If you didn’t get out to Roar on the Shore you missed a great time.
Just a few people made it out…

A few bikes

Thanks to mbausa.org for the great pics. Check out a ton more here.

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It’s Friday. We made it.
There’s so much going on in town this weekend – Roar on the Shore, the Cherry Festival, Waterford Heritage Days and much more. Get out there and be a part of the community. First one to get a picture of them sharing brograbs with Jani Lane any member of Warrant or [...]

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Organizers of the 2009 Roar on the Shore bike rally, set for July 16-18, announced today that American rock-metal band Warrant will perform at Saturday night’s Rock ‘N’ Roar Concert at The Hub at Perry Square Main Stage in downtown Erie. The band, known for such hits as “Cherry Pie” and “Heaven,” will make their [...]

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It was a hot one in Erie yesterday, and Presque Isle was jam packed, as was other events around town, at least before the rain started. There’s a chance for more rain today, which will hopefully start after Mike has had a chance to ride the Ravine Flyer II and chow down on some grub [...]

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The Erie-Western Pennsylvania Port Authority will hold a public meeting 5-7pm today at the HO Hirt Auditorium at the Erie County Blasco Memorial Library, 160 East Front St, to discuss the proposal to ban unaccompanied minors from the 8 Great Tuesday’s concert series. Maybe at the meeting someone will ask what happened to the $700,000 [...]

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The King’s Ship Ontario, aka the HMS Ontario, a British warship that sailed during the American Revolutionary War, has been found in Lake Ontario. It went down on October 31, 1780 with about 130 aboard. Included in this story in the Whig Standard by Ian Elliot is information which must be a reference to the [...]

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Zachary Dunbar of Erie arrived in San Francisco and today will begin a 2 month cross county bike ride to raise money and awareness for the John Kanzius Cancer Research Foundation. You can follow him on his travels on his blog Cycling For A Cure. (It’s about 2,600 miles from San Francisco to Erie.)
The Community [...]

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A driver, traveling on Route 8 near Wattsburg, hauling 10,000 gallons of gas lost control of his truck. It rolled over and burst into flames. The smoke could be seen for miles.Holy cow was there a lot of smoke. I’d almost bet you could see it from almost anywhere in Erie County. A couple of [...]

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Dan Mulligan didn’t know what to expect when the US Army summoned him from his civilian life as instructor at the Institute for Intelligence Studies at Mercyhurst College to active duty in Iraq last January. He hadn’t fired a weapon since he retired from the military 15 years ago; what’s more, he was 48-years-old. He [...]

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The Pennsylvania House and Senate passed a smoking ban. Philadelphia Governor Ed Rendell said he would sign it. Hotels must have 75 percent of their rooms non-smoking. Casinos such as Presque Isle Downs and Casino in Erie must have 50 percent of their facility non-smoking. Exempted are bars with less than 20 percent food sales, [...]

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BetaJohn has tried and tried to get Erie Times News and GoErie to fix their problem with the employment classified links. The Help Wanted link was recently fixed to reflect their switch over to HotJobs but none of the links for the sub-categories work. Maybe one of the job listings is for help in their [...]

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The Erie area enjoyed another glorious day on Sunday – bright sunshine with a high of 88 degrees. About 80,000 people visited Presque Isle State Park over the weekend. The forecast today calls for a high near 90, the fifth day in a row with temps hitting the mid 80’s.
The Erie Metropolitan Transit Authority (EMTA) [...]

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The official high temperature in Erie was 92 degrees on Friday. Temps on Saturday and Sunday might be near 90. There was a great crowd along the bayfront and at Presque Isle State Park. I’m a bit jealous of how Ella, daughter of Holli and Jason, kept cool.
Get out of the heat for a few [...]

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Scores of people in the Erie area have called off work with symptoms of the flu and other illnesses. Most will head to Presque Isle State Park for ‘treatment.’ The forcast for today is sunny with a high temperature approaching the record of 95 degrees.
The Community Blood Bank is air conditioned and can take some [...]

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Measuring Up was founded by Tony and Tammy Craig, a husband and wife team with a combined 30 plus years in the rent to own industry. Measuring Up does customer satisfaction surveys, analysis and employee training. The company recently produced a report for the US Congress, documenting the fact that rent-to-own has the highest level [...]

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All around great guy Jack Tirak passed away last night. Jack was a partner at Erie ad firm Engel and Tirak and many of us knew him through his blog, Erie Media Go Round. We’ll fill you in on the funeral details when they become available. Condolences to his family.
Casting call for you actor types. [...]

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WICU reported that the Erie County Employee Picnic has been canceled due “to too much scrutiny.” The food was going to come from DiVecchio’s Catering, the business owned by Erie County Executive Mark DiVecchio. This is one the numerous reasons Erie County Controller Sue Weber is planning an Ethics Workshop on July 1.
The blood shortage [...]

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Jack Sundberg passed away on Sunday morning. Jack had an inoperable brain tumor. As they say on his web site Jack’s Battle, he won his battle and now is in a better place. The Sundberg Family – Craig, Megan and Robin – would appreciate your thoughts and prayers. Hopefully, they can get some peace in [...]

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Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine will hold commencement ceremonies for its largest medical and pharmacy classes, along with the school’s second class of master’s degree candidates. Today at 2 pm at the Louis J Tullio Arena, 218 medical students, 123 pharmacy students and six Master of Science in Medical Education students will receive degrees. [...]

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Lisa Maas was murdered in her Pittsburgh apartment. Maas was a 2006 graduate of Harbor Creek High School near Erie. She was attending school at the Pennsylvania Culinary Institute. Terrence Andrews, who occupied an apartment in the same building as Maas, stabbed her with a pair of scissors. Andrews admitted to police he did it. [...]

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Erie County middle and high school students are reporting a higher incidence of alcohol use than their national peers, but much lower levels of participation in antisocial behaviors such as “being arrested” or “bringing a weapon to school,” according to the newly released 2007 Pennsylvania Youth Survey (PAYS), conducted locally by the Mercyhurst College Civic [...]

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In November 2007 just before her new son was born, Tia Peterson, soon to be a new single mother, made the decision that she would stay home to raise her son. She began freelancing as a virtual assistant and has never looked back. Instead, she has moved on to form a virtual assistance firm called [...]

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An arrest warrant was issued by University of Iowa campus police for Abe Satterfield of Erie and another man for charges involving sexual abuse. The incident allegedly occurred on October 14 at Satterfield’s on campus apartment. Satterfield and other person, Cedric Everson, were both members of the Iowa football team. They were both suspended from [...]

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Railpower Technologies announced that it will build an assembly plant in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec, creating some 125 new jobs, mainly in manufacturing and development. I thought Erie had a good shot at landing the plant. The company is headquartered in Quebec while their US operations are located in Erie. Railpower produces rail yard switching locomotives and [...]

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Please take a moment today to remember and honor those Americans who died while defending our Nation and its values. They are responsible for the freedoms you enjoy today.
To help re-educate and remind Americans of the true meaning of Memorial Day, the “National Moment of Remembrance” resolution was passed in December, 2000 which asks that [...]

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One person died in their home last night of an apparent natural gas leak or by carbon monoxide poisoning. The home is on Page Street in SE Erie. An official from the Erie County Coroners Office was called to scene as crews from National Fuel worked to repair the leak. Natural gas does not have [...]

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Marjorie Diehl-Armstrong spent another day at a mental competency hearing. It could be months for a judge to decide if she’s competent to stand trial. Of course she’s nut but she’s well enough to know what’s going on. Normal people don’t kill their boyfriend and stick them in a freezer nor are involved in some [...]

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Marjorie Diehl-Armstrong spent 9 hours in court in the first day of two in a mental competency hearing. What a wast of time. Expert witnesses differed in their opinion according to who was paying them, the prosecution or the defense. I think everyone agrees she nuts, ie a wacked out bi__. The question is, does [...]

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The Erie Graffiti Task Force continues to mount a crack down on vandalism. District Magistrate Judge Tom Carney, head of the group, is jumping in front of every TV camera and telling every reporter around town about the problem. Yesterday, the case of Daniel Montano of Pittsburgh was spotlighted. Montano faces life in prison and [...]

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The Erie Times-News / GoErie.com reported that Teri Rhodes will enter a guilty plea on Friday. Everyone involved is being tight lipped about the deal. The plea deal takes the death penalty off the table. If the deal does not include a VERY long prison sentence, I think there will be community outrage.
Rhodes murdered her [...]

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The official ground breaking of the newest branch of the Erie County Public Library, the West County Library Branch (WCLB), will be held today at 10:30 at the corner of Manchester and West Lake Road in Fairview. To add to the jubilation, Michael Batchelor, president of The Erie Community Foundation, will make a major [...]

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The Ravine Flyer II at Waldameer Amusement Park and Water World opened yesterday to a large crowd. Seats on the very first ride were auctioned off with all proceeds benefiting the Northwestern Pennsylvania Chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. About $7,500 was raised. And all weeekend long, $3.50 of the $4.50 ride cost will [...]

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Looks like there won’t be any baby Bald Eagles at Presque Isle State Park. Linda posted pictures of the nest and a write-up on her blog. She said a park volunteer told her there was an attack on the nest by a rogue eagle (or another predator).
International Paper closed it’s plant in Erie on the [...]

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A jubilant celebration will take place on Monday, May 19 beginning at 10:30 am at the corner of Manchester and West Lake Road, where only a pile of dirt presently exists. The celebration will mark the official ground breaking of the newest branch of the Erie County Public Library, the West County Library Branch (WCLB). [...]

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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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WSEE TV will air their exclusive interview with John Kanzius in a 30 minute special on Wednesday, May 21 at 7 pm. For the station to preempt the uber popular “Wheel of Fortune”, you know it’s important. Along with word on the breakthrough with the success of Kanzius discusses how big it could be [...]

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In a WSEE TV interview with John Kanzius of Erie (not yet posted on their site), Kanzius said that researchers led by Dr Steven Curley at the University of Texas M D Anderson Cancer Center have found a protein enzyme that will carry metallic nanoparticles exclusively to cancer cells. WSEE will run more of the [...]

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A traffic accident Sunday night on West Townhill Road, between Peach St and Perry Highway, claimed the life of one person when the car burst into flames. The single vehicle accident happened around midnight. The victim was burned so badly authorities couldn’t determine the gender let alone the identity of the victim.
The horrible accident on [...]

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One of those worst nightmare accidents happened yesterday afternoon on I-90 near West Springfield, Exit 3, when six people died in a horrible head-on accident. A van traveling east lost control, crossed the grass median, and slammed into a car traveling west. Five people in the van and one person in the car died. One [...]

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Along with Mothers Day, three area colleges have their commencements this weekend. Hotels are packed and there are waits at restaurants. The Edinboro University of Pennsylvania commencement will be held today at 1 pm at McComb Fieldhouse with 831 students receiving degrees. The Gannon University commencement will be held today at 2 pm at the [...]

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Live thoroughbred racing returns to the Erie, PA, today Friday, May 9, when Presque Isle Downs and Casino commences its 2008 meeting. Presque Isle’s 100-day season will extend through September 27, with a daily post time of 5:30 pm. Admission and general parking throughout the meet will be FREE.
Last year, Presque Isle’s inaugural meet was [...]

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Erie City Council voted unanimously to go after the money the city loaned for the dead Koehler Square Brewery project. The city probably won’t see a dime as National City Bank and the state get any money first but maybe it will teach future would-be developers that government funds aren’t just free money.
The Greater Erie [...]

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Erie Renewable Energy yesterday held a press conference at the Erie Labor Temple to announce a $1.5 million diversity program to recruit and train minority workers to build the proposed tire to energy plant which will be called Port Erie Power. Agreements were signed with the Booker T Washington Center, Great Lakes Building and Construction [...]

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Narcotics agents from the Attorney General’s office charged an Erie County woman accused of diverting prescription pain medication, which was intended for the patients in her care, from the hospital where she worked. She allegedly took the drugs for her own personal use. Attorney General Tom Corbett said that Janet Palmer, 42, of Waterford, [...]

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A woman died in a house fire at 412 Lowry Road in Harborcreek. The fire broke out shortly at 10 pm Sunday night. Her husband escaped but she could not get out. Lowry Road is the first street east of Lawrence Park Golf Club.
Todd Ptacek of Erie, Pa won the Flying Pig Half Marathon in [...]

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Northwest Pennsylvania Collegiate Academy US Academic Decathlon team, the 2008 Pennsylvania state champion, took third place at the National Academic Decathlon competition at Garden Grove, California. The team competed in Division III, the small schools category. Members of the team are: Amy Babay, Stephanie Engel, and Sumner Nichols (Honors); Amal Abukar, Alexa Johnson, and Rebekah [...]

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Handicapping guru Andy Beyer has picked Pyro to win today’s Kentucky Derby. Andy Beyer, a Harvard University graduate from Erie PA, created the Beyer Speed Figures used by bettors that measures how fast a horse runs on any given track. “Synthetic” racing surfaces have replaced the old dirt tracks and made the Beyer Speed Figures [...]

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Erie Management Group has a new video on their site called ‘Erie: A Great Place to Live and Work.’ The link to the popup in on the right side of the site. Unless you have a lot of time on your hands, wait till someone posts it on YouTube.
Gannon University has placed a job opening [...]

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Erie Indemnity Company (Erie Insurance) (Nasdaq: ERIE) announced financial results for the first quarter 2008. Net income per share-diluted decreased to $0.51 per share, compared to $0.88 per share in the comparable quarter in 2007 influenced by net realized losses on investments of $0.27 per share, after tax. Although they sold more policies and their [...]

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The Huntington Bank at Peach and Kuntz Rd was robbed yesterday of $3,000. The robber got away on a bicycle and went into the Grenada Apartment complex. Maybe he’ll use the money to buy a car.
US Air Force Second Lieutenant Matthew E Emmons, a native of Corry PA, died recently in a training accident at [...]

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The former Hotel Evergreen in Edinboro last night burned down to the ground. The hotel had been vacant, but the 4 story wooden structure still housed a bar and pizza shop. It was better known for hosting bands than a hotel. Steve Marshall took a few pictures and passed them along to WUSA-TV: pic 1, [...]

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The March for Babies takes place today in Crawford County. Grady, Evan, Jenny and Mike are the Crawford County ambassador family for March for Babies. Mike is at $1,335 with donations with a goal of $1,500. The family was featured in a story in the Meadville Tribune – March of Dimes family share their ‘happy [...]

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The Erie-Western Pennsylvania Port Authority announced that they’ve been contacted by the US Coast Guard about possibly locating a training facility in Erie. Erie is one of a number of locations considered. The facility would be a designated Center of Excellence (COE) for ship inspections. It would mean about 50 personnel stationed in Erie year [...]

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Just after 2:30 pm yesterday, a body of a woman was discovered in Presque Isle Bay near Dobbins Landing. She was identified as Anna Lisichenko of Erie. Lisichenko was a native of the Ukraine who had immigrated to the US less than 5 years ago.
Mayor Joe Sinnott on Thursday announced an Adopt-A-Park program for [...]

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GE held their annual shareholder meeting yesterday in Erie at the Bayfront Convention Center. It was pretty clear that Erie appreciates having GE in Erie. CNN reflected that with their story headline GE Executives Take Some Solace From Erie Hospitality. Officials with GE had very nice things to say about Erie. GE has taken some [...]

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The GE (NYSE: GE) 2008 Annual Meeting of Shareholders will be held today in Erie, PA at the Erie Bayfront Convention Center. The meeting is closed to the public however, GE will have a exhibit on display that shows what they do in Erie that you can stop down and see. That information session is [...]

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It’s election day. Vote.
Kevin Flowers reported on GoErie.com that the Pennsylvania Ethics Commission is investigating Erie County Maintenance Supervisor Mike Krause for misuse of county assets. Back when this mess first surfaced, someone at the commission that that they were aware of the situation in Erie County BUT that someone had to file an official [...]

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Chelsea Clinton will appear at noon today at the Perry Square in downtown Erie. This will be the sixth appearance by a member of the Clinton family in the Erie area.
The (Southwest Florida) News-Press did a story on how haggling at retail stores is sweeping the country. The story quotes Dan Borgia, associate professor of [...]

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Hectors Restaurant at 802 W 18th Street is for sale. The listed price is $375,000.
The former Wesleyville Elementary School has been placed on the market. The listed price is $225,000.
Have you seen Sara Camille Martinez? 15 year old Sara is 5′4″ and 115 lbs. Sara’s chin is pierced. She may go by the alias name [...]

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Garrett Kensy is a winner. Garrett Kensy was a three sport athlete in high school. He was Salutatorian at Maryvale High School and went on to Mercyhurst College in Erie. Garrett won the starting quarterback job as a freshman before an injury in the second game ended his season. Then last year doctors told him [...]

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Only about 500-1000 people were on hand at Behrend to hear former President Bill Clinton speak at a venue that holds 1800. By the time he got to Warren, he was about an hour and a half late for an 11:30 am appearance. At least the school children got to eat lunch before they started [...]

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In his first campaign visit to northwest Pennsylvania, Sen. Barack Obama will hold a Town Hall-style meeting at Penn State Erie, The Behrend College, on Friday, April 18, at 10:30 am, in the Junker Center. Doors open at 8:30 am. Young Democrats of America, a Penn State Behrend student organization, is hosting the event. Admission [...]

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Robert Waters passed away of a stoke. Waters was a recently the victim of a home invasion. So recently that you have to question the findings by Erie County Coroner Lyell Cook and comments by Erie County District Attorney Brad Foulk. In the story by Kara Rhodes Cook said that his death was unrelated to [...]

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GE has 84 job openings posted for their plant in Erie, PA. You can search their employment listings at GE Careers. Just since April 1, they have posted 53 jobs: Program Manager International Loco/Mods, Instructor – Mechanical Systems, Locomotive Compressed Air Systems Engineer, Erie Plant Materials Leader, Instructor – Electrical Systems, Lean Six Sigma Black [...]

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The story on John Kanzius and his radio wave cancer treatment machine by Lesley Stahl on “60 Minutes” was excellent. The transcript of the story can be found at The Kanzius Machine: A Cancer Cure? I just hope enough people were moved to whip out their credit cards and contribute to the John Kanzius Cancer [...]

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After Tiger comes back from 6 down to win The Masters, 60 Minutes will feature the John Kanzius story of his radio wave cancer treatment machine. The Kanzius Machine: A Cancer Cure? previews the story. 60 Minutes will air after coverage of “The Masters”, some time after 7 pm ET. At least $8 million is [...]

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60 Minutes will feature the John Kanzius story of his radio wave cancer treatment machine on Sunday, April 13. The Kanzius Machine: A Cancer Cure? previews the story. 60 Minutes will air after coverage of “The Masters”, some time after 7 pm ET. Trials on animals have shown that the idea works. It has been [...]

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The Washtenaw County (Michigan) Sheriff’s Department announced a $10,000 reward for information that leads to an arrest and conviction in the case of the murder if Erie, PA native Lindsay Graygo. The money is from the Ypsilanti Township government. Graygo had relocated to Ypsilanti, MI about a year ago. The Ann Arbor News reported that [...]

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Funeral plans for fallen firefighter Mike Crotty are as follows: calling hours will be held at the Iroquois High School Auditorium, 4301 Main Street in Lawrence Park, Thursday 4-6 pm and Friday 4-6 pm and 7-9 pm. The funeral services will be held at Our Lady of Mercy Church, 837 Bartlett Rd in Harborcreek, on [...]

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Mike Crotty was killed in the line of duty while fighting a fire at Port Erie Plastics. Crotty was serving with the Lawrence Park Township Volunteer Fire Department where he was Deputy Chief. Crotty served as a volunteer with the department for six years. Crotty was also a paid firefighter with the Erie Fire Department. [...]

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Erie received a $1.88 million state for the “Union Square” Midtown project. Funds will go toward: The continued development of the Mercantile Building; a once vacant, blighted building that is being renovated into a five-floor, mixed-use facility; Property and site acquisition, as well as the renovation and expansion of Griswold Park, the heart of the [...]

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Malcolm Kysor who escaped from the State Correctional Institution at Albion by hiding in a garbage can was found 2,462 miles away in Bakersfield, California. Kysor was described as looking like a bum. He bragged to someone he was on America’s Most Wanted, they told a firefighter and police picked him up. Kysor was serving [...]

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Excellent story by Ed Palattella on District Magistrate Judge Gerard Alonge of North East, PA who doesn’t seem to have to have a clue when it comes to women. It appears he’s coming close to stalking some women he has come in contact with. More than a bit disturbing.
The Ann Arbor News reported that the [...]

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Kevin R Molloy has been named as the new executive director of the Lancaster County Convention Center Authority. Molloy was the general manager of the new Erie Bayfront Convention Center. He had been on the job since 2002 and saw though it’s construction to it’s opening.
Jason Phasey and Justin Fuller were arrested for spray painting [...]

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I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.
In a sad day in American history, Dr Martin Luther King, Jr was assassinated 40 years ago today. The great civil [...]

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Real estate sales for Erie County dropped precipitously in March compared to a year earlier and even two years ago. There were 275 properties sold for $25,694,369 in March 2008 vs the 459 sales in March 2007 for $58,622,788 and March 2006 when 444 properties changed hands worth $44,430,774. The figures include all real estate [...]

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US Senator Hillary Clinton spoke yesterday in Erie at Mercyhurt College. The Mercyhurst Athletic Center was packed for her one hour speech. The pro-life group People for Life picketed outside the main gates of the campus. Clinton discussed economic and health care issues.
A day earlier, Erie Roman Catholic Bishop Trautman said he was canceling his [...]

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You have to wonder about the wisdom of having a Hillary Clinton campaign rally at Mercyhurst College.
Erie Roman Catholic Bishop Trautman was so miffed about a pro-choice candidate speaking at the Catholic school he canceled his appearance at the Mercyhurst graduation. The pro-life group People for Life is holding a protest just outside the gates [...]

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US Senator Hillary Clinton will make a campaign stop in Erie on Tuesday, April 1. She will appear at Mercyhurst College, 501 East 38th St in Erie (map) at the Mercyhurst Athletic Center (campus map). You do not need a ticket as it’s on a first come, first in basis. Security will be tight [...]

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US Senator Hillary Clinton will make a campaign stop in Erie, PA on Tuesday, April 1. Although the name of the venue has not been released, doors will open at 5:30 pm with the appearance scheduled for 7:30 pm. In opinion polls on the Pennsylvania election, Clinton is up about 15-20 percent over challenger US [...]

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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 [...]

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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 that [...]

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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 was [...]

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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 [...]

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The Supreme Court on Monday let stand a federal policy that allows employers to reduce their health insurance expenses for retired workers once they turn 65 and qualify for Medicare. In which may have been the last time Erie County did anything to try and save taxpayers money, the county offered non-Medicare eligible retirees the [...]

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It’s no wonder people have so much disdain for lawyers and unions. Just read the story by Kara Rhodes in todays paper. Mary Wolski was fired as a City of Erie Firefighter in 2007 for setting her father’s house on fire in 2006. Wolski is suing to get her job back. A job with Zippo [...]

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Happy Easter!
The new Erie visitor guides are in. The perfect resource for Erie tourism information from lodging to restaurants to attractions to shops, maps, background information, handy tips and more, this 80 page full color guide is a must-have! Order your free copy today. Simply send us an email with your complete mailing [...]

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The ice might be melting from the lake but not fast enough. Great story by Jeff on Erie Shipping News. The 647 feet long, 70 feet wide Cason J Callaway left the Port of Erie on Friday to begin her shipping season. It got two miles into Lake Erie before it got stuck in [...]

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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 [...]

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There are reports of an explosion at the United Refining Company in Warren, PA. The company operates an oil refinery in Warren that can process 70,000 barrels of oil into gasoline, diesel fuel and other petroleum distillates per day. Any problems at the refinery could mean a spike in gas prices in Northwestern PA.
This is [...]

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Erie, Pennsylvania has been awarded an NBA Development League franchise, it was announced yesterday at a press conference at the Bayfront Convention Center in Erie. The team will join Reno, NV – which was awarded a D-League franchise on Feb. 29 – for their inaugural seasons in 2008-09. “When we decided to pursue the opportunity [...]

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A private meeting is planned for members of Erie’s business community at 2 pm with a press conference at 3:15 pm today announcing that Erie will have a team in the NBA Developmental League for the 2008-09 season. The NBA Development League, or D-League, is the National Basketball Association’s officially sponsored and operated minor league. [...]

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Bars in Erie, especially the Irish bars, will be packed today with people celebrating St Patrick’s Day while they attempt to fill out their brackets for the NCAA basketball tournament.
The Center for eBusiness and Advanced IT (eBizITPA) reached a major benchmark in February by awarding its 300th IT implementation grant to The Hite Company in [...]

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There is an excellent must read article by Mackenzie Carpenter in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette today entitled “Erie voters fret about theirs and their children’s futures.” Maybe it’s that Pittsburgh is two hours from Erie but the story was fair and pointed out many of the positives that Erie has and not just the few negative [...]

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Good job by the Erie Times-News breaking the story that Ron Sertz will be part of the National Basketball Development League franchise in Erie. Sertz will be President. With his involvement with the basketball team and being one of the owners of the Erie Otters, scheduling at the Tullio Arena where both teams will play [...]

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It’s now been 3 weeks since Lindsay Graygo was beaten and then strangled to death in her Ypsilanti Township, Michigan apartment. Word is investigators are still waiting for the DNA kit to come back. Graygo of Erie, PA graduated from McDowell in 1997, earned a BA in advertising /public relations from Penn State University Park [...]

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Former President Bill Clinton yesterday yesterday spoke to a crowd at Erie East High School. The gym was filled with the crowd estimated at 1,200 to 2,000 people. More than half were students happy for any reason to get out of classes. Clinton is a very good speaker and the length of the talk at [...]

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Former President Bill Clinton will make a campaign appearance for his wife in Erie today, Wednesday March 12 at 11:30 am. His public appearance will be held at Erie East High School, 1001 Atkins Street. Doors open at 10 am. There are no tickets, just show up. Use the gym entrance at the rear of [...]

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Over the weekend the Erie area received about 2 feet of snow. An estimated 25 percent of city side streets have yet to see a plow. City of Erie Bureau of Streets Chief Pete Petrianni has bungled the job. Petrianni has repeated over and over and over that the city has 40 plows and 350 [...]

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A City of Erie Street Department plow got stuck Sunday afternoon on East 31st Street about 40 feet west of East Avenue. Hilarious site. The street has just enough of an incline that along with the heavy snow the vehicle was plowing it just couldn’t get enough traction and slid into a snow bank. A [...]

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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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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 [...]

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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 [...]

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Tilting at windmills, Erie City Council passed a resolution calling for the City Solicitor Greg Karle to write up an ordinance calling for continuous monitoring at the proposed tires to energy plant. Karle has already told council that any effort to make emissions laws tougher than the current state or federal laws wouldn’t survive a [...]

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John Kanzius and Dr Steven Curley announced yesterday to a packed house at South Fort Myers High School Auditorium that Lee Memorial Health System in Southwest Florida will most likely be one of the six sites for human trials of the Kanzius radio wave cancer treatment. About $8 million is needed to raised for the [...]

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Erie Plastics laid off about 190 workers citing the end of a couple of big contracts. Erie Plastics makes plastic closures from coffee lids to beverage caps. The company had around 350 employees at their huge 180,000 sq ft plant in Corry, PA.
Tired of the cold, nasty weather? Want to get away? All donors [...]

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On the 3d of March, 1792, the Erie Triangle, of which is most of Erie County, was purchased from the United States by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. A patent was issued, signed by George Washington as President, and Thomas Jefferson as Secretary of State. The consideration was $151,640.25, 75 cents an acre.
Map created January 2005 [...]

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Two car washes are for sale. One is a bit of a surprise. Splash’s Auto Bath House at 2968 West 12th St is for sale. The listed price for the property is $599,000. Business and equipment is $90,000 extra. Splash’s has been operating for about a dozen years. If I remember right a doctor owns [...]

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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 [...]

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Karma. Former state representative Linda Bebko-Jones and her then chief of staff, Mary Fiolek, were formally charged with forging nominating petitions and submitting the fraudulent forms to the Secretary of the Commonwealth. Bebko-Jones and Fiolek are scheduled to surrender next week and appear before Harrisburg Magisterial District Judge Joseph Solomon for preliminary arraignment. According to [...]

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Erie Indemnity Company (Erie Insurance) (Nasdaq: ERIE) announced financial results for the fourth quarter and year end 2007. Net operating income per share (excluding net realized gains or losses on investments and related taxes) was $0.69 in each of the fourth quarters of 2007 and 2006. Net income was $32.6 million for the fourth quarter [...]

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All real estate is local. What’s happening in California or Florida doesn’t effect the market in Erie. Last year you heard news about home prices falling all over the country. In Erie they rose. In an 88 page report released by the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight, home prices in Erie were up 4.58 [...]

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Splash Lagoon Indoor Water Park Resort revealed their planned $6 million, 22,000 sq ft expansion. It will be a wave pool on the SE section of the property attached to the main building. It will still be open every day during construction. They are holding a contest to name the pool and pick a new [...]

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Scott Enterprises has a news conference scheduled for this morning to announce a 20,000 square foot, $6 million expansion to Splash Lagoon Indoor Water Park Resort. Back in September, Scott Enterprises obtained $81 million as they mortgaged 10 properties. They used $49 million to refi existing debt, built two new hotels, and will use the [...]

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Nearly 350 teams participated in the 10th annual MECA Erie Bar Stool Open. The teams paid $100 to play miniature golf and drink on a cold Saturday in February.
Case Management Support Services, which did mental-health and mental-disability services for Erie County, completed their change over. They lost their contract with the county in July. They [...]

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Erie, PA based American Resort Management has been brought in to manage and rescue the Fort Rapids Water Park in Columbus, Ohio. Platinum Ridge Properties owns the water park and an adjoining 337 room Holiday Inn and Suites. They are attempting to sell the properties. The occupancy rate at the hotel at 45 percent was [...]

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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 [...]

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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 [...]

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After the 1936 Johnstown Flood, Pennsylvania placed a “temporary” 10 percent tax on liquor to help pay for the costs. Harrisburg loves a tax so it’s still there. In fact it’s grown to 18 percent. The tax now takes in about a quarter of a billion dollars a year which goes into the general fund.
House [...]

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The Erie Otters of the Ontario Hockey League announced at a press conference that Ron Sertz has decided to step down as the club’s Director of Operations. “I’ve enjoyed 12 great years with the Otters in my position as Director of Operations,” Sertz said. “I’m very proud of the organization that we have built and [...]

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The US Coast Guard station in Erie had more excitement Sunday than they wanted. They were called out at least twice for people having trouble on the water/slush/ice. Didn’t hear of any rescues but I’d bet a couple of people got wet. With temps in the upper 40’s and hard rain, the ice covered bay [...]

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Remedial Offshore, headquartered in Limassol, Cyprus, announced the purchase of V228 medium speed diesel engines from GE Marine in Erie, Pa. The engines will be used to power the new Remedial Offshore Elevating Support Vessels (ESVs). As the world’s first self propelled, 325 foot/100 meter nominal water depth rated jack up well intervention vessel, Remedial [...]

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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 [...]

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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 [...]

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An American Black Bear has been spotted on Presque Isle State Park. This isn’t Winnie the Pooh or Yogi Bear so don’t feed it. It’s believed to be a young male weighing about 200 lbs. Adult black bears usually are between 250 and 600 lbs. There are an estimated 15,000 black bears in Pennsylvania and [...]

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There is a nice sheet of ice over everything. Give yourself a few extra minutes to get where you’re going. There is a huge list on YourErie.com of schools with 2 hour delays as well as some closed organizations.
The Governmental Accounting Standards Board (GASB) is warning local taxing districts in Pennsylvania about misleading materials being [...]

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City of Erie police lieutenant Robert Liebel was arrested for stealing cocaine from a police evidence locker. There must have been items missing from the evidence locker recently because it was under surveillance. They caught him with 12 grams of cocaine in his hand. Liebel had over 22 years of service with the bureau. He [...]

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Paragon Promotions of Erie is suspected running a fundraising scam. WJET-TV had the story by Dan Wells that Paragon Promotions is soliciting money in the Erie area. The money they are asking for is for an Erie Fire Safety Guide. It has nothing to do with the Erie Fire Department nor Erie Firefighters Local 293. [...]

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The flap caused by Peter Marsh in a Financial Times article calling Erie “unfashionable” was picked up by the Albany Times-Union, with Don’t disparage Erie and Unfashionable unpardonable. They must have picked up on Peter Panepento’s Erie’s Best Spokespeople. Before this I think the only people that had ever heard of Peter Marsh were his [...]

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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 [...]

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Erie County Executive Mark DiVecchio got away with it. GoErie.com reported that DiVecchio paid $285 in reimbursements for snowplowing and parking fines. DuhVecchio still doesn’t comprehend that what he did was wrong. The article by Kevin Flowers quoted him as saying “I just want this over with.” If you get caught, all you have to [...]

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Governor Rendell was in Erie yesterday to his economic stimulus plan, unveiled as part of his 2008-09 budget proposal. What Fast Eddie didn’t say was that Pennsylvania taxpayers and businesses will continue to be overly burdened with taxes much higher than the national average.
The Pennsylvania budget includes an increase in the Capital Stock and Franchise [...]

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Oops, Erie County Executive Mark DiVecchio did it again. Another report of DiVecchio breaking the law and costing the over burdened taxpayers of Erie County more money. Erie County got a bill for a parking ticket DiVecchio received. He received a $30 parking ticket for illegal parking in Washington, DC. DiVecchio, possibly thinking he has [...]

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Paul Mutton in an article on Netcraft reported that The Bank of Lancaster County is currently being targeted by a phishing attack that asks to call a number in Erie, PA. With phone numbers being portable, it could be someone half way around the world but Lancaster and Erie are only separated by 350 miles [...]

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It wasn’t that long ago that downtown Erie had less activity than a cemetery. Now it’s becoming the place to work and live.
Yesterday, Jim Berlin, CEO of Logistics Plus, wrote in his blog Berlin’s Wall that two businesses are moving into Union Station. Great news. Berlin also said that Logistics Plus has added 20 employees [...]

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WRTS-FM “Star 104″ edged out WXBB “Bob FM” in the latest quarterly radio ratings. The complete ratings for Erie area commercial stations can be found here on Radio and Records. For those you you too young to remember, ‘radio stations’ transmit audio and were popular before computers, iPods, MP3 players and satellite receivers.
It was extremely [...]

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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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A crudely made pipe bomb was found on the steps of the Erie County Courthouse. The Erie Police Bomb Squad blew up the device. The Erie County Sheriff’s Office and the Erie Police did a bang up job with the dangerous situation. Authorities were checking tapes of courthouse and Gannon University surveillance cameras in hopes [...]

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Erie County Executive Mark DiVecchio still hasn’t resigned or been arrested. DiVecchio has been accused of a laundry list of improprieties of misuse of government employees and assets.
Workers began moving into the $14 million Erie County Public Safety Building campus. The county will house 911 call center operations, county communications and emergency service operations at [...]

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Erie County Executive Mark DiVecchio still hasn’t resigned or been arrested. DiVecchio has been accused of a laundry list of improprieties of misuse of government employees and assets. He will sit down on Friday with Erie County Controller Sue Weber to try and explain away the charges.
Erie County Council members have no plans to conduct [...]

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Erie County Executive Mark DiVecchio still hasn’t resigned or been arrested. Improprieties about the misuse by DiVecchio of county employees, equipment and materials continue to mount. Clueless, arrogant DiVecchio still doesn’t realize what he did was wrong.
DiVecchio used county employees on county time with county equipment to plow his home driveway. Other instances of impropriety [...]

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Teri Rhodes waived her right to a preliminary hearing on charges she murdered her newborn baby by suffocating the baby girl 10 minutes after birth. Charges include abusing a corpse, concealing the death of a child and a general charge of criminal homicide. The homicide charge could range from involuntary manslaughter to first degree [...]

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The Pennsylvania Supreme Court suspended Superior Court Judge Michael Joyce of Erie, who was indicted on federal charges of defrauding two insurance companies out of $440,000. Joyce was ‘injured’ in a 2001 car accident and said he had so much pain he couldn’t hold a cup of coffee. Joyce had been seen playing golf, scuba [...]

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Teri Rhodes gave birth in her Mercyhurst College apartment on Sunday. The baby was born alive. Rhodes murdered her baby minutes later by suffocating the unfortunate child. Police found the baby in a plastic bag. Erie County Coroner Lyell Cook declared the death a homicide. Erie County District Attorney Brad Foulk has not yet filed [...]

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Roar on the Shore kicked off yesterday in spectacular fashion with over 2,000 motorcycles parading through the city. The event continues today beginning at 9 am at Liberty Park. Bands will be performing all day at the Pepsi Amphitheatre. Entry fee is $5. All proceeds from Roar on the Shore support the John Kanzius Cancer [...]

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“Roar on the Shore” kicks off today with registration for the Bringing in the Roar bike parade at 3 pm at Presque Isle Downs and Casino, located off Interstate 90 Exit 27 in Summit Township. The cost to ride is $5. All proceeds from Roar on the Shore support the John Kanzius Cancer Research Fund. [...]

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Shares of Erie Indemnity Company (ERIE), Erie Insurance, yesterday skyrocketed $2.82 to 59.40, a jump of 5 percent. On Friday July 27 the stock closed at 50.96. The company now is worth $3.75 billion.
 
The Northwest Regional Planning and Development Commission is sponsoring meetings with18 overseas trade representatives September 12-13 in Erie. One-on-one appointments on September [...]

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Port Erie Boat Works has been sold as their web site says to “an elite group of boat builders and investors.” The company manufactures catamarans and is located at 2567 W 20th St. The company had been one of the fastest growing companies around. I hope they stay in Erie and keep adding to their [...]

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In Erie County last year there was just under 650 foreclosures. The latest figure I heard for Erie County and Northwest PA in 2007 is over 1,400 foreclosures. Yipes. Get help before it happens. Call your lender. Refinance through another lender. Take action. Do something. The National Association of REALTORS has a brochure in pfd [...]

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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 [...]

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“You weren’t had, you were chosen.”
A young lady that was put up for adoption found her birth parents just by chance. Her boss at work was her birth mother. The July issue of Reader’s Digest features the story of Erie’s Missi Meely and Laurie Thompson. Thanks to former ETN reporter Peter Panepento for passing along [...]

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