Allegheny category, Page 25
Meet the winners of the 2025 Phipps Sustainable Garden Awards from Phipps Conservatory
With such an abundance of wildlife and green space in the Pittsburgh area, it’s no wonder that the region boasts such passionate gardeners. Each year, Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens recognizes local green thumbs who have cultivated exceptional outdoor spaces using Phipps’ principles of sustainable land care with the Phipps...
Etna, Reserve should form regional police department, study finds
A state study recommends that Etna and Reserve form a regional police department, while also finding that doing so will cost each municipality more for police services. The Governor’s Center for Local Government Services at the state Department of Community and Economic Development prepared the report at the request of...
Police investigating gunfight at Ross Park Mall parking lot, minivan sought
Ross police are investigating a gunfight that took place in a parking lot at the Ross Park Mall on Tuesday evening. Emergency calls for the incident came in shortly before 8 p.m. The incident occurred near the Dick’s Sporting Goods and Nordstrom store, according to news partners WTAE. Ross Township...
Crash closes Route 28 North between Millvale, Etna
Route 28 coming out of Pittsburgh is jammed because of a crash. The crash happened around 4 p.m., closing the northbound lanes between the Millvale and Etna interchanges, a PennDOT spokesman said. The crash was cleared and the road began reopening around 4:40 p.m., but traffic remained congested from the...
Anthony D’Imperio, former owner of D’Imperio’s Restaurant in Wilkins, dies
The owner of popular Monroeville-area eatery D’Imperio’s who was known as much for his hospitable nature as his restaurant was for its authentic Italian food has died. Restaurant owner, Vietnam veteran and first-generation Italian immigrant Anthony “Tony” D’Imperio died on Sept. 6 at age 81. No cause of death was...
Man on trial for killing his mom in Homestead acts as own lawyer
The accused stood nervously in front of an Allegheny County jury and pledged to prove he didn’t kill his mother and her friend in Homestead last year. Defendant John Malcolm Smith V, 26, of McKeesport was acting as his own lawyer Tuesday, the start of his double homicide trial. He’s...
Monroeville insurance agent charged for 3rd time with fraudulent business practices
A Monroeville insurance agent has been charged for the third time in less than two years with fraudulent business practices. Prosecutors in this most recent case with the Pennsylvania Attorney General say Chad G. Skena, 48, of Monroeville, talked a client into investing more than $75,000 in a phony business...
Man pleads guilty to wrong-way DUI crash on Parkway East that killed 2
A man whose blood-alcohol level was more than triple the legal limit when he drove the wrong way on the Parkway East earlier this year and killed two women will spend up to six years in state prison. Pedro Olan Morales, 57, of Charlotte, N.C., pleaded guilty on Tuesday to...
Shaler Area parents, residents pose questions, offer opinions on proposed reconfiguration
A proposed reconfiguration of the Shaler Area School District built around closing its elementary school has been met with a mixture of public support and opposition, along with questions and concerns. Superintendent Bryan O’Black took questions and comments from residents Monday at Shaler Area High School after giving a presentation...
Killer says he extinguished ‘light so bright’ in Blawnox love triangle murder
Last year, after Sean Black pointed a gun at his ex-girlfriend’s face, her grandmother called him. He assured her he wouldn’t have shot Courtney Smith and said he would give the guns to his mother. He didn’t. Instead, a month later, Black took his guns and walked into the Blawnox...
Police searching for driver of vehicle stolen in Ross, crashed in Shaler
Police were looking for a person who fled after crashing a stolen vehicle Tuesday morning in Shaler. According to Ross police, its officers followed a stolen vehicle out of Ross into Shaler and tried to stop it on Mt. Royal Boulevard near the Shaler North Hills Library. Shaler police deployed...
Older, disabled Pennsylvanians bear brunt of home care staffing crisis
Lisa Sprague does what she can on her own, but nerve damage caused by multiple sclerosis means she needs help getting out of bed, bathing and completing other daily tasks. The state pays for 13 hours of care every day at her Harmar home, a bungalow retrofitted with a wheelchair...
Franklin Park teen establishes nonprofit clothing company to help victims of domestic abuse
A North Allegheny senior is putting her heart where her needle is. Patricia Rae Shanahan of Franklin Park is the owner of Heart and Hem, a nonprofit that designs and sells clothes to raise money and awareness for survivors of domestic abuse, with proceeds directly benefiting the Women’s Center &...
Suspect in 2024 Stowe homicide taken into custody in Maryland
A Stowe homicide suspect on the run for nearly a year was taken into custody Monday in Maryland. Dacahary Sampson, 32, is charged with shooting and killing James Nelson Jr., 42, of McKees Rocks, the afternoon of Aug. 12, 2024, along the 400 block of Pleasant Ridge Road. The U.S....
Carbon monoxide, gas alarms triggered before fatal explosion at U.S. Steel Clairton facility, authorities say
Carbon monoxide and gas alarms were triggered leading up to a fatal explosion at the U.S. Steel Clairton Coke Works site Aug. 11, according to information released by the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board. Preliminary investigations into the blast, released Monday by the CSB, indicate the explosion occurred...
Allegheny County steps in to maintain bus stops at Waterfront
Just days after announcing plans to close several Pittsburgh Regional Transit bus stops inside The Waterfront shopping mall in Homestead, county officials have reached a temporary agreement to keep the stops open. Allegheny County Executive Sara Innamorato said Monday that buses will continue to stop directly outside the Giant Eagle...
North Hills gathers on World Peace Day, champions late nun’s mission for social justice
Community members gathered Sept. 21 in North Park for the 21st North Hills International Day of Peace celebration hosted by La Roche University and several local organizations. Sarah White, executive director of inclusion and belonging at La Roche, said the annual event is an important opportunity for friends and neighbors...
Lawyer argues double jeopardy should bar murder retrial for Taco Bell manager in death of Harrison man
A former Taco Bell manager whose first-degree murder conviction of a worker at the restaurant was thrown out last month because of prosecutorial misconduct is arguing he cannot be retried based on the legal theory of double jeopardy. The attorney for Zairyre Simmons filed a motion Friday contending Pennsylvania’s constitution...
Say Cheese! Festival returns with wine and cheese pairings at Mazzotta Winery
Everything is better when paired with cheese. For lovers of delicious dairy products, GoodTaste! Pittsburgh is holding its second annual Say Cheese! Festival on Sunday. This year, the event will celebrate one of the best culinary couples: cheese and wine at Mazzotta Winery in Richland. Seven vendors will pair tasty...
Educators question validity of national report claiming decline in test scores
Some Western Pennsylvania educators are pushing back on a national report indicating a decline in math and reading test scores among high school seniors. The report, released by the National Center for Education Statistics, has circulated through K-12 education sectors in recent weeks, raising concerns about seniors’ math and reading...
‘Trickle-up effect’: Administrators weigh in on improvements
As national test score reports generate concerns over student learning, an opposite pattern is unfolding at New Kensington-Arnold School District, according to Superintendent Chris Sefcheck. After hitting an all-time low in 2020, the district’s math and science scores on state tests are gradually increasing, Sefcheck said. In just two years,...
Pine community celebrates 1 year of library branch at Pine cemter, gathers for annual Touch-a-Truck
Pine Community Park was buzzing with activity Sept. 20. The township’s annual Touch-a-Truck event from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. featured plenty of opportunities for youngsters to get an up-close look at public safety and public works vehicles. A quiet period was held the first hour to accommodate children with...
Summer Lee rips move to cut 2 PRT bus stops at Waterfront
Pittsburgh Regional Transit’s bus stops within The Waterfront plaza in Homestead will be discontinued next month, though riders will still be able to catch the bus nearby. The transit authority in a news release said routing for the 53-Homestead Park, 53L-Homestead Park Limited, 57-Hazelwood, 59-MonValley, 61D-Murray Short and 64-Lawrence-Waterfront will...
PRT board passes ‘Band-Aid’ budget to avoid transit rate hikes, drastic service cuts
Pittsburgh Regional Transit’s board on Friday formally approved a budget that will stave off rate hikes and drastic service cuts. But officials reiterated the measure to use $100 million in state funds to plug holes in the transit authority’s operating budget is an imperfect fix. “This is not a win,”...
Prominent muralist sues over destruction of images in Wilkinsburg
A renowned muralist who has installed hundreds of works of art around the Pittsburgh area is suing a property owner in Wilkinsburg, alleging failure to properly notify him before painting over his images. Kyle Holbrook — known for, among others, painting the Roberto Clemente Museum mural — alleges the act...
