Sewickley Herald

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Serving Aleppo, Bell Acres, Edgeworth, Glenfield, Haysville, Leet, Leetsdale, Osborne, Sewickley, Sewickley Heights, Sewickley Hills
\ eV	l%.cfnesday, November 1, 2000	•'	Vol, 97, Issue 43
Cute, cuddly and ready for the walk.... Young and old enjoyed this year's Rotary-sponsored Halloween parade. See Page 13.
SALUTE
The Senior Men's Club is gearing up for another Veterans Day celebration. See Page 17.
SCHOOL
Local students have distinguished themselves in the classrooms and beyond. See what our young people are up to—in academics and in leisure time activities. For the latest on very active student bodies, begin on Page 9.
SPORTS
Who's hot? Who's not? It's playoff time and both schools—Sewickley Academy and Quaker Valley— have played themselves proud. For the latest in the standings as the seasons continue, see Page 35.
INDEX
News........... ..........2
School......... ........  8
Tempo.......... .........13
Church..................,.«33
Obituaries...............34
Sports...............35
ON THE RAILS
OSBORNE CROSSING on a typical afternoon. Area residents gathered last week to discuss their concerns about railroad traffic with rail spokesmen.	Photo by Tim Edmonson
Train talk touches on all topics
By Robert Weible______________________
Staff writer__________________________
More than 60 people showed up for last week’s railroad town meeting at Osborne Elementary — a lot more than Catherine Paff, organizer, had expected.
“In my wildest dreams, I thought there would only be 15 people,” Paff said. "I’m pleased.”
The strong showing of residents and municipal officials from around the area indicated the extent of the problem, one that has spurred heated discussions for many years. -
And last Week’s meeting was no exception.
As many residents grilled Norfolk Southern,
Federal Railroad Administration, Public Utilities Commission and PennDOT representatives, tempers flared at times with residents demanding action.
From train speeds to road blockage and malfunctioning crossing gates, the problems were plentiful, but none more so than the disruptive whistles.
Train whistles, specifically abnormally long or unnecessary ones, have been the bane of
Quaker Valley residents for years. The situation has worsened in recent years, according to residents.
Residents neighboring the tracks have come to accept the trains as a part of their daily life, but when whistles blow louder and longer than necessary, concerns were raised.
This meeting was intended to find a direction in which borough and township officials could travel to remedy their complaints.
Residents and municipal officials from Haysville, Osborne, Sewickley, Glenfield, Leetsdale and even Aliquippa, listened as Rand Marshall, from PennDOT, extolled the benefits of rail transportation.
“You’re in the middle of a major trade corridor,” Marshall told residents, adding that 95 percent of all manufacturing is done within 500 miles of Harrisburg.
The railroad track map of Pennsylvania he showed looked like a series of veins feeding nearly every corner of the state. In fact, Pennsylvania ranks 5th in number of track miles (5,600) and first in the total number of
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LEETSDALE
Beaver remains closed; Center Avenue closes
By Robert Weible__________
Staff writer _______
Beaver Street in Leetsdale remains closed for at least another week, probably two. As required by the Department of Environmental Protection, the borough has begun the second phase of the storm water separation project.
The contractor, Camp Meeting Excavating, is installing 800 feet of 18-inch storm sewer line and catch basins along Beaver Street in order to lessen the burden on the sewage treatment plant. The newly-installed sewer will connect to another storm sewer on Rapp Street.
Prior to the project, all sewage and storm water runoff was channeled via combined pipes to the plant. But because of stricter DEP regulations, the $75,000 project was necessary.
After the completion of all phases of the project, all storm water will be directed to the river, while sewage will be handled by the plant.
The Allegheny County Department of Development provided a 50 percent grant to the borough for the project.
Both lanes on Beaver will be closed during the day, but one lane will be open at night. All traffic will be required to use Broad Street or Ohio River Boulevard during the project.
This isn’t the end of the project, said Dan Slagle, borough engineer, there are more phases to come. The next phase will extend the project farther down Beaver Street.
■ In related news, the Center Avenue reconstruction project has also begun.
This project involves the ------ Continual) on pago 2