Brian C. Rittmeyer stories, Page 127
New Kensington school builds patio for relocated Ten Commandments monumentVideo
It’s been almost two years since a Ten Commandments monument removed from Valley High School under a federal court agreement was relocated to Mary Queen of Apostles School in New Kensington. Soon, the monument’s new home will be complete. Work started this week on a patio surrounding the 6-foot-tall monument...
Gatto Cycle Shop celebrating 55th anniversaryVideo
George J. Gatto has been president of Gatto Cycle Shop for the past 20 years, but he’s worked for the family business for most of his life and most of the company’s 55-year existence. “I started cleaning oil spots off the floors and building bicycles” at the age of 11...
Music of all types featured at New Kensington ‘Band Blast’
Nearly two dozen bands are scheduled to perform Sunday at the sixth annual “Band Blast” at Memorial Park in New Kensington. The lineup features 11 groups playing between noon and 8 p.m. on the main stage, and another 11 scheduled to appear on the second stage. Admission is $5. Gates...
Port Authority moving Tarentum bus stop at borough’s request
A Tarentum bus stop will be moving at the borough’s request. Port Authority of Allegheny County is moving the stop now at Lock Street and Fourth Avenue about 250 feet away to Fourth and Hickory Way. The change takes effect Sept. 1, according to a Port Authority sign posted at...
45 years ago, ‘unknown band’ Rush played Pittsburgh’s Civic Arena
The concert promoter didn’t want them, the lead singer was so buzzed he didn’t know how they did, and their performance garnered only a single sentence in a review published in the Valley News Dispatch a week later. Rush was an unknown band from Canada when they played the Civic...
Tarentum fires public works laborer facing strangulation charge
Tarentum Council fired a public works laborer who is accused of attacking and threatening to kill a 17-year-old summer worker. At a special meeting Tuesday, council voted 6-1 to fire Timothy Dzugan effective immediately. Councilman Tim Cornuet cast the only vote against firing Dzugan. He declined to comment on his...
Highlands gets no offers for Fawn school property
Highlands School District didn’t get any offers to buy the district’s former elementary school in Fawn. School board President Debbie Beale said the district will try again to find a buyer for the 15-acre property at 5591 Ridge Road. In the meantime, the building could be used for storage, Beale...
Police seek pickup driver in Belvedere Hotel fire investigation
State police want to find the driver of a pickup seen in the area of the Belvedere Hotel in Oklahoma Borough before it was destroyed by fire July 23. State police said on Twitter that a Dodge Ram made between 1999 and 2002 was seen in the area shortly before...
Gas prices could continue to fall despite OPEC production cut talks, analyst says
Drops in gas prices could slow in the weeks ahead as some OPEC members talk about cutting oil production to stem the recent drop in oil prices, said Patrick DeHaan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy. “However, a production cut from oil producers may be more akin to putting lipstick...
Festival to showcase rejuvenated Alcoa property in New Kensington
A one-day festival featuring art, music and food is growing into a three-day affair for its second go ’round. The first Arts, Beats and Treats was held on one day last year at AK Valley Park, the former Alcoa research center on Freeport Road in New Kensington. This year, the...
Inspections to restrict Hulton, Tarentum bridge traffic
Inspections will restrict traffic on the Hulton and Tarentum bridges next week, PennDOT announced Friday. There will be lane restrictions in each direction on the Hulton Bridge over the Allegheny River between Freeport Road in Harmar and Second Street in Oakmont between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. Monday and Tuesday....
Round Hill Spray Park reopens after weeklong closure
Round Hill Spray Park is reopening on Friday after having been closed for a week, the Allegheny County parks and health departments announced. The Elizabeth Township spray park had been closed since Aug. 2 because bacteria levels in the water exceeded Health Department regulations. The system was drained of water,...
Harrison Recreation Board seeks residents to help with community events
Harrison’s Recreation Board is already looking ahead to the holidays and seeking residents interested in helping put together the township’s annual Christmas festival and other community events. The seven-member board isn’t looking for new, formal board members, just those able to lend a hand, Commissioner Chuck Dizard said. In addition...
Ceremonial groundbreaking pauses work on New Kensington’s Pioneer ApartmentsVideo
An $18.2 million apartment and office building under construction in New Kensington is the latest example of the city’s revitalization, Mayor Tom Guzzo said at a ceremonial groundbreaking for the Wesley Family Services project Thursday. Work on Pioneer Apartments, a four-story building that will house 36 apartments and offices for...
Piece of Kennywood’s Log Jammer up for auction to benefit children’s charity
Miss the Log Jammer? Think taking it down was the worst thing Kennywood could have ever done — before the Potato Patch cheese and ketchup controversies this year? The West Mifflin amusement park has given one of its old Log Jammer vehicles to “Give Kids the World,” a nonprofit that...
Blackburn’s to raze Tarentum building for parking lot
Blackburn’s Physician’s Pharmacy plans to tear down a building it recently bought on East Fourth Avenue in Tarentum and use the lot for employee parking. The Tarentum-based company is working on getting the required permits from Allegheny County and bids from contractors to take down the building at 326 E....
‘Where’d You Go, Bernadette,’ filmed in New Kensington and Pittsburgh, coming to theatersVideo
After several delays, a movie filmed in New Kensington and other Pittsburgh-area locations two years ago is coming to theaters. ”Where’d You Go, Bernadette” is being released Aug. 16 but will hit area theaters — including Cinemark at the Pittsburgh Mills, AMC at the Waterfront in West Homestead, and Regal...
Donations sought for 2020 New Kensington fireworks
The Fourth of July wasn’t that long ago, but organizers of New Kensington’s fireworks display already are thinking about next year. And they’re worried. Proceeds from a basket raffle during a block party preceding this year’s display were supposed to help pay for next year’s fireworks. Rain on July 6...
Asbestos could limit Tarentum demolitions
Asbestos could reduce the number of dilapidated buildings that Tarentum will be able to tear down this year. The borough expects to receive the results of asbestos testing on 28 properties this week, code enforcement officer Anthony Bruni said. The borough paid Corwin Inspections $11,175 to do the testing. That...
New Kensington swears in police dog honoring slain Officer Brian ShawVideo
New Kensington Mayor Tom Guzzo swore in the newest member of the city’s police force Monday evening — after the new recruit was done scratching. Deuce, an almost 2-year-old Belgian Malinois, was acquired with the help of slain police Officer Brian Shaw’s family. His parents, Stephan and Lisa Shaw, and...
New Kensington Council approves liquor license transfer for Sheetz
New Kensington Council on Monday approved the transfer of a liquor license for a Sheetz in the city despite the objections of several residents, including one armed with a petition. A remodeling of the convenience store and gas station on Freeport Street will include an addition with seating for 30...
Tarentum police issue counterfeit money warning, seek suspect
Tarentum police are warning borough businesses about a man allegedly passing fake money. On its Facebook page, the department says it is asking for help identifying the man, who they allege is passing counterfeit $100 bills in the Tarentum area. He was described only as a black male. No other...
Prices at the pump fall in Pittsburgh, nationally
Average gas prices in the Pittsburgh region dropped 1.5 cents per gallon in the past week to $2.94 on Monday, according to the price-tracking website GasBuddy.com. That’s 1.4 cents per gallon lower than a month ago, and 19.8 cents per gallon lower than a year ago. The national average is...
18-year-old critical after being shot in Braddock
An 18-year-old man was in critical condition after being shot several times in Braddock early Friday morning, according to Allegheny County police. Police and paramedics went to the 200 block of 4th Street at 1:10 a.m. for a report of a man who had been shot. The man had been...
83-year-old woman reported missing in Greene County
State police are looking for a missing 83-year-old woman in Greene County. According to state police, Haddie B. Baysinger was last seen around 2 p.m. Thursday driving a Gator side-by-side utility vehicle through fields and woods. The vehicle was recovered but Baysinger had not been located as of Friday morning....
