North Hills Pet Products Store Hosting Free Healthy Pet Seminar

Experts will be on hand to discuss everything from fleas & ticks prevention to acupuncture.

Each year, Toni Shelaske, owner of Healthy Pet Products  at 9600 Perry Highway in McCandless, tries to say thanks to her customers and the community. She does it by hosting an annual Healthy Pet Day in her store, and in the adjacent parking lot at the intersection of Perry Highway and Ingomar Road. "My hope is to one day make healthy pet day a national holiday," she said. "It’s focused on healthy pets." This year's seminar is Saturday, May 11 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. There will be five free seminars on natural pet health. Topics include: In addition there will be many pet related vendors, a K9 Police dog demonstration, a basket raffle with proceeds going to local rescues, a pet artist & photographer, and prizes and giveaways. Shelaske says …

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Planet Pittsburgh Helps Customers Find Gifts for Steelers, Penguins and Pirates Fans

The store in the Village at Pine carries a wide array of sports-related items

Looking for a gift for a Pittsburgh sports fan? Planet Pittsburgh is a good place to go. Located in the Village at Pine in Wexford / Pine Township, the two-year-old store has clothes—from baby sizes to adults—as well as framed photos, team gnomes, bobble heads and more. Owner Jeff Schlichtkrull said sweatshirts are a big seller and he's expanded his store's selection to include Pittsburgh items like cups, snow globes and a pen with an Incline floating in it. You can find jackets, T-shirts, Troy Polamalu Bobble Heads, wine glasses, bibs, a little-girl Steeler cheerleader outfit, Steeler salt-and-pepper shakers, a Steeler birdhouse and caps. Schlichtkrull will celebrate Small Business Saturday by giving customers a 10 percent discount on …

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Eat'n Park Remodels Restaurant on Route 8

The eatery is just south of the Richland Township line.

When Eat’n Park Restaurant remodeled its Route 8 eatery it included a piece of Gibsonia's history in it. On a wall by the food bar are a dozen historic photos of the Gibsonia area's early days, including pictures of what is now Chatham University's Eden Hall campus, a Short Line trolley and construction of the Turnpike. That little piece of history is a juxtaposition of everything new in the rest of the restaurant—fresh wallpaper and tiles, a new brightly lit bakery case and a new counter with a TV. Though the restaurant is located in Hampton Township, a number of Pine-Richland residents frequent it because it is just south of the Richland Township line. The restaurant also received a community wall, highlighting some of Eat’n Park’s …

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On GAC TV: Local ‘Farm Kings’ Battle Summer’s Golf Ball-Sized Hail

The episode dealing with fallout from the July 4 hail that hit the area airs on GAC Thursday.

Remember this? It wasn’t just fireworks going ka-boom in the area on the Fourth of July. Just before midnight on July 4, golf ball-sized hail began raining down on the area. For many, particularly in the Cranberry area, the hail damage led to lots of new roofs across the community, not to mention an increase in business at auto body shops for hail-dented cars. For the ‘Farm Kings,’ the consequences were much more dire. On tonight’s episode of the Great American Country reality show, which follows the Butler County-based King family on their farm in Valencia, the Kings— including nine brothers, one sister and their mother—deal with the aftermath of massive hail damage. According to a preview of tonight’s episode, the family already was …

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Mattress Firm to Open Showroom in Richland Township

New store will be on Route 8, south of Grandview Drive.

Mattress Firm will open a 4,200-square-foot showroom this spring in Richland Township. The Richland Board of Supervisors approved plans Wednesday night for the national retailer's store on Route 8 across from Grandview Crossing shopping center. The supervisors voted 4-0 to approve a preliminary and final land development plan for construction of a one-story building on the eastern side of Route 8, south of Grandview Drive. Zeden Jones, director of development for real estate developer United Growth, said construction will start soon and take four to five months. Architect Gerald G. Weber said the store will be a showroom only and will not stock mattresses. The merchandise will be delivered from a warehouse, he said. He described the …

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Dick’s to Celebrate Grand Opening With Pirate Neil Walker and Other Pro Athletes

Steelers linebacker Larry Foote and Pitt basketball coach Jamie Dixon will be among the celebrities at the store's festivities.

Pine-Richland residents will have a chance to get up close and personal with local professional athletes and coaches this weekend at the grand opening of the new Dick’s Sporting Goods. Located in the Cranberry Crossroads plaza along Route 228, the two-story, freestanding store opens its doors Wednesday. An official launch, including a ribbon-cutting ceremony, will be held at 8 a.m. Friday. Special extended store hours will be in effect for Friday (8 a.m. to 10 p.m.), Saturday (8 a.m. to 10 p.m.) and Sunday (9 a.m. to 8 p.m.) A variety of special athlete appearances and giveaways are scheduled throughout the weekend to celebrate the relocation. Dick’s is moving from the space it occupied for years in the Cranberry Square retail plaza on …

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Petco to Open Store in Northtowne Square in Richland

Store will take fill space that Fashion Bug vacated.

Petco—a national retailer of pet food, supplies and services—is opening a store in the Northtowne Square shopping center in Richland Township. The store will move into the space formerly occupied by Fashion Bug, which closed this summer.  Petco did not respond to an inquiry about when the store will open. The closest Petco stores to Pine-Richland shoppers now are in the North Hills at 4801 McKnight Road and in Cranberry Township at 20111 Route 19 Unit 201C. The 47-year-old company is privately owned with 1,150 stores across all 50 states. "As a leading specialty retailer of premium pet food, supplies, services and companion animals, Petco’s vision is captured in six words: Healthier Pets. Happier People. Better World," its website states…

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Report: Buyer Found for Shoppes at Northway in Ross

Final negotiations are under way with the same Ohio firm that plans to purchase the former Northway Elementary School, according to the Pittsburgh Business Times.

Pine-Richland shoppers take note: The Shoppes at Northway in Ross Township may soon have a new owner. Akron-based Levey & Co. is nearing final agreement to buy the former Northway Mall and redevelop it, and at least one neighboring property, the Pittsburgh Business Times reports. Levey & Co.'s LRC Realty Inc. also intends to purchase the former Northway Elementary School on Brown's Lane for $2.46 million. The North Hills School Board approved the sale in June.  Levey and Co. also purchased the site of the former McCrackin Ford dealership at 7209 McKnight Road for $5.2 million in March. According to the Allegheny County real estate website, the 5.2 acres had a value of $2.2 million in 2012. Levey President Frank Licata confirmed to the …

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Around the Rivers

Video: You Asked the White House. The White House Answered

Sewickley Patch resident John Luff has a question. Here's the answer from the office of the President of the United States.

In January, the White House Office of Digital Strategy reached out to Patch to obtain questions from its users. In return, Sewickley Patch put out the call for questions from Sewickley and neighboring communities. One of the responses chosen was directed to John Luff, a television technology consultant who opened his home Jan. 24 in Sewickley for a local gathering to view the president's State of the Union address. His question to the White House: "I ran a small business for 20 years but am concerned about the long-term prospects for American innovation and manufacturing. What can we do to change the downward trajectory that could leave the USA as a second-class consumer economy?" In the video above, you can see the response from National …

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PennDOT Spokesman's Talents Include Writing Books, Singing in Metal Rock Band

Jim Struzzi of Bridgeville launches Web site to promote his books.

Jim Struzzi writes plenty of news releases every day while working as the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation’s spokesman at the District 11 headquarters in Collier, but in his free time the Bridgeville resident tries to showcase his literary skills as a novelist. “Writing has always been my passion and something I’ve wanted to pursue,” Struzzi said. “It’s pretty cut and dry when it comes to writing a press release about roads and bridges. For a creative person, you need to have an outlet.” Struzzi, who has lived in Bridgeville for the past five years, has already released two books—The Christmas Secret and Jacob’s Haunting—and is “polishing up” a third one. To move his creative writing portfolio forward, Struzzi recently launched a …

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