Western PA Local News category, Page 1189
Pittsburgh City Council approves plan for medical debt relief
Pittsburgh City Council passed legislation Tuesday to use $1 million in covid-relief funding to alleviate residents’ medical debts. Councilman Bobby Wilson, D-North Side, who introduced the legislation last month, had initially suggested contracting with the New York-based nonprofit RIP Medical Debt to buy dischargeable health care debt from hospitals and...
Commissioners approve plans for Raising Cane’s in Oakland
Pittsburgh’s Planning Commission on Tuesday unanimously approved plans to convert an existing restaurant in the city’s Oakland neighborhood into a Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers. The restaurant chain is planning to open a location at Fifth Avenue and Atwood Street in a building that formerly housed the restaurant and bar Thirsty...
Prosecutors: Former Latrobe man was methamphetamine distributor
A former Latrobe man was sentenced earlier this month to five years in a federal prison in connection with drug trafficking activity involving methamphetamine across the region. Joshua Birrell, 40, was ordered to spend four years on supervised release after the prison term. Prosecutors said he was one of several...
District judge not at fault for crash that injured 13-year-old girl in Butler County
Authorities in Butler County said a district judge who struck a teen crossing Route 228 near Mars Middle School on Nov. 30 has been cleared of wrongdoing. Saxonburg District Judge Sue Haggerty was behind the wheel when a 13-year-old girl walked into the path of her vehicle about 5:30 p.m.,...
Dolls, tea and history: Hampton museum helps make learning fun
Barbie may be ready to turn 65 in 2024, but dolls have been a staple of children’s playthings since the days of ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome. As such, miniature versions of people already had been around for the millennia by the time of the United States’ founding in the...
Contractors hit with $1.1M fine for illegal asbestos removal at Churchill property
The Allegheny County Health Department has fined a contractor nearly $1.1 million for illegally disposing of asbestos while renovating the former Westinghouse headquarters in Churchill. An environmental group called the contractor’s disregard for the asbestos-containing material “unconscionable” and said the fine “is a victory for public health.” “Their reckless behavior...
After 35 years, police ID woman killed in fiery Turnpike crash in Somerset County
Forensic genealogy testing helped investigators finally identify a 26-year-old woman as the second victim in a 1987 double-fatal crash on the Pennsylvania Turnpike, authorities said. Linda J. McClure, of Indiana, Pennsylvania, was a passenger in a tractor-trailer that crashed Oct. 22, 1987, while traveling east near mile marker 119.4 in...
Allegheny County releases public health plan for next 5 years
As Allegheny County transitions between health directors and is poised to elect a new county executive this year, its Health Department has released a plan that lays out public health goals for the next five years. The 2023-27 Plan for a Healthier Allegheny released Monday was completed under former Health...
Gainey orders review of Pittsburgh’s ‘purely public charities’ to see if they meet tax-exempt requirements
Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey signed an executive order Tuesday calling on the city’s finance and law departments to investigate whether the city’s purely public charities meet requirements for tax-exempt status. Purely public charities are nonprofits that, under the state’s definition, must advance a charitable purpose, donate a substantial portion of...
Pennsylvania gambling revenue hit another record high in 2022
Pennsylvania’s legalized gambling industry raked in another record haul in 2022 with revenue nearly half a billion dollars higher than the previous year. In 2022, the combined revenue of slot machine, table games, sports wagering, iGaming, video gaming terminals and fantasy contests totaled $5.21 billion compared to $4.73 billion in...
Pittsburgh Kids Marathon to debut sensory inclusive heat
The lights and sounds of the 2023 Chick-fil-A Pittsburgh Kids Marathon will be dialed back briefly for the event’s first-ever sensory inclusive heat. “Our mission is to inspire any and all to move, and this offers that chance for people who might not feel comfortable in a large crowd,” said...
Penn Hills council selects Pittsburgh firm to design VOPP bike/walking trail
A Pittsburgh branch of an engineering and design firm has been tasked with crafting a near 14-mile bike and walking trail. Penn Hills council unanimously voted Jan. 23 to select TranSystems to develop the VOPP Trail – Verona, Oakmont, Penn Hills and Plum. Municipal planning director Chris Blackwell said Penn...
Charity party kicks off annual Pink Day fundraising
Pink Day’s first fundraiser of the year is here. The Marconi Club Pink Day Extravaganza 2023 is scheduled for Saturday in downtown Leechburg. All proceeds benefit Leechburg’s Pink Day, a daylong festival dedicated to supporting breast cancer research and held every September on Market Street. Pink Day events have raised...
Penn Hills counselor organizes 3rd annual awards ceremony recognizing social workers
As the founder and co-owner of Hand in Hand Counseling Service in Penn Hills, Sharise Nance is familiar with the stress social workers in Western Pennsylvania face at work. Nance said she began to see fellow social workers, mental health therapists and frontline workers struggle with what she called “compassion...
Morning Roundup: Police say Sewickley man stole postal truck, drove wrong way on I-79
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2023: Police say Sewickley man stole postal truck, drove wrong way on I-79 Pennsylvania State Police say a postal worker from Sewickley stole a mail truck from Allegheny County and drove it into Greene County, leading...
Family seeks to buy guitar that late Irwin guitarist sold
Family and friends of an Irwin guitarist who died of cancer last year are hoping to buy back a guitar he sold several years ago to keep as a family remembrance. The problem for those who want the guitar back is that the late Jacob “Jake” Hursh sold it around...
Brackenridge officers return to duty; borough needs assistance from state police to cover shifts
Brackenridge police returned to the job Sunday, nearly three weeks after Chief Justin McIntire was shot and killed during a pursuit. In the days following his death, police from across the region volunteered to cover patrols so borough officers could grieve. Limited manpower in the borough will require continued assistance...
District judge sides with former Kiski Township sergeant accused of roughing up resident
An Armstrong County magistrate sided with a former Kiski Township police sergeant who was sued by a resident he arrested while responding to a medical emergency at the resident’s township home in 2021. District Judge Kevin Lee McCausland on Jan. 25 issued his ruling on the Jan. 23 hearing for...
New Kensington man appeals conviction for 2020 Arnold fatal shooting
The lawyer for a New Kensington man sentenced to life in prison for the 2020 fatal shooting of a man in Arnold claims trial evidence supports his client’s claim of self-defense. In an appeal filed Monday, Assistant Public Defender John Sweeney argued convictions of first-degree murder, second-degree murder, third-degree murder,...
The Stroller, Jan. 24, 2023: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your non-profit’s community events, fundraisers and club meetings for free in The Stroller. Send information at least two weeks in advance to vndnews@triblive.com or The Stroller, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Free tax preparation available for seniors AARP Tax volunteers will provide...
Surveillance work leads police to Western Pa. catalytic converter theft suspects
A Porsche Panamera, cellphone records and a mobile tracking device helped police arrest three Chicago men over the weekend who they believe are behind $200,000 worth of catalytic converter thefts, according to court papers. The three suspects — Christian Buie, 31; Antonio D. Johnson, 42; and Harold T. Wade, 29...
Water technology company Evoqua to be acquired in $7.5 billion deal
Pittsburgh-based water technology company Evoqua is being acquired by a Washington, D.C., company in a deal valued at about $7.5 billion. Evoqua’s technology has been used in the life sciences, microelectronics, power and food and beverage sectors. It also has been used in the remediation of pollutants including “forever chemicals”...
Teen critically injured in McKeesport shooting
A teenage boy was critically injured in a shooting Monday afternoon in McKeesport, according to Allegheny County Police. Police said officers responded to a report of shots fired in the area of Dinsmore and Meadow streets just before 2:30 p.m. First responders found a teenage boy, who was not identified,...
Fox Chapel Area SD hosts story times for incoming kindergarten students
All four elementary schools in the Fox Chapel Area School District are hosting in-person story times for incoming kindergarten students and their parents or guardians. The program is designed to prepare students for starting kindergarten in the fall of 2023. The students must be at least 5 on or before...
Allegheny County Manager William McKain leaving for private sector
The manager of Allegheny County’s government for the past 12 years is moving on. The county announced Monday that Manager William McKain will be leaving his post on Feb. 3 to take a job in the private sector. He has served as county manager since his appointment in July 2012....
