ErieBlogs.com: Erie PA News and Events for Tuesday October 18, 2005

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Erie PA News and Events for Tuesday October 18, 2005

Posted by Dennis on October 18, 2005

The Erie Bayfront Convention Center received $15 million in funding to support it’s the development and construction. The Erie County Convention Center Authority received the 20-year, $750,000 annual grant to assist in the pay-back of a tax-exempt bond to be issued by the ECCCA for construction of the Convention Center. The funding will support the construction of the 136,000-square-foot, $96 million Convention Center to be built on Sassafras Pier. Plans for the Convention Center include two surface parking lots adjacent to the Center, which will accommodate 520 vehicles. A 200-room, 11-story Sheraton Convention Center Hotel will be built on West Dobbins landing along with a five-story, 344-space parking facility. A pedestrian crosswalk over the canal will join the two facilities. The project, anticipated to be completed in May 2007, is a critical component of Erie’s current redevelopment, and is projected to bring 200 jobs to Erie.

eBizITPA was given a $2 million Ben Franklin Technology Development Authority (BFTDA) grant. The Center, a technology-based economic development organization created in 2002 to promote and develop the use of e-commerce, information technologies (IT) and advanced IT technology throughout the commonwealth, will use the funding to support and enhance technology transfer and advanced IT. eBizITPA will also educate, train and provide businesses with IT solutions and continue to foster the growth of Pennsylvania’s technology-related companies and the integration of e-business technology and processes to existing businesses. Through the Center’s apprentice and intern programs, the commonwealth will also have the ability to attract and retain young talent throughout the region.

The Ben Franklin Technology Development Authority approved $250,000 for the Erie Keystone Innovation Zone (KIZ). Coordinated by the Technology Council of Northwest Pennsylvania and partnering with Penn State Erie, The Behrend College; Edinboro University of Pennsylvania; Mercyhurst College and Gannon University, the funding will be used to support innovation and entrepreneurship in the region. The goal of the KIZ is to have companies locate near colleges.

White Lodging Services has officially signed on to manage is the 203-room Erie Sheraton Convention Center Hotel in Erie, Pennsylvania, which is scheduled to open summer, 2007.

Lance Cpl David J Flaherty, stationed with the Headquarters and Headquarters Squadron at Marine Coprs Air Station New River, NC. The tactical data network specialist and Erie, Pa, native, has been playing the bagpipe for about five years now. Flaherty may not be charging battlefields with bagpipes in hand, but he does his part to support his Scottish heritage.

The Gem City Jazz Ensemble will present a concert tonight, Tuesday, October 18, from 7:30 to 9 pm at the Blasco Library’s H O Hirt Auditorium. The 20-piece jazz ensemble, directed by Tim McKinney, will play big-band favorites and jazz standards including songs from jazz greats such as Sammy Nestico, Duke Ellington, Count Basie, and Buddy Rich. The concert is free and open to the public.

From Sunday, Oct 23, to Saturday, Oct 29, the Mercyhurst College Campus Ministry will collect non-perishable food items from the surrounding communities. Last year, the drive collected a record 5,825 pounds. The food is donated to the Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwestern Pennsylvania, and then is distributed to 275 agencies that directly serve families facing hard times.

St Benedict Academy Alumnae Association members together with the Benedictine Sisters of Erie will present a choral concert at the historic Warner Theatre at 7:30 pm, Fri, Nov 25. A “Gift of Peace” to the Erie community, the concert will be an evening of enjoyable holiday music in anticipation of the Christmas season. The concert is part of the Alumnae Association’s Homecoming Weekend “Alive in 05” as the women join the Sisters’ celebration of 150 years in Erie. St Benedict Academy, founded by the Sisters, was the first academy for girls in Erie. The school closed in 1988, but the SBA Alumna Association has continued its strong commitment to the Sisters in support of their ministries. Tickets are $16 and all seating is reserved. You ca purchase tickets at the Erie Civic Center Box Office or through Ticket Master.

West Virginia men’s basketball coach John Beilein will be the featured speaker at Mercyhurst College’s 18th Annual Basketball Tip-off Dinner set for Thursday night, November 3, at 7:00 at the Ambassador Conference Center at Marriott. Beilein coached the Le Moyne Dolphins from the mid-80s to the early 90s when the Lakers, Gannon and Dolphins were members of the Mideast Collegiate Conference.

Head Coach Dave Niland and the Behrend men’s basketball team have recently been awarded the Schoenfeld Award by the Collegiate Basketball Officials Association (CBOA). The Schoenfeld Award is an annual award given to a college or university which the CBOA identifies as having “the highest degree of sportsmanship, character, and ethics among their players, coaches and spectators.”