The Erie County United Way kicked off its 2009 fundraising campaign today.  The agency hopes to match last year’s contributions of 5.7 Million dollars, but the sagging economy may constitute a problem.  The fund drive runs through November.  33 agencies and 100,000 people were served last year.
On Tuesday, employees with the Mental Health Association of [...]

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Well, I think at this point we can call the Christmas holiday over – bad news for the local economy is flying left and right.
Troyer Farms recently sold to Bickel’s Snack Foods (Hanover Foods) and promised the sale would not result in layoffs. Someone had their fingers crossed behind their back because yesterday the company [...]

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Bob at Erie’s Groceries posted this weekend that Troyer Farms is in the process of being sold to Snyder’s of Hanover. If this indeed the case, we hope that Snyder’s will keep the plant open and the people there employed. If we might also make one more request – bring back the smaller crinkles on [...]

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Last week, we blogged that we’re going to open up the blog to local candidates. We offered them the opportunity to make one final case as to why they deserve their vote and why they are the best candidate for the job. Our caveat to everyone was that we didn’t want personal attacks or other [...]

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Former President Bill Clinton will visit Erie today to campaign for Barack Obama. He will appear at McDowell Intermediate High School at 4:15 p.m., with doors opening at 3:30 p.m. Tickets to the event aren’t required, but if you want to attend you should RSVP at the Obama website here.
Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney will [...]

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Happy Halloween!  Please be careful when driving this evening and make sure to keep an eye out for the little kiddies. Feel free to send us any leftover candy you might have.
Alaska Governor and Vice-Presidential Candidate Sarah Palin spent part of the day yesterday in Erie. First, she held a National Security Roundtable at Penn [...]

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MSNBC is expected to roll into Erie today in its Green Machine–a Ford Escape hybrid heavily equipped with camera’s and wireless internet to send video back to New York–to report on election news. Since Pennsylvania is considered a battle ground state, the MSNBC crew has been making the rounds in various cities across the [...]

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The third and final congressional debate was held last night. The debate was broadcast on WQLN TV and radio as well as WJET Channel 24. You know what, we thought long and hard about how to make a funny here, but we failed. So, let’s play some Match Game. Post the completion of this thought [...]

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The PA Supreme Court has ruled that Steven Porter will not be on the ballot this November.  Porter had appealed a lower court’s ruling that 1,500 of the signatures on his nominating petitions were invalid.  Despite having campaigned numerous times, Porter violated PA election law by completing information for voters.  Porter says he will run [...]

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Research 2000 released a new poll yesterday in the 3rd District Congressional race. The new poll of 400 likely voters showed Kathy Dahlkemper to have a 7 point lead over incumbent Phil English, 48% to 41%. The poll had margin of error of 5 points.  Research 2000 conducted the poll for Daily Kos, a liberal [...]

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WICU reported on the validity of rumors circulating that the community activist organization known as ACORN (Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now) has been engaging in voter fraud in Erie County.  According to WICU, ACORN has not had a presence in Erie for the last 15 months and the Erie County Elections Office has stated it [...]

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We blogged back on Sep. 27 that former mayor of New York City and presidential candidate Rudy Guliani will be in town to campaign with Rep. Phil English. We now have a date: October 20 at a $100 per ticket fundraiser at the Manufacturer & Business Association.  We’ll post other appearances when they become available.
Presque Isle [...]

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Last night congressional candidates Kathy Dahlkemper and Phil English held a debate on the campus of Allegheny College. WSEE will broadcast the debate later this week, and C-SPAN will have coverage as well. An hour after the debate was over, we received a press release from the Dahlkemper campaign claiming victory. Not once during the [...]

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Erie Renewable Energy has submitted a new emissions plan to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection. Don’t expect a permit from the DEP for many months as they review all the information. There is considerable resistance to the plant locally.
The US House of Representatives passed the “Bailout Bill” yesterday. The plan was signed by President [...]

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In case you missed it, Wednesday we published a comprehensive guide to October events around the Erie area including haunted houses, corn mazes, and more. We keep adding events so please keep checking. If you know a friend or family member looking for something fun to do, use the “Share This” link and email the [...]

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In case you lost track of time, today is October 1st. Where did this year go?
Shana Tova! Rosh Hashanah concludes today. Happy New Year to our Jewish readers!
This past weekend we mentioned that there hasn’t been a poll conducted for the Dahlkemper-English race for Congress for a few months now. Roll Call [...]

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The US House of Representatives did not pass the bailout bill yesterday afternoon. The already shaky markets responded by closing down 777 points. Ouch, babe. Rep. Phil English voted against the bill yesterday. He released a statement saying, in part:
While I support the need for congressional action to stabilize the credit markets, the legislation negotiated [...]

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The annual North East Wine Country Harvest Festival continues today and will conclude tomorrow, Sunday the 28. This is the 27th year the wine festival will be held, drawing about 15,000 visitors every year. You will find 5 wineries in the wine tent this year along with music and dancing, over 75 booths of [...]

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15-year-old Daquan Crosby was murdered by an unknown assailant earlier this week. Daquan’s brother, Jovon Johnson, is returning to Erie from Winnipeg, Manitoba where he plays for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the Canadian Football League. An arrest has yet to be made.
Majorie Diehl-Armstrong is now refusing psychotropic drugs as part of her [...]

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It was bound to happen sooner or later. Thomas Brletic of the Gaming Control Board’s Bureau of Investigations and Enforcement, has testified before a grand jury proceeding yesterday that is largely being kept secret. The investigation is focusing primarily on former state House Democratic Whip Mike Veon and back room deals with casinos [...]

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The Center for Political Participation at Allegheny College will host a debate for the candidates for U.S. Congress, Pennsylvania District 3, on Wednesday, Oct. 8, at 7 p.m. in Ford Chapel.
The 70-minute debate between Democratic candidate Kathy Dahlkemper and Republican candidate Phil English will be co-moderated by Allegheny College Professor of Political Science Daniel M. [...]

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High School Football Scores (slightly soggy)
Sharpsville 35 Conneaut Lake 22 (Thurdsay)
Seneca Valley 38 McDowell 33 (Thursday)
Strong Vincent 61 Central Tech 6
Maplewood 27 Seneca 18
Fariview 38 Northwestern 6
Linesville 35 Kennedy Catholic 0
North East 27 General McClane 14
Iqoruius 56 Harborcreek YS 0
West Middlesex 27 Mercyhurst 19
Union City 49 Cochranton 6
Meadville 49 Warren 6
Saegertown 42 Eishenhower 7
Corry 27 [...]

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Tom Ridge spoke last night at the Republican National Convention (you can read his speech here). The convention concluded with the acceptance speech of John McCain. Congressman Phil English did not attend the convention. 59 days until the general election.
PA lawmakers are again considering charging townships that rely on state police for protection [...]

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Lots of stuff going on this weekend: Key West Phest, the St. Paul’s Italian Festival, Footloose at the Erie Playhouse, and so much more. Get out there and have some fun.
Yesterday afternoon, a few funnel clouds were spotted over Lake Erie. Meterologist Ray Petelin has some pictures on his blog.
More news from National Fuel but [...]

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The City of Erie School District preliminary budget calls for a spending increase of about $6 million to $129.3 million. All members of the school board are tax and spend Democrats. The figures don’t include money to rehab or rebuild Roosevelt Middle School which might not be funded until next year.
WSEE TV posted two video [...]

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Paul “The Pittsburgh Kid” Spadafora was arrested AGAIN for violating a PFA order. Police found him with Nadine Russo who has a PFA against him. He was arrested last summer for violating the same order. Spadafora served 13 months in jail for shooting Russo. He has a professional boxing record of 41-0-1 and would be [...]

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In the second in our series of congressional candidate interviews, we had the chance to talk with Mike Waltner about his take on the issues and challenges facing the Erie region and the country as a whole.
He also talks about why he feels he is the best candidate for the job and why he can [...]

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Erie received a little bit of snow the past two days. The city seemed to be hardest hit as about 21-26 inches fell. Most church services are cancelled. Call ahead before you leave for anything. Shovel out and make sure to check your clocks we lost an hour of sleep with Daylight Savings Time.
The Erie [...]

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Awhile back, we asked you, our loyal readers, to submit your questions to Congressional candidate Kathy Dahlkemper. You submitted a number of really great questions, and last Friday, we were able to talk with Kathy via phone as she drove to a dinner in Butler, PA.
In this interview, we talk about Iraq, the environment, education, [...]

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The School District of the City of Erie has of budget of over $122,000,000 and has about 12,500 students. You have to wonder about the intelligence of the people running the school district and therefor the quality of education the children are receiving if you read the article Hidden Swap Fees by JPMorgan, Morgan Stanley [...]

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According to The Tax Foundation in their 2006 report on Property Taxes on Owner Occupied Housing by County, Erie County Pennsylvania has the 55th highest property taxes in the nation out of 783 counties (or parishes). That will change next year as the following four member of Erie County Council voted to raise your taxes: [...]

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Way to go Phil! Ensuring public dollars support American families not an addiction is the goal of legislation recently introduced by U S Rep Phil English (R-Pa). HR 3656 would require states to administer drug tests for welfare recipients if the state has substantial evidence that an individual welfare beneficiary is abusing controlled substances. “My [...]

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WJET-TV ran a story in which Sheriff Bob Merski said he was looking into the possibility of putting a temporary halt to sheriff sales in Erie County. Sheriff sales are done to recoup back unpaid property taxes. Merski is asking the County Solicitor’s Office for an opinion. You know things are slow building-wise when an [...]

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Oops. Erie City Council and Erie County Council agreed on a swap of $2 million and the Millcreek Golf and Learning Center property for the Erie Golf Course so Erie Airport can move ahead on a runway expansion project. They forgot one little detail – Millcreek Township. No Millcreek Township officials were at the meeting [...]

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A 1:30 pm press conference is scheduled so that U S Attorney Mary Beth Buchanan can announce indictments of Marjorie Diehl-Armstrong and Ken Barnes in the kidnapping of pizza deliveryman Brian Wells. Expect to hear something about Wells himself being involved somehow. This could be very interesting.
On August 28 2003, pizza delivery man Brian Douglas [...]

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If the opportunity for a number of good paying jobs falls out of the sky, do any Erie area economic development officials hear it?
In May 2007, Railpower Technologies announced that it was exploring the possibility of operating its own manufacturing facility. During the second quarter of 2007, an offer was made to purchase an existing [...]

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The ponytail wearing environmentalist hippies held a misrepresentational information meeting on the Erie Renewable Energy proposed tire to energy plant. They would have you believe the plant will cause everything from cancer to autism to children not wanting to do their homework. Energy Products of Idaho, the company that will design the plant in Erie, [...]

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There was a bit of a commotion at Erie International Airport Friday morning when a Cessna reported engine problems. Traffic was a mess for about a half an hour with emergency vehicles racing to the airport. The RELCO (Radio Emergency Light Company) system prevents accidents but it’s frustrating to drivers that have to sit at [...]

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General McLane won the Pennsylvania Class AAA basketball championship defeating Greencastle-Antrim 57-55. General McLane also won the state Class AAA football title. That’s the first time in Pennsylvania a school has won both titles in the same school year.
 
On Friday, forty-four people took the oath and became US citizens in a ceremony held at the [...]

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Judge John Bozza denied a request for a temporary injunction for the county wide smoking ban that is scheduled to begin on Saturday February 17. However, Judge Bozza in his decision asked Erie County Council to postpone the ban until the hearing for a permanent injunction is held on Monday February 26. Council will discuss [...]

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The Center for eBusiness and Advanced Information Technology (eBizITPA) is selling it’s web-based reverse auction tool eDynaQuote. eBizITPA provides education and training programs in e-business and advanced information technology processes. “eBizITPA has effectively completed its role as originator and incubator of eDQ,” according to Susan Breon, president of eBizITPA. “The business possesses a solid fixed [...]

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The Erie SeaWolves alumni team, the Detroit Tigers, completed a remarkable upset of the New York Yahkees with Saturday’s 8-3 win. The Yankees will be playing golf while the Tigers will face the Oakland A’s in the ALCS. Nearly half of the Tigers roster are former Erie SeaWolves players.
Gannon University honored four individuals at its [...]

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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 has [...]

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The loud flushing sound heard in Erie PA on Thursday was a campaign going down the toilet. Gubernatorial candidate Bill Scranton made a campaign stop in Erie and made national news firing his campaign manager James Seif for making racial remarks about Lynn Swann. Seif appeared late Wednesday on a television call-in show about the [...]

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Erie Police Officer Aaron Wassell had his cheek bone broken when he responded to a domestic disturbance. David Wassell was charged with assault and a probation violation. Yes, they are related. David is the son of officer Wassell.
The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board today released an updated preliminary list of the entities and individuals who have [...]

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The Pittsburgh Steelers dominated Denver winning 34-17 in the AFC title game. Seattle will meet the Steelers in Super Bowl XL in Detroit on Sunday Feb 5. For those of you who went to Edinboro, that’s Super Bowl 40, not extra large. It was great to see Nate Washington make an important catch for Pittsburgh. [...]

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A Pennsylvania State Police Clandestine Lab Response Team took part a meth lab bust in Wesleyville. This marks the 9th lab that this team has cleaned up on 3 weeks.
There is an excellent article by Mike Bucsko in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette about the budget troubles Erie is experiencing. Pittsburgh entered a state-mandated financial recovery plan [...]

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Trina Orlando will be the new morning anchor for WJET-TV beginning on Monday. She will also appear on WFXP. Orlando is a 2002 graduate of Mt Pleasant Junior/Senior High School which is about 40 miles Southeast of Pittsburgh. She attended the University of Southern California doble majoring in broadcast journalism and political science.
The exotic dance [...]

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