Michael DiVittorio stories, Page 84
Monday night’s Freeport council meeting canceled due to lack of quorum
A Freeport council meeting scheduled for Monday night was canceled due to lack of a quorum, with at least one member on vacation, another at work, another in quarantine due to covid and a recently elected member resigning. The meeting was scheduled for 7 p.m. Items on the agenda included...
Leechburg Volunteer Fire Company members renew Christmas craft and vendor show
A Christmas Craft Show is returning to Leechburg after more than a decade of hibernation. It has been about 15 years since local artisans, craftsmen and other small businesses showcased their wares at the Leechburg Volunteer Fire Company’s social hall shortly before Christmas. Company President Brian Scott said volunteers who...
Buffalo Township officials to raise real estate taxes 9% for next year’s budget, purchase new police car and seal more roads
Buffalo Township officials plan to raise taxes by about 9% to help keep up with rising expenses. Supervisors have proposed hiking the tax rate from 5.5 mills to 6 mills to balance their 2022 budget. The 0.5-mill increase is projected to generate $30,000 for the township and cost the average...
Freeport VFD plans to replace aging engine with new Pierce apparatus, financing uncertain
Freeport firefighters plan to replace an aging truck with a new custom model. The volunteer fire department’s 1987 Mack Grumman fire engine failed a pump test this year. Fire Marshal Michael Greiser said maintenance of the 33-year-old truck has become taxing, with parts becoming harder to find. Its open cab...
Student busing in Plum School District no longer guaranteed
A shortage of bus drivers has prompted Plum School District officials to warn parents that transportation for their children can no longer be guaranteed. The district sent out an alert about their transportation issues Friday. District chief financial officer Ryan Manzer said they had tried to offset the driver shortage...
Thiel College fraternity’s walk to help UPMC Children’s Hospital Free Care Fund stops in Freeport
A Thiel College fraternity on a 100-mile walk benefiting the Free Care Fund at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh made an overnight stop at a Freeport church Friday. About 30 members of Phi Theta Phi made it more than 50 miles on foot from the Greenville college and through several...
New Kensington mayor’s community dinner ushers in holiday seasonVideo
A New Kensington holiday tradition has returned. The fire station along Fourth Avenue opened its doors Friday night for Mayor Tom Guzzo’s 11th annual community dinner. It wasn’t held last year because of covid. Festivities kicked off shortly before 5:30 p.m. with Christmas carols by the city tree at Ninth...
Steel City Con coming to Monroeville for final show of the year
Monroeville Convention Center’s last pop culture event of the year is fast approaching. Steel City Con is scheduled for Dec. 10-12 at 209 Mall Plaza Blvd. Thousands are expected to attend over the three days. The final con of 2021 is packed with familiar faces of the silver and small...
Death of driver who crashed into a Pittsburgh plasma clinic killing 2 employees inside is ruled a suicide
The death of a driver who crashed into plasma clinic in Pittsburgh’s Manchester neighborhood in June killing two more people and injuring others, has been ruled a suicide, according to an Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office report released Thursday. Ronald Morgan, 50, of McKeesport died around noon on June 12...
Leechburg-based charity to host holiday dinner for veterans, service members
A Leechburg nonprofit is hosting a dinner Sunday to show support for veterans and military personnel. Limited tickets are still available for the sixth annual Five Forces Christmas for Vets dinner. It’s being held at the Oklahoma Volunteer Fire Department’s School House Hall along Thorn Street in Oklahoma Borough. Guests...
Freeport Renaissance Association presents Small Town Christmas
Sleigh bells will be ringing in Freeport as a holiday celebration returns Saturday. The Freeport Renaissance Association presents its Small Town Christmas. The association had virtual and socially distanced activities last year, and there was no parade. “I just think it’s going to be a really good opportunity for community...
Gilpin supervisors hope to hold the line on taxes, boost public safety spending in 2022 budget
Gilpin residents should expect to see more township police coverage and no change in real estate taxes as part of next year’s budget. Supervisors recently approved their preliminary 2022 spending plan, which includes a boost to public safety spending while keeping the tax rate at 11 mills. Projected revenues are...
Man in stable condition after being struck by vehicle in Pittsburgh’s Squirrel Hill neighborhood
A man was hospitalized in stable condition after being struck by a vehicle Tuesday in Pittsburgh’s Squirrel Hill neighborhood. Public Safety spokeswoman Cara Cruz said the incident took place around 3:50 p.m. Tuesday near the intersection of Shady Avenue and Beacon Street. A 31-year-old man was walking in a crosswalk...
Butler County Community College to resume classes, reopen campuses Monday after ransomware attack
Butler County Community College will resume classes and reopen its campuses Monday, Dec.6. College officials made the announcement Tuesday evening. Both fall semester credit and noncredit classes were brought to a standstill and the campus closed as a result of a ransomware attack. The main campus in Butler Township and...
Building the Valley: Pair of Freeport Area mothers manage businesses and families together
The covid-19 pandemic brought two longtime Freeport Area friends even closer together in ways they never would have imagined. Marcie Marasia of Buffalo Township and Beth Linhart of Freeport have been friends for about a decade. They each have three children and bonded, in part, because of the kids. When...
Leechburg officials want to ensure house numbers, street addresses easily visible to help emergency responders
Leechburg officials want to make sure all properties in the borough are properly identified to help emergency responders get to the right location. Fire Chief Tom Foster made a push recently for council to amend and enforce an ordinance requiring all homes and buildings to have their address numbers visible...
KSWA Fan Fest and toy drive for Allegheny County families returns after pandemic hiatus
Four professional wrestling title matches are part of a charity event featuring two pro wrestling hall-of-famers and, perhaps, a partridge in a pear tree. The Keystone State Wrestling Alliance will host its 13th annual Fan Fest and Holiday Toy Drive on Dec. 4 at Three Rivers Harley-Davidson in the Glenshaw...
Twisted Thistle, upscale eatery in Leechburg, reopens after 6-month closure
Twisted Thistle, an upscale eatery along Market Street in Leechburg, has reopened after a nearly six-month closure. “I’m just so excited to be able to open this beautiful restaurant again,” owner Linda Alworth said. “I’ve put too much of my life, sweat and tears into it. It should never have...
Leechburg officials expected to hold the line on taxes in next year’s budget
Leechburg property owners should not expect to pay more in real estate taxes as part of the borough’s 2022 budget. Council recently authorized advertising next year’s preliminary spending plan, which maintains the tax rate at 22.5 mills. The goal is to formally adopt the budget at the Dec. 21 meeting....
A Leechburg holiday tradition returns Saturday
A holiday tradition in Leechburg that was scaled back last year because of the pandemic is set to return Saturday with more activities and fun. Leechburg Area Community Association presents Luminate Leechburg. Activities begin about 1 p.m. along Market Street. The event has taken place on what is commonly referred...
Tax hike, numerous cuts not enough to close gap in Verona’s proposed 2022 budget
A nearly 26% tax hike, as well as cuts to engineering, consulting, legal services, no paving and not hiring another full-time police officer, still does not make up for a deficit in Verona’s proposed budget. Next year’s spending plan does not look good for borough officials or residents as elected...
No tax increase in Sewickley’s proposed budget
Sewickley officials plan to hold the line on real estate taxes with next year’s budget. Council approved advertising the proposed 2022 spending plan at November’s meeting. It maintains the tax rate at 6.25 mills. Revenues and expenditures were listed at about $9.064 million and expenses at $8.356 million, about $708,000...
Verona police investigate 2-vehicle crash on Allegheny River Boulevard
Verona police are investigating a two-vehicle crash Tuesday night. An Allegheny County 911 dispatcher said the crash between a pickup truck and a two-door sedan occurred around 6:50 p.m. in the 800 block of Allegheny River Boulevard near Verona Auto Sales and GetGo. It wasn’t immediately clear unclear if there...
Plum officials plan for return of Christmas at Plum Creek after pandemic hiatus
A holiday tradition in Plum returns after a one-year covid hiatus. The fifth annual Christmas at Plum Creek is scheduled for 5:30-9 p.m. Dec. 2 at Plum Creek Park along New Texas Road. About a thousand or so people are expected to flock to the ball fields across from the...
Freeport hires 3 police officers, still looking for new chief, more part-timers
Freeport has its own police force again. Council voted 5-0 at a special meeting Monday night to hire Jodi Greiser of Freeport as a full-time officer and named Chris Fabec of Murrysville the department’s officer in charge. Mayor James Swartz Jr. said he swore in Fabec — who also serves...
