LancasterOnline -

Snow emergencies declared here

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 22:20:00 EST

Lancaster city and other local municipalities prepared for the snowstorm by enacting snow emergencies.Lancaster city enacted a snow emergency effective from 6 p.m. Tuesday. Vehicles parked on snow emergency routes will be towed starting at 8 a.m. today.Free parking is available in all Parking Author...

Proposed budget would tax candy, caskets, coal

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 22:10:00 EST

If Gov. Ed Rendell gets his way, you'll soon be paying sales tax on Barnstormers' tickets, Fido's trip to the veterinarian, that candy bar you buy from the vending machine — not to mention newspapers.And that's not all.Your dry cleaning Taxed.American flags Taxed.Basic televi...

Education here gets 8.5 % increase in Rendell's proposed budget

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 22:09:00 EST

Lancaster County's public schools are due for a whopping 8.5 percent increase in state funds — an extra $14 million — in next year's budget.But school district officials aren't ready to break out the champagne.They're still smarting from the 101-day standoff that preceded...

GOP challenger for Rep. Mike Sturla

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 20:52:00 EST

Thomas L. Garman Jr. will try to do what Republicans have failed to achieve for two decades: unseat Democratic state Rep. Mike Sturla.Garman, who runs a Lancaster city landscaping business, said in an interview Tuesday that he will challenge Sturla in November if for no other reason than to give vot...

Rendell proposes lower sales tax but on more items

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 20:17:00 EST

Gov. Ed Rendell on Tuesday presented lawmakers with a $29 billion spending plan that would devote more money to schools, prisons and health care for the poor while taxing the sale of many services for the first time.The proposal would increase spending by $1.1 billion, or about 4 percent, and relies...

Dangerous storm could dump up to 18 inches of snow

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 13:11:00 EST

A treacherous, potentially dangerous snowstorm is bearing down on us.Snow will start falling this afternoon. Wednesday, the snowfall will kick into gear, and be goosed by high winds.Those who can stay home should, officials are saying.The approaching storm could be "the real blizzard of 2010," said...

Local dealer offers Prius fix immediately

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 11:07:00 EST

Toyota announced today that it will send recall notices to 133,000 U.S. owners of Prius hybrid cars, telling them how to get a potential braking problem fixed.But Rick Price, general manager of Lancaster Toyota, said the 200 local owners of Priuses don't have to wait to get their cars fixed."The...

Four hurt in Rt. 340 crash

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 10:38:00 EST

Two vehicles collided head-on Tuesday in East Lampeter Township, injuring four people, police said.No one was seriously hurt in the 8:30 a.m. wreck along Route 340, just east of Route 896, police said.John A. Zeller Jr., 89, of Lancaster, was entering the roadway from a private driveway, police said...

New team of student EMTs covers Franklin & Marshall College on weekend nights

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 08:03:00 EST

Helping fellow students at a moment's notice is what the newly created Diplomat Emergency Medical Technicians are all about.The DEMTs, as they're known on the Franklin & Marshall College campus, are volunteers who are trained and certified to evaluate and render immediate medical aid for stu...

New Manheim Central superintendent plans to start leading by listening

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 06:53:00 EST

William Clark isn't too fond of the word "I."Ask the new superintendent of Manheim Central School District what his goals are, and he'll tell you his views are irrelevant.Instead, Clark, 44, likes to talk about what "we" need to do — "we" being school board members, administrators, tea...

Arctic Clipper expected to bring high winds

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 00:04:00 EST

Gloria Platt paused to catch her breath, and can you blame herThe 65-year-old East Marion Street resident had just finished shoveling a large mound of this weekend's leftover snow from her boss' driveway Monday — three weeks after suffering a mini-stroke."This is not easy," she said, ...

Wind power project advances here

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 00:03:00 EST

Financial arrangements have been approved for southeastern Pennsylvania's first commercial wind project — two 360-foot-high turbines atop Turkey Hill in Manor Township.PPL and the Lancaster County Solid Waste Management Authority have entered into a lease agreement that is expected to have...

Manheim Township board OKs traffic signal by new park

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 00:02:00 EST

Even if there wasn't a new park being built there, the intersection of Weaver and Petersburg roads could use a new traffic signal, Manheim Township officials say.And that's what the crossroads between East Petersburg and Neffsville will be getting in coming months, thanks to a vote by the to...

Upgrades eyed at Mount Joy Amtrak station

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 00:01:00 EST

PennDOT officials are putting the Mount Joy Amtrak station on the fast track.The stage agency on Monday announced funding of $26.1 million for a project that would add covered canopies, parking, lighting, elevators and handicapped-accessible platforms to the borough's station.PennDOT also wants ...

OUTDOORS: Fear not, people with binoculars

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 07:00:00 EST

You can see how it could happen. A Massachusetts birdwatcher seen near a swamp in an urban neighborhood with binoculars is taken for a "peeping Tom." The 47-year-old man says he was roughed up by police, who didn't believe he was birding in wintertime. Police say Paul Peterson refused to answ...

Teacher ordered to stand trial for videotaping girls

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 22:19:00 EST

An elementary school teacher will stand trial on charges he allegedly secretly videotaped young girls in various stages of dress.Matthew S. Deppen, 33, of 152 New Haven St., Apt. A, Mount Joy, was ordered to stand trial on a number of charges following a preliminary hearing Monday before District Ju...

Diploma helps keep Columbia man out of state prison

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 21:41:00 EST

It all came down to a high school diploma, a Lancaster County judge told the young man Monday.Facing a possible state prison sentence for firing frozen paintballs at two teenagers, Nelson Torres of Columbia told Judge Joseph Madenspacher all the things he has done since his arrest nearly two years a...

Robber hits hosiery shop at Tanger

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 21:09:00 EST

An armed man Monday morning held up a clerk getting ready to open a store at Tanger Outlets on Lincoln Highway East.An employee of the L'eggs Hanes Bali Outlet told police she was readying for business just after 8 a.m. when a man came to the store and identified himself as a delivery person.She.

Man jailed 6-15 years on drug, gun convictions

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 20:38:00 EST

A Lancaster County judge recently imposed the maximum sentence on a New York City man arrested here on drug charges.Lashley Dacosta Downes Jr., 26, of Brooklyn, N.Y., was sentenced by Judge Dennis Reinaker to a total of 6 to 15 years in state prison for possessing cocaine and receiving stolen proper...

Turkey Hill recalls 150 cartons of ice cream

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 19:42:00 EST

Turkey Hill Dairy said it has recalled a small batch of its chocolate marshmallow ice cream because it may contain almonds.The Conestoga-based dairy said it had isolated the problem to fewer than 150 1½-quart containers sold after Jan. 28 in central Pennsylvania.The ice cream had been distributed di...