It was a little later then expected, but the lake-effect snow came on strong yesterday and overnight into this morning. Some areas may have received up to 15″ overnight. How much did you get in your area? Check out some blog reaction here and here. Some people even reported some thunder snow. Thunder snow is [...]

Read the full post

A local political story (GoErie) is making the national rounds (MSNBC, FOXNews). Sam Glenzer walked into the Clinton campaign office in Erie. Campaign workers were suspicious of him trying to gleam info on their operations. They game him a campaign sign and he left. They Googled his name and saw that he was an Obama [...]

Read the full post

Got the word last night that Erie PA native Maria Sansone is leaving ‘The 9′ on Yahoo! and will be doing a new show on YouTube. Her new yet to be named show will launch in a few weeks. The US Census Bureau released their yearly metropolitan and micropolitan statistical area population estimates. They guessed [...]

Read the full post

Truck Company, 4th Marine Division, the USMC Reserve Unit based in Erie will be coming home on Monday March 31. Welcome Home Marines! Funeral services for Erie PA native the Rev Dr James R Bailey, Jr will be held on Friday in Erie. Rev Bailey was murdered in Dayton, Ohio on Saturday March 22. He [...]

Read the full post

Candidate for Congress Kathy Dahlkemper was to speak today at Gannon University. The engagement was canceled. An official with the school said that they didn’t want an individual candidate to speak as it might appear that they were supporting one candidate over another. Sounded reasonable. You still have to wonder if it had anything to [...]

Read the full post

The Warren Times Observer reported that a fire in a vacuum tower occurred at the United Refining Company refinery in Warren. The crude oil unit will be down for a few days, although production at the refinery will continue, but at a reduced rate. The refinery processes a max of 70,000 barrels of oil per [...]

Read the full post

The John Kanzius Cancer Research Foundation now has a web site. I hope it helps with fund raising and creates more awareness of the project. The leaders of the foundation need more of a sense of urgency in their efforts or Erie will be left out of the human trials. At least $8 million needs [...]

Read the full post

There is an excellent must-read story in the Charleston (WV) Gazette on the story of Bob Wiesen who grew up in the St Joseph’s Home for Children in Erie. St Joseph’s was the orphanage in Erie. Wiesen lived at the orphanage from the time he was an infant until he finished high school. The story [...]

Read the full post

The Erie Zoo reopens today after being closed for the Winter. Hours are 10 am everyday until 5pm. During the summer months, the zoo is open until 6 pm on Sundays. The Zoo is closed December, January and February. Admission prices are $7 for adults, $6 for senior citizens, $4 for children 2-11, children under [...]

Read the full post

Lindsay Graygo was beaten and then strangled to death in her Ypsilanti Township apartment. Graygo had moved to Michigan about a year ago. She graduated from McDowell in 1997, Penn State University Park in 2001 with a degree in advertising / public relations, and went on to get her MBA from Penn State Behrend in [...]

Read the full post

James H Mullen Jr has been named the 21st president of Allegheny College. He will take office Aug 1, 2008. Mullen was elected unanimously by the Allegheny Board of Trustees on the unanimous recommendation of the Presidential Search Committee, which conducted a national search for a successor to Richard J Cook, who is retiring after [...]

Read the full post

At the US Bankruptcy Court in Erie PA, the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, Judge Thomas P Agresti is hearing the case of Countrywide Financial Corp v Sharon Diane Hill of Pittsburgh in a mortgage case being followed by many. Hill sued Countrywide after they had tried to foreclose even [...]

Read the full post

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 [...]

Read the full post

The Greater Erie Board of Realtors released the January 2008 property transfer figures for Erie County PA. The reports shows that 243 properties were sold for $41,202,807. This compares to January 2007 when 280 properties sold for $44,849,368 and January 2006 when 254 changed hands for $26,951,813. The figures include residential, commercial, investment properties as [...]

Read the full post

Megan and Craig Sundberg recently found out their young 3 year old son Jack has an inoperable brain tumor. Jack has Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), also known as grade 4 astrocytoma, which is the most common and aggressive type of primary brain tumor, accounting for 52 percent of all primary brain tumor cases and 20 percent [...]

Read the full post

  At the start of the new fiscal year in July, there will be enough money from slot machine taxes in the Property Tax Relief Fund which could see property owners getting an average of $300 of tax relief. Homeowners will receive tax relief once gaming generates $570 million – $400 million to distribute statewide, [...]

Read the full post

Darren Amy and Joseph Dille, both 19 year old Saegertown volunteer firefighters, were arrested and charged with arson for setting 9 fires in the Saegertown area. The duo set fires to vacant houses and then helped put the fires out.   There will be a citizenship ceremony at the Erie Federal Courthouse today at 10 [...]

Read the full post

  The study report on the proposed community college to be called Northwest Pennsylvania Community College is dated October 1, 2007. The figures for costs seem to be based on 1977 figures. The estimated expenses for utilities, salaries and supplies aren’t even close to realistic. The one figure that seems high is the $5,700 that [...]

Read the full post

  Erie has been granted a franchise in the National Premier Soccer League. The league has not yet confirmed this. I doubt there is an ownership group in place. The NPSL is a minor league that’s equivalent to the fourth level of pro soccer in the United States. Major League Soccer is the top level, [...]

Read the full post

Chrysler has named former Home Depot CEO Bob Nardelli as the new chairman and CEO of the automaker. Nardelli has pretty strong ties to Erie. Chrysler might not build a plant here but a number of Erie companies supply Detroit automakers. Nardelli got Tom Ridge of Erie appointed to the board of directors of Home [...]

Read the full post

Three fires claimed three lives in less than 24 hours. Richard Hunt of Corry died in his East Main Street home in a fire that broke out around 1 pm. A fire at 457 West Front St broke out around 2:45 and claimed the life of a women. I’m selling the home next door at [...]

Read the full post

  The Presque Isle Downs and Casino Roarin’ 20′s Players Club is the casino’s player club. As a member, you’ll receive special discounts and comps, special invitations to player only events, promotional mailings and the opportunity to win big prizes that are exclusive to the Roarin’ 20′s Players Club members. When I think Roaring 20′s [...]

Read the full post

  Erie Firefighters will be getting a sweet Christmas bonus thanks to Erie Mayor Joe Sinnott, Fire Chief Tony Pol and Erie taxpayers. The city will allow firefighters to purchase circa 1890 Gamewell Fire Alarm Call Boxes for $100 each and pedestal mounted Gamewell’s for $200, a fraction of their worth. Unless the glut of [...]

Read the full post

Brad Fairfield, developer of the Koehler Brewery Square Project, has a press conference scheduled for 10:30 am this morning. He was still looking for over $3 million in financing last I heard and if he got it you would think he’d let the world know immediately. The Seattle Post Intelligencer ran a good story that [...]

Read the full post

There is an article in todays Wall Street Journal (registration required to read the entire article) about how manufacturing companies are having trouble finding skilled workers to hire. They quoted Dave Tullio, president of Custom Engineering Company in Erie, saying they have job openings but can’t find the workers. I’m sure there are dzens of [...]

Read the full post

Well no wonder the Erie newspaper didn’t run a story about the the Erie-Western Pennsylvania Port Authority ferry from Erie to Port Dover, Ontario. See yesterdays post where I pointed out that the story didn’t run locally. The only bit of new info was that Willard Marine would be building the boat. The authority received [...]

Read the full post

Erie native Eric Michael Hopper, now living in Buford GA, will make his TV debut this morning on CBS’s “The Early Show.” Hopper won “The Early Show’s Living Room Live” talent competition. He will perform “I Want to Be.” His songs recently hit the 1 millionth play on MySpace. US Rep Phil English of Erie [...]

Read the full post

Steris officials have to be kicking themselves for how they handled the closing of manufacturing in Erie. First, they gave the workers months of advance warning that they would be laid-off so they could look for other jobs or get retrained in another field. They only had to give a 90 day notice. Now the [...]

Read the full post

Erie City Council and Erie Mayor Joe Sinnott announced they have reached an agreement to cut spending and reduce taxes. Yes, you guessed it. April Fools! Congrats go out to Erie Blogger Bobbo for breaking the story about the theft of the student newspaper, The Gannon Knight. Last weekend Miles D Rish of North East, [...]

Read the full post

Judge Ernie DiSantis dismissed the bribery charges against former Erie Mayor Rick Filippi and his business partners Rolf Patberg and Eric Purchase. The group who still has a bundle of charges facing them including conspiracy, conflict of interest and using inside information. Filippi, Patberg and Purchase formed a partnership called Aiko Acquisitions which bought properties [...]

Read the full post