Revamped Thorn Run Intersection Near Completion

New traffic lights will soon turn on in the intersection.

Moon officials say new traffic signaling will soon be turned on at the intersection of Thorn Run and Beaver Grade roads.  The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation is expected to conclude work on the project next week, said Moon Township Engineer Malcolm Petroccia. Crews are installing left-turn-only and pedestrian phases to existing traffic lighting in the intersection. New sidewalks and ramps that comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act have also been installed in the area. If PennDOT signs off on the work next week, the intersection will be monitored for a 30-day review period. "They'll be watching the timing of the traffic signaling in the intersection, just to see if it runs smoothly," Petroccia said. Petroccia said the …

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Traffic Relief Coming to Robinson Intersections

Intervention comes to two heavily trafficked intersections.

A project to overhaul the intersection of Park Manor and Robinson Towne Center boulevards could get underway as early as this fall.  Lynn Manion, director of the Robinson-based Airport Corridor Transportation Association, said the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation has agreed to contribute $700,000 in construction costs in a project to make the intersection more pedestrian friendly.  Manion said bids for the project will be released in September. She said work is expected to begin in late fall or early spring of 2013.  The project is a public-private partnership. IKEA has pledged $170,000 toward design and engineering costs; PNC Bank has contributed $21,000. She said the contributions, alongside the PennDOT funding, are expected to …

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Burglars Smash Window at Kip's Ice Cream

A cash register was moved in the incident.

Moon Police said burglars early Wednesday morning smashed the front window of Kip's Ice Cream at the intersection of Thorn Run and Beaver Grade roads.  Police said they found the ice cream shop's front window broken and its cash register near the store's front door when they responded shortly after 6 a.m. Wednesday.  Police did not disclose in a report the amount of money taken in the burglary nor the extent of the store's damage. An investigation is ongoing.  Store owner Teresa Ware could not be reached for comment. A store employee declined to comment on the burglary. The business, in the Thorn Run Crossing Plaza, has reopened since the incident. 

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Developers Unveil Plans for Moon Township Hilton

Construction on a new township hotel could begin as early as this summer.

A representative from the Pittsburgh-based firm Gateway Engineers last night presented an early plan for a new Hilton hotel and neighboring office building to be constructed on GSK Drive in Moon.  Engineer Patrick Cooper said developers plan to construct a 117-room Hilton Homewood Suites hotel and neighboring 130,000 square-foot office building with surrounding parking lots on the roadway, which is located off Fed Ex Drive.  Cooper said construction on the project is under a "tight" schedule and could be underway as early as July. Developers in 2008 planned to construct a 240-room hotel and adjoined office complex on the street, but backed out of the plan after the economy went into a recession later that year.  "Well, it's 2012 now," …

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Moon Police: Drug Arrests Spike Near Sharon Center

Numerous West Virginia residents recently have been charged with drug crimes near the Beaver Grade Road shopping center.

Moon Police said a string of recent drug arrests have occurred outside of the Sharon Center shopping plaza. Police have been monitoring the plaza's parking lot on Beaver Grade Road after residents and businesses have increasingly complained about drug activity in the area. Moon Officer Ian Lucas said a recent investigation "revealed that individuals are traveling [more than] three hours from West Virginia to frequent a doctor...and are getting their prescriptions for opiate addiction filled at Porter's Pharmacy," according to a police report. West Virginia residents Ellis Hedrick, 24, and Melissa Hedrick, 35, were charged March 1 with drug possession and child endangerment after police said they were found injecting drugs while a 2-year-…

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News Nearby: 81-Year-Old Injured in Montour Run Road Crash

The Coraopolis woman was taken to UPMC Mercy Hospital.

An 81-year-old Coraopolis woman was transported to UPMC Mercy Hospital after her car plunged more than 60 feet down a Montour Run Road embankment after a near head-on collision.  Robinson Police Chief Dale Vietmeier said the woman, Mary Sirera, is being treated for non-life threatening injuries after the two-vehicle crash. Police are continuing to investigate the cause of the collision, which occurred earlier this afternoon.  Vietmeier said an oncoming vehicle struck Sirera's car while she was making a left-hand turn onto Montour Run Road. Sirera's car tumbled off the embankment, he said.  "Her foot remained on the accelerator after she was hit," Vietmeier said. "She spun and went down hill and stopped just short of the [Montour Run] creek…

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Dunkin' Donuts to Open in April

The confectionery chain confirms that a new Beaver Grade Road store will open this spring.

A new fast food restaurant will open its doors in Moon Township just in time for the spring weather. A spokesperson for Dunkin' Donuts confirmed that it is planning to open its new Beaver Grade Road store in mid-April. The store will be located in the former Hometown Pizza building at the corner of Carnot and Beaver Grade roads. Hometown Pizza moved to 101 Fern Hollow Road in September. The building, which includes a drive-through and dining room, formerly housed a Taco Bell. The building will be revamped before the store's opening, though details on the renovation were unavailable. So we want to know: What other businesses would you like to see come to Moon Township? Big or small, what services, stores or restaurants are on your Moon …

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Burglars Steal Electronics from Edgetowne Square Office

Laptop computers, flat screen television taken from Centria, a Moon-based firm that supplies metal building products.

Moon Police said thieves stole laptop computers and a 42-inch flat screen television in an apparent burglary at the Centria office building on Beaver Grade Road. Police said burglars entered the building sometime Wednesday night or early Thursday morning and removed electronics from the second and third floors of the building, located in the Edgetowne Square. No other offices in the complex were targeted. Moon Police Chief Leo McCarthy said in a statement that the burglars did not appear to have forced their entry into the building. No building alarms were set off during the burglary. Police said four laptops, a computer monitor and a flat-screen television were taken from the office. Police did not provide a value for the items taken. …

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Blairsville Man Charged with Injuring Moon Officer

The former Moon resident has a history of threatening police, according to reports.

A former Moon resident is accused of attacking a Moon Police sergeant as he attempted to break up a dispute in a Beaver Grade Road home.  Anselmo Giovanni D'Ascenzo, 21, now of Blairsville, Indiana County, was charged with aggravated assault, criminal mischief and resisting arrest at about 6:30 p.m. Dec. 16 in the 1800 block of Beaver Grade Road.  Sgt. Alan Morrow responded to the home Friday for a report of a "male who was out of control" in a domestic dispute, according to police.  Morrow attempted to remove D'Ascenzo from the house at the request of the homeowner, but D'Ascenzo resisted, police said.  Morrow later asked for back-up officers and EMS staff to report to the home.  When Officer Ian Lucas arrived, he said he saw Morrow "…

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