Pa. regulators assess how electric companies handled deadly April storm
A comprehensive report issued this week by the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission on the deadly April 29 storm in Southwestern Pennsylvania found utility companies’ preparations were “generally appropriate” but said there was room for improvement. The commission analyzed how electric companies responded to the massive storm whose 70-80 mph winds...
Pittsburgh investment manager pleads guilty to $3.7M wire fraud
A Pittsburgh investment manager pleaded guilty Wednesday to a single count of wire fraud to resolve accusations he diverted more than $3.7 million from a family’s investment fund. Thomas Pipich Jr., 74, will be sentenced May 12 in federal court. The maximum sentence can include up to 20 years in...
O’Connor tours Downtown with an eye to fixing it up
As Pittsburgh Mayor Corey O’Connor led a cadre of city officials on a walk through Downtown on Tuesday afternoon, he stopped every few blocks to point out something that could be improved. An old sign needed to be taken town. A sunken crosswalk should be fixed. Spray paint markings that...
O’Connor’s 1st executive order aims to streamline permitting process in Pittsburgh
On the campaign trail, Pittsburgh Mayor Corey O’Connor vowed to attract more businesses, housing and development. On Tuesday, his first full day as mayor, O’Connor signed an executive order that he hopes will be a starting point for that goal. The order gives various city departments — including the Department...
Amy Weise Clements becomes acting Allegheny County controller
Amy Weise Clements on Monday stepped into the role of acting Allegheny County controller, replacing Corey O’Connor, who left the post to become Pittsburgh’s mayor. Weise Clements has served as deputy controller since O’Connor’s predecessor, Chelsa Wagner, appointed her in 2012. Previously, she was Allegheny County’s budget director for eight...
Pittsburgh council welcomes fresh face to its ranks, District 2’s Kim Salinetro
Pittsburgh’s newest City Council member, Democrat Kim Salinetro, who will represent the city’s West End neighborhoods, took the oath of office on Monday. Salinetro was sworn in alongside returning council members Anthony Coghill, D-Beechview, R. Daniel Lavelle, D-Hill District, and Erika Strassburger, D-Squirrel Hill, all of whom won another term....
Corey O’Connor sworn in as Pittsburgh’s 62nd mayorVideo
Corey O’Connor, the Squirrel Hill native, former Pittsburgh councilman and champion of paid sick leave and gun reform, on Monday became the city’s 62nd mayor, following in the footsteps of his father and vowing to foster growth and opportunity for his hometown. District Judge James J. Hanley administered the oath...
Liberty Avenue lane closures in Pittsburgh’s Strip District to start Monday
A portion of Liberty Avenue in the Strip District will close starting Monday as Pittsburgh Water replaces a water valve under the road. Three of four lanes of the street will be closed from 2525 to 2625 Liberty Ave., including both outbound lanes and one inbound lane. A detour will...
Taxes, rent, ballots: What the new rule on postmarks means for your mail
People relying on the U.S. Postal Service to mail time-sensitive documents may need to take additional steps to make sure postmarks aren’t late if they’re cutting it close to key deadlines. A new federal rule that took effect last week clarifies the postmark — the stamp that provides proof the...
O’Connor to be sworn in as Pittsburgh’s 62nd mayor in ceremony at Carnegie Music Hall
Corey O’Connor will be sworn in as Pittsburgh’s 62nd mayor Monday afternoon in a ceremony at Carnegie Music Hall in the city’s Oakland neighborhood. O’Connor, who previously served on Pittsburgh City Council for a decade before becoming Allegheny County controller, defeated outgoing Mayor Ed Gainey in the Democratic primary. He...
Ousted after 1 term, Ed Gainey leaves complex legacy as Pittsburgh’s 1st Black mayor
Ed Gainey swept into office four years ago as Pittsburgh’s first Black mayor, vowing to be a changemaker who would reimagine policing, make the city affordable for everyone and uplift minority voices. He strode into City Hall with bold ambitions. He was immediately confronted with challenges. Gainey had been in...
Pittsburgh Councilwoman Theresa Kail-Smith retires
After 16 years on Pittsburgh City Council, Theresa Kail-Smith is retiring. That doesn’t mean she plans to stay away from council chambers, however. Kail-Smith said she expects to return to offer her perspective during the public comment periods that open each meeting. “Being a council member’s not all glitz and...
Pittsburgh invokes eminent domain to seize Homewood apartment building
Pittsburgh City Councilman Khari Mosley is invoking the city’s eminent domain powers in an effort to preserve a 100-unit apartment complex in Homewood as affordable housing. “We’re really trying to do three things: prevent displacement, preserve affordable housing and prevent the property from going into the hands of another bad...
Pittsburgh council votes to scrap contracts for $6M master plan, but Gainey refuses
Pittsburgh City Council on Monday voted to cancel a pair of contracts prematurely for a 25-year master plan, which could save millions of dollars — but Mayor Ed Gainey said he won’t abide by the decision. The $6 million comprehensive plan is meant to guide zoning and development through 2050....
Tax trifecta: Pittsburgh property owners take it on the chin
For Pittsburgh property owners, there’s no escaping a triple tax whammy. The city and school district are raising property taxes in 2026, piling on the pain of a 36% hike by Allegheny County that took effect this year. With the three tax increases, a Pittsburgh resident with a property assessed...
Where was Coghill? Veteran Pittsburgh councilman misses key budget vote
Sunday’s vote on the Pittsburgh budget wasn’t Anthony Coghill’s first rodeo. The Pittsburgh councilman, who was just elected to a third term, has voted on budgets each year since 2018. That track record is tarnished now. When the time came for a final City Council vote on the $693 million...
5 things to know about the Pittsburgh budget, tax hike approved by City Council
Pittsburgh City Council on Sunday approved a 2026 budget with a 20% property tax increase, the first tax hike the city has implemented in more than a decade. Council members and Pittsburgh residents were starkly divided over the tax increase. No tax hike was included in Mayor Ed Gainey’s initial...
Pittsburgh City Council approves 2026 budget with 20% property tax increase
Pittsburgh City Council voted Sunday to raise property taxes by 20%, down from an earlier proposal for a 30% tax hike. Council supported the 20% tax hike — the first increase in more than a decade — in a 6-2 vote after hours of deliberation Sunday. “I do feel this...
Pittsburghers share mixed opinions on significant tax hike proposal as council remains divided over budget options
About 24 hours before Pittsburgh City Council is scheduled to vote on a 2026 budget, council members remained divided on whether to cut services, raise taxes or find a middle ground that combines both approaches. Council on Sunday will take preliminary and final votes on the tax increase and budget....
Pittsburgh City Council continues to hammer out 2026 budget as vote deadline nears
Pittsburgh City Council members failed Thursday to hash out all their differences over the 2026 budget they’ll vote on this weekend and temporarily left unanswered the biggest question: Will there be a tax hike? In a daylong meeting, council spent hours debating preliminary votes on dozens of amendments to the...
Point State Park upgrades finish early as Pittsburgh preps for 2026 NFL Draft
A $3.4 million upgrade to Downtown Pittsburgh’s Point State Park is done ahead of schedule, months in advance of the 2026 NFL Draft. The 36-acre park, which sits at the confluence of Pittsburgh’s three rivers, will be the site of some of the draft activities in April, as well as...
ICE involved as feds violently detain Latino man in Mt. Washington
Neighbors living on Norton Street in Pittsburgh’s Mount Washington neighborhood woke Wednesday morning to sounds of screaming. Witnesses told TribLive they watched federal agents hit, tackle, pepper spray and arrest a Latino man between 8 and 8:30 a.m. “This is a new level of violence than we’ve seen in the...
Pittsburgh scraps plan for $6.9M salt storage unit amid budget crunch
A salt storage dome along Saw Mill Run Boulevard in Pittsburgh’s Duquesne Heights neighborhood is so dilapidated there are holes in the concrete, the steel is corroding and the ventilation system stopped working. “The building itself is a safety hazard,” said Chip Gaul, assistant director of the Department of Public...
Pittsburgh City Council grants historic designation to Westinghouse Park
In 1871, George Westinghouse bought a property in Pittsburgh’s Point Breeze neighborhood that would be his home for the next 50 years. He built a mansion called Solitude, where he would conduct experiments, dig a gas well and create a personal laboratory as he became a flourishing inventor and engineer....
Pittsburgh mulls skipping annual $10M earmark for anti-violence program
Pittsburgh City Council has promised nothing is off limits as it tries to fix what members claim is a broken budget. On Tuesday council President R. Daniel Lavelle put his money where his mouth is. The Hill District Democrat proposed deferring a $10 million payment next year to a program...
