Local category, Page 2701
Man dead in Peters fire; woman escapes home
A man died after suffering injuries in a house fire Monday evening in Peters, officials said. The Allegheny County Medical Examiner identified the man as Robert Gries, 84. The fire was reported at about 5:20 p.m. at a home along Clara Lane, according to Tribune-Review news partner WPXI-TV. Gries was...
The Stroller, Dec. 3, 2019: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Deer Lakes students to perform at Allegheny County Courthouse The Deer Lakes High School Concert Choir and Symphonic Band will perform Wednesday on the Grand Staircase inside the Allegheny County Courthouse, 436 Grant St., Pittsburgh. The band will play at 11:30 a.m. and the choir performance will start at 12:20...
Public performance part of Honor Band Festival at Valley High School
Valley High School in New Kensington will host the annual Westmoreland County Senior High Honor Band Festival on Friday. The concert is scheduled to start at 7 p.m. in the high school auditorium. It is open to the public. Admission is $5 for adults and $3 for children under 10....
Pittsburgh man pleads guilty to distributing crack cocaine
A Pittsburgh man pleaded guilty in federal court to dealing in drugs in connection with a local street gang, the U.S. Attorney’s office in Pittsburgh announced Monday. Cecil Howard, 48, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute crack cocaine, according to the office of U.S. Attorney Scott W. Brady. Authorities said...
Democratic presidential candidates coming to Pittsburgh for education forum
At least six Democratic presidential hopefuls plan to attend a nationally televised education forum in Downtown Pittsburgh next weekend, the event’s organizers said Monday. Confirmed candidates include Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Joe Biden, Pete Buttigieg, Amy Klobuchar and Tom Steyer. Two more candidates are considering attending the forum, said Suzanne...
Cope named new president of New Kensington-Arnold School board
As he prepares to retire from his nearly 50-year teaching career, the new president of the New Kensington-Arnold School Board said he wants to be involved in the district’s schools as much as he can. “It’s an honor, it’s a duty, it’s a privilege,” John Cope said shortly after taking...
Pittsburgh man pleads guilty to hiding drug money in Penn Hills real estate
A Pittsburgh man pleaded guilty to selling more than a pound of cocaine and funneling his profits into real estate purchases as a form of money laundering, federal prosecutors said Monday. Anthony Bentley, 44, who goes by the nickname “Poundcake,” also agreed to forfeit $218,000 in cash that officials seized...
Freeport Road, Route 910 traffic signal work to start in Harmar
Work to improve traffic signals on Route 910 and Freeport Road in Harmar is scheduled to begin Tuesday, resulting in traffic restrictions, according to PennDOT. Single-lanes restrictions will be in place from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on weekdays from Tuesday through June 2020 at intersections along Route 910 from...
An Arnold staple, Fazio’s Pizza & Italian Food lives onVideo
Editor’s note: Building the Valley tells stories of businesses big and small and the employees who make them special. If you know of any standout employees, bosses or companies with a great story to tell, contact reporter Madasyn Lee at mlee@tribweb.com. Fazio’s Pizza & Italian Food in Arnold is still...
Average gas prices drop in Pittsburgh, U.S.
Gas prices moved lower in the Pittsburgh area and across the nation in the past week, according to the price-tracking website GasBuddy.com. In the Pittsburgh area, the average price dropped 1.2 cents per gallon to an average of $2.85, according to GasBuddy’s survey of 731 stations. That’s 2.3 cents per...
Pittsburgh Mayor’s Office says funding dwindling for URA projects
The Pittsburgh Urban Redevelopment Authority is facing a tough financial future with less money coming in from the city and federal government each year for such funding priorities as affordable housing and small business development, city officials said Monday. Under Mayor Bill Peduto’s $608 million proposed budget for 2020, the...
Indiana County man faces dozen of charges in alleged crime spree
State police are searching for an Indiana County man who they said stole a pickup from one home, a rifle from another and then threatened people at a third home on Friday. Police filed more than 30 charges against David P. Dilts Jr., 36, of Penn Run, including felony counts...
Irwin man brought fun, music to many
Robert R. LaVella wanted to make people happy. At work he sold and rented supplies for festivals and parties. In his free time he played drums with the “Bobby Lavella Quartet.” And wherever he went he was quick with a joke. “He was always telling a joke, always telling stories,”...
Allegheny Health Network reports 10th straight quarter of positive earnings
Allegheny Health Network is on track to achieve its third consecutive year of positive earnings as the burgeoning nonprofit health system continues to expand across and beyond Western Pennsylvania, newly filed financial records show. “Our balance sheet is in the best financial position historically than it’s ever been,” Chief Financial...
2 taken to hospital after 2-car crash in Springdale Township
Two people were taken to a hospital after a two-car crash Monday in Springdale Township. Allegheny County emergency dispatchers said the crash happened around 5:10 p.m. in the 2800 block of Freeport Road near John & Gerry’s Fruit Market. Two people were cut from vehicles. It was not immediately known...
DEP, City of Jeannette again order closure of hemp facility
The City of Jeannette and the state Department of Environmental Protection have separately ordered a controversial hemp-drying facility in Jeannette to close. The DEP issued its order Monday, telling facility owner Patriot Shield to cease operation within 48 hours. The order prohibits the company from receiving, processing or storing hemp....
Nick J. Petrishen, owner of Nick Chevrolet in Tarentum, dies at 77
The night before he suffered a stroke that would ultimately take his life, Nick Petrishen Jr. went with his only son to see the movie “Ford v Ferrari.” “He really enjoyed it the whole time,” said his son Nick S. Petrishen, 50, of Natrona Heights. “The ironic part is the...
Penn Hills man described by police as ‘one-man crime spree’ gets 5 years in prison
A Penn Hills man will serve at least five years in prison for two incidents described by Westmoreland County prosecutors as “strikingly similar” to one in which a New Kensington police officer was shot and killed two years ago. Brandon M. Jeter, 20, pleaded guilty Monday to firearms offenses and...
Budget hearing for Pittsburgh schools addresses mental health programs, state oversightVideo
Many residents who came to a public hearing Monday on the 2020 Pittsburgh Public Schools budget didn’t focus on the spending plan that includes a 2.3% rise in property taxes collected by the district, the first tax increase in five years. Instead, the bigger concern was the district’s spending on...
Things to do in Plum and Oakmont this week
Having trouble finding things to do in Plum and Oakmont this week? Here are some suggestions: • Plum Creek Park along New Texas Road in Plum will be transformed into a winter wonderland Thursday for the fourth annual Christmas at Plum Creek. Activities will be at and across from the...
DUI, drug cases among those recently handled in Judge DeLuca’s Penn Hills court – Dec. 2, 2019
Penn Hills District Judge Anthony L. DeLuca handled the following cases recently. Defendants will have court dates set in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court. Charges were filed by Penn Hills police unless otherwise noted. Held for court • John Arble, 31, of Blairsville on charges of possession of controlled substances...
Derry Township man pleads to drug charge in friend’s overdose death
A Derry Township man pleaded guilty Monday to selling doses of fentanyl-laced heroin blamed for the fatal overdose two years ago of his friend in a Greensburg apartment. Westmoreland County prosecutors charged Glenn A. Levtzow with drug delivery resulting in death and child endangerment in connection with the Nov. 18,...
Sage’s Army gets nearly $600K to expand addiction outreach, support
Carmen Capozzi was overwhelmed when his 20-year-old son, Sage, died of a heroin overdose in a Hempfield motel room in March 2012. But the Irwin contractor collected himself, took his grief, molded it into an anti-addiction campaign and Sage’s Army was born. For 7½ years, working on a dream and...
Monday still popular with hunters, even with early start to deer rifle season
Even with the new Saturday start to deer rifle season, Monday still felt like opening day to a lot of area hunters. Old traditions die hard. Glen Stott of Latrobe went out Saturday, but he also went out Monday because he had previously asked for the day off. By 9...
Portion of Wilmerding-Monroeville Road closing Dec. 3
A section of a road in Monroeville will close for about a week starting Dec. 3, Allegheny County Public Works announced Monday. Wilmerding-Monroeville Road, also known as Patton Street, will close between Monroeville Boulevard and the Tri-Boro Expressway starting at 7 a.m. Dec. 3. Public works will work on emergency...
