Breaking News

Editorials

The Mill project needs more sustained push

Altoona — its officials and residents — would be remiss if they were nonchalant about the continuing vacant status of The Mill project, which is near the former Bon Secours Hospital site (before that, Mercy Hospital). Any community with an unused or underused asset like this one would be foolish to be content with waiting for someone to “come knocking,” rather than mustering resources to aggressively seek a tenant or tenants to inject life and vitality into what exists. Over about the past six decades, stemming from the seeds planted during the early redevelopment years, the ...

Election letter deadline 4 p.m. Friday, Oct 14

Letters concerning the Nov. 8 general election or candidates running in the election must be received in the Mirror’s newsroom by 4 p.m. Friday, Oct. 14. There is a limit of one letter per person in each election cycle. To be considered for publication, election-related letters cannot exceed 150 words and must include the author’s name, complete home mailing address and telephone number for verification. Because of the volume of letters, the Mirror cannot acknowledge letters exceeding 150 words, and they won’t be published. Letters can be emailed to ...

Fentanyl epidemic can’t be dismissed

Pick up a newspaper these days, turn on a TV newscast, or catch reports on the internet or from wherever other source, and you are destined to get the latest updates on the Florida hurricane recovery efforts, the ups and downs of the stock market, the goings-on involving the Jan. 6 investigation, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the abortion issue, as well as developments on the NFL front, Major League Baseball and the start of the NHL season. Meanwhile, Wednesday evening brought the news of the decision by the OPEC+ oil-exporting countries to cut production sharply to support sagging ...

Prospect deserves deeper dive

Altoona residents who value the existence of Prospect Pool have cause for cautious optimism about the pool’s future. On Sept. 26, the city council provided a tentative endorsement to keeping the pool in operation next summer if costs are not prohibitive. However, the pool was not without many problems during the summer, and council members — commendably — were not reluctant to let their feelings be known about what transpired. The only way to resolve and move beyond the pool’s problems is to continue to discuss them openly, regardless of who would prefer less visible ...

Holidays loom: Stay ahead of staff shortage

As the year-end holidays creep ever closer — along with the beefed-up consumer spending that generally goes along with them — businesses already are knee-deep in the annual task of trying to improve their appeal to everyone who will be spending money. As the weeks ahead approach and pass, some businesses will be relying on successful strategies of the past that allowed them to capitalize on customers’ buying preferences and loyalties. However, for many others, the current uncertain national economy poses challenges that will test merchants’ best instincts, as well as their ...

Keller deserving recipient

Shining rays of sun on some good news: The Blair County Chamber of Commerce’s Lifetime Achievement award is the most prestigious individual award a local business person can attain. Over the 20-year history of the award, many of the community’s giants in business have been honored. Which is why we feel good for the 20th recipient, Joe Keller, founder of Keller Engineers of Hollidaysburg. Keller, 68, will be recognized Oct. 17 at the Blair County Convention Center. He was a Pennsylvania Small Business Person of the Year in 2008 and a Penn State University Alumni Fellow ...