Local category, Page 2807
Penn Hills School District to save millions through bond refinancing
Penn Hills School District officials hope to save millions through bond refinancing. Five firms submitted about a dozen options for school directors to consider. Daniel Matsook, the district’s state-appointed financial recovery officer, said more than $100 million in bonds could be restructured to save Penn Hills between $15 million and...
Jeannette native to speak at veterans dinner about life lessons learned as POW in Vietnam
Vietnam veteran Dave Carey endured 51⁄2 years as a prisoner of war by talking. Under the stress of torture, the Jeannette High School and Naval Academy graduate talked to his captors in Hanoi, feeding them invented information to end their interrogation and the physical punishment that accompanied it. “At times,...
Washington Township lawn mower repair company asks customers for helpVideo
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 mczebiniak@tribweb.com. When Matthew Pawlowski bought Exton Mower Sales and Service...
Harrison approves zoning amendment for school bus depot
Highlands School District’s new bus company will be able to keep its depot in Harrison right where it is. Harrison commissioners approved amending the township’s zoning ordinance to allow a school bus depot in the S-1 Special zoning district. That includes the property on Springhill Road where ABC Transit set...
Penn Hills school officials say misunderstanding led to ‘no confidence’ letter
Miscommunication and misunderstandings led Penn Hills School District officials to try and oust their state-appointed recovery officer Daniel Matsook, according to both parties involved. “Had I been here when they wrote the letter, we probably would have worked it all out and there wouldn’t have been a letter,” Matsook said....
E.C. Cruisers show off vintage cars to benefit county children’s bureau
The E.C. Cruisers have been showing off vintage cars and trucks for a quarter-century, raising money in the process for the Westmoreland County Children’s Bureau Christmas fund. This year’s show, held Sept. 15 at the Delmont Volunteer Fire Department, saw a record 180 registered cars and a bump in the...
Allegheny Township Kmart closes pharmacy
The Big Kmart located in Hyde Park Shopping Plaza in Allegheny Township closed its pharmacy. A posted sign at the store alerted customers that the closing was effective Monday. In a statement previously provided to the Tribune-Review, Transformco, a Chicago-based public relations firm representing Kmart, confirmed the Allegheny Township store...
Gas prices spike following attacks on Saudi Arabia
The national average price of gasoline is up for the first time in 10 weeks following the attacks on Saudi Arabia, according to the price-tracking website GasBuddy.com. The national average has gone up 8.5 cents per gallon in the past week to $2.66, GasBuddy reported. The 8.3 cents-per-gallon increase in...
Warrants, other documents remain sealed in Cassandra Gross disappearance, judge rules
A Westmoreland County judge has continued to keep private details of an ongoing investigation into the disappearance of a Unity woman who police said was likely killed last year. Common Pleas Court Judge Tim Krieger signed court orders on Sept. 19 that sealed for another 30 days search warrants and...
Jeannette murder trial date set; Attorney says accused has alibi
An Allegheny County man charged with murder in a fatal shooting two years ago in Jeannette was ruled competent to stand trial. Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court Judge Meagan Bilik-DeFazio said Monday a mental health examination of Darrelle Tolbert-McGhee found that he was able to assist his defense and cleared...
Tarentum’s Hebe statue welcomes arrival of fall
It may not feel like it, but autumn is here — and Tarentum’s Hebe statue is ready for it. Fall officially arrived at 3:50 a.m. Monday. At the borough’s end of the Tarentum Bridge, which sees some 30,000 vehicles daily according to PennDOT, the statue of Hebe is sporting a...
North Huntingdon arrests could crack cases in West Deer, Indiana townships
Police say the arrests of a man and woman in North Huntingdon Sunday night could help solve a rash of car break-ins in West Deer and Indiana townships earlier this month. Dylan Keith Walklin, 26, of Munhall and Celeste Annabelle Hartle, 18, of Pittsburgh were arrested late Sunday by North...
Woman accused of using box cutter to threaten two people in Pittsburgh
A 46-year-old Pittsburgh woman is accused of trying to slash two people with a box cutter Sunday afternoon in the city’s Uptown neighborhood, threatening to kill them, according to a criminal complaint filed by Pittsburgh police. Police responded to the call at 1:30 p.m. Sunday in the 1800 block of...
Jeannette outreach feeds body, soul of dinersVideo
Those who visit the First Baptist Church along North Second Street in Jeannette for a free dinner on Thursdays can expect to leave nourished, both body and soul. “This is a place for people in need, and there is fellowship here,” said Gerri Coulson of Delmont, a Jeannette native who...
Westmoreland transit authority to seek bids for bus and shared ride operatorVideo
The Westmoreland County Transit Authority will not renew its contract with the operator of its bus and shared ride system in 2020 because the authority could not reach an agreement with that company on the rates for next year. National Express LLC wanted to charge rates the transit authority considered...
‘Smoketown’ author Mark Whitaker to speak at Neighborhood Academy event
The history of Pittsburgh is a complex tapestry that includes August Wilson’s plays about working-class residents of the Hill District and an era’s most widely read black newspaper, with an impact that rivaled far larger African-American communities in Chicago and Harlem. Author and journalist Mark Whitaker captured the latter in...
Perryopolis doctor charged with swapping pills for sex
A Perryopolis family doctor is charged with 28 counts of swapping opioid medication for sexual favors, according to U.S. Attorney Scott Brady. Emilio Ramon Navarro, 58, of Coal Center was indicted on 29 charges, according to a Justice Department news release. Between April 2018 and April 2019, Navarro unlawfully dispensed...
Penn State New Kensington to name student union after philanthropist Chuck Booth
Penn State New Kensington plans to name its new student union building after the late Chuck Booth to honor the longtime donor and supporter of the school. Booth was one of the early advocates for the campus and contributed regularly to scholarship funds and other campus initiatives. He died in...
Bob Marley estate remembers the legend’s last show, in Pittsburgh 39 years ago
On Sept. 23, 1980, reggae superstar Bob Marley and his band, the Wailers, played a sold-out show at the Stanley Theater in downtown Pittsburgh. No one knew then that it would be his last concert. Almost eight months later, he was dead. On Monday, the official Twitter account of the...
Murrysville voters at Newlonsburg and Sardis could get new precincts under new planVideo
Westmoreland County elections officials on Monday approved a revised redistricting plan for Murrysville that will split its two largest precincts. The amended plan, to be presented for approval next week to Common Pleas Court Judge Chris Scherer, will separate the Sardis voting district nearly in half. That precinct was originally...
Fundraising begins for memorial for murdered New Kensington child
Donations have started pouring in to help pay for a memorial for a New Kensington child murdered 40 years ago. Tiffany Miller was 5 years old when she went missing from her home in Peach Court on Sept. 21, 1979. Her body was found in the Allegheny River in Plum...
Police: Woman starts fire in cell at Harrison police station
An 18-year-old woman is accused of starting a fire in a Harrison holding cell Saturday after township police said they arrested her for trying to break into her mother’s apartment. Police said they received a report around 5:30 a.m. that Syariah Johnson was trying to break into her mother’s apartment...
Carrick residents worry that insurance won’t cover damages from water main breakVideo
Rose Gitzen and several of her neighbors anxiously awaited word Monday on whether insurance would cover extensive damages to their homes and a nearby business caused by last week’s water main break on East Agnew Avenue in Carrick. The Pennsylvania American Water Co., which owns the water main, has promised...
Trick or Trot 5K to benefit North Allegheny Foundation
Registration is open for this year’s Trick or Trot race to help raise money for the North Allegheny Foundation. The Oct. 26 event begins with a 5K race at 8:30 a.m. A costume contest is scheduled for 9:15 a.m. followed by a 1-mile fun run at 9:30. The event will...
3 men charged in connection with North Side gas station assaultVideo
Three men face charges in connection with an assault Friday at a gas station in Pittsburgh’s Marshall-Shadeland neighborhood that was caught on cellphone video, prosecutors announced Monday. The assault spurred three consecutive days of protests at the Exxon station at Brighton Road and Marshall Avenue on the North Side. “Under...
