ALTOONA, BLAIR COUNTY -  Most homeowners across the region will get break on on their heating bills this coming winter. The same international economic conditions that  cut the cost of gasoline from last year will  make it cheaper to keep our homes conformable this coming winter. The price of home heating oil across the region topped out last year at well over $4 a gallon. Since then, the price has fallen dramatically. Home heating oil in this part of Pennsylvania is now selling for a little more than $2  a gallon. That's considerably lower than the average price of about  $3.40 a gallon that was in place at this time last year.
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Consumers who depend on natural gas to keep their homes warm will also see smaller heating bills this coming winter. Dominion peoples has cut its price for the fifth consecutive quarter. Natural gas bills are based on what the utility has to pay for its gas supplies. The price of natural gas on the international market has fallen by about  40 % from a year ago. ............................................
 Big changes at the Altoona Regional Health System will mean new life for the now empty section of the Station Mall in Altoona. The hospital system plans to renovate the property and develop it into a center for out patient services that are now provided on the main campus of the Altoona Hospital. Construction work includes a new Kopp Drug Store that is already being built in the parking lot of the former station mall. Funding for the out-patient center will come from a public private partnership that involves the Altoona Regional Health System. Construction is expected to wrap up by the fall of next year.