Brian C. Rittmeyer stories, Page 63
Arnold Furniture founder Gene Miller remembered as ‘a great man’
Gene and Dorothy Miller decided to go into the furniture business after she was hurt in a car crash and unable to continue working as a nurse. Using money from their family vacation budget, they started Arnold Furniture in 1975 — now in its third generation of family ownership and...
7th suspect in New Kensington murder accused of supplying gun used in attack
A man from Pittsburgh’s Carrick neighborhood is accused of providing a gun used in the attack that ended in the death of a man in New Kensington on Sunday. Raquan Carpenter, 18, is the seventh suspect New Kensington and Westmoreland County authorities named in the killing of Jason Donald Raiford,...
New owner plans to revitalize Heights Plaza in Harrison
The new owner of Heights Plaza says it will revitalize the long-troubled Harrison shopping center and add several new tenants by the end of the year. Benbrooke Realty Investment Co., a New York-based real estate manager, announced Thursday that it recently finalized its ownership arrangements for the nearly 30-acre shopping...
3 of 6 teens charged in New Kensington shooting death in custody
Three of the six teenagers charged in connection with a fatal shooting Sunday in New Kensington are in custody, including the 14-year-old police say was the shooter. Braedon Matthew Dickinson, 14, of Herminie; Amir Kennedy, 14, of New Kensington; and Jonathan Eugene Felder, 17, of Arnold are in custody. According...
Fire dancers among entertainers, artists participating in first Sizzling Summer Night in New Kensington
Saturday night promises to be a hot time in New Kensington. Nearly 50 businesses and a baker’s dozen of entertainers — including fire dancers — are scheduled to participate in New Ken’s Sizzling Summer Night, a first-time event running from 4 to 8 p.m. on Fifth Avenue between Eighth and...
New Kensington man dies after Harrison crash
A New Kensington man died after a motor vehicle crash Monday in Harrison. The Allegheny County Medical Examiner identified the man as Michael D. Booker, 33. Booker died shortly after 7:30 p.m. at an unidentified hospital. The crash, on River Road just past Mile Lock Lane, was reported about 6:45...
Pittsburgh-area gas prices remain high as state, national averages come down
Gas prices are coming down across the state and nation, but are hanging high in Southwestern Pennsylvania. According to AAA, the national average gas price Tuesday was $4.80, down 8 cents from a week ago. Pennsylvania’s average is about $4.88, down about 7 cents from a week ago. But average...
Upper Burrell center continues to serve as innovation hub for Alcoa successor Arconic Corp.
For decades, the Alcoa Technical Center was like a city within a township. Located in rural Upper Burrell, the sprawling research and development complex first developed in 1964 has its own ZIP code, wastewater treatment plant and fire and emergency medical response. About 1,200 people worked there at its peak...
Arconic preparing to sell 4 of 7 buildings at Upper Burrell technology center
Half of the buildings that make up what had long been the Alcoa Technical Center in Upper Burrell could become home to new businesses. Arconic Corp. is working with JLL, a commercial real estate firm, to place four of the seven buildings it owns at what is now the Arconic...
$30K grant to support Knead Community Cafe facade project in New Kensington
A facade project will improve access to a downtown New Kensington banquet hall while preserving a piece of the city’s history. Knead Community Cafe plans to begin work this summer on the Fifth Avenue facade of its adjacent banquet hall, Banquet on Barnes. Kevin Bode, who founded Knead with his...
Valley High graduate turns to classmate for cover art for debut novel
Opening a chiropractic office right after the covid pandemic started was terrible timing for Erik Beck, but it gave him time to write that book he always wanted to. “Here at the office, where it was pretty much having hours at a time uninterrupted to think, it ended up being...
Closed garage cancels New Kensington fireworks; display planned at AK Valley Park
There will be a professional fireworks display for Independence Day in New Kensington this year, but it won’t be put on by the city. The city will not be launching fireworks because the usual location, the Kensington Plaza Garage on Fourth Avenue, is closed and can’t be used, City Clerk...
Pine gears up for annual Community Day
All the things everyone loves are set to return for Pine’s Community Day. That means food, music, fun and, of course, fireworks. This marks the 32nd year for the event, which was missed in 2020 because of the covid pandemic. Joni Patsko, director of parks and recreation, has organized them...
Dedication set for bench in memory of New Kensington girl killed in 1979
The long-delayed dedication of a bench in memory of a New Kensington girl murdered more than 40 years ago is set for the first weekend in July. Relatives of Tiffany Renee Miller, including some from out of state, are expected to be among those attending the ceremony at 5 p.m....
New Kensington’s Peoples Library to develop courtyard in memory of Jane Glenn
New Kensington civic leader Jane Glenn is set to be remembered at the library that meant so much to her. Peoples Library will revamp the garden space behind the library into “The Jane Glenn Courtyard,” library Director David Hrivnak said. A banner announcing the future name and the library’s intentions...
Pennsylvania average gas price dips below $5
The average price for a gallon of gasoline has dipped back below $5 in Pennsylvania, according to AAA. The state’s average fell from $5 on Thursday to $4.98 on Friday, AAA reported. The average has come down 6 cents per gallon in the past week. The average cost has been...
Free seminar in New Kensington to cover firearm safety, responsible gun ownership
The basics of firearm safety and shooting fundamentals will be covered in a free seminar Sunday in New Kensington. “We want to make sure the people that are interested in protecting themselves, their family and their loved ones have the opportunity to have good training under their belts,” said Aaron...
Police: Obstructed stop sign contributes to Fawn crash that injures 1
An obstructed stop sign contributed to a two-vehicle crash in Fawn on Monday, according to township police Chief Tim Mayberry. The crash at Route 908 and Lardintown Road was reported about 3:45 p.m., according to Allegheny County 911. Mayberry said a pickup traveling north on Lardintown toward Route 908 collided...
Gas prices coming down but remain above $5 in Pennsylvania
The national average gas price has dipped below $5 per gallon, but not yet in Pennsylvania, according to GasBuddy and AAA. After peaking at about $5.02 on Thursday, the national average was $4.98 on Monday, according to AAA. The agency shows Pennsylvania’s average reaching $5.07 on June 12, but remaining...
Arnold food truck event returning for 1st full year
A food truck event held once in Arnold late last year is coming back this month, with monthly dates scheduled through October. The first of five Arnold community events will be held from 3 to 9 p.m. June 26 in a lot at 1701 Fifth Ave. Future dates — all...
50 years ago, Hurricane Agnes left indelible mark
Floods came with living in Freeport. “You just knew it was inevitable,” said Jim Scott, who grew up in a house on First Street with Buffalo Creek at one end and the Allegheny River at the other. “If you lived there, you took the chance of having to deal with...
New Kensington native’s new doughnut shop gives customers chance to customize treats
One’s imagination is the menu at a new doughnut shop in New Kensington. Customers of Lasko’s Little O’s can pick a glaze, choose toppings and select a drizzle to create a doughnut that maybe even Homer Simpson couldn’t dream up. “We’re like a Subway for doughnuts,” owner Mikey Lasko Sr....
Police: Man held woman hostage at gunpoint in New Kensington apartment
A man is accused of holding a woman hostage at gunpoint over two days this week in New Kensington. New Kensington police charged Drayvawn Lamont Smith, 24, described as homeless, with unlawful restraint, strangulation and simple assault. He was arraigned Thursday afternoon and is being held in the Westmoreland County...
Man found shot dead in Pittsburgh’s Knoxville
A 31-year-old man was found shot to death in Pittsburgh’s Knoxville neighborhood on Friday morning, according to Pittsburgh police. The victim, Alec Gary Wilbur, was pronounced dead around 7:20 a.m. Friday in the 200 block of McKinley Street, the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office said. Police said they found Wilbur...
Beaver County dog euthanized after being found tied up outside in heat
A dog in Beaver County was cooked from the inside after being left out in the heat Wednesday without shade or water, according to a report from Tribune-Review news partner WPXI-TV. The full-grown husky was euthanized because of heat stroke. Its owner, Di Xiao, 29, of Baden is charged with...
