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Erie PA News and Events for Friday February 15, 2008
Posted by Dennis on February 15, 2008
It’s taken 10 years but the first floor of the Boston Store Place, on State and Peach between 7th and 8th Streets, is finally filling up. John Leonard (Leonardos), who ran the Waterfront Restaurant, announced a new restaurant will be locating to the first floor. Leonard will be GM of the Under the Clock Bar and Grill. Remodeling should begin next week.
In the first week of December, the federal government signed a lease to put a recruiting station on the first floor. The 1033 sq ft office space was leased for $15.55 sf plus gas and electric. Spaces of 2032 sq ft, 5500 sq ft and 7696 sq ft were still available then. Not sure on the square footage of the new restaurant. There are 125 apartments on the upper 5 floors which are filled. In 2001, NextMedia moved their radio station studios to the first floor.
Someone put together some excellent historical info on the Boston Store and the building if you’re curious about it’s history.
Corry Publishing is moving from their cramped location on 5539 Peach St to Knowledge Park at 5340 Fryling Road, Suite 301. I was at an excellent seminar on email marketing at EBizITPA on the second floor of that building when I heard the news and thought I’d be breaking it, but the company beat me to the punch and announced it. Corry Publishing has over 70 employees and publishes three national trade magazines for the IT industry.
InventHelp announced that one of its clients, an inventor from Erie, Pa, has designed a portable electronic book. This invention is patented. The “E-Z Read” could enable readers to store large amounts of written material electronically. The invention could save students from having to lug a backpack full of heavy textbooks. The unit would mark the last-read page automatically when the reader closes his or her book. The quiet “page turning” feature and screen with soft backlighting could enable users to read in bed at night without disturbing a spouse. The E-Z Read would be producible in several variations and feature a compact, lightweight and fully portable design. The E-Z Read would consist of a battery-operated textbook with a hinge-open design and dual display screens that are sized to that of full-page text. The device would display text and graphics stored on digital media such as a CD or flash memory card. The electronic book could have its own built-in hard drive for access to and storage of multiple texts. The device would also feature touch-screen operation, as well as a few basic controls for power, page advance and bookmark access. The first variation would be a music-book version whereby the pages could be set to advance automatically and a tempo rate can be set and followed by a musician; or pages could be advanced via a foot pedal attachment. The second version would be a design for magazine downloads from on-line publishers. This model would have internet connectivity features to download online publisher content on a subscription basis. The third model would have a recharging console. A fourth model would have a built-in audio and text-to-speech conversion for audio book playback.
The Northwest Commission has announced the Light Emitting Diode (LED) Bulk Purchase Consortium to municipalities. LED lights purchased through the consortium will be for use in traffic signals. This bulk purchase is specifically aimed at assisting local municipalities in garnering energy efficient technologies to help reduce energy costs. This bulk purchase will allow municipalities to buy LED lights at a significantly lower per unit cost. The Northwest Commission will also be seeking additional funding sources to help further reduce the initial cost of the LED lights by up to 75 percent. Municipal governments will then be responsible for the remaining per unit cost of the lights and the installation. The Northwest Commission, in conjunction with the PA Department of Environmental Protection, will also be offering training for municipal employees on retrofitting and installation of the LED lights. These trainings have been scheduled for March 4 and 12 in Mercer and Venango Counties. The exact locations of the trainings will be announced soon. For more information on the LED light bulk purchase, please email Valerie Hearn at (814) 677-4800 x124.
The Northwest Pennsylvania Regional Planning and Development Commission announced four loans closed in January: Hardinger Transfer Company closed on a $200,000 EDA/RLF loan to purchase machinery and equipment. Eight jobs will be created within three years. Main Event Sports Bar and Restaurant of Clarion County closed on a $175,000 SBF loan to purchase the assets Izzi’s Ristorante. Seven jobs will be created within three years. Rapid Reaction Inc of Venango County closed on a $64,904 EDA/RLF and a $33,334 USDA/IRP loan to purchase equipment. Two jobs will be created within three years and twelve jobs will be retained. The Loan Committee approved four loans for three companies in January: New Castle Candy Company of Lawrence County, Tamarack Packaging LTD of Crawford County and Total Productive Maintenance, Inc of Erie County.
Matrix Solutions of Pittsburgh announced that Aram Malinich was recently hired to perform software development functions as a C/NET Software Developer. In his role, he will assist in the development of software projects while contributing to the improvement of the standards and practices of the Software Development Department. He brings five years of IT experience to Matrix Solutions. Prior to joining the company, he worked for Giant Eagle as a Programmer/Analyst. Malinich is a graduate of Penn State, Erie, and holds a Bachelor of Science in Management Information Systems with a minor in Management.
The Gannon University men’s basketball team (22-2, 14-1) wasted little time putting Thursday’s game in the books and setting up a top-10 showdown Saturday with the University of Findlay. Gannon held the GLIAC’s top-scoring offense to 15 points in the first 20 minutes en route to a 31-15 halftime lead. The Golden Knights then out-scored the Eagles 46-40 in the second half and cruised to a 77-55 victory Thursday night at Ashland.
Kyle Goldcamp led five Golden Knights in double digits with 16 points and seven rebounds. Joe Lindsey recorded his first double-double at Gannon with 12 points and a season-high 10 assists. Pierre Howard netted 13 points. Cory Knight added a season-high 12 points off the bench while Tyler Stoczynski chipped in 10 markers. Gannon returns to action Saturday, February 16 at the University of Findlay. Game time for arguably the best game in the nation, 7th ranked Findlay and 8th ranked Gannon, is Saturday afternoon at 3 pm.
Seventh-ranked Findlay turned a two-point game into a 43-27 lead at the half and never looked back, handing the Mercyhurst men’s basketball team its first loss since Jan 19 and halting its winning streak at six games by a 75-54 final Thursday.
Kristina Freeman hit two free throws with 4.9 seconds left in regulation to propel Gannon (14-10) to an important 68-67 victory at Ashland Thursday evening in women’s basketball action. The victory keeps the Lady Knights in the hunt for a Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Quarterfinal home game. Gannon improved to 8-7 in GLIAC action, moving one-half game behind second-place Wayne State (8-6). The Lady Knights have conference games left at Findlay on Saturday (Feb 16) and at home next Saturday (Feb 23) against Mercyhurst.
Mercyhurst College freshmen Amy Achesinski and Samantha Loadman combined for 48 points and 21 rebounds as the Lakers completed a season sweep of Findlay with a 79-69 victory Thursday. With the win, Mercyhurst won its seventh game of the season, surpassing its total from a year ago.
Mike Machuga of Erie is in second place at the Pro Bowlers Tour 2008 Pepsi Championship. Machuga, who was a collegiate All-American at the nearby University of Nebraska and captured his lone Denny’s PBA Tour title in Council Bluffs, Iowa, in 2005. Machuga finished with 3,393 and will look to make his first championship round appearance of the season.
A group of Mercyhurst North East actors, under the direction of Michael Weiss, will present Agatha Christie’s classic thriller “The Mouse Trap,” on Feb 15, and 16 at 8 pm, and Feb. 17 at 2 pm, in Alex Theater on the MNE campus, 16 West Division Street, North East PA. This murder mystery follows a group of people that gather together in a remote part of the countryside and then discover that there is a murderer in their midst. All performances are free and open to the public.
Join The Ophelia Project for a Girls Night Out on February 15, 2007 from 5:30-8:30 pm at Grace Church. Girls in 6, 7 or 8th grade and the special woman in their lives are invited to a night out where they will learn how to keep their heart happy and healthy by promoting a positive self-image and discussing issues facing girls today, such as friendships, cliques and bullies. Participants will also be treated to a special self defense lesson from Rachel Cheeseman, owner of Street Smart Defense, a hip hop dance instruction and a healthy snack. The cost is $10 per couple and check-in starts at 5:15 pm. For more information and to register call The Ophelia Project office at (814) 456-5437. Grace Church is located at 7300 Grubb Road in McKean. The Ophelia Project is a national nonprofit organization headquartered in Erie, Pa. Recognized as a leader in assessing social conditions and advocating healthy, safe relationships, the organization partners with educational, civic and community leaders to educate and empower kids and adults across North America.
Engaged students…Learning without bells…Field trips without buses (or fuel)…New ways to provide learning opportunities for professional development and students… Classrooms that reach beyond the school walls…Sound interesting? Then come to the Northwest Pennsylvania Association of Educational Communications and Technology meeting on Tuesday Feb 19 at 5:30 pm at the Northwest Tri-County Intermediate Unit at 252 Waterford St in Edinboro. A light meal will be provided before the presentations begin. Cost is FREE for current members of NPAECT, $15 for new members which includes a year membership to NPAECT. Register here by February 15.
The Ethnic Heritage Ensemble will perform in concert on Sunday Feb 17 at 3 pm at the Erie Art Museum Annex, 423 State Street in downtown Erie. FREE Admission, suggested donation $10. This all-star group includes Kahil El’Zabar, drums, earth drum, kalimba; Corey Wilkes, trumpet, flugelhorn, percussion; Ernest Dawkins, alto and tenor saxophones, percussion; and Fareed Haque, electric and acoustic guitar.
Mark your calendars for Sunday, February 17 from 12:30-3:30 pm and/or 8-11 pm and get ready to “rock and bowl” with the Erie Playhouse Family at Eastway Lanes, 4110 Buffalo Road. The cost for a Family/Team (4 or 5 bowlers) for one session is $80. Individual bowlers are welcome - Adults $20 and $15 for children 12 and under. Teams registering by Feb 14 will recieve a $10 discount. The cost includes 3 games, shoes (no discount if you bring your own) and unlimited pop and pizza. A cash bar and additional food will be available. Contests and games of chance throughout each bowling session.
On January 28, 2008, asteroid 2007 TU24 came within 300,000 miles of Earth—a safe distance, but one that reminds us that ours is not the only chunk of rock hurtling around the sun. Nearly 1,000 potentially hazardous asteroids, or PHAs, orbit the sun in the vicinity of Earth; one, Apophis, will be the subject of the next Open House Night in Astronomy at Penn State Erie, The Behrend College. Darren Williams, an associate professor of physics and astronomy at the college, will present the one-hour program “Asteroid Apophis: Will it Hit the Earth?” at 7:30 pm on Thursday, February 21, in 101 Otto Behrend Science Building. His FREE lecture is intended for a non-technical audience and suitable for children at least 8 years of age; astronomical observing at the college’s Mehalso Observatory will follow, weather permitting.
The 2008 Erie Home and Garden Expo will be held February 21-24 at the Erie Bayfront Convention Center. Hours: Thursday 4-9 pm, Friday 2-9 pm, Sat 10 am - 8:30 pm and Sun 11 am to 5 pm.
Want a cure for the winter blahs? Got cabin fever? Come to the Community Board Game Night at Community United Church on Saturday Feb 23. Doors open at 7 pm, Games begin at 7:30 and end at 10 PM. Admission Donation: $2. Snacks and beverages will be provided. Under 18 years old must have guardian. This is an alcohol and smoke free event. Open to the public. We will play board games for groups such as Scruples, Pictionary, etc. Want to save on the admission? Bring grocery bags of empty recyclable aluminum beverage cans. For each bag, the admission will be reduced by 25 cents.
Rabbi Sydney Schwarz, named by Newsweek magazine in 2007 as one of the 50 most influential rabbis in America, will present the annual Samuel Schick Lecture at Allegheny College on Tuesday, Feb 26 at 7 pm in the Tillotson Room of the Tippie Alumni Center at Cochran Hall. Schwarz will speak on “Religion, Social Justice and the Common Good: A Jewish Perspective.” The presentation is FREE and open to the public.
Documentary filmmaker Christopher Quinn and John Bul Dau, one of three Lost Boys of Sudan profiled in Quinn’s prize-winning feature film God Grew Tired of Us, will visit Penn State Erie, The Behrend College, in February as part of the college’s Speaker Series. Quinn and Dau will speak at 7:30 pm on Thursday, February 28, in the Reed Union Building’s McGarvey Commons. Additionally, the film God Grew Tired of Us will be shown at 7 pm on Wednesday, February 27, in 117 Reed Union Building, and at noon on Friday, February 29, in the Samuel P “Pat” Black III Conference Center in the college’s Research and Economic Development Center. Admission to all three events is FREE and open to the public.
The 2008 Erie Outdoor Sport and Travel Expo will be held February 29 - March 2 at the Erie Bayfront Convention Center. Hours: Noon-9 pm Friday, 10 am-8 pm Saturday and 10 am-5 pm Sunday.
Erie CareerLink is hosting Crystal Reports Training in both introductory and advanced sessions on March 3-6. Info and Registration form. Crystal Reports is a business intelligence application used to design and generate reports from a wide range of data sources. Several other applications, such as Microsoft Visual Studio, bundle an OEM version of Crystal Reports as a general purpose reporting tool. Crystal Reports became THE report writer when Microsoft released it with Visual Basic.
The Aspen Ensemble, a mixed quintet of flute, piano and strings drawn from the famed Aspen Music Festival, will perform at Penn State Erie, The Behrend College, on Thursday, March 6. Aspen Ensemble appears at the college as part of Music at Noon: The Logan Series. The performance will begin at noon in the McGarvey Commons of the Reed Union Building; admission is FREE and open to the public.
Melanie Rae Thon, once named a Best Young American Novelist by Granta magazine, will give a public reading from her works on Thursday, March 6, as part of the Creative Writer’s Speaker Series at Penn State Erie, The Behrend College. Thon will read at 6 pm in the Larry and Kathryn Smith Chapel; a reception for her will begin at 4:30 pm in the chapel’s ground-floor meeting room. Both events are free and open to the public.
Gannon University’s Small Business Development Center is presenting the first annual WILD Conference on Thursday, March 13 from 8 am to 2 pm. The Conference will be held at the Ambassador Conference Center located at 7792 Peach Street, Erie, PA 16509. The Conference will involve “women presenting to women” and focus on the areas of: wellness, leadership and personal development. It is anticipated that 150-300 women from Northwestern Pennsylvania will attend this unique event. The nationally prominent Keynote speakers highlighting the day are: Soni Dimond, Publicist, Speaker, author of Life’s A PITCH! As well as CEO of Soni Dimond Media; Jean Gatz, author of Mama Said There’d be Days Like This: Stories and Strategies for Less Stressed Life. The First Annual WILD Conference Chairwoman is Leah Elizabeth Humphries, Owner and President of the following companies: Apple Creative Group, Leah Elizabeth Jewelry, and My Heart Ties. In addition, women businesses will exhibit their products and services throughout the day and there will be several opportunities to learn from seminars, panelists and individual speakers focusing on the knowledge, passion and energy of women helping women. Limited seating. Tickets $75 (includes breakfast, lunch and gift bag). Make your reservations now. Call (814) 871-SBDC (7232) or toll-free (877) 258-6648.
Pennsylvania Sea Grant is sponsoring a FREE one and a half day workshop March 13-14 at the Tom Ridge Environmental Center in Erie. The workshop will provide an update and overview of current ballast water policy, legislation and research as it applies to the Great Lakes. Scientists, legal experts, legislators, industry personnel and agency staff will discuss the current state of ballast water policy, pending legislation, proposed ballast water treatment methods and evaluating the current risk of introduction and spread of AIS to Great Lakes ports by foreign and domestic ships. For Registration form email Karla Kaczmarek, or Marti Martz.
As the signature event for Young Erie Professionals (yep!), the Generation-E Leadership Awards recognize young professionals who are paving the way to the future of Erie, Pennsylvania. Yep! has honored 34 individuals over the past three years who not only have chosen to live, work, and play in the Erie area, but who have made a lasting impact on our region. The 2008 winners will be recognized the evening of Friday, March 28 at the Ambassador Banquet and Conference Center.
The GE (NYSE: GE) 2008 Annual Meeting of Shareholders will be held on April 23, 2008 in Erie, Pennsylvania at the Erie Bayfront Convention Center.
There will be a Rust Belt Bloggers Summit on July 11-12 in Erie. People from Youngstown, Buffalo, Cleveland, Pittsburgh and other area cities will be attendance to discuss economic development issues in the region.
Posted by Dennis at February 15, 2008 7:02 AM
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