Springdale resident ready for power plant demo: ‘I just want it over’
Lorraine Parks of Springdale was quick to answer when asked her thoughts about the upcoming demolition of the boiler house across the street from her house. “I just want it over,” said the Porter Street resident. After plans and legal back-and-forths spanning about a year-and-a-half, the demolition of the boiler...
The Stroller, Feb. 28, 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. Gun safety seminar offered...
North Allegheny retirements in June reflect hundreds of years of service
More than 530 combined years of service of professional employees at North Allegheny School District were approved for retirement by the North Allegheny School Board on Feb. 26. Adding on two more employees who retired mid-year increased that number to more than 590 years of service, according to board director...
After slow start, Pittsburgh Land Bank finds affordable housing success in Hazelwood
Standing outside a blue house built on a once-blighted site in Hazelwood, Pittsburgh officials on Thursday trumpeted an all-too-rare success story for the city’s land bank — one they hope becomes more frequent. Mayor Ed Gainey and others were showing off a newly constructed home on Flowers Avenue, one of...
Court records reveal identity of man targeted, shot in East Vandergrift police raid
Court documents obtained this week by TribLive shed light on details of a police-involved shooting in East Vandergrift that state troopers have thus far declined to reveal. Lyle Cessna, 52, of East Vandergrift was shot by law enforcement on Feb. 14 outside his McKinley Avenue residence. Cessna remains hospitalized in...
Dozens at Pitt-Greensburg rally to support LGBTQ+, Latino communities in Trump era
University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg sophomore Debany Renovato stood before a small group of protesters Thursday afternoon, recounting her experience moving from Mexico to the United States when she was in fifth grade. Two dozen students — many from the college’s Gender and Sexuality Alliance club — and handful of...
New Kensington man’s past crimes cited for lengthy prison sentence
A New Kensington man was sentenced Thursday to serve up to 14 years in prison for the illegal possession of a firearm, a continuation of what Westmoreland County prosecutors said has been a lifetime of crime. Alejandro David D’Argan, 28, was convicted last December of two charges — a weapons...
FDA cancels key meeting to discuss flu vaccine, leaving some experts baffled
The flu vaccine’s future is murky after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration abruptly canceled its committee meeting to recommend the makeup of seasonal flu shots for the 2025-26 influenza season. Dr. Amesh Adalja, a Pittsburgh-based infectious disease physician and senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security,...
Murrysville area: ‘Brass from the Bluff,’ woman’s club spring fundraiser and more
Email news briefs and event listings to pvarine@triblive.com. Woman’s Club spring fundraiser The Murrysville Woman’s Club will host its annual spring fundraising event at 10 a.m. March 29. It will be at The Lamplighter, 6566 William Penn Highway in Salem. Tickets are $35, and all proceeds benefit the club’s community...
Schedule finalized at Burrell’s Bon Air Elementary, task forces to share with school directors
Three months of planning and reviews of reconfigured buildings at Burrell’s Bon Air Elementary and Huston Middle schools for next school year has come to a close. Superintendent Shannon Wagner said schedules at Bon Air Elementary School were approved by the task force “by a majority vote.” Since the school...
Penn Hills students push for their voices to be heard
Time is being reserved at Penn Hills School Board’s next public meeting for a group of students to speak publicly after their comments were cut short during the Feb. 26 voting meeting. The Linton Middle School Media Center was filled with students and teachers seemingly wanting to show support to...
Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership unveils plans for newest city festival, The Thaw
The Pittsburgh Downtown Partnership on Wednesday unveiled plans for the newest addition to its festival lineup, a celebration called The Thaw to mark the transition from winter to spring. It will be held in Market Square on eight days over three weekends next month. The Thaw will include family-friendly activities...
Norwin area: Elks to hold Vietnam War Veterans Day lunch; trip to Lancaster theatre planned, axe throwing contest
Norwin Elks to hold Vietnam War veterans lunch The Norwin Elks off Sandy Hill Road in Manor will hold a luncheon from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. March 29 to recognize Vietnam War veterans and all other United States veterans. The complimentary lunch is being held in conjunction with the...
Monroeville woman stole $21K from 7-Eleven at Turnpike plaza in Plum, police say
A Monroeville woman is accused of stealing nearly $21,000 from a 7-Eleven convenience store on the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Plum. State police charged Leigh Ann Wentzel, 49, on Wednesday with a single count of second-degree felony theft. There was an active warrant for her arrest on Thursday, according to Plum...
Antique shop owner killed in Route 30 crash near Kingston Dam in Unity
A woman died after a one-vehicle crash on Route 30 Thursday morning and a man was hurt, according to state police. Barbara Kravits, 83, of Ligonier, died at a hospital, according to Trooper Steve Limani. The eastbound highway was closed in Unity and Ligonier Townships for several hours after the...
Pittsburgh Regional Transit bus strikes pedestrian in Oakland
A woman was hospitalized after being hit Wednesday by a Pittsburgh Regional Transit bus in Pittsburgh’s Oakland neighborhood. The incident occurred around 11:30 a.m. on Fifth Avenue at McKee Place, according to Andrew Carr, a transit agency spokesperson. Carr said a route 75 Ellsworth bus hit the pedestrian, who suffered...
North Allegheny counselors say limiting cellphone use at school appears to be helping
A decrease in cellphone use by students in the North Allegheny School District appears to be showing some benefits. The topic came up as part of a conversation at a Feb. 12 school board meeting during a presentation of the School Counseling Program Review. The counselors said the decrease of...
North Allegheny counselors assess mental health in school district
Mental health issues seem to be increasing in all grade levels in the North Allegheny School District, and school counselors are working hard to make sure the support is there for students and their families. As part of a School Counseling Program Review Presentation at the school board meeting Feb....
Summer concert, car show set for Westmoreland Fairgrounds
Music fans, motorcycle lovers and car cruise enthusiasts are the target audience for a three-day extravaganza, June 27 to 29 at the Westmoreland Fairgrounds near Mutual. Eleven bands are scheduled to perform at the Whiskey Throttle Fair, which also will feature tattoo artists and food trucks, said Michael Morelli, 31,...
Sex offender arrested after being found near school in West Deer
A registered sex offender was arrested after allegedly being found on the campus of Deer Lakes School District’s East Union Intermediate Center on Tuesday afternoon. Mark Campbell, 60, of West Deer was seen by an officer walking on the front sidewalk of the school. Campbell is a lifetime Megan’s Law...
Hempfield supervisors approve plan for 118 new homes near Fort Allen
The master plan for a new housing development near Fort Allen has been approved by Hempfield supervisors. Silvis Fields will have 118 single-family homes on about 60 acres, said Matthew Pernelli, planning manager. The development will be constructed in three phases, and each phase will have to get the supervisors’...
4 North Allegheny students make Junior Achievement’s 18 Under Eighteen list
Four students from North Allegheny School District were chosen out of 36 finalists to make the Junior Achievement of Western Pennsylvania 18 Under Eighteen Class of 2025, presented by the EQT Foundation. The 18 honorees were celebrated at a Feb. 4 banquet at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh. “They are truly...
At the library: Tax resources available at Northland Public Library
Tax resources available It’s “tax season” and Northland has a webpage dedicated to highlighting tax resources and information at www.northlandlibrary.org/adults/tax-information/. The library also has limited supplies of select PA Tax Forms and Federal Tax Forms on the upper level of the library. The tax information webpage lists the forms currently...
O’Hara residents embrace the perks of poultry keeping
Some lucky chickens are living an “im’peck’able” lifestyle in O’Hara. New chicken owner Heather Bradley lives on Eton Drive and built what she’s dubbed the “Polish Poultry Palace” for her feathered friends that she considers pets. “Chickens are fun and the kids are really involved with helping to raise them,”...
Student news: A roundup of accolades from the North Allegheny communities
• The 2025 National Merit Scholarship Program has unveiled its finalists for the National Merit Scholarship Awards. All 17 students from North Allegheny who were named semifinalists in September qualified as finalists: Maxwell Fancher, Ashnavi Ghosh, Megumi Kawabe, Linda Kong, Haresh Muralidharan, Anwita Narra, Praneeth Otthi, Charles Palmer, Anushka Prabhu...