Sewickley Herald

              The Herald
The Sewickley Valley’s Home-News Weekly
VOL. 52 NO. 34
SEWICKLEY, PENNSYLVANIA* THURSDAY, AUGUST 23, 1956
Price Ten Centi
I
Students To Register September 5th
»
Citizens' Committee Elects
(Herald Photo)
A new organization was formed at a meeting Thursday night at die Fair Hill Recreation Center. It is die Sewickley 4 Heights Township Citizens’ Committee, formed to protest tlie passage of /Sub-Division Ordinance No. 4 and to look after die interests of die residents generally. Officers were elected and a publicity committee named,. In,the photo, first row, left to right: Mrs. Harold McK. Grubbs, Mrs. David Wharrey and Mrs. M. O. Harvey, members of die publicity committee. Back ro\V, Charles Bradel, committee; George Schilling, chairman and Harold McK. Grubbs, treasurer. Mrs. Frank Harde, permanent secretary, was not present when the picture was taken.
Money Raised For Court Costs
PERMANENT ORGANIZATION FORMED IN TOWNSHIP ~
Tlie unofficial group in Sewickley Heights Township, which gathered in protest to the passage of Ordinance No. 4, a sub-division ordinance, organized into a permanent body to he knovvn as the Sewickley Heights Township Citizens’ Committee, at a meeting Thursday night at the Fair Hill Recreation Center. George Scouring was elected chairman; Harold McK. Grubbs,,treasurer, and Mrs.
1' rank Hartle, secretary.
A publicity committee, whose duty ! ls notify the members of • meetings or other developments in tlie township was elected. The commit-oc consists of'Mrs. David Wharrey,
Mrs. M, 0. Harvey, Charles Bradel,
«obert Cook and Mrs. Harold McK. wubbs, Meetings will be held at ■ H' 1M* 011 the second Tuesday of inond> M the Fair Hill Recrea-n Center, until a heated building Mr« 55,s^;ure^ f01' the winter season.
■ . M, O. Harvey served ns tempor-Lf'rGtflry> and Arthur Grubbs ,|.r, , n,s temporary chairman until \,Ce°n of officers.
,Ir®c*"'ring explained that the
ffliaranht,t!dSd $5°° t0 post u 1)00(1 t0 anS • ‘bo court costs when the
to mlin’i UCC ^''Riesling the court It wiis sul>div'.siou ordinance.
. decided to request the Same
Township Await Tuition Figures
SEWICKLEY AND LEET TOWNSHIP BOARDS TO MEET AGAIN
Both Sewickley Township and Leet Township school boards are awaiting the compiling of' tlie budget and die tuition charges to be made by the Quaker Valley Joint Schools, before they make a decision on where to pay transportation charges for their pupils in September. At a meeting of the Leet Township board on Wednesday, August 15th, the question of tlie probable tuition costs and the added cost of sending pupils to the junior high school located in Sewickley, was discussed .but no action taken. Until tlie budget is made up for tlie Quaker Valley Joint Schools, no tuition figure can be given. Even then, it will be just an estimate until approved by the State Council of Education.	w t
During die summer, a school census was taken and 74 parents favored sending their sixth graders to tlie jointure and 2H named the Ambridge junior-senior high school as their choice.
A motion by A. J. Starr, seconded by Christy Von Gunten, to allow tlie parents to choose die school, as has' been the practice in die past, was opposed by John A. Timney, Jr., and Frank Granitz with Ardiur L. Marlde abstaining. Another motion by Mr. Granitz, seconded by Mr. Timney, to (Continued on Page 11)
nonni«..! T . 1 equese tue same 80 bid ,'0 cireulnt<'d the petitions to
UId n th0 *8“™ nnd so° lf W
Hio el f	money to take
i01!1*' belges were made
of ” V)urt'
'FIuirstlnviint? i vvas Paid in cash the n ecU,mS1c.by those l?r°sent at ccrs of&|HS«wll«r °f the 0lIi‘ "ceder! fin Giti:Tos Committee were filed wiiR fi?" nirid«vit which will be nftru.‘ fL'c appeal.
be wiser i0 t ftS l?f1 ^ jt wouldn’t ,)rffinnnep u d,c court that the aniotided Tr°«r<csc fidcd rather than 1(1 *io simil	S 1lc’setiicletl, there can
,,,lar erthnance passed lor ( '0n|l,,,|e(l on Page U) '
Borough Wins Zoning Case ,
Sewickley Ice Company and Atlantic Refining Company Lose Appeal To Court
Sewickley Borough’s Zoning Board of Adjustment was recently upheld by Judge P. J. Lencher in Allegheny Comity Court in refusing to grant a permit to the Sewickley Ice Company and the Atlantic Refining Company for tlie .construction of a new gasoline station on the property of tlie Ice Company at Pine Road and tlie Ohio River Boulevard. In a fifteen page opinion, Judge Lencher dismissed tlie appeals on tlie grounds that “selling oil and gas, lubricating and servicing motor vehicles 'are acts not basically related to tlie making of ice* and may. not be interposed on a new application for such business in a district where zoning law bars it—especially at tlie behest of an applicant going completely out of tli© original business, to wit, the making of ice. The zoning board of adjustment for the borough is correct in its rejection of tlie applications ... to grant the application would be for us to rezone ... Tlie appeals are dismissed.”
Calendar Has Been Adopted By Quaker, Valley Schools
William E. Baetz Elected Principal of Quaker Valley Junior High School
The Quaker Valley School.Committee, at its second meeting in the Edgeworth School on Thursday, August 16th, approved a school-calender which calls for teachers’ meetings on Tuesday, September 4th and student registration day on Wednesday, September 5th, with school in session all day. Elementary students will report at 9 a.m. and junior and senior high school students will report at 8:30 a.m., when a general assembly will be held in each of the secondary schools.
No students will be in the schools on Tuesday, September 4th, when there will be a general meeting of all teachers in tlie Edge-worth school, starting at 9 a.m. There will be “building meetings” to follow at 10:30 a.m. Teachers in the high school will prepare their assigned rooms from 1 until 4 o’clock on Tuesday afternoon. The recommendation was made that the Quaker Valley High School and tlie Quaker Valley Junior High School be made the ‘official names’ of tlie two secondary schools.
The committee also recommended to \the Joint Board, the appointment of William F. Baetz of the faculty of tlie former Sewickley High School, as Junior High School principal; Mr. Beiglilea submitted tlie latest estimates of transportation costs, with a breakdown of individual district costs, showing the difference between contracting for two buses and buying two buses and tlie discussion included the proposed location of adminstrative offices, athletics, tlie progress in securing printed standardized forms and the currciulum of the secondary school.
The calendar continues: Thursday,
Judge Lencher explained in the beginning of the ruling that the zoning' board lias powers to decide appeals and grant exceptions ‘ and that the court on appeal may take evidence and decide the case, although tlie decision of the zoning board may only be set aside for substantial reasons, The ice company premises were used for the making and selling of ico for many years while the gasoline company sought to establish the primary business of a gasoline ant! oil service station on the basis of a non-conforming use. The zoning ordinance3 passed in 1925 and revised in 1948 does not permit cither' an ice plant or an oil and gas service station .in this residential area. Tho 19g5 ordinance permitted the ico making business ns a non-conforming use, for a purpose not substantially different and structural alterations were permitted if tho building was not enlarged.
The present zoning ordinance establishes a zoning1 board mid grants it powers to decide, special exceptions. It also provides that any lawful use existing at the time or authorized by permit issued prior thereto may be
continued, providing no subsequent alteration or addition would extend tlie building or use unless authorized as a special exception, and that a non-conforming use.may be changed to another non-conforming use when authorized as a special exception. Cases were quoted by Judge Lonelier showing that the zoning result must not clash with the general scheme of zoning and that (parties acquire no vested rights to ’the eontinuatioiP of zoning arensi
The ruling continued by stating that the old ice house and tlie land on which it stands is clearly zoned residential. Before any zoning ordi-naiiec was passed, the icc company was in business and has sometimes been selling oil and gas to anybody, but neither appellant has ever approached any municipal officer for formal permission to do so. Now there is a written agreement by which the gasoline company will pay $30,-000 lo (lie iee company for the old building and premises; tear down Unbuilding and construct a modern gas station' vvilb the iee company passing
(Continued on Page 7)
October 11, and Friday, October 12, Allegheny County Teacher’s Institute. Tuesday, November 6, Election Day, will be a pupil holiday, with Parent-Teacher conferences to be set up _in die elementary schools, while the faculty of the secondary schools will visit in other school districts. Monday, November 12, Veteran’s Day, will be a school holiday. November 22 and 23 will be Thanksgiving Holiday; Friday, December 21st, will be the last dax of school before tlie Christmas vacation, students reporting back to school on Wednesday, January 2, 1957. Easter vacation will be April 18, 19 and 22. May 9 will be a pupil holiday, with tlie teachers taking part in Business-Industry Edur cation Day. May 30, Memorial Day, will be a holiday, and June 7 will be tlie last day of school. The calendar represents 180 days of school, with 185 faculty days. The motion to approve die calendar was unanimous.
The board unanimously approved the motion to recommend to die Joint Board the name of William F. Baetz, for principal of the Quaker Valley Junior High School. Mr. Baetz has taught for three years in the former Sewickley. high school, and is properly certified.
' A chart drawn by Dr. Bcdison and Mr. Beighlea was discussed and approved with minor changes by the Joint Committeg, At the top of tlie chart is the Quaker Valley Joint Board, beneath it the Quaker Valley Joint School Committee with shared officers, Secretary, Treasurer, Auditor and Solicitor. Directly under- these tlicj Supervising Principal, next the Assistant Supervising Principal, with shared items, Public Relations, Budget and Purchasing, auxiliary services such as attendance, census, cafeteria, transportation, state reports, buildings and grounds, custodial maintenance, and custodians, Junior high school and high school principals with identical f items, Librarian, Nurse, medical examinations, dental examinations. specialized education, art, music, all areas of coaching, teachers and custodians; on the same line level one Elementary principal with 2 bullrings, Leetsdnle and Edgeworth Elementary schools, and one Elementary Principal with 3 buildings, Se-wiekloy, Osborne and Glenfield Elementary schools, with identical items
of Nurse, medical examinations, dental examinations, specialized educa- • tipn, art, music and writing supervision. Dr. Bedison explained that the division of elementary schools was obvious, and that the three buildings represented 25 teachers, and tlie two buildings represented 20 teachers. The board approved Ins recommendation to hire additional clerical help if needed, that- each elementary building should have a “head teacher”, someone to make decisions in the absence of tlie elementary principal; and further agreed to recommend to the Joint Board the hiring of Earl Hogue,, acting principal in the Sewickley elementary school, as Elementary School Principal for Glenfield, Osborne and S e w i c k 1 e y Grade Schools. The principal for Edgeworth and Leetsdale Grade Schools will be selected soon. The board agreed that until the tremendous amount of “setting up” business is complete, both the Supervising Principal and the Assistant Supervising Principal should, designate specific areas and assignments; but the Committee also recommends that both should accept tlie basic responsibility of being familiar with both the secondary and elementary school setup, so that either one could handle any situation in the absence of the other.
Dr, Bedison announced that the budget report would be ready for the next meeting of the Joint Committee on Thursday, August 23, also the salary schedule. The Joint Committee approved the recommendation
(Continued on Page 10)
Harvest Festival Photos On Page 12
What's Doin!
The Sewickley Business and Professional Women’s Club will bold their annual picnic on Wednesday, August 29th, at Sewickley Memorial Park at 6:30 p. m. Members will please contact Gaff Givers for your reservation and that of your' guests. Let’s all come out and have fun and make this n real .success,
(Advt.)