GAZETTE THE CENTRE COUNTY
www.CentreCountyGazette.com
Fall festivals
October means foliage and a bevy of fall festivals in Centre County, from the Pumpkin Festival at Penn State’s Arboretum to the Punkin’ Chunkin’ Festival at Bald Eagle State Park. We offer a rundown of some of the highlights on this season’s schedule./Page 19
October 13-19, 2016
Volume 8, Issue 41
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Ex-Harris Township Lemont-Houserville school supervisor gets 18 merger ‘a step forward’ years for child porn By G. KERRY WEBSTER kerry.ccgazette@gmail.com
WILLIAMSPORT — A former Harris Township supervisor, who was also the former CEO of Boal Mansion, will spend the next 18 years in a federal correctional facility. Christopher G. Lee, 67, of Boalsburg was sentenced Oct. 7 after being convicted by a jury in March of production, receipt and possession of child pornography. The trial was held in Williamsport before U.S. District Court Judge Matthew W. Brann. According to information from the United State Department of Justice web site, the exdirector of Boal Mansion used his affiliation with the museum to give him access to teenage boys, who volunteered or worked at the museum. Some of these boys later became victims of his production of child pornography. U.S. Attorney Peter Smith said the jury returned the guilty verdicts after about two hours of deliberation. A jury of six men and six women also convicted Lee of possessing images of child pornography, including images of prepubescent children under the
CHRISTOPHER LEE age of 12. Lee also was convicted of obstruction of justice after asking a family member to remotely wipe recorded phone calls on Lee’s cell phone, which was in FBI custody. The investigation was conducted by the FBI and State College Police Department and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Meredith A. Taylor and Francis P. Sempa. Charges of coercion and transportation of minors for purposes of sexual activity are still pending against Lee. The court gave Taylor 30 days to decide if she wants to go to trial on the remaining charges.
McQUEARY JURY
THE LEMONT Elementary School was built in 1938 and houses pupils in grades K through 2. By G. KERRY WEBSTER kerry.ccgazette@gmail.com
STATE COLLEGE — The writing has been on the wall for 17 years now, but it finally looks like the Lemont Elementary School will close its doors. On Sept. 24, the State College Area School District Board of Directors decided to trim the number of elementary school project options from eight to four, effectively saving the Corl Street Elementary from closure. On Oct. 10, the district administration said it would recommend narrowing the options to just one after consultants recommended renovations and additions as costing less than new building. Regardless which option the board chooses, Lemont Elementary will close and combine with Houserville Elementary School.
G. KERRY WEBSTER/The Gazette
“It’s been my understanding that proposals to close Lemont Elementary and combine with Houserville got started in about 1999,” said Ashley Eveleth, Houserville/Lemont Elementary PTO president. “But this generation is really excited to finally becoming one school. It’s been talked about so long now. This is definitely a positive step forward for our district and our children.” Lemont Elementary School was built in 1938 and houses pupils in grades K through 2. The school is located between Mount Nittany and Beaver Stadium. When the reconfiguration occurs, Lemont Elementary will merge into its sister school, Houserville Elementary, which is located approximately a mile Lemont-Houserville, Page 6
Renovations, additions recommended for SCASD elementary schools By GEOFF RUSHTON statecollege.com
Associated Press file photo
A JURY of nine women and three men was empaneled this week in the whistle blower case filed by former Penn State assistant coach Mike McQueary, above, against the university. The trial is scheduled to start Monday in Bellefonte if the case is not settled first. Page 5 Police Blotter .................... 2 Opinion ............................ 9
Health and Wellness ...... 10 Education ....................... 12
STATE COLLEGE — The State College Area School District’s options for elementary school projects are coming further into focus, and a final decision could be made this month. Architect Jeff Straub from Crabtree, Rohrbaugh and Associates explained to the school board on Monday the firm’s analysis of options for new construction or additions and renovations for Houserville, Radio Park and Corl Street elementary schools. Straub said that after consulting with mechanical engineers and food consultants, CRA found that new construction for sections of Houserville and Radio Park would cost about $4 million more than additions and renovations to those same sections. For a 31,000-square-feet section at Radio Park, new construction would cost $2,469,300 more than renovating the space in the existing building shell. At
Community .................... 13 Fall Festivals ................... 19
Sports .............................. 23 Family Matters ............... 30
Statecollege.com photo courtesy of State College Area School District
RADIO PARK Elementary School. Houserville, new construction would cost $1,594,950 more. Renovations and additions for both buildings are estimated at about $19 million each. Renovations, Page 6
Around & In Town ......... 33 What’s Happening ......... 34
Puzzles ............................ 36 Business .......................... 37