Weekend’s high winds lead to brush fires across region, proactive response from fire departments
High winds in southwestern Pennsylvania had first responders on high alert over the weekend, and the concerns went beyond downed trees and power lines. Brush fires were reported in Indiana Township, Tarentum, Reserve, Unity Township, Hempfield and other local municipalities. The potential for the high winds to carry a spark...
Young Leechburg entrepreneurs take over Boulder Landscape, Excavation and Supply
Be it residential lawn care or an industrial project, folks in the Leechburg and Gilpin area will be seeing some familiar faces as the weather heats up. Leechburg natives Chace Wadsworth, 23, and John Wagner, 24, are cornering the local market in landscaping services. The men have worked together since...
Verona shooting was targeted, police say
A shooting Sunday night in Verona was not a random act of violence, according to borough police Chief Thomas Dessell. “This was targeted,” Dessell said. As of Monday morning, police had not identified a suspect, he said. First responders were called around 10:20 p.m. to the 500 block of Vogels...
Ministry in motion: Penn Hills church helps others through clothing outreach, handmade goods
Mt. Hope Community Presbyterian Church in Penn Hills has more than just worship services going on under its roof. Downstairs, Wendy Redington leads a team of 11 faithful volunteers to stock the Clothesline Ministry. And on Thursday mornings, members of the Hearts and Hands Ministry are busy making a variety...
Verona Council appoints new full-time borough manager
Verona added a new member to its administrative team Tuesday night. Jacob Russell, 26, was unanimously appointed full-time borough manager, a position he will fill on Monday. According to council president Trish Hredzak, the borough received 12 applications for the position. She said the pool was narrowed to four candidates...
Penn Hills business owner, police support awareness, education surrounding naloxone
Kelly Anker wants to keep her neighbors healthy and informed. The owner of Kindred Curl in Penn Hills recently held a naloxone training session at her store along Frankstown Road. It was her first step to help introduce wellness initiatives to the neighborhood. Naloxone, perhaps best known by the brand...
Lower Burrell man charged with 2 counts of attempted homicide
A Lower Burrell man is facing two felony charges of attempted homicide after, police say, he traded gunfire with officers in February. Jordan Blaise Lindner, 29, is accused of firing shots into a home near Rodgers Drive and then at police officers during a standoff at his home next door....
Allegheny Township man facing more than 400 child pornography charges
An Allegheny Township man is facing nearly 450 felony charges relating to distribution and possession of child pornography. According to Pennsylvania’s Megan’s Law offender database, Jesse Lee Roberts, 38, has been registered as a tier-three sex offender since 2018. Allegheny Township police received a tip in January that Roberts was...
Retired WTAE news anchor Michelle Wright shares her love of reading with David Leech Elementary students
Students at David Leech Elementary School got a visit from a special guest Thursday afternoon during their Read Across America week. On the heels of her last morning broadcast, newly retired WTAE news anchor Michelle Wright made her second appearance at the elementary school to read to students. Children ranging...
Pittsburgh Brewing’s Brew Basket Hunt to return in April
The Easter Bunny is expected to leave something a little different than painted eggs at Pittsburgh Brewing Co. this year. The East Deer brewery will host its annual Brew Basket Hunt at 1 p.m. April 4. Adults 21 and older will be given free rein of the brewery’s outdoor campus...
Oakmont council discusses deer population solutions
Oakmont is taking the next steps toward deer population management. During Oakmont Council’s agenda meeting Tuesday, Luke Leonard, owner and operator of Suburban Whitetail Management, spoke about deer management program options available to the borough. Council member Deborah Ormay said 10% of Oakmont’s population responded to a borough survey sent...
Community-driven program aims to beautify West Deer business district
The Deer Lakes Regional Revitalization Committee is taking the next steps to beautify West Deer’s Russellton business district. Committee members are reaching out to business owners to gauge interest in a Russellton Neighborhood Facade Program, said committee president Leonard Verdetto. The Revitalization Committee is considering applying for various grants that...
Riverview School District students to perform ‘The Addams Family’ musical
The iconic “creepy and kooky, mysterious and spooky, and altogether ooky” Addams Family is coming to the Riverview School District. Riverview students ranging from seventh to 12th grade will embody the eccentric family in “The Addams Family” musical starting March 12. Despite opening night being yet to come, the show...
‘Buyers of last resort’: Experts weigh in on Namdar’s Macy’s purchase
Despite owing Frazer and Allegheny County millions of dollars in fines, the owner of the Pittsburgh Mills mall campus is purchasing real estate there. It’s a practice that experts say is uncommon but not prohibited. “In general, I mean, if real estate’s for sale, and you have a buyer and...
Deer Lakes School District welcomes new assistant superintendent
The Deer Lakes School District added a new member to its administration team. On Feb. 17, the school board unanimously voted to hire Beth Hutson of Oakmont as the district’s assistant superintendent. According to her contract, posted on the board’s BoardDocs page, she will begin the position with a starting...
Leechburg Area Drama Club looks for donations for spring musical
The Leechburg Area Drama Club is a little more than $1,600 away from having its own “Secret Garden.” With opening night scheduled for April 6, the club has a $3,500 goal set to put on a seventh-through 12th grade production of “The Secret Garden.” According to the school’s Schoolfundr fundraising...
ICE arrests Sewickley father whose daughter, 6, is battling cancer
Federal immigration agents conducting a traffic stop Sunday arrested a Sewickley resident and Brazil native whose young daughter is undergoing cancer treatment at a Pittsburgh hospital. A spokeswoman for the family said four Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents pulled over a car carrying Bruno Guedes da Silva, 38, and his...
Keystone Wheelchair Games provide a platform for para-athletes in Pittsburgh
Lester L. Bennett’s goal for Friday was to go home with his neck feeling a little heavier. It was Bennett’s second year competing for medals in the Keystone Wheelchair Games. “I’m here to kick everybody’s butts,” Bennett, 50, of Homestead said. The games are an annual, winter-based adaptive sports competition...
Gilpin begins ‘preventative measures’ in regard to data centers
In the coming months, the Gilpin supervisors plan to be proactive by having conversations about how best to regulate potential data centers in the township. During a meeting Tuesday, the supervisors authorized township Solicitor Tim Miller to draft an amendment to the township’s zoning ordinances regarding data centers. “Right now,...
Pittsburgh area expected to see some snow this weekend
While Pittsburghers are expected to see some snow this weekend, don’t break out the shovels quite yet. “We are not forecasting anything like what we saw in January with the storm,” Colton Milcarek, a National Weather Service meteorologist said Friday morning. Milcarek said there will be some snow coming to...
Gilpin Township supervisors propose tax on skill machines and amusements
The Gilpin supervisors are discussing a tax that would affect owners of skill machines and mechanical amusement devices. Supervisor Gary Hall said the township stands to make thousands of dollars by incorporating one. “It’s become very common in many municipalities, in most municipalities, that they’re taxing the ‘Pennsylvania skill games’...
Mt. Pleasant Area School District ends contract with Lifetouch for alleged Epstein connection
The Mt. Pleasant Area School District has joined a growing number of school systems nationwide in terminating its contract with photography giant Lifetouch. Superintendent Timothy M. Gabauer notified families of the decision in a letter sent Wednesday. The move follows community concerns regarding the company’s corporate ownership and indirect links...
Morning Roundup: Monessen teacher found with gun in school; flood watch issued for multiple counties
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Friday, Feb. 20: Monessen teacher found with gun in elementary school A Monessen City School District employee was found in possession of a gun while on school grounds Thursday, the district said in a letter to parents and guardians....
Pittsburgh Mills owner acquires Macy’s store marked for closure
The owner of the Pittsburgh Mills mall property in Frazer has acquired a new property. Residents don’t have to leave the mall to see it. According to the Allegheny County Real Estate portal, Pitt Realty LLC, purchased the Macy’s store attached to the mall. Pitt Realty is a limited liability...
Morning Roundup: Coroner called to crash; Woodland Hills School District faces audit; Pittsburgh deer management season ends
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Thursday, Feb. 19: Coroner called to crash in Butler County A portion of Route 8 in Butler County was reopened Wednesday evening following a crash Wednesday afternoon. According to TribLive news partner WTAE, Route 8, or Pittsburgh Road, in...
