FILE – Musician Robbie Robertson arrives at the Vanity Fair Oscar Party on Sunday, Feb. 22, 2015, in Beverly Hills, Calif. Robertson, the lead guitarist and songwriter for The Band, whose classics include “The Weight,” “Up on Cripple Creek” and “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down,” has died at 80, according to a statement from his manager. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File)

One of rock’s greatest songwriters and musicians, Robbie Robertson, has died at 80. His manager said he died Wedensday in Los Angeles, surrounded by family. As the guitarist and lead writer for The Band, Robertson mined American music and history for such classics as “The Weight” and “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down.” He later worked on the soundtracks for several Martin Scorsese movies, including “The Departed” and “The Irishman.” Robertson was a self-taught musicologist and storyteller who absorbed everything American from the novels of William Faulkner to the scorching blues of Howlin’ Wolf to the gospel harmonies of the Swan Silvertones.

Harrisburg – The Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board (PLCB) today issued an invitation for bids to award 20 expired restaurant licenses in the 12th license auction since Act 39 became effective in August 2016.

This auction includes one license in each of the following 20 counties: Allegheny, Beaver, Berks, Bradford, Clearfield, Clinton, Delaware, Erie, Greene, Indiana, Lackawanna, Lebanon, Luzerne, Lycoming, Montgomery, Northampton, Northumberland, Pike, Potter, and Somerset.

Bids for this restaurant license auction are due by noon Monday, Sept. 25. The 12th auction will again use a sealed bid process. Bids will be opened Wednesday, Sept. 27, and auction winners will be determined soon thereafter.

The minimum bid for each license is $25,000, and each bid must be accompanied by a bid surety of $5,000 or 5% of the total bid amount – whichever is higher – to avoid frivolous and underfunded bids.

The highest responsive bidder for each license will win the right to submit an application for the license to the PLCB within six months of auction award. If bid payment is not received within two weeks of auction award, the second-highest bidder will have the opportunity to apply for the license. Bids will be held in escrow by the PLCB, pending approval of the license application.

The Invitation for Bids is available online. Once on the page, scroll down to “Related Solicitation Files,” and click the links to view.

Bidders with questions regarding this invitation for bids must submit inquiries via email to RA-LBLicenseAuction@pa.gov by noon Friday, Aug. 25. Questions and answers will be posted to the Department of General Services e-marketplace website by 3:00 PM Tuesday, Aug. 29.

Lists of winning bids from each of the 11 previous auctions are available on the license auction page of the PLCB website. Auction revenue recognized thus far from all previous auctions totals $34.2 million, while another $1.9 million remains in escrow, pending license approvals.

The PLCB regulates the distribution of beverage alcohol in Pennsylvania, operates 600 wine and spirits stores statewide, and licenses 20,000 alcohol producers, retailers, and handlers. The PLCB also works to reduce and prevent dangerous and underage drinking through partnerships with schools, community groups, and licensees. Taxes and store profits – totaling nearly $19.5 billion since the agency’s inception – are returned to Pennsylvania’s General Fund, which finances Pennsylvania’s schools, health and human services programs, law enforcement, and public safety initiatives, among other important public services. The PLCB also provides financial support for the Pennsylvania State Police Bureau of Liquor Control Enforcement, the Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs, other state agencies, and local municipalities across the state. For more information about the PLCB, visit lcb.pa.gov.

Story by Sandy Giordano – Beaver County Radio. Published August 9, 2023 2:53 P.M.

(Beaver, PA) Beaver County Court of Common Pleas Judge Mitchell P.. Shahen  sentenced North Sewickley Township resident Eduardo Avriles 37, of Lancaster, to a minimum of 56 years to a maximum of 11 years  for the sexual assault of 2 victims under age 5. He was sentenced on Monday, August 7, 2023. A criminal complaint was filed on November 7, 2022 alleging he raped and sexually assaulted both children on multiple occasions at his home. The jury trial was in May 2023 and the jury rendered a guilty plea on 34 of the 30 criminal counts.

(Sandy Giordano/Beaver County Radio)

The Hopewell School District has officially accepted the resignation of high school principal Mike Allison. Allison has worked in the district for 25 years and is currently on medical leave, and it was announced that he plans on retiring later this year. He has spent his entire career at Hopewell. 

Assistant principal Dr. Robert Kartychak was named acting high school principal effective August 9, 2023.

Shannon Casillas retired from her position as a special education teacher at the junior-senior high school. Leann Bridge was hired to replace her. Emily Steinmetz was hired as an elementary art teacher, replacing Brieanna Dinardo. Both Bridge and Steinmetz will begin their new positions effective August 21.

The board’s next meeting is Tuesday, August 22, 2023 at 7 p.m.

NEPTUNE BEACH, Fla. (AP) — A single ticket sold in Florida is good for a $1.58 billion Mega Millions jackpot, ending a stretch of lottery futility that had stretched for nearly four months.

A Publix grocery store in Neptune Beach sold the winning ticket, according to the Florida Lottery. The winning numbers drawn Tuesday night were: 13, 19, 20, 32, 33 and the yellow ball 14.

A message was left seeking comment Wednesday from Publix. Messages left for the Florida Lottery weren’t immediately returned.

Before the big win, there had been 31 straight drawings since the last time someone won the game’s jackpot on April 18. That enabled the prize to steadily grow to be the third-largest ever in U.S. history.

Mega Millions jackpot winners are so rare thanks to odds of one in 302.6 million.

The $1.58 billion payout would go to the winner if they opt for an annuity, doled out over 30 years. But people usually prefer a lump sum option, which for Tuesday’s jackpot was an estimated $783.3 million.

The prize money is subject to federal taxes. Many states also tax lottery winnings.

Mega Millions is played in 45 states, Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Neptune Beach has just over 7,000 residents and is 16 miles (26 kilometers) east of Jacksonville on Florida’s Atlantic Coast.

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Orlando Arcia’s two-run double with two outs in the top of the ninth capped a three-run inning and rallied the MLB-best Atlanta Braves to an 8-6 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday night after star right fielder Ronald Acuña Jr. left the game.

Pirates closer David Bednar (3-2) came on to start the ninth with a 6-5 lead but took his third blown save in 26 opportunities this season. Arcia’s double came immediately after Kevin Pillar hit a tying single with the Braves down to their final out.

Arcia also homered and finished with three hits and three RBIs to help the Braves end their three-game losing streak.

“We had lost three in a row so we kind of felt we had to do whatever we had to do to win the game,” Arcia said through a translator. “I just wanted to lift the spirits of the team and luckily we were able to win it.”

Pillar’s clutch hit set the stage for Arcia’s game-winner. The 34-year-old outfielder has learned to channel his emotions with the game on the line after 11 seasons in the major leagues.

“Surprisingly, I feel pretty calm going up there,” Pillar said. “I feel like it’s a scenario where everyone in the ballpark might think that I’m going to make an out in that situation. I use that to my advantage. I’ve played in multiple playoffs, I’ve played in a lot of big games, bigger games than this. Even though it’s a big moment, you just try to recall those moments when you’ve been on the big stage. My dad gave me good advice when I first started this journey — regardless of what happens, never feel bad.”

The Pirates put two runners on in the bottom of the ninth inning, but Raisel Iglesias got Jack Suwinski to hit a game-ending comebacker for his 21st save in 23 chances.

Acuña was hit on the left elbow by a pitch from reliever Colin Holderman in the sixth inning and was removed for a pinch runner. X-rays were negative and Acuna is considered day to day.

“I’m sure it stung him pretty good, and he lost feeling in the arm,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “I’m just glad nothing showed up (on the X-rays). I’d rather not take any chances on it by leaving him in the game and just let him go get treatment and see how he feels tomorrow.”

Acuña has been one of the best players in the majors this season. He led off the game with his 26th homer — his 31st career leadoff homer and fifth this season — and went 1 for 3.

Acuña is batting .339 in 111 games and leads the majors with 53 stolen bases.

The Braves’ Matt Olson reached 100 RBIs, the first MLB player to reach that mark in 2023. Olson has driven in a run in 11 straight games.

Travis d’Arnaud had three hits for Atlanta and Michael Harris II had two.

Kirby Yates (6-0) pitched a scoreless eighth and kept his record perfect.

The Pirates used four home runs to build a 6-3 lead by the fifth inning. Ke’Bryan Hayes hit a three-run shot in the first inning, Alfonso Rivas led off the fourth with a longball and Josh Palacios and Bryan Reynolds went back-to-back to begin the fifth.

On the second pitch of the game, Acuña belted a 448-foot drive to center field off Mitch Keller.

Two of Bednar’s three blown saves this season have been in the last four days.

“David is a savage. He’s going to shake it off, for sure,” Palacios said. “This is baseball. It goes up, it goes down. Nobody has a zero ERA in the league — things happen. He’s an All-Star. He’s the best closer in the game in my opinion. He’s going to bounce back from this with ease.”

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Ohio voters on Tuesday resoundingly rejected a Republican-backed measure that would have made it more difficult to change the state’s constitution, setting up a fall campaign that will become the nation’s latest referendum on abortion rights since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned nationwide protections last year.

The defeat of Issue 1 keeps in place a simple majority threshold for passing future constitutional amendments, rather than the 60% supermajority that was proposed. Its supporters said the higher bar would protect the state’s foundational document from outside interest groups.

Voter opposition to the proposal was widespread, even spreading into traditionally Republican territory. In fact, in early returns, support for the measure fell far short of former President Donald Trump’s performance during the 2020 election in nearly every county.

Dennis Willard, a spokesperson for the opposition campaign One Person One Vote, called Issue 1 a “deceptive power grab” that was intended to diminish the influence of the state’s voters.

“Tonight is a major victory for democracy in Ohio,” Willard told a jubilant crowd at the opposition campaign’s watch party. “The majority still rules in Ohio.”

President Joe Biden hailed Tuesday’s result, releasing a statement saying: “This measure was a blatant attempt to weaken voters’ voices and further erode the freedom of women to make their own health care decisions. Ohioans spoke loud and clear, and tonight democracy won.”

A major national group that opposes abortion rights, Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, called the result “a sad day for Ohio” while criticizing the outside money that helped the opposition — even though both sides relied on national groups and individuals in their campaigns.

Republican lawmakers who had pushed the measure — and put it before voters during the height of summer vacation season — explained away the defeat as a result of too little time to adequately explain its virtues to voters. A main backer, Republican Senate President Matt Huffman, predicted lawmakers would try again, though probably not as soon as next year.

“Obviously, there are a lot of folks that did not want this to happen — not just because of the November issues, but for all of the other ones that are coming,” he said, expressing disappointment that Republicans didn’t stick together. In a statement, Republican House Speaker Jason Stephens advised supporters to move past Tuesday’s results to focus on trying to defeat the abortion rights measure: “The people of Ohio have spoken.”

While abortion was not directly on the special election ballot, the result marks the latest setback for Republicans in a conservative-leaning state who favor imposing tough restrictions on the procedure. Ohio Republicans placed the question on the summer ballot in hopes of undercutting the citizen initiative that voters will decide in November that seeks to enshrine abortion rights in the state.

Other states where voters have considered abortion rights since last year’s Supreme Court ruling have protected them, including in red states such as Kansas and Kentucky.

Dr. Marcela Azevedo, one of the leaders of a coalition advancing the fall abortion question, said Tuesday that Issue 1’s defeat should allow the measure to pass in November.

Interest in Tuesday’s special election was intense, even after Republicans ignored their own law that took effect earlier this year to place the question before voters in August. Voters cast nearly 700,000 early in-person and mail ballots ahead of Tuesday’s final day of voting, more than double the number of advance votes in a typical primary election. Early turnout was especially heavy in the Democratic-leaning counties surrounding Cleveland, Columbus and Cincinnati.

One Person One Vote represented a broad, bipartisan coalition of voting rights, labor, faith and community groups. The group also had as allies four living ex-governors of the state and five former state attorneys general of both parties, who called the proposed change bad public policy.

In place since 1912, the simple majority standard is a much more surmountable hurdle for Ohioans for Reproductive Rights, the group advancing November’s abortion rights amendment. It would establish “a fundamental right to reproductive freedom” with “reasonable limits.”

Voters in several states have approved ballot questions protecting access to abortion since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, but typically have done so with less than 60% of the vote. AP VoteCast polling last year found that 59% of Ohio voters say abortion should generally be legal.

Eric Chon, a Columbus resident who voted against the measure, said there was a clear anti-abortion agenda to the election. Noting that the GOP voted just last year to get rid of August elections entirely due to low turnout for hyperlocal issues, Chon said, “Every time something doesn’t go their way, they change the rules.”

The election result came in the very type of August special election that Republican Secretary of State Frank LaRose, a candidate for U.S. Senate, had previously testified against as undemocratic because of historically low turnout. Republican lawmakers just last year had voted to mostly eliminate such elections, a law they ignored for this year’s election.

Al Daum, of Hilliard, just west of Columbus, said he didn’t feel the rules were being changed to undermine the power of his vote and said he was in favor of the special election measure. Along with increasing the threshold to 60%, it would mandate that any signatures for a constitutional amendment be gathered from all of Ohio’s 88 counties, not just 44.

It’s a change that Daum said would give more Ohio residents a chance to make their voices heard.

Voters’ rejection of the proposal marked a rare rebuke for Ohio Republicans, who have held power across every branch of state government for 12 years. GOP lawmakers had cited possible future amendments related to gun control, minimum wage increases and more as reasons a higher threshold should be required.

Protect Ohio Women, the campaign working to defeat the fall abortion rights amendment, vowed to continue fighting into the fall.

“Our pro-life, pro-parent coalition is more motivated than ever,” the group said in a statement.

Story by Curtis Walsh – Beaver County Radio News Director. Published August 8, 2023 10:35 pm. The photo above shows Tyrone Zeigler among other community members outside of the Beaver Falls City Building following the meeting.    

(Beaver Falls, PA) A line that extended down the stairs and out of the door at the Beaver Falls City Building was the sight just before the City Council meeting took place at 7pm Tuesday evening. Council were assisted by the fire department to keep the occupancy in the meeting under control, allowing only a set number if people in the room, leaving others to stand in the hall and downstairs. The large attendance was due to supporters of the Tigerland Inc. wave pool revival project led by Tyrone Zeigler.

After the regular meeting agenda items were taken care of, Council opened the floor for public comment. The first to take the floor was Brian Farrington, an attorney for Zeigler and Tigerland Inc., who gave a three minute update on the status of Tigerland’s efforts. Farrington said that an official business plan has been produced and Tigerland is hoping to pursue a renegotiation of the wave pool property.

Farrington was cut off by Beaver Falls Mayor Kenya Johns after 3 minutes due to being over the amount of time allowed for public comment. Council was questioned as to why a request by Tigerland Inc. and Zeigler to be included on the agenda had been approved prior to the meeting but was absent from the agenda. Council member Peggy Evans stated, “We are aware, no comment”. Mayor Johns and Solicitor Shannon Steele reiterated that Council had expected Tigerland to be present at the previous meeting, but nobody showed up.

Community members proceeded to take the floor and voice their questions and frustrations with the Council regarding the wave pool. One woman of the community stated “Our children need a place to go to learn how to swim”, “We need to set the egos in the trash can”. Solicitor Steele noted that the previous wave pool negotiations fell through because terms of the deal on both sides were not being met. These terms could not be discussed publicly for legal reasons, according to Council.

One woman asked Council who has had the key to the pool. Mayor Johns replied after a brief pause that the city has the key and would not elaborate further as to if Zeigler was ever given a key.

A pool repair contractor who allegedly worked on the pool installing a new water line and checking pipe integrity for Zeigler questioned a remark made by Mayor Johns that nothing has been done to the pool. Johns replied that she stated “nothing significant has been done”. When asked whether the City would be willing to renegotiate with Tigerland, Mayor Johns said she could not make a comment due to it being a legal matter.

Beaver County Radio spoke one on one with Zeigler following the meeting.

Zeigler says Council asked his former attorney to have him sign a non-disparagement clause to not allow himself or anyone from Tigerland Inc. to say anything negative about the city.

Zeigler said “it was supposed to be a mutual agreement, but the city came back and said no”, adding “I’m not here to say anything bad about the city, I’m here to hold people accountable for holding me up”.

When Zeigler was asked about Council saying no significant work was done to the pool he replied, “that’s not true, just like a bunch of other things they said was untrue, the whole world seen me out there working on the pool, from fixing the service line, to gutting out the bathrooms, the office, the concessions stand.”

Zeigler says he has had a key to the pool and still does. Beaver County Radio asked Zeigler about concerns over whether money raised for the pool was safe and what he would say to those who are questioning him about it. He responded “those people need to read more, there’s no way for me to even touch this money, it’s always been under a nonprofit, it was under Beaver Falls CDC at first, now it is under Tigerland Inc., for me to even get any money, the board would have to vote first, it’s not possible for me to take any money, people need to stand behind me and stop chasing ghosts.”

When Ziegler was asked what the best possible scenario is for him looking forward, he said “I’m willing to get back to the table and work this out, it’s not fair to the community or the kids cause at the end of the day, that’s who it’s hurting.”

Zeigler has been pursuing the wave pool revival project for seven years. Beaver Falls City Council recently announced that they have cut ties with Tigerland Inc. and Zeigler.