Local category, Page 2174
West Jefferson Hills School District to go virtual through Wednesday because of covid cases
West Jefferson Hills School District officials announced all students will learn online the next few days as a result of six positive cases reported Saturday. Classes will be virtual through at least Wednesday. A letter sent to parents over the weekend says the cases spread over four buildings and puts...
Gov. Wolf, health officials want Pennsylvanians to stay home for the holidays
Dr. Carol Fox is worried about the holidays. She watches the rising coronavirus caseload in Westmoreland County and keeps daily tabs on the numbers that are impacting Excela Health, where she is chief medical officer. As the toll from family visits over Thanksgiving becomes more clear, she said she is...
CDC: Stay home for the holidays
This holiday season, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention wants Americans to stay safe and protect themselves from contracting or spreading the coronavirus —namely by staying home for the holidays. The agency urges people to modify their plans in an effort to reduce the virus’ spread. The safest way...
South Fayette to honor veterans with military banners next year
South Fayette officials plan to honor veterans from the township by hanging military banners next year. Community development coordinator Andrea Iglar discussed the idea during this month’s commissioners meeting. The presentation is available on the township’s website. “We look forward to being able to recognize the men and women who...
South Fayette budget adopted with no tax increase, EMS funding approved
South Fayette Township property owners will not have to worry about a real estate tax hike as part of next year’s municipal budget. Commissioners unanimously adopted their 2021 spending plan Wednesday. It maintains the millage rate at 4.73 mills, the same as the past few years. Projected revenue and expenditures...
Restaurants wanted! Allegheny Township photographer wants to help you sell takeout during new covid restrictions
An Allegheny Township photographer is doing her part to help Alle-Kiski Valley restaurants affected by coronavirus-related restrictions. Amy Capiross-Watterson is offering to take free professional photos of a restaurant’s popular takeout menu items to encourage people to order takeout amid the latest round of covid-19 restrictions, which went into effect...
Latrobe woman wins Judges’ Choice award in state parks photo contest
A misty morning on the Youghiogheny River has earned a Latrobe woman an award in the Pennsylvania Parks and Forest Foundation’s “Through the Seasons” photo contest. Clare Kaczmarek, 68, won the Judges’ Choice award in the contest’s “Motion” category for her photo of the river running through a bed of...
Lucky breaks help Arnold avoid property tax increase in 2021
Several things breaking in Arnold’s favor are helping the city avoid increasing property taxes next year. Council is scheduled to vote on the city’s $4.4 million 2021 budget during a meeting on Tuesday. The meeting will be held remotely on Zoom, beginning at 7 p.m. As proposed, the city’s property...
Test your eagle eyes at Mercer County spotting festival
As the number of bald eagles continue to soar in the state, so are the numbers of the previously endangered raptors congregating at local waterways in the winter. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at Shenango River Lake near Hermitage in Mercer County is inviting the public to visit and...
Meet Boone the disabled beagle: Therapy dog, fundraiser, class project, fashion plate, media starVideo
He’s a little beagle on a big mission. Meet Boone, a 3-year-old dog that was maimed and is now turning tragedy into triumph. Boone’s hind legs were intentionally cut off by his former owner when he was 6 weeks old. Tanya and Charlie Diable of Butler Township adopted Boone from...
South Buffalo Township institutes secure boxes for medication drop-offs
South Buffalo Township Police Department has installed secure boxes for dropping off unwanted medication. There are two boxes — one located at the South Buffalo Township Municipal Building and the other at the Cadogan Township building, where the police department has a substation. “It’s a no-questions-asked means for people to...
Owner of Leechburg’s Twisted Thistle opening new restaurant at New Kensington ice arenaVideo
A Leechburg restaurant owner is looking to pull off a hat trick in New Kensington. Joe Hesketh, co-owner of Twisted Thistle and Market Street Pizza in Leechburg, is opening a new restaurant, Crossbar Grill, across from the Pittsburgh Ice Arena on Craigdell Road. Crossbar replaces The Breakaway Bar and Grill,...
Official: Weather may be factor in dip in demand for state heating assistance
Fewer Pennsylvanians have applied so far this year to the state’s home heating assistance program than last year, but the need is still there. As of Wednesday, close to 230,000 people had sought assistance with heating bills through the 2020-21 Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program. That’s down from the roughly...
West Deer’s proposed $7.2M budget calls for 11% increase in spending, no tax increase
West Deer’s preliminary budget for 2021 includes no increase in property taxes despite a proposed increase in spending across numerous departments. Supervisors will vote to adopt next year’s $7.2 million budget at their Dec. 16 meeting. The tax rate remains 2.99 mills in the preliminary budget. Township Manager Dan Mator...
New $250,000 waterline installation project in Upper Burrell won’t stop traffic, will improve water
An upcoming waterline project in Upper Burrell along Bethesda Drive and a small portion of White Cloud Road won’t inconvenience residents, but will improve the water quality and flow, according to a water authority official. The Municipal Authority of New Kensington is planning the $250,000 project this spring to provide...
East Deer passes proposed $1.5 million budget, no tax increase
East Deer’s proposed $1.5 million budget for 2021 calls for no property tax increase despite a 23% increase in spending. Commissioners approved the proposed budget at their Thursday meeting, and will vote to approve the final budget on Dec. 31. The tax rate will remain at 4.9 mills. Commissioners Chairman...
PennDOT plans $10M project for Route 356 corridor in Buffalo Township
PennDOT plans to make $10 million in upgrades along Route 356 in Buffalo Township to improve the flow of traffic through the township’s central business district. The project will widen Route 356 to five lanes — consisting of four travel lanes and one center turning lane — from north of...
‘Monticello Lights’ display backs up traffic in Delmont, second night set for SundayVideo
When residents of Monticello Drive in Delmont replaced their annual holiday party with a neighborhood drive-thru Christmas-light competition, they were hoping for an enjoyable weekend and a chance to raise a little money for charity. What they didn’t expect was a four-and-a-half-hour parade of cars that backed up traffic along...
Sheraden dog-bite victim arrested after fighting with police
Police and medics responding to a reported dog bite early Sunday morning ended up filing charges against the victim after she fought with and bled on officers, public safety officials said. Police from Zone 6 and EMS responded to a home on the 3000 block of Motor Street in Pittsburgh’s...
Working through a pandemic: Ambulance services getting flooded with covid calls
The onslaught came all at once. One day, the coronavirus patient load was just as low it had been all summer. Then in mid-October, as the leaves began to change, days at work abruptly shifted. “It was all of a sudden,” said Dave Whipkey, paramedic and logistics director at Mutual...
The Stroller, Dec. 13, 2020: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Is your non-profit organization going to have a fundraiser? Send information to The Stroller at least a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com. Please include a daytime telephone number. Children’s charity conducting calendar fundraiser Superheroes Believe in Miracles, a charity that serves children facing illness, disability or limitations is selling 2021...
Western Pa. nursing homes scramble for staff to care for covid patients
Kaitlin Smith was getting increasingly worried about covid-19 outbreaks at Quality Life Services, a nursing home chain where she works as a clinical reimbursement specialist. For weeks, she had been on daily calls with all of the facility administrators, hearing about rising infections and staffing struggles. Then one Friday last...
Restaurants along Leechburg Road in Lower Burrell run the gamut of compliance with pandemic restrictions
For business owners like John Clark of Clark’s Diner in Lower Burrell, the new covid mitigation efforts instituted by Gov. Tom Wolf are as much of a threat to his workers’ livelihood as the virus itself. As a result, he’s ignoring them and allowing indoor dining to continue — in...
Business owners buckle down for new covid restrictions
For some local business owners, the expanded state health and safety orders that went into effect Saturday were another punch to the gut, during a year in which they’ve already absorbed plenty of body blows. At Jioio’s Restaurant in Greensburg, owner Tony Jioio is buckling down for a tough holiday...
Police: Duo drives to West Deer nursing home, beats up woman and steals her phone
A Hampton woman is accused of driving a man and two girls to a West Deer nursing home and beating up an employee who was on her break, according to a criminal complaint. West Deer police said the victim called the police station Nov. 17 to report an assault that...
