Kellen Stepler stories, Page 23

It was Round 2 of raids against vape shops in Westmoreland County on Friday morning — this time, in Lower Burrell. Police seized items from three city businesses: Burrell Tobacco and Vape at 3087 Leechburg Road; Discount Vape in the Hillcrest Shopping Center; and a convenience store at 2700 Leechburg...

Lower Burrell resident Nancy Donaldson handles child care out of her Kenmont Avenue home. In the more than 25 years she has lived there, a school bus has picked up children at the end of her driveway. The pickups of two 7-year-old boys she cares for in the mornings continued...

With a goal of having a heavier police presence at two Arnold housing complexes, the Westmoreland County Housing Authority has pitched in to help pay police overtime costs. Arnold Mayor Shannon Santucci said the housing authority allocates $20,000 annually to pay city officers to pick up overtime shifts at Arnold...

An afternoon of perseverance and inclusivity is slated Saturday at the Lauri Ann West Community Center in O’Hara. The center, as part of the Sue Golier Memorial Speaker Series, will feature remarks from athlete and Special Olympics Hall of Famer Loretta Claiborne and Dan McCoy, a paralympic gold medalist and...

Several Kiski Area school officials planned to ride with students on one of the district’s bus routes Friday, a day after a bus on that route was involved in a three-vehicle crash at a busy intersection in Allegheny Township. No one was seriously injured in the crash, which happened around...

Allegheny Valley school administrators say a new anti-bullying program will build relationships among students and foster a greater sense of belonging at the district’s two schools. Fifth and sixth grade students at Acmetonia Elementary and seventh through 12th graders at Springdale Junior-Senior High School will participate in the Rachel’s Challenge...

Plans for renovations at two Springdale fields — one owned by the borough and the other by the Allegheny Valley School District — are moving forward. Springdale Council awarded a contract of about $580,000 to Harmar-based Panza Landscaping for installation of a retaining wall and sidewalks at Veterans Memorial Field,...

Another Springdale landmark will soon be demolished — but it’s not a former power plant. Allegheny Valley School District officials set an April 10 demolition deadline for the former Colfax Upper Elementary School. The 64,000-square-foot building served students in the Allegheny Valley School District for more than 90 years before...

Voters in Pennsylvania’s 40th District, which includes parts of the South Hills in Allegheny and Washington counties, will choose between incumbent Republican Natalie Mihalek and Democrat Peter Kohnke for representation in Harrisburg. Mihalek was first elected in 2019. Kohnke won a write-in nomination for the Democrats. The district covers Bethel...

Upper Burrell plans to raise its fire hydrant fee by one hundredth of a mill next year, which will result in an increase of a few dollars for property owners who pay the fee. All but 182 properties in the township pay the hydrant fee, which is charged to properties...

Incumbent Democrat Arvind Venkat is being challenged by Republican Nathan Wolfe for a seat in the state’s House of Representatives, covering parts of Allegheny County’s North Hills. The district includes Kilbuck, McCandless and Ohio townships, part of Hampton Township, and Ben Avon, Ben Avon Heights, Emsworth and Franklin Park boroughs....

A piece of Chartiers Valley Primary School is featured in a new exhibit at the Heinz History Center’s Western Pennsylvania Sports Museum. Memorabilia from the Kids of Steel program at the school will be displayed at the Sports Museum’s locker room-style exhibit. Student William Coperich’s running gear is highlighted. The...

Elizabeth Hartman gave her eighth grade students at Charles A. Huston Middle School a task at the beginning of this school year: create a sustainable space in a neglected courtyard at the Lower Burrell school. “We wanted to engineer the space to be more sustainable,” she said. “I wanted there...

Chartiers Valley Middle School has a new assistant principal. Regina Kim, 38, of Bethel Park, was hired by the school board Oct. 8. Kim has worked in Pittsburgh Public Schools for 16 years, where she taught English Language Arts, middle school mathematics and social studies at Pittsburgh Sunnyside. She also...

Bridgeville is eyeing a fix to a borough road damaged by a landslide this spring. Council on Oct. 14 authorized the public bid of a slope stabilization and retaining wall improvements project on Bluff Street Extension. A tentative bid opening is scheduled for Nov. 6. Borough Manager Joe Kauer said...

Low-interest loans from the state will pay for repairs to deteriorating sewage and water facilities in Lower Burrell, New Kensington and Allegheny Township. The Municipal Authority of Lower Burrell was awarded $9.55 million through PennVEST funding for the Chartiers Pump Station Project, state officials announced this week. The loan fully...

At first, Ariana Caltagarone wasn’t sure if she wanted to take on painting a 459-square-foot mural on the wall leading up to the Springdale Free Public Library. The library had requested proposals for a mural, and her mom, Melissa, encouraged her to apply. But the 16-year-old from Springdale Township had...

Burrell School District officials are grappling with one of the oldest questions in public education. For decades, schools generally have used the same format for organizing grade levels: the oldest students attend high school and the youngest students attend elementary or primary school. But what about those students in the...

After almost 100 years of serving students in the Burrell School District, Stewart Elementary in Lower Burrell will close its doors next year. The Leechburg Road school, which currently houses about 260 fourth- and fifth-grade students, will cease operations beginning with the 2025-26 school year. The school board made the...

Jeff Pennington moved to Harrison in April and started seeing skunks almost immediately. In the roughly half-year of living in the Campton section of the township, his dog has been sprayed by skunks twice. While Pennington has lived in rural areas before, he said he was surprised by the number...

Carrson Vioral likes to keep himself busy. The 18-year-old Deer Lakes senior has found himself immersed in the school’s basketball and bocce teams and plans to join the swim team this winter. He also is involved in the school’s coffee shop and Best Buddies, a club fostering mentorship and leadership...

Lower Burrell officials are looking to address what they call “inadequate stormwater management” on Reed Street. Existing infrastructure on the roadway leads to poor drainage and erosion of the ditch line along the road. Those issues, according to the city, not only compromise the integrity of surrounding infrastructure, but also...

With October being Fire Prevention Month and as colder weather moves in, Upper Burrell firefighters are urging homeowners to clean their furnaces and chimneys — and make sure their smoke detectors are in working order. Firefighters put out a blaze earlier this week in the Lincoln Beach section of the...

Here are some of the latest news items from this morning: Friday, Oct. 11: Landslide in Polish Hill A landslide impacted parts of Brereton Street, just past Haran Street, in Pittsburgh’s Polish Hill, early Friday morning. Pittsburgh Police responded to the landslide just before 3 a.m., where officers saw a...

Here are some of the latest news items from this morning: Thursday, Oct. 10: $5M scratch-off sold in Washington County A $5 million winning scratch-off ticket was sold at The Meadows Racetrack and Casino in North Strabane Township. The ticket, “MONOPOLY Own It All,” is a $50 game with prizes...