Local category, Page 2695
Vandergrift Councilman Sciullo retires after 32 years
Vern Sciullo does not care for all the attention he’s gotten recently. A member of the Vandergrift Council for 32 years, Sciullo officially retired this week when the newly elected members were officially sworn in Monday. “I’m not interested in this fanfare,” Sciullo said after his last meeting. At the...
Husband-wife duo accused of bilking Pa. out of $10M by faking 20 companies in tax credit scheme
A husband-and-wife team is accused of bilking Pennsylvania out of more than $10 million by obtaining tax incentives for 20 sham companies, then selling the state-issued tax credits for cash, a grand jury found. “Christopher” Wing-Tat Chiu, 47, and Ivy Li — former Bucks County residents who prosecutors say have...
New Gateway directors sworn in
The Gateway School District Board of Directors hierarchy will remain unchanged as three new faces join the nine-member board. School directors Paul Caliari, Susan Delaney and Scott Gallagher were sworn in by Monroeville Magisterial District Judge Jeffrey Herbst this week. They were joined by incumbents Mary Beth Cirucci, John Ritter...
The Stroller, Dec. 6, 2019: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Chamber ensemble to perform in Tarentum Central Presbyterian Church, Tarentum, will present a concert, “Russian Holiday,” at 4 p.m. Sunday at the church, 305 Allegheny St. The Academy Chamber Ensemble will perform works by Tchaikovsky and Hayden, as well as holiday favorites. For details, call 724-224-9220. HOPE Center seeks donations...
Mad Scientist Beer celebrates grand opening in north Greensburg
Greensburg has a new beer distributor. Mad Scientist Beer, located at 990 N. Main St., followed a recent soft opening with an official grand opening Thursday. It’s located in the Route 66 Plaza, next to the Shop ’n Save. Greensburg has other beer distributors, but none on the north side...
Greensburg serial rapist loses appeal of 100-year prison sentence
A Greensburg man in prison for raping a teen-aged boy lost a legal appeal claiming his potential century-long sentence was excessive. Kenneth Richie, 64, pleaded guilty in 2013 to nine counts, including rape, in connection with sexual assaults against a 15-year-old boy in April 2011. Greensburg police said Richie developed...
Wood-fired pizzeria, bar coming to downtown GreensburgVideo
In a room filled with rubble, covered in graffiti and infested with pigeons, Chris Martin envisions a lively downtown Greensburg restaurant, with a wood-fired grill cooking made-to-order pizzas and a bar serving craft drinks. If renovations go according to plan, dŌ Wood-Fired will open its second location at 39 N....
Merry … Krampusnacht? Pittsburgh celebrates darker, edgier ChristmasVideo
For the third year in a row, crowds gathered in Pittsburgh’s Market Square on Thursday night for a darker and edgier version of the Christmas spirit. A parade of figures clad in fur, horns and other frightening attire strolled through Market Square for Krampusnacht. It’s a traditionally European take on...
Allegheny County Jail to use inmate funds to supply overdose reversal kits
The Allegheny County Jail Oversight Board has approved a $75,000 disbursement from the Inmate Welfare Fund to buy 1,000 Narcan nasal spray kits to be provided to inmates as they are released from the jail. The distribution program, which started in 2016, was previously funded by grants and with support...
Monroeville library hosts ‘Grinchmas’ party
Monroeville Public Library will host a Grinch-themed party on Dec. 7. The “Grinchmas” party at the library will be from 1 to 2:30 p.m. The event, in its second year, will feature Grinch-themed games and food. Hope Benson, head of the children’s library, said they will read the original “How...
PennDOT announces lane and shoulder restrictions on Parkway East
Shoulder and short-term lane closures will occur in both directions on I-376 (Parkway East) from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday, weather permitting, PennDOT said. The restrictions will take place between the Fort Pitt Bridge and the Squirrel Hill/Homestead (Exit 74) interchange as crews remove temporary lane barriers. Depending on...
Festival of Trees to light up River Forest starting Friday
River Forest Country Club’s first Holiday Festival of Trees begins Friday, part of the Freeport area’s Small Town Christmas celebration. The festival kicks off at 6 p.m. with a tree-lighting at the Allegheny Township golf club. Businesses, golf leagues, families and others sponsored 20 small firs at the club, earning...
Singer Smokey Robinson to visit Lumaze Pittsburgh holiday light festival
Legendary Motown singer-songwriter Smokey Robinson will be in the spotlight on Sunday. He will visit with fans from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. at Lumaze Pittsburgh, the indoor holiday lights festival at the 31st Street Studios in the city’s Strip District. Tickets for the Lumaze event with Robinson are $99.95. Meet...
Pittsburgh Dad stops at ‘The Price is Right,’ will have CBS game show-themed episode
Pittsburgh Dad and Drew Carey. How about that for a collaboration? Because something from Curt Wootton’s camp and “The Price is Right” host is coming. Mallory Mason, CBS entertainment communications director, confirmed that Wootton will be doing a special “The Price is Right” episode of “Pittsburgh Dad.” Wootton, however, did...
Oakmont mulls decision on cycling, off-leash dogs in Dark Hollow Woods
It appears Dark Hollow Woods in Oakmont will remain a place for off-leash dogs and bicyclists as council continues to mull over a recreation board proposal. Council previously approved a six-month trial period to test off-leash times and cycling in the publicly owned park near Crystal Drive. Recreation board member...
Appeal denied for Donora man found guilty of assaulting pregnant girlfriend
A Westmoreland County judge on Thursday denied the appeal of a Donora man convicted earlier this year in a brutal assault against his pregnant girlfriend. In a 23-page opinion, Common Pleas Court Judge Rita Hathaway ruled there was no basis for the appeal filed by Travis Magash, who was convicted...
Latrobe firefighters suspended, mayor says
Several members of Latrobe Fire Department’s Goodwill Hose Company No. 1 have been suspended, Mayor Rosie Wolford said Thursday afternoon. Wolford did not reveal the reason for the suspensions or specify the number of firefighters involved. Reversing recent media reports, she said the company’s operations are no longer suspended. The...
Woman sentenced in Greensburg torture slaying pleads for clemency
The Greensburg woman who testified against her roommates in connection with the 2010 torture slaying of a mentally disabled friend has applied for clemency, saying she wants to rejoin society. Amber Meidinger, 29, filed paperwork last month with the state’s Board of Pardons, seeking early termination of her 40- to...
Racism widespread and systemic in Pittsburgh, experts say
Racism is the fundamental cause of health disparities and other inequities in such areas as housing, employment and wealth accumulation that Pittsburgh black residents face daily, a group of experts told city council on Thursday. Councilmen Ricky Burgess and R. Daniel Lavelle assembled the panel in an effort to push...
Monroeville road reopens
A section of a Monroeville road that closed Dec. 3 has partially reopened, Allegheny County Public Works said Thursday. Wilmerding-Monroeville Road, also known as Patton Street, closed between Monroeville Boulevard and the Tri-Boro Expressway to allow public works crews to perform emergency repairs to a portion of the road that...
Pittsburgh woman to lead new nursing school at Grove City College
Janey A. Roach, a Pittsburgh native and former UPMC nursing director, has been named the first director of the new Charles Jr. and Betty Johnson School of Nursing at Grove City College. Roach, who has extensive experience as a nurse, educator and administrator, will oversee the college’s newest academic school...
‘Produce to People’ food bank finds new winter home in Tarentum
A program that provides fresh produce to people in need will be one of the first community services operating out of the former Rite Aid building in Tarentum. “Produce to People,” a program of the Allegheny Valley Association of Churches, will distribute food from the building at 411 Corbet St....
Squirrel Hill gallery showcases dementia and Alzheimer’s patients’ artwork
Art can be a way for dementia and Alzheimer’s patients to remember. The patient generally remembers a favorite color when choosing from a palette, said Liz Powell, art education coordinator for the Jewish Association on Aging. If they liked blue before they will most likely choose blue again, she said....
Retired astronaut talks to Pittsburgh students at Carnegie Science CenterVideo
Mike Foale’s home movies are out of this world. Foale, 62, is a retired NASA astronaut, and Thursday he was in Pittsburgh to celebrate the opening of the Bosch Soundsee Research and Test Facility in the Strip District. He also made a stop at the Buhl Planetarium in the Carnegie...
Deer Lakes High School choir and band perform at Allegheny County CourthouseVideo
Holiday sounds echoed through the halls of the Allegheny County Courthouse on Thursday as members of the Deer Lakes High School Concert Choir and Symphonic Band performed on the building’s grand staircase. Deer Lakes was the fourth of more than 20 schools participating in this year’s Holiday Music Program, which...
