Citizens' Voice from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania • A1

VOICETHE $1Wednesday, January 18, 2023 High Low Mostly cloudy B8 2023 The Voice INSIDE TODAY Business C1 Classified C4-10 Crossword C2 Editorial A9 Health B7 Horoscope. C3 Lottery A2 Obits A10-12 Sports B1-8 A I EM FIRST LADY PLEADS FOR SUPPORT. C1 Caught a cold? Learn what you should eat and drink while sick. B7 BY MARC LEVY, BROOKE SCHULTZ AND MARK SCOLFORO ASSOCIATED PRESS HARRISBURG Demo- crat Josh Shapiro took the oath of office Tuesday to become the 48th governor of Pennsylvania, placing his hand on a stack of three Jew- ishBibles at an inaugural cer- emony outside the state Capi- tol to cap his blowout win in election. Shapiro, 49, takes over in the fifth-most popu- lous state with more experi- ence instategovernment than any of his recent predeces- sors, including six years as elected attor- ney general and seven as a state lawmaker.

Chief Justice Debra Todd administered the oath on a stage erected behind the ornate Capitol inHarrisburg, withU.S. Sens. BobCasey and John Fetterman, ex-gover- nors, members of Congress and several thousand others bundled against the coldwin- terday. am humbled to stand before you today as Pennsyl- 48th Shap- iro said at the start of his 23-minute speech with his wife and four childrennearby. thewinding road that has led to thismoment, I have been grounded in my faith and Shapiro succeeds term-lim- ited Democratic Gov.

Tom Wolf, and is the first governor of Pennsylvania since 1966 to be elected to succeed a mem- berof hisownparty. OnstagewithShapirowere just over a dozen people he including survivors of child sexual abuse, parents of children killed by gun vio- lence and the widows of two state trooperskilled in the line of aides say sym- bolize his work as attorney generalandhisbipartisanpol- icyaimsasgovernor. stories, your courage said, addressing them. they will motivate me every day as I serve as your gover- Shapiro did not spell out specific policy aims in his speech. But he emphasized themes that he has developed before and after the election: that voters are embracing democracy, rejecting extrem- ismandhate, andasking their leaders to protect their rights andmake progress on impor- tantquality-of-life issues.

Shapiro takes oath of office to become governor MATT ROURKE ASSOCIATED PRESS Democrat Josh Shapiro speaks after taking the oath of office to become 48th governor Tuesday at the state Capitol in Harrisburg. MATT ROURKE ASSOCIATED PRESS Shapiro is sworn in on Tuesday in Harrisburg. SWORN IN Please see SHAPIRO, Page A5 BY MICHAEL P. BUFFER STAFF WRITER YATESVILLE The Pittston Area School District will not spend any public funds to settle four sex abuse lawsuits involving former band director Brendan J. Carter, attorneys said Tues- day.

Insurancemoney will cov- er the cost to settle the four cases, and the school district also has resolved a lawsuit over insurance coverage of the Carter cases, Pittston Area Solicitor Sam Falcone said. Bethlehem attorney John E. Freund III, who rep- resented the district in the Carter cases, would not dis- close the settlement amount and said the tentative agree- ment to settle has not been completed yet. The district is not admit- ting to any wrongdoing or blame by settling, Freund and Falcone said. Attorney Neil T.

who repre- sented the four plaintiffs, confirmedhis clients anddis- trict settled and also disclose the amount. Carter, terminated in 2018. A county judge in 2021 ruledCarterwas a sexually violent predator and sentencedhim to seven to 14years inprisonforengaging in sexual conduct as well as inappropriate games and dareswithnineboys. Pittston attorney Thomas Killino represents two plain- tiffs who sued the school dis- trict and Carter. The district didnot settle those cases, Fal- cone said.

BY BOB KALINOWSKI STAFF WRITER NANTICOKE The developer who is proposing a multimillion-dollar hotel and convention center on the site of the former Hotel Sterling in Wilkes-Barre now has his sights set onNanticoke. Sam Syla is proposing to convert a blighted former Catholic school on East Noble Street into a luxury 10-unit apartment building. are going to do apart- ments, high- a i Syla said in a brief phone call Tuesday while he was traveling in Europe. The building, the former St. School, wasmost recently used as a storage facility for a construction company.

Syla has an agreement to buy the property at 6 E. Noble pending zoning approval. A hearing is set for Jan. 26 at 6 p.m. before the Zoning Hearing Board of the City of Nanticoke.

Syla is seeking parking and drive- way variances. the recent past use of the building and property, it is the opinion that the proposedmulti-fami- ly facility would be a more appropriate building use within the R-2 neighborhood. The building would be reno- vated to current codes and be appropriately landscaped to increase the value of the sur- appli- cation says. PENNSYLVANIA GOVERNOR INAUGURATION Developer eyes blighted former Catholic school SEAN MCKEAG STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER A developer wants to turn a blighted former Catholic school on East Noble Street in Nanticoke into luxury apartments. SYLA A luxury 10-unit apartment building is under proposal.

PITTSTONAREA NANTICOKE District settles four sex abuse cases Please see NANTICOKE, Page A5 No public dollars are being used for the settlement. Please see PITTSTON, Page A5 190 Welles Street Forty Fort, PA (570) 283-0524 www.valleyent.org IS A BLOCKED-UP NOSE SHUTTING DOWN YOUR LIFE? Nasal airway obstruction affects over 20 million people in the U.S. TIME TO BREATHE BETTER. If you are suffering from any of the symptoms below, call for an appointment to see if you are a candidate for this Minimally Invasive Treatment. Trouble breathing through the nose Nasal blockage Lack of air through the nose during exercise Nasal congestion Difficulty sleeping Long-lasting relief Can be performed right in your office Minimal to no downtime David l.

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