Western PA Local News category, Page 1481
Sen. Pat Toomey: Chances of Senate passing gun bill better than 50%
U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey expressed optimism Tuesday that the Senate — where gun control bills long have failed to gain traction — will pass some sort of gun legislation this year. Toomey, a Lehigh Valley Republican, placed the odds at better than 50%. “The fact that we were able to...
Penn-Trafford video class brings home a half-dozen student Emmy awardsVideo
Video production students at Penn-Trafford High School are finishing the year with a bang. Students from the class brought home National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences High School Student Production awards in six different categories in the Mid-Atlantic region on Thursday, including winning “Best Newscast” four of the past...
Monroeville VA clinic expected to serve up to 10,000 veterans annually
Veterans Affairs officials are certainly proud of the work done at their flagship hospital in Pittsburgh’s Oakland neighborhood. But they’re also well aware of the drawbacks elderly veterans face when walking up the aptly-named “Cardiac Hill” to their appointments. “There are a lot of steep hills, and in bad weather...
$180K study to analyze Pittsburgh police staffing, how officers are used
Pittsburgh City Council has hired a California company to analyze the police force’s staffing levels and how officers are used. The city will pay Matrix Consulting Group $180,000 to conduct the study, the first one done on the police bureau since 2005, according to Jake Pawlak, director of the city’s...
Pittsburgh to use $1M budgeted for public safety training facility for Penn Circle project instead
Pittsburgh City Council voted Tuesday to reallocate $1 million earmarked for a new public safety training facility in Lincoln-Lemington to a project that will convert Penn Circle into a two-way street. Two pieces of related legislation will move $808,000 from the 2019 budget and $192,000 from the 2020 budget to...
Night of clean comedy benefits Myasthenia Gravis Association of Western Pa.
Family problems, health problems, fear of aging — they’re topics that most everyone can relate to, but not everyone sees the humor in them. Pittsburgh comedian David Kaye can, and he’ll share his wry observations during Comedy for a Cause on July 16 at Elements in North Huntingdon. “I look...
Fox Chapel Area School Board approves budget with 1.5% tax hike
The Fox Chapel Area School Board adopted a budget for the 2022-23 school year that outlines $111 million in spending and enacts a 1.5% property tax increase. The board voted 7-0 on June 13 to approve the spending plan, which made no cuts to programs or staffing. Board President Marybeth...
UPMC breaks ground on $1.5B hospital project in Pittsburgh’s Oakland
UPMC said Tuesday its $1.5 billion project to build a 17-story hospital in Oakland is the largest health care construction project going in Pennsylvania — and the largest in Pittsburgh’s history. “It will be the beating heart of life-changing medicine,” UPMC President and CEO Leslie Davis said of the planned...
Riverview High School graduates Class of 2022
On June 8, the Riverview High School Class of 2022 commencement was held to celebrate the achievements of the district’s 52 seniors. It also happened to be the 50th anniversary of Riverview School District. The festivities began with a parade that started at the high school on Third Street in...
Students at Aquinas Academy in Hampton compete at PJAS State Tournament
Fifteen eighth-graders at Aquinas Academy of Pittsburgh in Hampton qualified for the Pennsylvania Junior Academy of Science State Meeting competition. The students qualified by earning a first-place award at the PJAS Region 7 meeting. Twenty-two Aquinas students submitted video entries for the regional meeting in February, and 15 received first-place...
‘Knight Rider’ tractor, trailer reunited in Butler CountyVideo
Many cars were used to portray KITT, the Knight Industries Two Thousand, on the television series “Knight Rider.” Joe Huth of Butler County co-owns one of five that still exist. But there was only one trailer used over the four seasons of the 1980s show as the Foundation for Law...
Hampton High School graduates Class of 2022
Hampton High School’s Class of 2022 commencement took place June 9 at Fridley Field, with Principal Marguerite Imbarlina welcoming the graduates and acknowledging academic recognitions. She joined other Hampton Township School District administrators, including Superintendent Michael Loughead, joined Bryant Wesley, school board president, in presenting diplomas. Quentin Romero-Lauro, senior class...
5 things to know about Flag Day
Many Americans associate Flag Day with happiness because it generally falls on or around the last day of school on June 14. Despite that joyful coincidence, Flag Day stands for something far more significant with origins that date back centuries. The fact that school usually was out by the time...
2 men with arrest warrants taken into custody after traffic stop in New Kensington
Two men wanted on arrest warrants were taken into custody after police in New Kensington pulled over a car driven by a third man whose license was suspended for DUI. Westmoreland County Drug Task Force officers, which includes New Kensington cops, and agents with the state Attorney General’s Office were...
Ligonier Valley police seeking help to identify 3 who broke into stone quarry
Ligonier Valley police are seeking help to identify three people who broke into the Hanson Aggregates Latrobe Asphalt plant during the weekend. Police Sgt. James Friscarella said investigators believe two men and a woman vandalized buildings there and stole a tool and charger sometime between Friday and Saturday. The plant...
Guests enjoy royal celebration during Monroeville Public Library fundraiser
Guests were dressed in their Sunday best with their pinkies up while they attended the Queen’s Jubilee Tea Fundraiser at the Pitcairn Public Park Building. The June 12 event was hosted by Monroeville Public Library to raise money for its operations department. More funding in that division increases the amount...
Anthrocon to return to Pittsburgh for annual convention
The furries are returning to the ’Burgh — and in greater numbers. After missing the past two years because of the pandemic, the annual Anthrocon Convention will be June 30 to July 3 at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center. “We’ve had to expand to an 11th hotel,” said John...
The Stroller, June 14, 2022: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your community events, fundraisers and club meetings for free in The Stroller. Send information at least a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com or The Stroller, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15068. Please include a daytime telephone number. Wine fundraiser to benefit library youth programs An evening of wine to...
Police say man pointed gun at people, fired shot in Pittsburgh’s Crawford-Roberts
Pittsburgh police arrested a man late Sunday after responding to a report of a man pointing a gun at people at a gas station in the Crawford-Roberts neighborhood. Kevin Tyrone Bennett, 50, of Spartanburg, S.C., was charged Monday with discharging a firearm and tampering with evidence in connection with the...
Severe weather mostly misses Pittsburgh; high temperatures on the way
A threat of severe weather with hurricane-force winds is over for the Pittsburgh area, a National Weather Service meteorologist said early Tuesday. No watches or warnings are active for Southwestern Pennsylvania, meteorologist Jason Frazier said. One line of thunderstorms fizzled out as it moved into Washington and Greene counties, but...
Get your fill of shortcakes, tours, artisans and more during Burtner House Strawberry Festival
Jeff Jones spent the past week or so pulling weeds, arranging for Civil War reenactors and slicing strawberries — nearly 60 pounds of the sweet red fruit. As president of the Burtner House Restoration Society, Jones has a variety of odd jobs that need to be done to prep for...
Medical marijuana dispensary opens in former Kings spot in Harmar
A medical marijuana dispensary has made its way to a bustling food plaza in Harmar along Freeport Road. Ethos Cannabis, a Philadelphia-based firm, opened a third regional location in the former Kings Restaurant building on 5 Alpha Drive East in late April, according to a news release. Ethos also has...
Man found shot dead in Penn Hills
A man was shot and killed in Penn Hills early Tuesday. Allegheny County Police said the shooting was reported in the 200 block of Crescent Pines Drive around 1:50 a.m. First responders found a man suffering from a gunshot wound. He was pronounced dead at the scene, police said. The...
Arnold’s Simpson Reinforcing in the bones of many Pittsburgh landmarks
Just about everyone in the Pittsburgh area has seen the work of Bob Simpson’s company, without ever seeing it. And they’ve walked through it, sat in it and driven on it, probably without knowing it. Simpson’s business, Simpson Reinforcing in Arnold, made the steel reinforcing bars, or rebar, that’s in...
Items being collected at O’Hara municipal building aid Women’s Center & Shelter of Greater Pittsburgh
O’Hara officials are collecting items for the Women’s Center & Shelter of Greater Pittsburgh. People can drop off items through 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, June 15 at the township office, 325 Fox Chapel Rd. Items sought include deodorant, ChapStick, cleaning products, wipes, multicultural hair care products, dish soap, dish sponges, laundry...
