Local category, Page 2204
Allegheny Township woman killed in crash along Route 66
An Allegheny Township woman was killed in a two-vehicle crash on Route 66 on Thursday morning. The crash victim was identified as Brooke Moyle, 20. The Westmoreland County Coroner’s Office said she was pronounced dead at the scene. Her death, which was ruled an accident, was attributed to blunt force...
Allison Park cancer survivor, 5, lights up Christmas tree at PPG Place in PittsburghVideo
Nora Misencik has the smile and energy to light up a room. On Thursday, the 5-year-old cancer survivor from Allison Park lit up a city as she and her older sister, Heidi, 8, turned on the power and charm of the Christmas tree at the Rink at PPG Place in...
Police: Man critically wounded, teenage boy grazed in struggle over handgun in Avalon
Investigators believe a struggle over a handgun led to a shooting in Avalon on Thursday afternoon that wounded a man and a teenage boy. The 23-year-old man suffered a gunshot wound to the head and was in critical condition at an area hospital, according to Allegheny County Police, who assisted...
State Sen. Brewster now tied with challenger Ziccarelli in 45th District race
Republican challenger Nicole Ziccarelli has pulled into a tie with Democratic incumbent state Sen. Jim Brewster in the race for the 45th District seat. Ziccarelli, a New Kensington lawyer, was trailing Brewster by 28 votes late Thursday afternoon, but she made up those votes as the tally from the Westmoreland...
New Kensington-Arnold immediately closing schools, cites rise in covid-19
New Kensington-Arnold School District announced Thursday it is immediately closing all district schools because of an increase in local incidents of covid-19 transmission. All students will be moved to fully remote instruction from Friday through next Wednesday, Nov. 25, according to acting Superintendent Jon Banko. The district’s Thanksgiving break runs...
Pandemic has pre-orders for take-out Thanksgiving meals way up at Aspinwall restaurant
An Aspinwall eatery is offering free home delivery of downsized Thanksgiving turkey meals this year, in response to recent covid-19 restrictions. Cornerstone Restaurant owner Erin Connolly said her regular Tuesday meal deliveries have been “through the roof,” with more people opting to remain at home this holiday season. She made...
Women of Alle Kiski Engaging distribute items collected for HOPE, HAVIN domestic violence shelters
Inside the box was a sauce pan. “That one pot could be used to make dinner tonight for a woman and her children who have just fled an unsafe home,” said Laurie Johns, assistant executive director of Helping All Victims in Need (HAVIN), a domestic violence shelter in Kittanning. Johns...
State appeals court orders challenged ballots in Brewster-Ziccarelli Senate race to not be counted; race tied
The Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court on Thursday evening ordered that 2,349 undated mail-in ballots in Allegheny County not be counted as part of an appeal by the Republican challenger for the 45th Senatorial District seat. But the order — and the one the court issued to stay the vote count Wednesday...
Mt. Pleasant Borough Christmas tree fundraiser to benefit fire departmentVideo
David and Pam DePalma brought their Christmas tree out of storage this week to prep it as the centerpiece of their Mt. Pleasant flooring shop’s holiday window display. Once again, the branches of the tree initially will be bare, except for lights, when it is erected Nov. 25 in the...
Man accused of soliciting 15-year-old girl in Latrobe
A man was arrested Thursday on charges of soliciting and harassing a 15-year-old Latrobe girl last month while she was accompanied by her 7-year-old niece at a city laundromat. Justice J. Roberts, 24, of Greensburg was arrested on a warrant acquired by city police after the Oct. 25 incident. He...
Trump supporters plan ‘election integrity’ rally in Greensburg
Supporters of President Trump will rally Saturday outside the Westmoreland County Courthouse in Greensburg to protest the results of the election. The 2 p.m. event could overlap with a Black Lives Matter rally scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Tony Naples, co-organizer of the 1776 Rally For Election Integrity, said there will...
Developer revises plans for new building at Wholey’s warehouse in Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh Planning Commission members aren’t saying what they think of a revised design at the site of a former cold storage warehouse in Pittsburgh’s Strip District. New York-based JMC Holdings paid $8.1 million for the former Wholey’s cold storage warehouse at 1501 Penn Ave. in 2018. The windowless building was...
Some Alle-Kiski residents decking the halls earlier to spread holiday cheer amid pandemicVideo
For some in the Alle-Kiski Valley, decorating for Christmas before the Thanksgiving holiday has been the perfect pandemic pick-me-up. Here’s a look at some of the early-bird decorators. Harrison Matt Bedick of Harrison has one festive front yard. Bedick, an emergency room nurse at Forbes Hospital in Monroeville, is a...
Allegheny County Judge Tranquilli denied back-pay; barred from seeking judicial office
Former Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge Mark V. Tranquilli will not receive any of his withheld salary during his three-month suspension. That sanction was part of an order handed down Thursday by the Pennsylvania Court of Judicial Discipline. In addition, Tranquilli, who resigned the day before his misconduct trial was...
Contact tracer jobs dry up just as WCCC launches training program
Those contact tracer jobs that sounded like a lifeline to workers left unemployed in the midst of the pandemic are gone. A spokesman for the Pennsylvania Department of Health said the state filled all of its 1,000 positions for contact tracers — hired to track down people who had close...
Tarentum second-hand store owner worries reopening may be short-lived
Even as Lorie Angely prepares to reopen her Tarentum store, she fears she may have to shut it down again, possibly for good. Angely has run Secondhand Treasures on the borough’s West Seventh Avenue for about 20 years. It’s been closed since the pandemic-related shutdown in March. She’s reopening Saturday,...
Greensburg Central Catholic declares Friday ‘Centurion Day’ as soccer teams vie for PIAA titlesVideo
It’s been a complicated fall sports season for teams across the country, with an extra layer of health and safety guidelines to protect players, coaches and staff from the coronavirus. That makes it all the more impressive to see both the boys and girls soccer teams from Greensburg Central Catholic...
Pittsburgh cuts without pandemic relief would be ‘disastrous,’ council members told
The personnel cuts that will be needed July 1 if further federal pandemic relief funds aren’t approved “may prove to be untenable,” Pittsburgh Council Budget Director Bill Urbanic told council members Thursday. The city needs an infusion of at least $26 million by then to avoid making the cuts, which...
Money raised for new playground at West Hempfield Elementary SchoolVideo
After more than two years of working to raise money for a new playground at West Hempfield Elementary School, the project is finally coming together. The Hempfield Area School Board this week accepted a $41,559 donation from the West Hempfield Elementary PTO, money that will be used for new playground...
North Huntingdon taps fund balance to hold line on taxes for 2021
Property owners in North Huntingdon will not have to pay more real estate taxes in 2021 under a tentative budget that takes $1.14 million from the fund balance to cover a projected deficit. The commissioners voted Wednesday to adopt a proposed $14.17 million general fund budget that maintains real estate...
State officials highlight food assistance programs ahead of holidays
State officials on Thursday encouraged Pennsylvania residents to take advantage of food assistance programs, if needed, over the holidays. “Pennsylvania’s food assistance programs were built for times like these and no one should be too shy to take advantage of what they have to offer,” said Russell Redding, secretary of...
Westmoreland Historical Society exhibit recalls Christmas memoriesVideo
The Westmoreland Historical Society hopes visitors to its holiday exhibit in the History Education Center at Historic Hanna’s Town will say, “I remember that!” “The special exhibition presents objects and vignettes that will bring back fond memories of Christmases from the ‘30s, ‘40s and ‘50s,” according to a release, including...
Lawsuit: Clairton illegally charged per minute fee for virtual city council meeting
Infighting over the potential sale of a community’s sewer system led to a lawsuit this week over the Sunshine Act, alleging that callers participating in a council meeting via conference call were required to pay a per-minute fee. The lawsuit was filed by the Clairton Municipal Authority, along with two...
Tarentum Night Market organizers to go forward with Thursday event despite covid advisory
Organizers of Tarentum’s new Night Market plan to proceed with the monthly event Thursday evening, despite Allegheny County health officials advising residents to stay home except for essential activities because of the surging covid-19 pandemic. Started in September, the idea behind the market is for borough businesses to remain open...
North Huntingdon backyard chicken permit will cost $590
After months of wrangling and, at times, heated debate, North Huntingdon Commissioners this week took a step toward requiring residents who want chickens in their backyard to get approval from the township’s zoning hearing board. Commissioners Jason Atwood, Brian Blasko, Zachary Haigis and Ronald Zona voted to authorize township planning...
