Local category, Page 2881
National Science Foundation awards $10 million to fund new Pittsburgh supercomputer
There’s going to be a new genome-parsing, poker-playing supercomputer in town. The National Science Foundation awarded a $10 million grant to fund the construction of a new supercomputer at the Monroeville-based Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center, a joint research facility run by Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pittsburgh, according to...
Gilpin delays vote on ordinance that would allow ATVs on township roads
It will be at least another month until Gilpin supervisors decide whether all-terrain vehicles can be driven on some township roads. Supervisors Monday night delayed a final vote on the proposed ordinance since some language was added to the original proposal and there is a mandated review time for residents....
5 Plum properties set to be demolished
Plum officials hired a borough-based construction company to demolish five dilapidated structures. Council voted 6-0 at the July 8 meeting to award the $31,500 contract to Cherep Construction. Councilman Dave Majernick was absent. A start date for demolition was not set. Vacant properties to be razed are at 338 Coxcomb...
3 people hospitalized after chemical leak in Mt. Lebanon
Three people were taken to UPMC Mercy with minor inhalation irritation as a result of a sulfur dioxide leak in Mt. Lebanon. An Allegheny County hazardous materials team was dispatched for a report of a smell Monday before 4 p.m. along Marlin Drive between Bower Hill Road and Jayson Avenue....
Greensburg dissolves Historic and Architectural Review Board
Greensburg Council on Monday unanimously voted to dissolve the city’s Historic and Architectural Review Board, an advisory body that supervised construction and renovation projects in the city. The city has been laying the groundwork for HARB’s dissolution since May. Monday’s vote passed without discussion or fanfare. HARB will remain active...
Greensburg hires planning director
Greensburg has a new planning director after a five-month search. Jeffrey Raykes will take over the city’s planning department July 29. “We’re extremely excited to have him,” said Greensburg Mayor Robert Bell. “He comes with impeccable credentials.” Raykes will leave his position as deputy director of the Indiana County Office...
Taxes and snow cones part of the job for Gilpin accountant
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 Czebiniak at mczebiniak@tribweb.com. The most stressful time of the year for Jean...
Latrobe looks to add penalties to fire pit ordinance
Latrobe’s ordinance permitting residents to operate approved outdoor fire pits is going to undergo some tweaking. City council on Monday authorized the solicitor to amend the 2 1/2-year-old law as officials noted it’s lacking language setting forth penalties for violations and a process that would allow the city to revoke...
West Overton’s distillery making whiskey; won’t be ready until July 2020Video
West Overton is distilling rye whiskey this week, just like it did when Henry Clay Frick’s grandfather, Abraham Overholt, was making it in a log building at his East Huntingdon farm in 1803. The production of Old Overholt was stopped in 1919 when the 18th Constitutional amendment — Prohibition —...
Man crashes car into utility pole in Arnold, nearby homes lose power
A man was injured Monday night when he crashed his car head-on into a utility pole along Constitution Boulevard in Arnold, igniting sparks and prompting nearby properties to briefly lose power, officials and residents said. Police and volunteer firefighters responded to the report of the crash in the 1500 block...
Penn Hills man postpones White House protest in lieu of federal meeting about district
A Penn Hills man who threatened to chain himself to the White House front gate to draw attention to his financially troubled school district has postponed the protest pending a meeting with federal authorities. Phil Vecchio, son of Penn Hills School Board President Erin Vecchio, was expected to go through...
North Huntingdon seeking garbage collection bids
North Huntingdon is seeking bids from haulers to collect garbage and recyclable materials from residences, but not from the many commercial accounts in the municipality. The township commissioners recently authorized advertising for bids for a contract for residential service, beginning Jan. 1, 2020, and continuing through December 2023. The township...
Police: Philly officer, wife dead in apparent murder-suicide
Police in Philadelphia say that an officer and his estranged wife were found dead inside a home and that they are investigating it as a murder-suicide. Police Commissioner Richard Ross says couple’s 17-year-old daughter called police to check on her parents after she could not reach one of them. They...
Things to do in Plum and Oakmont this week
Looking for things to do in Plum and Oakmont this week? Here are some suggestions:Oakmont artist Kalen Crowell’s paintings and photography are on display all month long at the Oakmont Carnegie Library, 700 Allegheny River Blvd. Her work features portraits and nature settings among other images. Admission is free.The Oakmont...
Greensburg author Scott Brown recounts heartfelt tales of region’s opioid epidemic
If the stories in Scott Brown’s new book, “Hope and Heartbreak: Beyond the Numbers of the Opioid Epidemic,” sound familiar, it might be because they are. Brown, a Greensburg native and former sports reporter for the Tribune-Review, ESPN and Philadelphia Inquirer, mined a decade of reports on the epidemic to...
Braddock’s Battlefield tour part of history center’s grand reopening
Braddock’s Battlefield History Center will welcome the public for its grand reopening Tuesday, the anniversary of a 1755 battle on the site that pitted British and American troops against French and Native American forces. The event begins at 11 a.m. at 609 N. Sixth Street, North Braddock, with remarks and...
Motorist sues North Huntingdon, PennDOT, claiming road conditions caused accident
The survivor of a fatal North Huntingdon traffic accident last year is suing the township and PennDOT. Robert E. Leonard Jr. of Trafford claims in a lawsuit filed last week in Westmoreland County that injuries he sustained in the April 20, 2018, crash on Route 993 could have been avoided...
Allegheny CleanWays removes 11,300 pounds of trash from Allegheny River
Volunteers collected 11,300 pounds of trash from the Allegheny River and its shorelines during 16 cleanups held in June from Millvale to Freeport, according to the nonprofit Allegheny CleanWays. “We’re so pleased with it,” Hannah Samuels, volunteer and outreach coordinator with Allegheny CleanWays, said. “It was so high quality.” Samuels...
Falling tree kills kayaker near Susquehanna River in Clinton County
A falling tree killed a kayaker on Saturday at a campsite in Clinton County. State police said a group of kayakers left the Susquehanna River when a thunderstorm hit East Keating Township, reports WNEP-TV. Elmer Stoltzfus, 40, of Parkesburg was reportedly killed when a tree fell at the group’s campsite...
Assault, DUI cases among those recently handled in Judge DeLuca’s Penn Hills court – Jul. 8, 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 courtMelissa Ofchinick, 44, of Butler on charges of possession of drug paraphernalia, driving under...
State police: Fentanyl bust on turnpike likely largest in Western Pa. history
A drug bust on the Pennsylvania Turnpike likely is the largest seizure of straight fentanyl ever in Western Pennsylvania, state police said. Troopers said they discovered 3 pounds, 6 ounces of fentanyl hidden inside an SUV driven by Juan Junior Guzman, 41, of New York City, after they pulled over...
Wilkinsburg shooting suspect arrested after a month on the run
A man wanted for more than a month in connection with a deadly shooting in Wilkinsburg was arrested Monday. Triq Peek Price, 39, was arrested in McKeesport, according to Sgt. Venerando Costa of the Allegheny County Police. Price is accused of shooting and killing David Herbin during an apparent robbery...
DA candidate Lisa Middleman to meet with Penn Hills voters
An independent challenger to longtime Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr. will hold a meet-and-greet event in Penn Hills on July 13. Lisa Middleman will be meeting with voters in Penn Hills from 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. at Sichuan Palace, 60 Federal Drive. Middleman is an Allegheny...
Westmoreland delays election machine purchase
Westmoreland County officials said Monday the planned purchase of new voting equipment this summer will likely be delayed after state lawmakers and Gov. Tom Wolf failed to agree on funding for election system upgrades throughout Pennsylvania. “We were on track to make a decision this summer, but we’re on hold...
Police arrest man who claimed to see cougars in Vandergrift
A man is awaiting a preliminary hearing after he claimed to see two cougars nearby and then jumped over a lawn chair and charged police in Vandergrift. Police are accusing Justin John Crofutt, 37, of Ford City, of aggravated assault on an officer, resisting arrest and being under the influence...
