Local category, Page 3049
Road maintenance on track for Hampton
An award of contracts totaling $1,001,792 was approved for the 2019 Road Resurfacing Program at the April 24 Hampton Township Council meeting. These roads are part of the new 10-year pavement maintenance plan implemented for Hampton Township’s 2019 budget that was approved last December. There were four contracts with three...
Brackenridge police ‘desperate for applicants,’ councilman says
Back in September, Brackenridge officials issued a desperate call for part-time police applicants. Eight months later, that situation hasn’t changed. The borough continues to find itself as part of an alarming trend plaguing small municipalities throughout the Alle-Kiski Valley. “We’re desperate for applicants,” Councilman John Stanzione said Thursday. “We will...
Franklin Regional budget proposal would hike taxes by 2.2 mills
Franklin Regional school board will take the first step next week toward adopting a 2019-20 budget that includes a 2.2-mill tax hike. The board’s May 13 meeting will include a vote to adopt a proposed final budget of $59.7 million. That is about $1.45 million more than this year’s budget....
Oakmont taps Penn Township public works director as new borough manager
Oakmont officials hired former Penn Township Public Works Director Scot Fodi as their new borough manager. Council made it official via unanimous vote at a special meeting Monday night. “I love municipal work,” Fodi said after the meeting. “I look for any opportunity to get back into a manager’s position....
Things to do in Plum and Oakmont this week
Looking for something to do in Plum and Oakmont this week? Here are some suggestions:Oakmont Carnegie Library hosts Gentle Yoga with instructor Cora Fetchko 10:30-11:30 a.m. Tuesday at 700 Allegheny River Blvd. The program is suitable for all levels and no registration is necessary.Meditation with a Monk is set for...
Beaver County man pleads guilty to producing, sharing child porn
A Beaver County man admitted to producing child pornography in 2014 and sharing it online in 2015, U.S. Attorney Scott W. Brady said Monday. Randolph Guy Gum, 25, a former resident of Rochester, Pa., pleaded guilty to three counts related to the sexual exploitation of a minor stemming from videos...
Friends of Murrysville Parks will host bird walk
The Friends of Murrysville Parks group will host a May 12 bird walk to identify the various species of birds in Duff Park. The walk will be at 7:30 a.m. Walkers will meet at the Pasture Rose trail head and park along the road opposite the trail, 4203 Round Top...
Get back to nature on the Butler-Freeport Community Trail
At times, the Butler- Freeport Community Trail seems to be a mere ribbon of pathway cutting through a landscape so large. Steep, rocky hillsides loom within a matter of miles of calmer and drier terrain of rolling farm fields, accounting for the trail’s variety and charm. Then there’s the lack...
Possible measles exposure at 3 more Pa. locations, including National Aviary, Squirrel Hill
Visitors and workers at the National Aviary in Pittsburgh’s North Side, a Squirrel Hill restaurant and an Avalon thrift shop may have been exposed to measles last month, health officials said Monday. The Allegheny County Health Department confirmed last week four new cases of measles, all from members of the...
An Arnold tax preparer pleads guilty to filing false federal income tax returns
A tax preparer for Cititax Refund Co. in Pittsburgh pleaded guilty in federal court to aiding or assisting in the preparation or filing of false federal income tax returns. Authorities said Daniel K. Hamilton of Arnold prepared federal income tax returns for other persons that included false Schedule C information,...
Meetings set for economic study of Laurel Highlands water improvements
Efforts to improve water quality in local streams create an estimated annual economic benefit of $278 million in the Loyalhanna Creek watershed. That’s according to the preliminary draft of a regional study, “Valuing Clean Water,” that looks to calculate such a figure for 21 sub-watersheds within the Loyalhanna-Conemaugh and Youghiogheny...
Assault, drug cases among those recently handled in Judge DeLuca’s Penn Hills court – May 6, 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 courtDinisha Smith, 38, of Pittsburgh on charges of retail theft, tampering with physical evidence...
Castle Shannon police, FBI searching for suspected bank robber
Federal and local authorities on Monday asked for help in identifying a man suspected of robbing a Castle Shannon bank last week. The robbery happened at about 1:30 p.m. April 29 at the Dollar Bank on Castle Shannon Boulevard, according to Castle Shannon police Chief Kenneth Truver. Investigators said the...
Deadline approaching to sign up for Ross Twp. youth summer rec program
Slots are still open for kids interested in attending Ross Township’s youth summer recreation program. May 15 is the deadline to register for weeks two through eight of the program, which will run from June 17 to July 18. Morning sessions, which will be held from 8 a.m. to noon...
New Kensington man gets up to 20 years in prison for raping child
A New Kensington man will serve up to 20 years in prison for raping a child. Edward McNeal, 63, pleaded guilty Monday to charges that he had sex with a 9-year-old girl and continued the sexual assaults for another seven years. Westmoreland County Common Pleas Judge Rita Hathaway ordered McNeal...
Westmoreland Bar Association survey ranks Michael Stewart II top judicial candidate
A Westmoreland County Bar Association survey of lawyers ranked Greensburg attorney Michael Stewart II at the top of the group of six candidates seeking two judicial openings on the Common Pleas Court. Stewart was “highly recommended” by 50% of the 180 county lawyers who participated in the survey circulated over...
Pittsburgh police’s comfort dog is a ‘gift’ out of tragedyVideo
The journey of a 10-week-old golden retriever puppy to the Pittsburgh police began in the aftermath of the massacre at the Tree of Life synagogue, and so his name, Zane, is only fitting. “Zane” is Hebrew for “gift” and “prayed for.” “After the events of Tree of Life, we brought...
Judge says Jeannette man not competent to stand trial in fatal fire case
A man charged with murder in connection with a deadly fire last year that killed an 87-year-old Jeannette woman is not competent to stand trial, a judge ruled Monday. Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court Judge Meagan Bilik-DeFazio said a psychological evaluation conducted last month determined Brian Eric Rendon did not...
Local SWAT team to help northern Westmoreland County communities
Upper Burrell is the fifth community to join in a SWAT-like team covering northern Westmoreland County to respond to high-risk events such as active shooters, barricaded gunmen and serving drug warrants. This new multi-municipality Community Emergency Response Team (CRT) is a team bound by a mutual-aid agreement among New Kensington,...
Gilpin volunteer firefighter honored for saving man’s life in LeechburgVideo
Gilpin firefighter Charlie Stull was having lunch at a Leechburg restaurant in August when he noticed a man who was having trouble breathing. In seconds, the man was choking. So Stull, 21, who also is a Gilpin supervisor, took action to save the man’s life. “I performed the Heimlich maneuver....
7 have cross-filed for 5 Riverview seats
Riverview School District has three incumbents and four newcomers battling for five seats on the board. Those seeking to retain their posts include board President Maureen McClure and members Alex DiClaudio and Tara Jean Schaaf. Newcomers are Melanie Pallone, Jennifer Chaparro, Brian Hawk and Jane Miller. All the candidates have...
Psychic accused of attempting to bilk Irwin woman out of $3,300
An area psychic who was turned down to perform a $3,800 “spiritual cleansing” service by a Westmoreland County woman last month was accused by Irwin police of attempting to use her customer’s identity to purchase $3,300 in furniture. Alexis Candy Mitchell, 25, of Monroeville, who does business as Psychic Novena...
Vandalized Brackenridge memorial set to be restored by Memorial Day
With the help of donations large and small, the vandalized honor roll memorial in Brackenridge Memorial Park is expected to be restored to glory in time for Memorial Day. The 54-year-old memorial, featuring the names of veterans of both World Wars and the Korean War, was damaged by a still-unknown...
Employees of Greensburg’s Rialto restaurant mourned after fatal crash in Hempfield
Community members are mourning the loss of two employees of Rialto, a popular Greensburg bar and restaurant, after a fatal crash in Hempfield on Sunday night. Kirstin R. Kerrigan, 22, of Arona and Marc F. Delissio, 33, of Penn Township died after their car went off the road, struck multiple...
Pittsburgh man accused of killing man in Arnold ordered to stand trial
A Pittsburgh man was ordered Monday to stand trial in connection with the April 5 shooting death of a man in Arnold. Shawden L. “Black” Ross, 32, of Pittsburgh’s Homewood neighborhood, is accused of fatally shooting Lamont Simmons, 27, after an early-morning argument in which Ross blamed Simmons for setting...
