WOMAN THROWS BRICK THROUGH CAR WINDOW
A Williamsport woman went to jail last week for throwing a brick through a window of a car and injuring a child inside. According to the North Central PA dot com, police say 31 year old, Jessica N. Lane, was intoxicated and shattered the driver’s side window of a vehicle in Williamsport around 8:45 pm on November 28th and later admitted to police that she struck the child with a closed fist twice. Emergency service treated the child at the scene and Lane was charged with assault and endangering the welfare of a child. She was unable to make the 25,000 straight bail and was taken to Lycoming County prison.
LOCAL HOSPITAL CLOSING NEXT YEAR
UPMC Susquehanna Community Hospital Sunbury will be closing its doors by March 31st 2020 according to an announcement yesterday by UPMC Susquehanna President Steven Johnson. The Daily Item reports that the closing will eliminate 150 local jobs and could leave Sunbury without a local hospital for the first time in 120 years. According to 2017 tax filings, the hospital reported a $2 million deficit. According to Johnson, citing market data, patients are utilizing facilities other than UPMC Susquehanna Sunbury for their care prompting the closing.
CITY BUDGET APPROVED WITH A TAX-HIKE
A proposed budget for the City of Williamsport was passed by City Council on the first reading at a meeting last night but, it included a tax-hike, counter to the no-tax hike proposal Mayor Campana submitted last month. The Council voted 6-1 to approve the budget as read but added a tax increase. It amounts to .25 mills, bringing real estate taxes to 15 dollars and 72 cents per one thousand dollars of assessed property value. Mayor-elect and Councilman Derek Slaughter, was the dissenting vote. According to the Sun Gazette, personnel costs are 85 percent of the overall spending plan.
SO. CO. TIGERS COULD MAKE PA HISTORY
The Southern Columbia High School football team is heading to Hershey Stadium today at 1pm to hopefully make state history. It could be their 10th PIAA Class 2A state title and third in a row, when the Tigers face Avonworth out of District 7. According to WKOK, head coach Jim Roth wants to see victory for his five seniors on a team with a record breaking win for most championships in the state. The team earned their state appearance today by beating Richland last Friday 49-27.
TWO INMATES CHARGED WITH ASSAULT
Incidents have taken place in the Northumberland County Prison that have led to the arrest of two inmates. According to the Daily Item Brett Landau was charged with simple assault and harassment there after a planned and unprovoked attack that injured another inmate November 2nd, and 27 year old Kyle McDaniel was also charged with simple assault for an attack of an inmate November 27th. The local magistrate handle the cases according to the Northumberland county District Atrtorney.
SUNBURY MAYOR REACTS TO HOSPITAL CLOSING
Sunbury Mayor Kurt Karlovich made a statement yesterday addressing information he received about UPMC Sunbury closing the Community Hospital next year. Karlovich confirmed that he only learned that the hospital entity was closing it’s doors through media channels. He made note of the recent request by UPMC to become tax exempt as a non-profit system, but noted that the group stated publicly on their website that they provided 1.2 billion dollars of IRS-defined community benefits in 2019.. The mayor also told WKOK that he is committed to bring another medical facility to step in where UPMC has now decided to step away. Sunbury City Administrator Jody Ocker said the city did receive a courtesy call from UPMC President Bob Cane later Thursday morning.
COMMISSIONERS APPROVE REFINANCING
Refinancing of bonds for capital projects for water and sewage was approved by the Lycoming County Commissioners at Thursday’s meeting, according to the Sun Gazette. Taking advantage of the lower interest rates were the motivation behind the refinancing The approval is expected to bring a cost savings of at least $150,000 for the Lycoming County Water & Sewage Authority.
PENNDOT WILL DEDICATE BRIDGES TO FALLEN COWORKERS
PennDOT announced yesterday a statewide effort to memorialize fallen employees with bridge dedications for employees who died while on duty since 1970. PennDOT will work with the General Assembly to pass a naming authorization bill in the spring 2020 legislative session. PennDOT’s intent, with the involvement the family, is to honor each fallen PennDOT worker as an acknowledgement of their service to Pennsylvania. . The initiative was inspired by the naming of a bridge in Northumberland County for PennDOT District 3 employee Harold “Don” Whipple, who was killed in the line of duty in 2016.
SEDA-COG NAMES NEW OFFICERS
Board officers for SEDA-Council of Governments (SEDA-COG) were elected at Wednesday’s public meeting. Columbia County Commissioner Rich Ridgway, was elected president; Juniata County Commissioner Mark Partner, first vice president; Mifflin County Commissioner Kevin Kodish, second vice president, Larry Reisinger of Perry County, secretary; and Dennis Van Benthuysen of Snyder County, treasurer. The SEDA-COG board is a 22-member, county-based policy board representing both public and private sectors. Appointments and reappointments for SEDA-COG board members will take place in January.
Sports
NFL Thursday night football the Bears beat the Cowboys 31-20
NBA – Wizards beat the 76ers 119 to 113, Rockets beat the Raptors 119 to 109, Nuggets beat the Knicks 129 to 92, Suns beat the Pelicans 139 to 132.
NHL – Blackhawks beat the Bruins 4-3, Avalanche over the Canadians 3-2, Wild beat Lightning 5-4, Islanders over the Golden Knights 3-2, Coyotes beat the Flyers 3-1, Hurricanes over the Sharks 3-2, Rangers beat the Blue Jackets 3-2, Stars over the Jets 3-2, and the Flames beat the Sabres 4-3
College Wrestling – Bucknell beat Bloomsburg 24 to 13
HS Football P I-AA Class AAAA Championship – Thomas Jefferson beat Dallas 46-7 winning their fourth title last night in Hershey, PA.
In NASCAR Chase Elliot has been named most popular driver in the sport by racing fans for the second consecutive year. His father, Hall of Famer Bill Elliott, held the record for the award, winning 15 consecutive years until he removed his name from consideration in 2002.
