersfield schools by the Church of Christ, Niles, is being restored and will be donated as a Victory Bell to the district by the senior class of Mineral Ridge High School. Superintendent Rocco Adduci said that the bell will be placed on the west side of the band shell at the high school football stadium, on the home side. Terry Goodman, who has children attending school in the district, is restoring the bell. Architectural services from McLean Engineering Inc., worth $1,200, have also been donated for the Victory Bell foundation design to place it at the site.
Rise in Erie burglaries
ERIE, Pa. (AP) -- Burglaries are apparently on the rise in the state's state fourth largest city this year and police are puzzled about what is fueling the increase.
Police in Erie reported 101 burglaries or attempted burglaries in the first two months of this year -- a 53 percent jump over the same time last year, according to statistics compiled by the state police.
Erie investigators said they don't know if the increase is being driven by a troubled economy, serial burglars or people and businesses leaving their doors and windows unlocked. Deputy Chief James Skindell believes the burglaries are being driven by the poor economy and drugs.
The most recent burglary was Thursday, when Erie police allegedly found Christopher Hutchison inside a Kmart store. Hutchison, 23, of Millcreek, allegedly broke into the store through a garage door. At his arraignment, Hutchison said he had been drinking and couldn't remember what happened.
House-fire victim dies
JEANNETTE, Pa. (AP) -- A Westmoreland County woman who was critically injured in a house fire has died, four days after the blaze killed her husband. Ethel Speece, 75, died at a Pittsburgh hospital Thursday of carbon monoxide poisoning caused by smoke inhalation, the Allegheny County Coroner's Office said. Her 79-year-old husband, Lawrence Speece, died in the fire Monday in Jeannette, about 20 miles southeast of Pittsburgh, despite the efforts of a neighbor and firefighters, who were forced back by a flashback.