Irwin seeks student for junior council program
Irwin is seeking a high school or college students in the upcoming school year to serve as a junior council person who will have the opportunity to learn about the many facets of municipal government and possibly become a future leader of the borough. The junior council person program will...
Sheetz plans reconstruction of 2 North Huntingdon stores
Sheetz Inc. plans to demolish its two convenience stores along Route 30 in North Huntingdon to update them. The Altoona-based convenience store chain plans to demolish stores at the intersection of Route 30 and North Thompson Lane and one at the intersection of Route 30 and Carpenter Lane. Sheetz will...
Penn-Trafford cops ‘best newscast’ honors, again
Penn-Trafford High School’s video production team, PTTV, won “best newscast” at the 2025 Student Production Awards hosted by the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Mid-Atlantic Chapter. This is the 6th time in eight years the team has secured this recognition. Students Julianne Fontano, Ella Malloy and Bryn Urban...
Monroeville library: Crochet club, jewelry making, classic film, more
The Monroeville Public Library, 4000 Gateway Campus Boulevard, will host the following events. Registration is required for some programs at MonroevilleLibrary.org, where a full calendar of upcoming events is posted. Call 412-372-0500 for more information. • July 10 at 6 p.m. — Classic Film ‘Maltese Falcon’: In this noir classic,...
Mexican national pleads guilty to ‘Kingpin’ role in drug ring linked to New Kensington
A Mexican national pleaded guilty this week in Pittsburgh federal court to charges related to a domestic and international narcotics and money laundering conspiracy. Marcos Monarrez-Mendoza, 55, who was illegally residing in Phoenix, Ariz., is one of 35 people charged in an indictment unsealed in January 2024 in a conspiracy...
Buffalo Township supervisors hold off on solar farms vote amid residents’ concerns
The Buffalo Township supervisors are holding off voting on controversial solar farms again as residents continue to voice opposition. Board President Ron Zampogna said the move was at the request of the project’s developer, Atlanta-based SolAmerica, whose representatives could not attend this week’s supervisors’ meeting. It’s the second voting delay...
Buffalo Township solicitor recommends changes to proposed public comment limit
Buffalo Township’s solicitor has recommended substantial changes to its current draft of an ordinance that would place limits on public comment. The resolution, which was tabled at an unusual morning meeting late last month and again at Wednesday’s township supervisors meeting, came after a public hearing for two proposed solar...
Massive turbine blade slices into Bradenville business, ties up traffic in Derry Township
A giant blade destined for a wind turbine pierced the wall of a Derry Township business Tuesday morning when the trucker hauling the oversize load was unable to navigate a sharp, 90-degree turn on Route 982. “I was standing there, and the next thing you know it was in my...
Fire truck rides, fireworks add to annual Community Day excitement in Shaler
Every year for Community Day, members of Shaler’s fire departments gather in Kiwanis Park and give free fire truck rides to those in attendance. The 2025 gathering was even more special because the township is celebrating its 125th anniversary with events all year long. Representatives from the Shaler Villa, Elfinwild...
Furries at Anthrocon raise over $89K for McDonald-based cat rescue
Sandi Eaton had long admired Anthrocon from a distance — but this year, she got to experience the furry convention up close and benefit from it firsthand. As the director of the McDonald-based Nose 2 Tail Cat Rescue, which was the official charity of this year’s Anthrocon, she witnessed the...
Uber driver, passenger shot overnight in Homestead
An Uber driver and passenger were hospitalized after being shot early Wednesday in the Mon Valley, authorities said. Allegheny County Police were dispatched around 1:20 a.m. to Homestead’s West Street after 911 dispatchers received a report about a man with a gunshot wound there. The man, who police have not...
State police cite former Jeannette mayoral candidate for attaching signs to utility poles
It’s hard to miss them on a drive around Jeannette — the yellow signs with black lettering seem to be everywhere. But the signs’ campaign-related message is about 50 days beyond relevance, and, according to state police, a potential danger from the dozens of metal tacks and staples used to...
Westmoreland man charged with child sex assaults in Pa.’s Jehovah’s Witnesses probe
A Mt. Pleasant Township man and member of the Jehovah’s Witnesses was arrested Wednesday in connection with sex assault accusations involving two children decades ago in Unity, according to court papers. Timothy A. Willochell, 54, is accused of molesting the children on separate occasions between 1989 and 1997. The alleged...
Here’s the backstory to the tradition of The Fence at Carnegie Mellon
In the early hours before sunrise, a group of Carnegie Mellon University students once again gave a fresh coat of paint to The Fence, one of the campus’s most beloved and recognizable landmarks. The final brushstrokes served as the beginning of what is expected to be a long week for...
Pittsburgh officials bullish on police recruiting, but union stays skeptical
Pittsburgh officials on Wednesday struck a cautiously optimistic tone about police recruitment efforts after struggling for years to attract officers to a shrinking police force. “It’s a little too early to bring the champagne into the locker room,” Councilman Khari Mosley, D-Point Breeze said. “But by all indications, it seems...
Slide repair to shift traffic, close shoulder on Interstate 279 ramp in Ross
Slide repair work on the Perrysville Avenue ramp to southbound Interstate 279 in Ross is scheduled to start Thursday, July 10, weather permitting, PennDOT announced. A traffic shift and shoulder closure will occur from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays through mid-August on the ramp from Cemetery Lane to the...
Shapiro signs bill lifting ban on Sunday hunting
Hunters across the state soon could find themselves afield — legally — on almost any Sunday. Gov. Josh Shapiro on Wednesday signed a bill that lifts the state’s age-old ban on Sunday hunting, opening the door for the Pennsylvania Game Commission to build hunting seasons that include Sundays. “The Pennsylvania...
Plum mayor pushing for borough deer cull; council president skeptical
Plum Mayor Harry Schlegel says the borough needs to kill more deer. Allegheny County’s seventh-largest municipality, he said, is suffering from whitetail “overpopulation” that is causing public safety concerns and proving to be a nuisance to residents. Schlegel said this week he would like to see borough council move forward...
Millvale Volunteer Fire Department shows off new rescue engine
Another new fire truck is on the streets of Millvale. The Millvale Volunteer Fire Department in April acquired a 2025 Spartan rescue engine from Fouts Bros. in Georgia. It was parked outside the borough building for residents to view after the July 8 council meeting. The truck replaces a 20-year-old...
Pittsburgh man accused of stealing hundreds of identities to make Lowe’s, Giant Eagle purchases
A Pittsburgh man is charged with more than 200 counts of felony identity theft after authorities said he made $100,000 in unauthorized credit card purchases at area Lowe’s and Giant Eagle stores, then sold the merchandise. Cornelius P. Tucker, 33, of the city’s Hill District neighborhood, assumed the identities of...
Local artists, makers, creators expected at Millvale’s summer Market Day event
More than 40 artists, makers, bakers and creatives are expected for the second Millvale Market Day this year in the borough’s business district. The summer Market Day will be held from noon to 5 p.m. July 26, rain or shine. Parking is free during the event. Those attending will be...
Want to be Arnold’s city controller? Petition the court, solicitor says
Arnold’s next city controller — whomever that may be — already needs some help from residents. City Solicitor Jaclyn Shaw said 10 interested registered voters need to petition the Westmoreland County Court of Common Pleas to fill the vacancy for city controller. Arnold has been without a controller since Toni...
Westmoreland happenings: Canine fundraiser, vacation Bible school, bingo, more
Church News • Mt. Olive Church, 363 Pleasant Valley Road, Bullskin, will have vacation Bible school for all members of the family from 6 to 8 p.m. July 20 to 24 at the church. The theme will be, “Meet God on the Mountain.” Those attending will receive T-shirts to wear...
Marshall supervisors table overlay rezoning vote until July 28
Discussion and a possible vote on the repealing and adoption of changes to Marshall’s zoning ordinances that would create an overlay district along Route 910 was tabled until the next township supervisors meeting at 7 p.m. July 28. A public hearing was held June 2 for the proposed Route 910...
Arnold resurrects Civil Service Commission, Redevelopment Authority
Arnold reactivated its civil service commission and redevelopment authority after all members of both groups resigned last month. “They both collapsed at the same time,” Mayor Shannon Santucci said. “I just made phone calls and asked people if they’d be interested.” Santucci estimated she made about 24 phone calls to...
