Local category, Page 2148
History Center, Fort Pitt Museum to reopen following temporary closure
The Senator John Heinz History Center and Western Pennsylvania Sports Museum in the Strip District and the Fort Pitt Museum at Point State Park in Downtown Pittsburgh, will reopen at 10 a.m. on Saturday. They were temporarily closed because of state covid-19 restrictions. “We are excited to welcome back visitors...
GOP seizes control of Pa. Senate floor, blocks Brewster from being seatedVideo
The Pennsylvania Senate devolved into chaos Tuesday as Republicans, the majority party, refused to seat Democrat Jim Brewster of McKeesport to his third term in office. The state certified Brewster as the winner of the Nov. 3 election in the 45th District, which includes parts of Allegheny and Westmoreland counties....
Unity auditors freeze roadmaster pay, cite hardship among township residents
Unity’s supervisors will not receive a raise this year in the wages they earn for their work as roadmasters. Citing economic hardship among many township residents, Unity’s elected auditors on Tuesday approved a pay freeze for John Mylant, Michael O’Barto and Ed Poponick. “We realize it’s been a tough year,”...
Covid cases continue at schools in North Hills as changes to instructional models approach
School districts in northern Allegheny County continue to report new active covid-19 cases among students and as they prepare to transition from all-remote learning in the coming weeks. North Hills The North Hills School District reported 15 new cases between Dec. 16 and Jan. 3. Four students and a staff...
Pittsburgh Public Schools announces new equity task force, lays out plans for return to buildings
Pittsburgh Public Schools on Tuesday announced the development of a new task force to recommend and influence policies that combat racial disparities in school safety. “I can share with you with great certainty that our district will not bring Black students back to live and learn under the same racially-biased...
Allegheny County argues Crack’d Egg can’t hide from covid restrictions under bankruptcy filing
A federal judge must decide if a bankruptcy case filed in his court can stop the Allegheny County Health Department from pursuing action against the Crack’d Egg, a Brentwood restaurant that has continued to operate despite an order in August shutting it down for violating state-mandated covid-19 mitigation orders. The...
Fox Chapel Presbyterian asks people to Fill-a-Truck for local food pantries
An annual food collection at Fox Chapel Presbyterian Church will help local food banks bridge the gap between the holidays and spring time drives, pantry leaders said. The Fill-a-Truck event in early February, split between the Bread of Life in Etna, St. Vincent de Paul in Sharpsburg and Council of...
Hempfield Area orders more Chromebooks, still waiting for order placed in July
The Hempfield Area School Board is adding more Chromebooks to its collection as students continue to attend classes through a mix of in-person and virtual learning. During Monday’s board meeting, members voted unanimously to purchase 750 Chromebook laptop computers, which will be split between high school freshman and elementary students....
Westmoreland County adds 228 new coronavirus cases, 8 deaths
Westmoreland County added 228 new covid-19 cases and eight new deaths, the Pennsylvania Department of Health reported on Tuesday. After topping the 20,000 mark on Monday, the total number of cases in the county now stands at 20,393 with 15,247 confirmed and 5,146 probable since the first cases were reported...
Demolition of Hempfield’s Ramada underwayVideo
Demolition of Hempfield’s Ramada by Wyndham Greensburg Hotel and Conference Center is underway, paving the way for construction of a new home improvement store. According to Patrick Karnash, director of planning and zoning for the township, “demolition has started and is moving along quite quickly” on the 42-year-old hotel. Leveling...
Brighton Rehab claims it is immune from lawsuit in federal court filing
Attorneys for a Beaver County nursing home where more than 70 residents died of covid-19 claim it has immunity from civil liability — even as a judge in the same jurisdiction has previously said, in a separate case, it does not. In a motion to dismiss filed Monday in federal...
Pittsburgh native Michael Keaton to play Batman in 2022 movie
Pittsburgh native Michael Keaton is slated to reprise his role as Batman in “The Flash,” a film anticipated for 2022. In the upcoming movie, DC Films will employ what is known as a multiverse, which allows for different versions of the same character to exist simultaneously in parallel worlds. This...
Franklin Park 6th grader wins gingerbread house competition
The winning entry, “Christmas on the Mountain,” was inspired by the creator’s name. Eva Mountain, 12, fashioned a cozy cottage gingerbread house for the 18th annual City of Pittsburgh Office of Special Events’ annual Gingerbread House Competition and Display. It was held virtually because of the pandemic. The Franklin Park...
Allegheny County tops 1,000 coronavirus deaths
Allegheny County on Tuesday reported 29 new coronavirus deaths, bringing the death toll for the county to 1,011. “Passing 1,000 deaths is a grim milestone that I had hoped Allegheny County would be spared,” Allegheny County Health Department Director Dr. Debra Bogen said in a release. “Each of the 1,011...
Greensburg Salem copes with laptop shortage
When Greensburg Salem School District learned the 1,000 laptops it ordered for the school year would not arrive for months, leaders began looking for other ways to get computers to students. They used money from the CARES act and other grants to buy laptops wherever they could find them, including...
Western Pa. wine and cheese experts to hold virtual session on ‘perfect pairings’
Dee Weinberg was at a cheese counter having trouble deciding which variety to purchase to complement a specific wine. “The thought came to me that if I wasn’t sure what cheese was best with the wine I had, then other people probably would have the same problem,” said Weinberg, founder...
Esquire features 2 Pittsburgh restaurants that we ‘can’t afford to lose’
The pandemic has hit the restaurant industry hard. Some are gone, others hanging on. And some, according to one magazine, are too important to fail during the covid pandemic. Last week, Esquire Magazine named the “100 Restaurants America Can’t Afford to Lose.” Two Pittsburgh favorites made the list: Tessaro’s in...
New geocaching game on Rachel Carson Trail encourages family hikes
A Pine Township family’s hiking experience has inspired a new game to get other families out on the Rachel Carson Trail. Brian Vernon needed to get out of the house after working from home for months on end and helping his daughter, Lorelei, and son, Riley, learn during the covid...
Shaler approves purchase of former primary school for community use
A former Shaler Area elementary school will be converted for community use after its purchase by the township is complete. The vacant Jeffery Primary building along Wetzel Road was offered for sale by the district to Shaler for $120,000. The 31,500 square-foot school sits directly across from the municipal building...
Latrobe police warn of scam calls using department’s phone number
The phone number for the Latrobe Police Department is being used in a scam targeting community members, according to authorities. Police reported receiving several calls Monday about the scam. The caller used the police department’s phone number as the caller ID and claimed that a Social Security number was compromised...
Holocaust survivor, Pittsburgh resident Shulamit Bastacky dead at 79
Shulamit Bastacky, a child survivor of the Holocaust who spent her adult life in Pittsburgh, died Friday after a brief battle with cancer. She was 79. Bastacky spent her first three years of life being hidden from the Nazis in a nun’s cellar in her native Lithuania. She was miraculously...
First responders recall fatal Pennsylvania Turnpike crash in Mt. Pleasant Township 1 year later
Mention the morning of Jan. 5, 2020, to Jerry Lucia, and the Mt. Pleasant fire chief automatically responds, “Milepost 85.5 Pennsylvania Turnpike.” Lucia, a borough firefighter for 45 years, has responded to hundreds of crashes along the toll road in Westmoreland County during that time. But a deadly tour bus...
Woman in critical condition after being shot in McKeesport
A woman was in critical condition after being shot multiple times in McKeesport, according to Allegheny County Police. The shooting in the 200 block of Fifth Avenue was reported to 911 shortly after 12:30 a.m. Tuesday, county police said. The woman was shot inside a gas station convenience store, police...
The Stroller, Jan. 5, 2021: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your non-profit’s fundraiser or community event in The Stroller. Send information at least a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com. Please include a daytime telephone number. Remembering a friend It would be remiss of me not to make mention of the death of Karen Motosicky on Saturday. Karen was my...
Dollar General adjusts plans for Upper Burrell store in response to concerns
Dollar General’s updated plans for its proposed Upper Burrell store at Route 780 and Dewey Drive call for a fence to allay protests from residents who don’t want the store in their neighborhood. Over the past several months, more than 100 residents signed a petition protesting the construction of a...
