Local category, Page 2404
Comcast offering free Wi-Fi for rest of year as nation works to reopen amid coronavirus
Comcast will keep its public Xfinity Wi-Fi hotspots open to everyone, including non-Xfinity customers, for the remainder of the year, the company said Thursday. The provider in March announced it would open access to its 1.5 million hotspots to anyone amid the coronavirus pandemic. “We saw a huge jump in...
Groups plan $1.1M historical restoration of path in Pittsburgh North Side park
Pittsburgh’s landmark Allegheny Commons Park in the North Side is about to receive a $1.1 million historical facelift. The Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy on Thursday announced plans for restoration of the North Promenade, a path paralleling North Avenue and running almost the length of the park. Plans call for a paved,...
Westmoreland Cleanways suspends electronics recycling
Westmoreland Cleanways temporarily is halting drop-off of electronics at its Pleasant Unity recycling center because of a covid-19-related shutdown of a company that processes the items. Executive Director Ellen Keefe said Thursday that Westmoreland Cleanways learned the out-of-state electronics processor shut down because of a suspected covid-19 infection. She stressed...
Scott Township commissioners fill open seat, 1 vacancy remains
Scott Township commissioners have filled a vacancy on the board for 7th Ward representative. Nick Seibel was sworn in June 23 by the board to serve the unexpired term of Frank Bruckner, who resigned for personal reasons, effective June 1. Seibel is employed as a facilities project manager for Eat’n...
Westmoreland County pays $50K to settle lawsuit, want row officers to start footing legal bills
Westmoreland County commissioners have had enough of paying out large sums of money to settle lawsuits filed against other elected officials. “We’re sending a letter to all of our row officers and elected officials telling them we want to hold them accountable,” said Commissioner Sean Kertes. Those comments came Thursday...
Murrysville-area student news for the week of June 22
• Delaney Bortz, Brianna Fait, Paige Kaye, Alexis Salvio and Kayleigh Ventrone of Delmont; Autumn Alko, Kelsey Fritz, Kathleen Kimmich, Zachary Recklein and Kaylin Sundin of Export; and Joseph Constantin, Makenna Grieco, Emma Jakiela, Lindsey Lamagna, Nicole Lamagna and Alexandra Zorzi of Murrysville were named to the spring 2020 dean’s...
Norwin graduation falls within state guidelines, district says
When Norwin High School conducts its commencement ceremonies for almost 400 seniors Friday night, there likely will be more than 250 people — graduates and guests — gathered at Knights Stadium for each of the two sessions. Although Westmoreland County is in the green phase of the state’s covid-19 restrictions...
Leechburg Area passes $15.3M budget with 3.8% tax increase in West Leechburg
Leechburg Area School Board adopted a $15.3 million budget for the coming school year that increases taxes for West Leechburg property owners by 3.8%, but decreases taxes for ones in Leechburg and Gilpin. Board members voted 7-1 to adopt the budget during a virtual meeting Wednesday. Because Leechburg Area School...
Flow of Point State Park fountain signals summer in Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh’s Point State Park fountain is flowing. Park Manager Jake Weiland said the fountain’s annual winter hibernation ended on Wednesday when staff turned on the pumps after about four weeks of prep work. “Lots of people think it’s as simple as turning on switches,” he said. “We’ve been working on...
Ligonier Valley School District approves fall back-to-school plans
The Ligonier Valley School District approved plans Monday for a series of virtual Family Town Hall Sessions that will begin Monday, June 29. Sessions will explain options for students and families for the 2020-21 school year reopening, discuss health and safety concerns and allow for questions to be raised. The...
Pittsburgh doctors document onset of Guillain-Barré Syndrome in covid-19 patient
Pittsburgh doctors found a potential connection between covid-19 and the onset of the autoimmune disorder Guillain-Barré Syndrome, according to a case study from Allegheny General Hospital. The neurologists, among the first in the country to document this link, published findings in the June issue of the Journal of Clinical Neuromuscular...
3rd McCandless council member resigns in as many months
A third member of McCandless Town Council has resigned in as many months. First-term Councilman Chuck Mazur, who represents Ward 3, announced that he is stepping down for health reasons. Mazur, a Republican, won the seat in November by defeating Democrat Deawna Marie Alfonsie, who ran unopposed for her party’s...
McCandless council adopts new rules to regulate Marcellus shale drilling
Energy companies looking to set up Marcellus shale drilling operations in McCandless will have to adhere to new rules that are being crafted by town officials. Council approved amendments to its oil and gas drilling laws to include shale drilling as a “pending” ordinance, which means even though some of...
Pitt to host virtual talk on coronavirus, future of public health
The University of Pittsburgh will host a virtual seminar Friday titled “Covid-19 and the Future of Public Health.” The talk will explore how covid-19 compares to other public health crises, like the polio outbreaks of the 1940s and ’50s. The seminar, hosted by Pitt’s Graduate School of Public Health, will...
Pittsburgh airport launches 2nd phase of reopening plan as travel increases
Pittsburgh International Airport said it is launching the second phase of its PIT Safe Travels Program as passenger traffic increases. The airport implemented the program last month to ensure a safe environment in the airport and bolster confidence in air travel in the wake of the covid-19 pandemic. The initiative...
Westmoreland County has 15 new coronavirus cases
Westmoreland County has 15 new covid-19 cases and no additional deaths, the Pennsylvania Department of Health reported Thursday. The countywide case total is now 578, with 38 deaths, according to the department. There have been no reported coronavirus deaths in Westmoreland County since May 18. It was the fourth day...
Former Saint Vincent College president elected archabbot of Benedictine community
The Rev. Martin de Porres Bartel, a former president of Saint Vincent College, was elected the 12th archabbot of Saint Vincent Archabbey, a community of Benedictine monks that founded the college in 1846. Bartel, 64, succeeds Archabbot Douglas R. Nowicki, who resigned upon reaching the mandatory retirement age of 75...
Biddle’s Escape coffee shop owner sues WESA-FM, alleging defamation
The owner of a Wilkinsburg coffee shop is suing a Pittsburgh radio station over a story last year that contained allegations of sexual misconduct. Joseph Davis, owner of Biddle’s Escape, a popular indie coffee joint in the Regent Square neighborhood, claims in a lawsuit that the story was defamatory and...
Allegheny County reports 37 new covid-19 cases, 6 new hospitalizations
Allegheny County health officials reported 37 new covid-19 cases, six new hospitalizations and no new deaths on Thursday. Covid-19 cases have been rising locally this week. The county on Wednesday reported 45 new cases, matching the number of new cases reported on Monday. The 45 cases reported Monday and Wednesday...
Carnegie Science Center reopening, extending Mummies of the World exhibit
Carnegie Science Center is extending its popular Mummies of the World exhibition as the museum reopens after closing March 14 in the coronavirus shutdown. Mummies of the World had been scheduled to end in April. The show, presented in the center’s PPG Science Pavilion, displays 125 mummies and related artifacts...
Work on rail crossing will trigger Sewickley Township detour
A section of Lowber Road in Sewickley Township will be closed beginning Monday for maintenance of a railroad crossing, according to PennDOT. The closure, near the intersection of Sutersville Road, will begin at 8:30 a.m. and is expected to continue through 3:30 p.m. Wednesday as a CSX crew works at...
In-person services to resume at Faith United Methodist Church in Fox Chapel
In-person worship services are scheduled to resume Sunday at Faith United Methodist Church in Fox Chapel. Services will look slightly different, with all parishioners required to wear face masks and other options for people to remain in their cars, Pastor Scott Shaffer said. Services will begin at 10 a.m. and...
The Stroller, June 25, 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@tribweb.com or The Stroller, Valley News Dispatch, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Skyview Radio Society plans Field Day Amateur radio club...
Hampton officials amend reopening plan to allow facility usage by athletic clubs
Hampton youth swimmers will be allowed to have organized activities at the township pool as officials have amended their covid-19 reopening and future operations plan. Hampton Athletic Association ball players will also be on township fields a little earlier than expected as council voted 4-0 Wednesday night to adopt a...
New alert system designed to save Pittsburgh firefighters time, stress
A new alert system installed across Pittsburgh’s firehouses will streamline responses and cut down on stress that wears on firefighters from listening to every call every moment they’re in the station, Public Safety officials said in introducing the system on Wednesday. Dispatches are only heard by the station or stations...
