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(West Mifflin, Pa.) Guests at Kennywood, Sandcastle Waterpark, and Idlewild & SoakZone will soon find a more efficient, convenient, and visitor-friendly process to pay for park tickets and treats.

Beginning Tuesday, June 28 at Kennywood and Sandcastle and Wednesday, June 29 at Idlewild & SoakZone, the parks will accept credit, debit and prepaid cards or secure mobile payments only. The switch allows for a smoother and safer experience for guests, who can make payments with cards in addition to using secure mobile payment systems such as Apple Pay and Google Pay. Kennywood, Sandcastle and Idlewild accept all major credit and prepaid debit cards including MasterCard, Visa, American Express and Discover.

Guests that prefer cash have no cause for concern: they can use new, free Cash to Card Kiosks conveniently located throughout each park to convert up to $500 cash onto a prepaid card. This prepaid card can be used to purchase tickets and frequent stores and stands throughout the park. The cards can also be used outside the park anywhere cards are accepted. There is no fee to convert cash onto a card.

“By transitioning to solely accepting cards or secure mobile payments, we can provide a better, more efficient experience to our guests,” says Kennywood & Sandcastle General Manager Mark Pauls. “We expect to see wait times decrease for food and retail stores, and have added several Cash to Card Kiosks throughout each park to provide guests a simple and easy way to convert their cash onto a card.”

For full details and a list of Frequently Asked Questions regarding this new program, visit Kennywood.com/Cashless, SandcastleWaterpark.com/Cashless, or Idlewild.com/Cashless.

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(New Brighton, Pa.) The New Brighton Borough Real Estate Tax Office will be closed until Friday, July 1, 2022.  Modified summer hours will resume on July 8 , 2022 with the office being open on Fridays from 8:30 AM to 4:00 PM and the second and fourth Saturday of each month from 10:30 AM to 1:30 PM.

(AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
By MATT OTT AP Business Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) — Fewer Americans applied for jobless benefits last week as the U.S. job market remains robust despite myriad economic pressures, including four-decade high inflation. Applications for jobless aid for the week ending June 18 fell to 229,000, a decline of 2,000 from the previous week, the Labor Department reported Thursday. First-time applications generally mirror the number of layoffs. The four-week average for claims rose by 4,500 from the previous week, to 223,500. The total number of Americans collecting jobless benefits for the week ending June 11 was 1,315,000. That figure has hovered near 50-year lows for months.

(AP Photo/Brynn Anderson, File)
By MATTHEW PERRONE AP Health Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) — Health officials have ordered vaping company Juul to pull its electronic cigarettes from the U.S. market. It’s the biggest blow yet to the embattled company that is widely blamed for sparking a surge in teen vaping. The announcement Thursday by the Food and Drug Administration is part of a sweeping regulatory review of e-cigarettes, which faced little regulation until recently. Since last fall, the FDA has greenlighted a few e-cigarettes that account for a tiny share of the vaping market. To stay on the market, manufacturers must show their products help reduce the harm of smoking for adults, without appealing to kids.

(AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
By MARK SCOLFORO Associated Press
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Proposals to hold Pennsylvania’s presidential primaries in March rather than April and to permit poll watchers to operate outside the counties where they live are advancing in the Legislature. A divided House State Government Committee voted to send both bills to the full House. They’ve already passed the state Senate. Pennsylvania’s primary during presidential election years would be moved from the fourth Tuesday in April to the third Tuesday in March. The poll watchers’ bill would give candidates an additional observer and says they can be posted close enough to see any canvassing and precanvassing.

(AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews, FIle)
By JESSICA GRESKO Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court said Thursday that Americans have a right to carry guns in public, a major expansion of gun rights. The court struck down a New York gun law in a ruling expected to directly impact half a dozen other populous states. The justices’ 6-3 decision is expected to allow more people to legally carry guns on the streets of the nation’s largest cities. It’s high court’s first major gun decision in more than a decade. Justice Clarence Thomas wrote for the majority that the Constitution protects “an individual’s right to carry a handgun for self-defense outside the home.”

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Story by Sandy Giordano, Beaver County Radio
(Center Twp., Beaver County, Pa.) Center Township Engineer Ned Mitrovich reported on Wednesday, June 22, 2022, that a dispute for several years over the  boundary line between Center and Potter Townships in the area of Target and Kohl’s was settled last August .  The engineer said that the PA Boundary Commission  attorney was Neva Stotler  and the boundary line stays where it is. Signs will be posted  designating the area as Center Township.

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Story by Sandy Giordano, Beaver County Radio
(New Brighton, Pa.) New Brighton Borough Council met for their monthly meeting last Thursday, June 16, 2022 and adopted a resolution  that permits police to participate  in the Beaver County Highway Safety Task  Force. Officers who participate will be paid by the borough and the borough will receive reimbursement from the county.

(Matt Drzik/Beaver County Radio)

“We’re pretty much back to square one.”

Those words from Brenda Applegate summed up the mood of disappointment yesterday in the revelation that the Vicary Mansion in Freedom was denied the Pennsylvania Keystone Grant for renovations. The building built back in 1826 is in need of renovations for its front porch area, but Applegate’s request for $215,000 was denied.

This latest denial has been one in a series of denials regarding the Vicary Mansion. “Brenda and I have reached out to several contractors, we’ve met with them on site, and no one’s providing us,” said Dan Colville, Beaver County’s Public Works Director. “I think it was determined that ‘We kind of know what’s wrong with the building, do you have any contractors that could help us out?'”

Applegate brought the issue to the Beaver County Commissioners on Wednesday, adding that other grants might be of issue as well: “When I was writing the grant, I contacted Community Development to see if there any matching grants. They, at that point, did not have any matching grants.”

“It’s just like everything else,” Colville added. “We’re beating our heads off a concrete wall.”