Pittsburgh’s LGBTQIA+ commission seeking volunteers to serve as commissioners
Pittsburgh’s new LGBTQIA+ Commission is seeking applicants to serve as commissioners. Commissioners are required to either live or work in the city and will advise city officials on LGBTQIA+ issues in such areas as workforce development, employment, education, educational barriers, health, homelessness, housing barriers, and aging. Click here to apply....
Pittsburgh closes firefighter training facility over coronavirus concerns
Pittsburgh on Tuesday temporarily closed its firefighter training academy after one of the instructors reported covid-19 symptoms, the city reported Wednesday. Thirty-six recruits and instructors are now in quarantine, according to the city and Ralph Sicuro, president of International Association of Firefighters Local 1. “This decision was made out of...
Pittsburgh City Council passes bills designed to eliminate racial disparities
Pittsburgh City Council on Tuesday gave final approval for legislation that authorizes the creation of a racial equity commission and commits the city to a 10-point plan for erasing inequalities. Council approved both bills unanimously and Mayor Bill Peduto is expected to sign them. Councilman Ricky Burgess, one of the...
Pittsburgh plans to find space for historic abstract mosaic
Pittsburgh is planning to conduct a study to find suitable quarters for unique artwork dating to Pittsburgh’s first renaissance. City Council on Tuesday introduced a resolution that would authorize the hiring of Hill District-based E. Holdings for $25,000 to conduct a feasibility study on the “reconceptualization and reinstallation” of a...
Pittsburgh closing in on acquisition of former VA hospital in Highland Park
Pittsburgh is on the verge of finally securing ownership of a former Veterans Affairs hospital complex in Lincoln-Lemington with plans to create a public safety training facility for police, firefighters and paramedics that would be open to other departments in the region. City Council on Tuesday introduced a resolution that...
Parents sue Kennywood, Sandcastle, Idlewild over mask requirements
The parents of four children with medical conditions are suing Kennywood, Sandcastle Waterpark and Idlewild & SoakZone, contending their ownership violated federal law and Pennsylvania Health Department coronavirus orders by requiring all patrons to wear face masks. The federal lawsuit contends that Palace Entertainment, parent company of the parks, has...
Unions cancel Pittsburgh’s annual Labor Day Parade
The coronavirus pandemic has torpedoed Pittsburgh’s annual Labor Day Parade. Officials on Friday announced that the parade held for decades in Downtown Pittsburgh would be replaced with volunteer community service programs conducted by union members throughout Labor Day weekend and a major blood drive and food giveaway on Labor Day....
Pittsburgh controller says coronavirus losses are significant, but manageable
Pittsburgh Controller Michael Lamb predicted the coronavirus pandemic would cost the city $60 million in revenue losses this year, but said the financial outlook isn’t as bleak as it originally seemed. Lamb on Thursday released his Popular Annual Financial Report for 2019, a summary version of the Comprehensive Annual Financial...
Pittsburgh joins Philadelphia, anti-gun groups in support of Harrisburg firearm regulations
Pittsburgh is joining Philadelphia and anti-gun groups in a legal brief supporting Harrisburg’s gun control ordinances. Firearm Owners Against Crime, a Second Amendment rights organization, and several of its members sued Harrisburg in 2015, contending the city’s ordinances were preempted by a state law that prohibits municipalities from regulating firearms....
Pittsburgh closing Mellon Park indoor tennis facility
Pittsburgh is closing its indoor tennis facility at Mellon Park after today because of coronavirus concerns. The Mayor’s Office reported that patrons and staff expressed concerns about airborne spread of covid-19. The “tennis bubble” will be closed indefinitely. The city encouraged players to use outdoor courts in more than 50...
Pittsburgh Council hears public testimony on bill to expand police review board power
Pittsburgh City Council plans to amend a bill that would give the city’s Citizen Police Review Board more power to investigate police misconduct and civil rights complaints against officers, one of the sponsors said Wednesday during a virtual public hearing. Councilman Ricky Burgess said he is working with Mayor Bill...
Pittsburgh Housing fund providing new roofs for 24 city homeowners
Twenty-four Pittsburgh homeowners are getting new roofs this summer through the city’s Housing Opportunity Fund and a significant charitable donation, the Mayor’s Office reported Tuesday. The “Roof-a-Thon” program has so far replaced a dozen roofs across Pittsburgh since it began in early June. Owners receive grants ranging from $30,000 to...
Pittsburgh Council creates LGBTQ commission, passes bill to address racial inequities
Pittsburgh City Council Tuesday unanimously approved legislation designed to help erase Pittsburgh’s racial imbalances and make the city more welcoming to LGBTQIA+ people. Members passed the separate bills unanimously and without discussion. Councilmen Ricky Burgess and R. Daniel Lavelle pushed legislation that includes a five-point platform for improving conditions for...
More than 10K sign up for Trump boat parade, rally in Pittsburgh, organizer says
Local supporters of President Trump are planning a boat parade and rally in Pittsburgh on Saturday, saying they are encouraging participants to wear masks and maintain social distance in response to a soaring covid-19 infection rate in Allegheny County. Tricia Cunningham of Washington Township, founder of the local grassroots group...
Pittsburgh council poised to create LGBTQ commission, address racial divide
Pittsburgh City Council on Wednesday advanced separate bills that would require an increased effort to rebuild business districts in minority-populated neighborhoods and create a commission to help resolve problems faced by the city’s LGBTQIA+ residents and visitors. Councilmen Ricky Burgess and R. Daniel Lavelle, the city’s only two Black council...
Allegheny County, Pittsburgh offices to close Friday for July 4th
Federal, state, Allegheny County and city of Pittsburgh offices will be closed Friday for the Fourth of July holiday. Parking at meters in the city will be free through the weekend. The Pittsburgh Parking Authority will be closed and has suspended meter enforcement. Garbage collection in the city will continue...
Labor, business group says Pittsburgh can become high-tech manufacturing hub
A group of labor, business and civic officials on Tuesday laid out a plan for Western Pennsylvania’s traditional industries to partner with emerging technology companies to create manufacturing jobs. Members of the Pittsburgh Works Together coalition said during a virtual news conference that following the plan could make Western Pennsylvania...
Pittsburgh Council nixes consultant for review of police actions during protests
Pittsburgh City Council on Tuesday voted down a request by the Citizen Police Review Board to hire a Texas-based company for an independent review of police actions during recent protests. The review board had requested $25,000 to hire Densus Group to assess police use of force during protests Downtown and...
Pittsburgh Council proposes ban on use of chokeholds by police
Pittsburgh City Council plans to introduce legislation today that would ban police officers from using chokeholds and neck restraints on suspects. The Pittsburgh Police Bureau Policy Manual now bans such restraints except when an officer’s life is threatened: “PBP personnel are not authorized to use neck restraints or similar control...
Peduto names new Pittsburgh planning director
Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto on Monday promoted Andrew Dash to director of the Department of City Planning. Dash, 39, of the city’s Manchester neighborhood, had served as acting director since June 2019 following the resignation of Director Ray Gastil, who left for a job at Carnegie Mellon University. Dash’s appointment...
DA seeks stiffer sentence for Pittsburgh rare book thieves
The Allegheny County District Attorney is asking a judge to reconsider sentencing for two men who stole rare books from the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, arguing they should go to jail instead of serving home confinement. District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr.’s office on Friday filed a motion with Allegheny...
Pittsburgh convention center food service provider laying off 203 employees
The food and beverage provider for the David L. Lawrence Convention Center is laying off 203 employees effective Aug. 1 because of the coronavirus pandemic, according to a notice provided to the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry. Labor and Industry reported it received notification from Chicago-based Levy Premium Foodservice...
Pittsburgh begins work on bicycle connection to Point State Park
Work began this week on a long-awaited connection designed to plug a gap in the Great Allegheny Passage hiking and biking trail between Point State Park in Pittsburgh and Washington, D.C. Pittsburgh’s Department of Mobility and Infrastructure announced the start of construction on a two-lane bike track from Stanwix Street...
Pittsburgh forms task force to handle explosion of fireworks complaints
Fireworks complaints in Pittsburgh have increased by nearly 400% so far this month over the same period in 2019 and the city plans to address it through increased enforcement. The city on Friday announced the creation of a task force, which includes police and Fire Bureau investigators, to actively enforce...
Groups plan $1.1M historical restoration of path in Pittsburgh North Side park
Pittsburgh’s landmark Allegheny Commons Park in the North Side is about to receive a $1.1 million historical facelift. The Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy on Thursday announced plans for restoration of the North Promenade, a path paralleling North Avenue and running almost the length of the park. Plans call for a paved,...
