Local category, Page 2906
Westmoreland judicial candidates spent $750K through spring primary election
The six candidates who ran for two open judicial seats on the Westmoreland County Court of Common Pleas spent more than $750,000 combined through early June. Campaign finance reports filed last week in Harrisburg detailed candidate spending and revealed the growing cost to run for judge in Westmoreland County. Attorney...
Hempfield creates plan for consolidated fire departments ahead of ISO rating
A list of issues laid out in a 2018 gap study focusing on Hempfield’s fire service is leading the path for changes that will eventually make 12 stations fall under one department and firefighters answer to one chief. The study, completed by The Allegheny Group, focuses on issues with staffing,...
Tarentum barber makes impact on customers, communityVideo
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. William Tavarez is more than just a neighborhood barber....
Pittsburgh cops investigate 2 shootings
Pittsburgh police are investigating two shootings involving victims at two different locations. Shortly before 6:30 p.m. Sunday, police responded to a shooting in the 40 block of Briggs Street. Witnesses told police that a man had been shot by someone driving a black Acura. The man was taken to a...
Classic cars line Springdale street for annual fire department car cruise
More than 40 classic cars were on display in Springdale on Sunday as part of the annual Springdale Volunteer Fire Department’s car cruise. The department has been holding the car cruise for four years in conjunction with its annual jubilee fundraiser, which kicks off Monday. Cheswick resident Bob Laczek had...
Overturned dump truck closes portion of Crane Road for hours
An overturned dump truck closed a portion of Crane Road near Brashear High School for about three hours on Sunday afternoon. Pittsburgh police responded to the crash just before 2 p.m. in the area of Crane Road off of Saw Mill Run Boulevard. When officers arrived they found the overturned...
Police suspect speed a factor in fatal Butler County crash
A Grove City man was killed Saturday afternoon in a single-vehicle crash in Butler County. According to state police, Ian Campbell, 29, is suspected of driving at a high rate of speed on Route 108 when he lost control of his 2010 Jeep Wrangler and overturned near the intersection of...
Change may be coming for Westmoreland transit authority
Westmoreland County commissioners will vote Monday on a proposal to allow the county transit authority to serve as its own bus operator. Authority board members endorsed the move last week to amend the agency’s charter, a change that officials said could dramatically transform the operation and offer an alternative to...
Dozens gather to support to Pittsburgh church targeted by alleged terrorist
Dozens of Pittsburgh residents of all faiths came together Sunday to support the congregation of Legacy International Worship Center in the North Side as they held their first Sunday service since police arrested a man accused of planning to blow up the church. The interfaith event was organized by the...
Woman arrested in fatal Pittsburgh stabbing
Pittsburgh police arrested a 29-year-old woman Saturday in connection with a fatal stabbing in the Perry South neighborhood Friday night. The stabbing occurred around 7 p.m. in the 2100 block of Perrysville Avenue, where police found Gerald Dwain Walker, 41, inside a home bleeding heavily from several stab wounds. He...
Police: Braddock woman arrested after knife attack aboard Port Authority bus
A Braddock woman was charged with aggravated assault after a knife attack aboard a Port Authority bus Saturday night, according to Pittsburgh police. Police said that two women, including 22-year-old Octavia Howard, began fighting aboard a PAT bus at the intersection of South Braddock and Forbes avenues shortly after 7:30...
Consumer advocate’s efforts recognized by Westinghouse retiree group
Mary Bach of Murrysville was recognized recently for her work in consumer advocacy, by a group of Westinghouse retirees dedicated to community service. Bach, who is also the chairwoman of the AARP’s Pennsylvania Consumer Issues Task Force, received the Westinghouse SURE 2019 Lifetime Achievement Award from the company’s Service Uniting...
Pennsylvania Lottery struggles to attract bets on virtual sports games
The Pennsylvania Lottery has more than 1,850 outlets with screens displaying virtual animated football and auto races. The odds of finding someone watching a bet play out on the simulated sports action is pretty low. With a few exceptions, lottery licensees in the region report few customers are spending their...
SCI Greensburg closing is potential wrench in census count
Hempfield residents and leaders could still be feeling the effects of SCI Greensburg closing as the census — and its potential funding and determination of legislative districts — looms on the horizon. The once-a-decade survey counts prisoners as members of the community where the lockup is located — a decision...
Springdale High School principal resigns to take job in Chartiers Valley
Springdale High School will start next school year with one fewer principal after the school board Monday accepted the resignation of Principal Michele Welter. Welter’s last day will be July 31. She has worked in the district for about five years. Superintendent Pat Graczyk said Welter is leaving for an...
Springdale questions contractor’s work on paving project
Springdale borough officials and some residents are unhappy with the job Tresco Paving has done on James Street. As a result, Springdale Council voted 7-0 last week to withhold 10% of the payment to Tresco — about $10,200 — until borough officials can meet with the company to iron out...
Dinner to benefit artists who lost livelihood in Etna fire
Joe Martin, an industrial designer and roboticist, and Oreen Cohen, an interdisciplinary artist, surveyed the damage June 15 to their 1,500-square-foot space in the Etna STORExpress location. Martin, 43, said he was present during the massive May 8 warehouse fire that has left Cohen and him with “probably a few...
Couple’s effort grows New Kensington’s sense of community
Editor’s note: This is part of an occasional series that features Alle-Kiski Valley residents and the notable things that they do. New Kensington couple Kevin and Mary Bode have traveled the world on Christian mission trips, and discovered one of the best ways to help people is to fulfill a...
Kennywood takes the Steel Curtain for a test drive
Kennywood’s Steel Curtain – touted as Pennsylvania’s tallest roller coaster at 220 feet with the most upside down scares – made a maiden run on Saturday. The 4,000 feet of track promises a two-minute ride for thrill seekers that tops out at 75 miles an hour. Saturday’s tests put riders...
Woman suspected in fatal stabbing Friday in Perry South
Pittsburgh police have arrested a woman in connection with a fatal stabbing Friday night. The stabbing occurred around 7 p.m. in the Perry South neighborhood where police found Gerald Dwain Walker, 41, inside a home bleeding heavily from several stab wounds. He was transported to a local hospital, where he...
Fans break down, cry at sight of mural at Roberto Clemente museumVideo
Duane Rieder sees the number 21 — the late Roberto Clemente’s jersey number with the Pittsburgh Pirates — everywhere. The Pirates’ 2-1 win Friday. The 21 years he’s run the Clemente Museum in Lawrenceville. The 21-inch steel beams in the old firehouse that houses the museum. So, it was only...
1 flown from South Huntingdon crash
A West Newton man is in stable condition after he was flown by helicopter following a crash Saturday afternoon in South Huntingdon. Michael L. Smalich, 63, of West Newton was taken to Allegheny General Hospital after state police said he drove off Mt. Pleasant Road near its intersection with Painter...
Firefighters from across Western Pa. pay respects to New Ken chief J. Edward SalibaVideo
New Kensington fire trucks lined Alder Street street Saturday in Lower Burrell. More from Lower Burrell, Upper Burrell, Arnold, Tarentum, Greensburg and departments throughout and beyond the Alle-Kiski Valley were parked across Freeport Road in a plaza parking lot awaiting their spot in the procession. There wasn’t a parade. Instead,...
Latrobe man, 82, honored for decades as firefighter, crossing guardVideo
Latrobe Elementary students experienced some major changes this past school year. Midway through the academic calendar, they started attending classes in a new school on Ligonier Street, several blocks away from the building it replaced. Though the surroundings shifted, familiar faces at the school remained — including crossing guard John...
Hempfield beef spread joins farmland preservation program
Westmoreland County’s Heinnickel family has added a new section of its multi-farm holdings to the state’s agricultural conservation easement purchase program. The family’s 39-acre Luxor Farm in Hempfield was among 47 farms, covering 3,561 acres in 21 counties, added this month to the farmland preservation program. The program taps federal,...
