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ournal-herald THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 2022 • Volume 41 – No. 25 ©2022, THE JOURNAL-HERALD. All Rights Reserved
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Route 940 road options looked at by Seth Isenberg
PennDOT officials came to White Haven last week to speak to East Side and White Haven officials about their evolving plans for Route 940 as a possible diversion route for interstate traffic due to tolling. With tolling gantries due to be erected in 2023, PennDOT will need to make improvements to the diversion route ahead of the date the tolling goes live. The improvements will also be in place before construction starts on the new bridges, projected for 2024. LOVE WAS IN THE AIR in Penn Lake over the weekend, Here is what we at The as decorated mailboxes were filled with Valentines Journal-Herald learned from wishes for kids and seniors in a community-wide interviews of attendees, as the project. Above, Bethany, Leah, and Zoey check out the goodies and cards they received. Below, Officer Joanna Jinks of the White Haven Police Department makes a special delivery. Photos courtesy Jill Rosenstock
press was not invited to the meeting: PennDOT’s proposal starts with paving all of Berwick Street in White Haven and State Street in East Side. On Berwick St., the crown up the middle of the road would be milled out, making the road flat again. Additional asphalt will be used approaching the railroad crossing to improve sightlines and reduce the bump over the tracks. After paving, in repainting the ‘center’ yellow lines, PennDOT proposes to move the lines where Berwick Street meets Church Street and Route 437 to provide more space for vehicles turning east (downhill). Traffic calming
measures will be explored for both White Haven and East Side. In East Side, a rotary or median that narrows the road are possible (the plans are unclear at this time). Through both East Side and White Haven, from Route 534 to Route 437, PennDOT looks to post that stretch to bar 102″ wide trailers, except for local deliveries. Violators could face a $300 fine. One final item is that lights to stop traffic would be installed at Berwick and Main Streets for a pedestrian and bike crossing. More details will become public as PennDOT’s plans for the bridge construction and tolling move ahead.
COVID masks to be optional as of Feb 22 at Weatherly schools by Seth Isenberg
Plan by lifting the mask mandate. On a motion by Tom Weatherly Area schools Connors Jr., voting in favor students will have the option were board president April not to wear COVID masks in Walters and members Matt school starting when students vonFrisch, Nancy Mulvaney return from the Presidents and Ken Jacoby III, plus weekend break on Tuesday, himself. Opposing the change February 22. The Weatherly were members Bill Knepper, Area School Board, at a speBarbara Sipler, Christy Minor, cial meeting on Monday night, and Chrissie Houser. voted 5 to 4 to update the disThe new rules still mantrict’s Health and Safety date masks on school buses,
and when visiting the nurses’ offices. Prior to the vote, the board heard from school nurse Becky McFadden. She felt the board should be protecting the district’s students “to the best of our ability [for] the safest environment.” She wanted the See WASD MASKS, page 6