City of Lancaster property violation notices could rack up frequent flyer mileage.In August alone, the city sent notices to property owners in Tampa and Hollywood, Fla.; St. Marys, Kan.; Fort Mill, S.C.; Hempstead, N.Y.; and Clovis, Calif.Director of Economic Development and Neighborho...

 
Two boys sleep in a car and use an electric heater to keep warm, running an extension cord into their family's crowded apartment.A girl showers at her high school rather than endure the long, cold walk to shower at a campground in winter.A family that can't afford toilet paper resorts ...

 
Sitting on the living room sofa in her Mountville townhouse, Iris Vasquez feels as if she is finally at home.Where pictures of models in store-bought frames hung on the wall months ago, today family photos and other decorations are in place.Months ago, she was embarrassed by being home...

 
Every community could use someone like Lisa Riggs, president of the James Street Improvement District since it started in March 2003."My passion is strengthening urban communities and we are doing that in big and small ways every day," she said.The JSID (jsidlancaster.org) mission "pro...

Lancaster housing inspectors issued the following citations for property violations to city landlords in March:• William H. McMichael III, commercial building, 451 E. Mifflin St.: 38th citation for failure to obtain certificate of occupancy.• Philip and Paul A. Gable, 580 Panther Branch Ro...

 
In Remodeling Magazine's most-recent list of the top 100 remodeling markets in the country, Lancaster County ranks 86th.But that's no surprise to Joe Halstead, president of Shakespeare Home Improvement.After the tough economy slammed remodelers in 2009, last year was a good one for bus...

In October 2008 a fire ripped through row homes in the 300 block of North Second Street in Columbia, severely damaging the properties. A caller asked Lookout Lancaster to check on their status.Turns out it was a timely call.According to Columbia Borough Code Enforcement Officer Jeff Helm, the boroug...

And it was all due to a squirrel.A web of power lines caught fire in East Lampeter Township on Saturday morning, setting off alarms and cutting off power to more than 600 local homes and businesses.Around 8 a.m., county emergency dispatchers received "multiple, multiple calls," of power lines down a...

 
Two single mothers who want to continue living in a house in Millersville with their combined families are taking their fight to city hall.Or, more specifically, the borough zoning hearing board.A Nov. 18 hearing has been scheduled to discuss an appeal by Eve Wile and Heather Young.Wil...

Filing and painting finger and toe nails has become a big business in Lancaster and throughout the country.Women like the look of carefully manicured nails, polished to perfection. An increasing number of men are going for manicures, too.Fifteen years ago there were approximately a dozen nail salons...

Special foot razors and rasps used for cutting corns and calluses from feet are sold in pharmacies, beauty supply shops and other commercial outlets.But they are banned in nail salons and beauty parlors.What consumers do to their feet is their business.What cosmetologists and nail technicians are al...

Lancaster dermatologists rarely treat patients with serious nail-related problems.Dr. Bruce Brod, of Dermatology Associates of Lancaster, and Dr. John Legere, of Dermatology Physicians, say problems caused by nail salons or patients themselves are uncommon."One of our physicians recalls a patient wi...

Seventy-seven years after the Catholic Worker Movement began in the midst of the Great Depression, the first Catholic Worker House in Lancaster County will soon open its doors.The brick row house at 41 W. Vine St., known as Corpus Christi House, is undergoing renovations and expects to receive its f...

The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture temporarily closed a Denver restaurant after finding roaches and "a probable rodent infestation" on the premises, according to an inspection report.The April 1 inspection of Beijing Chef III, 2350 N. Reading Road, uncovered 26 violations.Bobby McL...

Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture inspectors cited a Millersville restaurant with two violations Monday after patrons reported becoming ill.According to a department report, inspectors who checked the House of Pizza restaurant, 101 W. Frederick St., found insect spray and WD-40 lubricant stored...

Albert Boscov is not the retiring type.He was 76 when he cashed out his share in his family's department store chain and stepped down as its leader.But that didn't mean he stopped working. He simply switched jobs, putting aside the long hours at Boscov's but continuing to work at another...

Scott Martino hasn't had a regular paycheck since March, when he lost his job as executive chef and general manager at the Black Horse Restaurant in Denver.It was his second recession-related job loss in a year. He had been executive chef at the Restaurant at Doneckers in Ephrata when that busin...

At one time, Duane Hevener had 15 people on his payroll, and the shop next to his home in Mount Joy is still stuffed with tools."I've been in the [contracting] business 27 years," he said. "I know the business inside out."Among his former companies are Hevener Home Improvemen...

The American Legion Home Association of Elizabethtown was cited by state police liquor control enforcement officers Oct. 15 on five charges, including serving an intoxicated patron and violating laws for small games of chance.The latest citation's violations date from April, said Sgt. Mark J. Crossa...

Restoration of the Shreiner-Concord Cemetery, resting place of famed 1800s abolitionist Thaddeus Stevens, kicked into high gear Saturday afternoon as volunteers converged on the historic burial ground at West Chestnut and North Mulberry streets.More than 150 broken and sunken memorials, including th...