Local category, Page 2136
Burrell schools fight Arconic assessment appeal that would result in $500K hit
Burrell School District and Upper Burrell plan to fight a real estate assessment appeal filed in a Westmoreland County court by Arconic Inc. that could reduce tax revenue to the school district by almost $500,000 annually. “We plan to fight this vigorously,” said Anthony Giglio, an attorney with Andrews &...
Man killed in Wilkinsburg shooting
A man was shot and killed inside a Wilkinsburg home, according to Allegheny County Police. First responders were called to the 1900 block of Wright Street shortly after 3 a.m. Thursday for a report of shots fired. They arrived to find the victim inside a home. He was pronounced dead...
The Stroller, Jan. 14, 2021: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your non-profit’s meetings, fundraisers and community events in The Stroller. Send information at least a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com. Please include a daytime telephone number. Free produce distribution set in Natrona Building Block of Natrona will host its free Veggies for All and Cosmetics Closet outreach for residents...
New Kensington’s Thomas P. Bicanich Jr. was scholar, veteran and man of many talents and interests
A strong advocate for higher education, Thomas P. Bicanich Jr. never stopped learning. Over the years, Bicanich visited 49 of the nation’s 50 states. He explored each one thoroughly to learn what it had to offer, while pursuing a broad range of other interests and hobbies. His wife, Joanne Cecchi,...
Penn-Trafford police blotter, Jan. 14
Charges filed with Penn Township District Judge Helen Kistler. All persons charged have the right to a preliminary hearing before Kistler and are innocent until proven guilty or pleading guilty before a judge in the Westmoreland County Court of Common Pleas. • Madeline J. Semenko, 22, of Bovard, by Penn...
Pittsburgh officials approve new 5-year deal with crossing guards
Pittsburgh officials announced Wednesday they have finalized a new deal with their crossing guards. The five-year contract was negotiated with the Service Employees International Union 192B. Mayor Bill Peduto said via news release that the deal is good for both parties. “We are excited to have reached this agreement with...
Bridgeville council considers prohibiting parking along McMillen Street
Bridgeville council wants to prohibit parking along a narrow section of McMillen Street to create an emergency fire lane. The borough’s fire chief, Raymond Costain, said the fire department has recently responded to calls in the 600 block of the brick road, which is near the Goodwill Villa apartment complex,...
Latest bond refinance brings Quaker Valley’s future interest savings to $5.1 million
For the second time in less than a year, the Quaker Valley School District has taken advantage of low-interest rates by refinancing bonds originally issued for building projects. The most recent refinancing saved about $400,000 on $6 million in bonds issued in 2016. That bond issue was part of a...
Plum approves advisory committee to help establish agriculture security areas
Plum officials have moved one step closer to establishing Agriculture Security Areas (ASAs) in the borough. Council unanimously voted Jan. 11 to form an advisory committee with Vice President Dave Vento as its chair. Vento will work with council President Dave Odom to fill the other committee seats, which must...
Penn Hills School District has a new plan to bring students back 4 days a week
Penn Hills School District officials have a new plan to bring students back into the district’s schools four days a week. Superintendent Nancy Hines said they hope to welcome first grade, middle-schoolers, juniors and seniors back Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays starting Feb. 16. All students would learn online Wednesdays...
Post-Gazette reducing print edition to 2 days a week, cites plan to go all-digital
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette is scaling back its print edition to two days a week as part of the 235-year-old newspaper’s transition to an all-digital news operation, documents show. The plan is to eliminate its Friday print edition beginning Feb. 27, according to a letter from Post-Gazette’s human resources manager provided...
Gateway School District approves board member’s resignation, searches for candidates to fill seat
The Gateway school board on Jan. 12 unanimously approved the resignation of a board member who stepped down from his elected position days after a racially charged controversy. The school board did not discuss Paul Caliari’s resignation beyond voting to approve it. Caliari resigned through a letter addressed to board...
Western Pa. lawmakers hold party lines in vote to impeach TrumpVideo
Western Pennsylvania’s congressional representatives stuck to party lines in Wednesday’s vote by the U.S. House to impeach President Trump. Reps. Conor Lamb, D-Mt. Lebanon, and Mike Doyle, D-Forest Hills, voted yes on impeaching the embattled president for his role inciting last week’s violent storming of the U.S. Capitol by Trump...
Man pleads guilty to stealing Ross woman’s safe filled with cash
A Philadelphia man already serving a 10-to-20-year prison term for burglary will serve an additional 3-1/2 to seven years for his theft of more than $140,000 from an 82-year-old Ross woman five years ago. Steve Mitchell, 62, pleaded guilty to burglary, conspiracy and receiving stolen property on Wednesday before Allegheny...
Older adults in Allegheny County will have to wait for covid vaccine, officials sayVideo
People 75 and older in Allegheny County will have to wait longer to get their shots of covid vaccine as county officials await guidance from the federal government. “We’ve been getting a lot of calls and emails from individuals wanting to know when it will be their turn to be...
Police: Men meet on Grindr, beat each other up in New Kensington
Two men who met on the dating app Grindr face assault charges after they got into a fistfight and bit each other after hooking up at one of the men’s houses, according to a criminal complaint. New Kensington police charged Ryan Christopher Grabigel, 40, of New Kensington with aggravated assault...
New Kensington-Arnold releases community survey as part of superintendent search
Members of the New Kensington-Arnold School District community are being asked to complete a survey about what traits they want in the district’s new superintendent. A link to the survey is available on the district’s website, nkasd.com. Administrators, community members, parents, staff and students are asked to complete it by...
Vandergrift authorities rescue 12-year-old boy from burning house
Quick action by Vandergrift police officers using fire extinguishers Tuesday afternoon likely saved the life of a 12-year-old boy trapped in his upstairs bedroom, a Vandergrift fire chief said. “They gave him a chance to survive. If it were not for the police using the extinguishers … there would have...
Pittsburgh council gives initial approval to $55 million in bonds for capital projects
With Pittsburgh poised to float more than $55 million in new bonds for its 2021 capital improvement projects, city council members Wednesday heard from the city’s finance director about interest rates reaching historic lows. Council member discussed the potential to borrow even more to pay for affordable housing projects. The...
North Versailles man pleads guilty in teen rape case spanning Allegheny, Westmoreland counties
An Allegheny County man pleaded guilty Wednesday to repeatedly raping a teenage girl in 2019. Police said that starting in June 2019, Daniel E. Powell, 37, of North Versailles forcibly raped a 17-year-old girl and continued the sexual assaults through September. According to court records, the victim in February told...
Drive-up ATM coming to Butler Street in Shaler
People will be able to do their banking at a stand-alone ATM machine soon to be under construction along Shaler’s Butler Street business corridor. Commissioners approved a site development plan from OptiVia LLC to build a drive-thru banking machine near the Shop’n Save grocery store. It will sit at 917...
State grants $1.8 million for Western Pa. rail projects
The state earmarked about $1.8 million to improve U.S. Steel Corp.’s Union Railroad infrastructure in the Braddock area and for a rail yard project along the Monongahela River in Westmoreland County. PennDOT granted U.S. Steel Corp. $1.7 million for two projects on its Union Railroad, which serves three of the...
Food Podcast: Hindu Jain Temple is matching gifts to Pittsburgh food bank during MLK Day
The Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank is hosting a Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day focused on Food Justice is Social Justice. The food bank is welcoming 30 volunteers at its warehouse in Duquesne on Monday to prepare food for distribution across its 11-county service area. The event is open...
Developer gets green light from Penn Hills council to proceed on soccer field project
Soccer teams could have another place to play in Penn Hills. The municipality’s council unanimously approved a resolution Jan. 11 that gave developers the green light to move forward with a project that transforms around 36 acres of vacant land along Hunter Road into a “first class” soccer destination. The...
Target gains approval for Downtown Pittsburgh store, plans to preserve Kaufmann’s legacyVideo
As Target officials worked on plans for a store in the historic Kaufmann’s building in Downtown Pittsburgh, they’ve taken pains to respect its legacy. “We’re well aware of the history and the culture of this building in the hearts and minds of the citizens of Pittsburgh,” Target architect Doug Bartolomeo...
