Podcast: Pine-Richland school board approves library policy in contentious vote
Pine-Richland School Board has become the latest local school system to join the conversation of library censorship and book bans, thanks to a new policy that was narrowly passed, and has engaged board and community members alike. As the board nears primary election season, TribLive reporter James Engel and host...
North Huntingdon parks will see new security cameras, drinking fountains
North Huntingdon’s parks will be spruced up this spring with more than $100,000 of improvements — new trash cans, water fountains and playground equipment. Township commissioners recently awarded a $52,904 contract to Tree Top Products of Batavia, Ill., for 66 new sturdy trash cans, 40 of which will be placed...
Hempfield Area collaborates with local schools, businesses to raise money for Westmoreland Food Bank
Hempfield Area High School is hosting an Empty Bowl event on April 6 to raise money for the Westmoreland Food Bank. Community members will be able to purchase tickets online or in person. Admission comes with food provided by local businesses and a ceramic bowl attendees can take home. The...
Struggling Pittsburgh Regional Transit proposes fare hike, ‘brutal’ service cuts
Pittsburgh Regional Transit is recommending drastic changes — a 25-cent fare hike and steep, widespread service cuts — to address what it said is a huge budget deficit and insufficient state aid. If ultimately approved by the transit agency’s board, the fare hike would take effect next year. Single-ride fares...
Ligonier Valley YMCA targets renovation for summer completion, seeks $3M in donations
The Ligonier Valley YMCA is looking for financial support from the public as it heads into the home stretch of a $7.5 million renovation focused on the oldest section of its building. A major part of the project involves consolidating the Y’s child development program — for infants through 12-year-olds...
Morning Roundup: House fire in Monessen; Pittsburgh police reveal success rate
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Thursday, March 20: House fire in Monessen Fire crews were called to the scene of a house fire Thursday morning in Monessen. According to TribLive news partner WTAE, the fire was reported a little after 3 a.m. at a...
The Stroller, March 20, 2025: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your non-profit’s community events, fundraisers and club meetings for free in The Stroller. Send information at least two weeks in advance to vndnews@triblive.com or The Stroller, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Follow the Stroller on X at @VNDStroller. Spaghetti dinner to aid...
‘It was home’: Pittsburgh-area Ukrainian family hopes to someday return to Kyiv
Natalia Rusyn can still recall the terror she felt at the sound of air raid sirens and explosions shortly before she fled Ukraine in late 2022. “It was so stressful,” she said, quietly mourning her home country, under assault from Russia. “I was so scared.” Rusyn, 52, a pastry chef...
Friends of Norwin Trails seeks $35K for study, tools
A recreational trails group wants to create a hiking and biking trail that will connect Irwin with Larimer in North Huntingdon and is seeking a $35,000 state grant for a feasibility study for the project. The Friends of Norwin Trails Inc. won approval from Irwin Borough Council on March 12...
Monroeville area: Free Easter dinner, wine-tasting fundraiser, Pitcairn Night Market, more
Email news briefs and event listings to pvarine@triblive.com or bpoole@triblive.com. Free Easter dinner A free community Easter dinner will be held from 12:30-3 p.m. April 20 in the Lourdes Center of Christ the Divine Shepherd Parish, 245 Azalea Drive, Monroeville. AHN president to lead association The Hospital and Healthsystem Association...
Monroeville mayor optimistic about mall’s future
In his eighth and final year as mayor of Monroeville, Nick Gresock is optimistic about the changes in store for the community’s retail corridor. Gresock discussed some of the recent developments at March’s Monroeville Rotary meeting, held at the community library. Community members praised Gresock for helping to save the...
Brick by brick: Monroeville resident gains confidence, hones Lego craft
Andrew Szczerba became interested in building with Lego after “The Lego Movie” was released in 2014. “I bought my first kit at Toys “R” Us,” Szczerba recalled. “It was a trash compactor from ‘The Lego Movie’ set.” A little more than a decade later, the 20-year-old Monroeville resident has about...
Police searching for driver who struck a man in North Versailles
Police are looking for the driver of an SUV who struck a pedestrian Wednesday night in North Versailles and didn’t stop. The unidentified victim was struck in the intersection of Greensburg Pike and Hyer Avenue, where first responders were summoned at about 8:40 p.m. The man was taken to an...
Billboards still of great concern for East Deer residents, zoning board to mull over decision
The East Deer Zoning Hearing Board said it expects to make a final decision on the legality of four proposed electronic billboards by June. The announcement came after hours of testimony Tuesday night before a packed room of about 50 people in the township building. America First Enterprises, doing business...
‘This ain’t no setup?’: Slain woman’s texts to accused killer reveal qualms just before her death
Makeida Thompson worried her ex-boyfriend — the father of their 1-year-old son — was setting a trap when he invited her to his grandmother’s Pittsburgh house to clear the air. Thompson and Terrence Washington recently had broken up. Hundreds of text messages they exchanged, read Wednesday by a detective during...
South Greensburg nursing aide sentenced for 2022 attack on elderly resident
A South Greensburg woman was ordered to serve up to two years on probation for an assault of an elderly nursing home resident in 2022. Donna Marie Flock, 57, on Wednesday pleaded no contest to one misdemeanor count of striking, shoving, kicking and making threats against a resident at Newhaven...
South Fayette Youth Football treasurer charged in connection with $60K theft
The treasurer of the South Fayette Township Youth Football Association is charged with stealing over $60,000, officials said. Jaella Richard, 41, of Bridgeville, had access to the association’s checking account as treasurer — which enabled her to steal $64,742.75 worth of funds, according to a criminal complaint in the case....
Westmoreland County water authority board allocates funds for fire hydrant replacements
Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County on Wednesday allocated $250,000 to install and replace fire hydrants throughout its five-county service area during the 2025-2026 fiscal year. Officials said the program is part of the authority’s annual effort to upgrade the water system through a variety of capital improvements such as new...
Shaler Area marched in New York, Hampton in Chicago for St. Patrick’s Day parades
Two school districts from the North Hills marched in the nation’s largest two St. Patrick’s Day parades — in New York and Chicago — during festivities March 17. Hampton High School’s marching band ambled up Columbus Drive near Lake Michigan in Chicago, while its counterparts from Shaler Area High School...
Sheetz to hold hiring event for 440 openings in state
Sheetz Inc. has plans to hire more than 440 employees for its 310 stores in Pennsylvania and a total of 1,350 throughout its seven-state footprint, the Altoona-based company said Wednesday. To seek employees in a tight labor market, Sheetz is holding hiring events with on-the-spot interviews at its 310 stores...
Carnegie Mellon, Reed Smith subjects of federal DEI crackdown
Two venerable Pittsburgh institutions are among those caught in the crosshairs of a governmentwide crackdown on efforts to provide equal opportunities for people. And unless they can credibly attest their efforts at inclusion are part of a plan to compensate for past discriminatory practices, they may be in violation of...
Arnold police department goes without officer-in-charge, Mayor Santucci handling administrative work
Arnold Officer Rob Haus said he recently decided to step down as the city’s top cop and return as patrolman due to compensation and title disputes with the city. “If I’m not going to get paid for the job, I’m not going to do the job,” Haus said Wednesday evening....
North Hills junior 1 of 5 Americans selected to attend International Science School in Australia
A North Hills junior, after a rigorous admissions process, was selected as one of five Americans set to attend the prestigious International Science School at the University of Sydney this summer. Raine Dickinson said she became aware of the school while participating in a program with the STEM nonprofit Higher...
2 arrested after coordinated purchase of crystal meth in North Huntingdon
Two people were arrested this week on North Huntingdon police accusations that they sold a quarter pound of crystal methamphetamine to an undercover officer. Township police worked with the Westmoreland County drug task force and the state Attorney General’s office to coordinate a drug buy Monday around 7:30 p.m. from...
Judge finds New Kensington man’s killer guilty of 3rd-degree murder
A McKeesport man was convicted Wednesday of fatally shooting a New Kensington man after a fight outside a Pittsburgh skate shop and entertainment space. Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge Randal B. Todd court found Zahvair Palmer, 23, guilty of third-degree murder in the March 19, 2022, death of Adam Cloud,...
