Proposed Huston Middle School realignment separates 5th and 8th grade students
The proposed reconfiguration of Charles A. Huston Middle School in Lower Burrell accommodates an additional grade level and separates younger students from older students without rearranging much of the building. “This is what the administrative team has developed over time and lots of conversations,” said Burrell Superintendent Shannon Wagner. “This...
Pittsburgh high school locked down after 11 shots fired nearby
A North Side school was locked down briefly Tuesday morning after at least 11 shots were fired outside school grounds, authorities said. Perry Traditional Academy, a high school in the Pittsburgh’s Perry North neighborhood, was in “secure status” at about 10 a.m., two hours after a juvenile boy was targeted...
Jimmy John’s employee in critical condition after argument over service dog turns violent
A Jimmy John’s employee was brutally beaten by two men Sunday at the Downtown Pittsburgh sandwich shop after an argument over petting employee’s service dog, according to police. Police said video surveillance shows Tyree Blue-Murphy and Damon Robinson stomping, kicking, punching and striking the defenseless victim with a bicycle tire,...
Health department shuts down Pittsburgh Popcorn Co.’s processing facility
The Allegheny County Health Department said it discovered a variety of violations in an inspection of Pittsburgh Popcorn Co.’s processing facility on the South Side Slopes earlier this month. Among the listed issues: Chocolate nibbled by rodents, broken sinks, grease-caked popcorn machines. Altogether, the initial report noted 13 violations out...
Monroeville Mall owner puts shopping complex up for sale
The Monroeville Mall could have a new owner soon. Tennessee-based owner CBL Properties is marketing the two-level shopping complex and surrounding storefronts for sale through real estate company JLL without naming a price. The 187-acre property includes the main building, an adjacent strip mall, the streetscape expansion near the front...
Luke and Mike’s Frontporch in Aspinwall set to close
After 14 years of “blood, sweat and tears,” an Aspinwall-based restaurateur is calling it quits. “It was time,” said Sheri Rice on Monday of Luke and Mike’s Frontporch, the popular bar and restaurant she co-owns with her ex-husband, Billy Rice. “We did try and make this corner beautiful and try...
Jailed Latrobe attorney’s law license suspended
Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court this week formally issued a temporarily suspension order barring Latrobe attorney J. Allen Roth from practicing law. Roth, 70, has been in jail since early November when he was charged with theft and fraud in connection to accusations he stole $31,000 from a client’s bank account and...
American Airlines to add daily nonstop flights between Pittsburgh and L.A.
American Airlines is bringing back a key link between Pittsburgh and the West Coast. Starting April 4, the Fort Worth-based carrier will offer nonstop flights between Pittsburgh International and Los Angeles International airports, the Allegheny County Airport Authority announced Monday. The move revives a route last flown in 2017. Daily...
New Kensington girl among Pittsburgh-area youth boxers building the region’s fighting legacy
Four years ago, Gea Fultz of New Kensington was an 11-year-old girl walking into a gym full of boys training to fight. “It was really scary at first,” said Fultz, 15, now a sophomore at Valley High School. “I felt like I had to prove myself.” The proof? In August,...
The Stroller, Dec. 17, 2024: 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. Monthly Breaking Bread dinner...
Community rallies around Penn-Trafford junior diagnosed with leukemia
Nicole Cianciotti had driven only about 4½ miles from UPMC Children’s East when she got the call that her son Braeden’s left lung collapsed. The 17-year-old Penn-Trafford junior — Nicole’s oldest of six children — sat next to her in the passenger seat Nov. 22, seemingly unaware of the battle...
Student news: A roundup of accolades
• Four Fox Chapel Area High School students placed at the annual Hampton Talbot Invitational Speech and Debate Tournament on Nov. 23. The team of juniors Maya Agarwal and Prachi Behal won fourth place in Parliamentary Debate, junior Priscila Hayetian was awarded fifth place in Informative Speaking, and junior Dylan...
West Mifflin High School shifts to remote learning after auditorium fire
West Mifflin Area High School students will have a remote learning day Tuesday to learn remotely after a fire ripped through the auditorium. No injuries were reported in connection with the fire around 5:30 p.m. Monday at 91 Commonwealth Ave. Allegheny County officials are investigating the cause of the blaze,...
Rosendahl’s owner looking for options as Irwin leaders defend eviction to make way for renovations
A week after he was told Irwin chose not to renew its lease of the Main Street building where the borough’s offices are on the second floor, Rosendahl’s Appliance Center owner Gary Proctor said he’s still trying to figure out what he’s going to do. Rosendahl’s is a fixture in...
Biden commutes sentence for ex-McKees Rocks drug rehab founder who ran heroin ring
A Navy veteran who founded a McKees Rocks drug rehabilitation center but was later convicted of running a large-scale heroin ring was among those whose sentences were commuted by President Joe Biden last week. David Francis, who was 69 at the time of his sentencing, was ordered to serve 10...
Westmoreland juvenile detention center eyes expansion in 2025
Westmoreland County’s juvenile detention center could double its capacity this spring, officials said Monday. Eight juveniles were housed at the Hempfield facility, filling every available bed. It reopened in March after a series of issues included staffing shortages and critical state inspections that prompted county officials to temporarily shut down...
New guards hired at Westmoreland jail as inmate population rises
Westmoreland County’s Prison Board on Monday approved the hiring of nine new corrections officers to ensure the facility remains fully staffed heading into 2025. Warden Steve Pelesky said the additional guards were needed to rebound from several resignations and retirements of staff in recent months. The facility employs more than...
New Kensington gun-shop thief pleads guilty in smash-and-grab heist
A man accused of burglarizing a New Kensington gun store in January pleaded guilty on Monday in federal court. Steyn Sarduy, 19, of New Kensington will be sentenced on March 17 by U.S. District Judge Nora Barry Fischer on charges of conspiracy and theft of a firearm from a licensed...
Fire at Plum church started by candle, ruled accidental
One person was taken to a hospital with smoke inhalation from a fire Sunday night at a church in Plum, a spokeswoman for the Allegheny County Department of Emergency Services said Monday. The fire at St. Januarius on Renton Road was reported around 9:15 p.m. Investigators believe the fire was...
‘Lethal threat’: Judge sends Munhall mom to prison in fentanyl death of son, 2
When Paige Hufnagel was a senior in high school, she tore her ACL and meniscus while playing as a varsity starter on the North Allegheny basketball team. Hufnagel was prescribed opioids to cope with pain caused by the career-ending injury. But those same painkillers led to addiction and a downward...
Bethel Park observes Wreaths Across America Day
Perhaps the most poignant moment of Bethel Park’s Wreaths Across America observance took place when Debbie Huffner and Rogert Kurtz started walking in tandem. Each had lost a son while on active duty serving his country: Patrick Kutschbach, who was 25 when he died in Afghanistan in 2007, and 10...
Police charge man with raping North Side woman, 93, after following her home on bus
A man remained in jail Tuesday on charges that he forced his way into a 93-year-old woman’s North Side home over the weekend and raped her. Authorities said Ronny Hough, 39, followed the woman on a Pittsburgh Regional Transit bus from Downtown to the city’s Troy Hill neighborhood about 6...
Globe trotters: Acmetonia Elementary students study holidays around the world
One by one, first grade students at Acmetonia Elementary School grabbed their “passport” and “suitcase” — a manilla envelope and folders — as they prepared to globe trot to learn how Christmas and other holidays are celebrated around the world. While they won’t leave their school, they get a look...
Former state trooper charged with stealing from Home Depot stores
A former state trooper was arrested Friday on police accusations that he stole $2,000 worth of merchandise from two Home Depot stores. Investigators said John Robert Tamewitz, 59, of Penn Township removed stickers from online orders he picked up in-store, put the stickers on other merchandise and took the items...
Line upgrades impact November sewage overflow in Delmont, Salem
Delmont officials made the next partial payment last week on the borough’s large-scale, state-mandated sewage project, putting just more than $267,000 toward an collection point on Christy Road and the relocation of a sewage line in Salem. The pressurized sewage line along with a gravity sewage line runs through the...
