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Our opinion: Encouraging children’s museum

The Kinzua Area Discovery Center has taken a major first step with the signing of papers to purchase land for the children’s museum at 4115 Market St., the site of the former Red Maple Inn. Eventually, the site will be transformed into an immersive indoor adventure where nature and imagination meet, with plans including an enchanted forest, winding river and animals. The center is being planned as an area to promote imagination, creativity, self-expression and family togetherness with playful learning, exploration, and engagement at every turn. It sounds great, and it’s ...

Editor’s corner: Runaway spending keeps impacting education

Education comes at a high cost to taxpayers. And some are starting to speak up about it. According to the Commonwealth Foundation, Pennsylvania school districts increased overall revenue collected in 2023–24 to $23,000 per student, while expanding general fund reserves to $7.4 billion, ...

Our opinion: Aligning goals for state power

In 2022, Pennsylvania created PA Edge tax credits in an effort to boost the creation of new power supply in the state. The tax credits have never been used. Now, a bipartisan group of House members that include Republican Tom Mehaffe and Democrats John Inglis and Rob Matzie are trying to tweak the tax credit program to make it more useful to power providers, including a Reliable Energy Investment Tax Credit that would be applicable to any new energy facilities or expanded facilities with a minimum of 100 megawatts of new power. The tax credits would scale to the size of the project ...

Our opinion: Expansion is good sign for city

Superior Tire has a more than 60-year history in Warren. A possible expansion project at the facility can only be a positive for the city. City Council members will have a chance to help further that expansion in the coming weeks by abandoning an unopened street that extends from the old Route 6 right of way along the southeast line of the Warren company’s property. Superior Tire & Rubber Corp.owns all the property adjacent to the unopened road, Randy Rossey, city codes officer, told council members, and the abandoned road ends at the Superior Tire property. A required public ...

Our opinion: Takes effort to boost downtown

It’s encouraging to hear that business owners saw increased foot traffic - and hopefully increased sales - through the two-week Sock Hop event that took place around the Easter holiday. Randy Rossey, city codes officer, shared with council members recently that business owners were happy with the benefits they saw from the two-week business scavenger hunt. There are 16 businesses participating, with shoppers invited to hop from shop to shop in search of a special handmade bunny. Shoppers could get a punch card at any participating business, find the bunny hidden in each shop and ...

Our opinion: School closures paying off

There were always two main reasons to consider closing high school buildings in Youngsville and Sheffield - money and quality of education. The budget proposed by Warren County School District staff last week accomplishes one of those two goals. Taxes won’t increase as part of next year’s budget, though spending in the $93.86 plan increases by $2.29 million. That’s what additional aid and saving $1.7 million will do for a budget. The $1.7 million saved by closing the schools equates to 3.82 mills that don’t have to be raised on the backs of property owners in the county. ...