Local category, Page 2668
Financing plan eyed for potential $5.8M Eastern Westmoreland tech center renovation
Administrators at Eastern Westmoreland Career and Technology Center are taking the next step toward a proposed renovation of the 43-year-old building — by working on a plan to pay for the project, which could cost more than $5.8 million. The center’s Joint Operating Committee this week authorized administrative staff to...
Federal agent: Cops offered payment to witness in Wilkinsburg mass shooting case
A federal agent testified Friday that Allegheny County Police offered financial assistance to the family of the key witness against one of two men charged in the 2016 Wilkinsburg mass shooting. Defense attorneys contend that prosecutors knew this information some time ago, but failed to disclose it. The homicide case...
Shoppers return to Delmont Walmart following gas leak
The Delmont Walmart store was temporarily evacuated shortly after 5:30 p.m. Friday as area firefighters investigated an odor of natural gas. Crews traced the odor to a small leak in a gas line that supplies a roof heating unit near the store’s pharmacy, Forbes Road Fire Chief Bob Rosatti said....
2 Catholic schools to close, 4 in South Hills to merge amid dwindling student enrollment
Two Catholic schools in Allegheny County will close while four others will merge into a single school in the South Hills in efforts to confront declining enrollment and climbing debt, officials announced Friday. St. Maria Goretti School in Pittsburgh’s Bloomfield neighborhood and East Catholic School in Forest Hills will close...
Humane officers: 19 cats, kittens rescued from White Oak home
One kitten was found dead and 19 others were removed by Humane Animal Rescue officials from a White Oak home Friday morning. Investigators said they received a tip about 30 cats possibly living there in disgraceful conditions. A warrant was obtained Thursday to seize the animals. Most of the cats...
State House scales back proposed emissions inspection overhaul
The state House scaled back a proposal that would have exempted many Pennsylvania drivers from vehicle emissions inspections — now calling for a study instead of an immediate overhaul. “They essentially gutted and replaced it,” said state Sen. Kim Ward, R-Hempfield, chair of the Senate Transportation Committee and the driving...
Landslides close Way Hollow Road indefinitely in Edgeworth, Sewickley Heights
Way Hollow Road in Edgeworth and Sewickley Heights will close indefinitely starting Tuesday, PennDOT announced. Multiple landslides in the area have made the road a public safety hazard, according to PennDOT. At this time, there is no time frame for the slides to be repaired or the roadway reopened. The...
Sign inspections to cause lane restrictions on Parkway West
There will be lane restrictions on the Parkway West (I-376) over the weekend, PennDOT announced. Crews from Mackin Engineering Company and the Sofis Rigging Company will conduct overhead sign inspections in various locations along the Parkway West on both Saturday and Sunday, PennDOT said. Lane restrictions will occur from 6...
Prosecutor says Derry man skipped sentencing hearing to take drugs
Glenn Levtzow apparently had a scheduling conflict Friday morning when he was due in court to be sentenced for his role in a friend’s overdose in 2017, a Westmoreland County prosecutor said. “He had better plans today. He is out smoking meth, according to the probation department,” Assistant District Attorney...
Lead levels in Pittsburgh water drop below federal thresholdVideo
Lead levels in Pittsburgh’s water system dipped below a federal threshold for a first time since the Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority early last year began adding a lead inhibitor, according to the latest test results released on Friday. Samples collected between July and December from 168 customers that have...
Women gain increasing numbers on Pitt faculty
Women are gaining an increasing stake on the faculty at the University of Pittsburgh. A new report, published in Pitt’s University Times, revealed that women made up 46% of the full-time faculty, up from 44% three years earlier. While that falls short of the 51% of the population that is...
Wind advisory issued for parts of Westmoreland, Fayette ridges
Wind gusts up to 50 mph could be felt in parts of the mountain ridges in Westmoreland and Fayette counties tonight. According to an advisory from the National Weather Service, winds will be between 25 and 35 mph until 10 p.m. Gusts could blow around unsecured objects, cause tree limbs...
South Huntingdon carpenter is GOP nominee for 58th House special election
Westmoreland County Republicans selected a union carpenter making his first run for public office as the GOP’s candidate in a special election for the Pennsylvania State House 58th District seat. Eric Davanzo, 43, of South Huntingdon was nominated Thursday night to run against Democrat Robert Prah in the March 17...
Bark and circumstance: Police dogs, partners graduate in PittsburghVideo
Five newly-trained police dogs had their day at the Pittsburgh Police K9 Training Academy in Highland Park. Shadow, Miky, Chooch, Rico, Baki and their human handlers were celebrated Friday as they graduated from a three-month training program at the academy. They’ll begin working in their home departments soon. As the...
Greensburg Salem School Board to search for new member following resignation
The Greensburg Salem School Board will be looking for a new member soon. Rachel Shaw announced her resignation this week. She was elected in 2017. Shaw took a job as mediator with the state’s Department of Labor, which prevents her from holding elected office. “I enjoyed my time on the...
Allegheny Health Department to receive training to reduce inequality in infant mortality
In response to what the Allegheny County Health Department says is a problem rooted in institutional racism, officials will receive training to help develop and implement new policies to address birth disparities. The training and technical assistance comes from CityMatCH, a national organization of city and county health departments’ maternal...
Mt. Pleasant Township man accused of sexually assaulting 10-year-old
State police have an arrest warrant for a 76-year-old Mt. Pleasant man on charges of sexually assaulting a girl on multiple occasions nearly five years ago. Donald C. Werry of Brush Creek Road was charged by state Trooper Robert Politowski with aggravated involuntary deviate sexual intercourse with a child, aggravated...
Leechburg Council has questions for school board about Veterans Stadium work
Leechburg Council would like the Leechburg Area School Board to answer questions it has concerning renovations at Veterans Stadium. Council members Ruth Bender and Lorrie Bazella attended Wednesday’s school board meeting to ask several questions about the planned project, which calls for installing artificial turf and a running track at...
Pittsburgh Central Catholic student has whooping cough, officials say
Central Catholic High School in Pittsburgh will undergo “extensive cleaning” this weekend after learning one of its students has been diagnosed with whooping cough, school officials said Friday. School officials sent out a letter to parents and guardians on Jan. 23 stating the state Department of Health confirmed a case...
Greensburg police seek 2 suspects in strong-arm robbery
Greensburg police are looking for an Allegheny County man and a second unidentified male suspect accused in a strong-arm robbery, according to court papers. Investigators got an arrest warrant Friday for Jonathan Stewart Kostial, 26, of Moon, who is charged with robbery, strangulation, conspiracy, theft and related offenses. A Greensburg...
Former Murrysville massage parlor to be sold at sheriff’s sale
A prime commercial lot and building with a notorious past along Route 22 in Murrysville is slated to be sold at Westmoreland County Sheriff’s Sale March 2. The defunct Tokyo Massage Spa at 6428 William Penn Highway, which was shut March 22 after the arrest of owner Hui Xu, will...
Donora library to host Heinz history center’s traveling World War II exhibit
In the run-up to the 75th anniversary of World War II’s ending this fall, the Donora Historical Society and Donora Public Library will co-host the traveling World War II exhibit from the John Heinz History Center in Pittsburgh. For historical society volunteer Mark Pawelec, it’s a chance not only to...
Gateway working with Tri-COG Land Bank on acquisition of Pitcairn property
The Gateway school board has given the Tri-COG Land Bank permission to acquire another residential property in Pitcairn. The house, located at 590 4th Street, marks the second the land bank has eyed for acquisition in recent months. Another on 7th Street is in the process of being acquired by...
Week in review: Pitt mourns student’s death; Antonio Brown jailedVideo
It was a week of mourning and concern across the Pittsburgh area. The news included the tragic death of a promising University of Pittsburgh student, and several Mt. Pleasant students being hurt in a car crash. Crime news included Ex-Steeler Antonio Brown making headlines again, and a Latrobe man being...
Land bank lists houses in Turtle Creek and Braddock Hills
The Tri-COG Land Bank plans to put two houses up for sale on Jan. 27, the organization announced Thursday. The houses, located in Turtle Creek and Braddock Hills, will be the land bank’s first two houses to be listed for sale since the organization’s 2017 launch. The land bank was...
