Norwin High School girls play football for fun fundraiser
Girls from Norwin’s four high school classes squared off Tuesday in two flag football games that pitted freshmen against sophomores and juniors against seniors. Teams competed for bragging rights and for fun, all in the name of raising money for gifts for needy children. What was the third annual Norwin...
8-story tower of former Fort Pitt Brewery set to come down in Jeannette
One major section is all that is left of the former Fort Pitt Brewery site in West Jeannette — an eight-story brick tower. Brian Lawrence, executive director of the Westmoreland County Redevelopment Authority and Land Bank, wants residents and passersby to stay away from the site next week when the...
Westmoreland chamber looking along Route 30 for potential convention center location
The Westmoreland County Chamber of Commerce plans to study the potential for a convention center and hotel in the county. “As we look at regrowing Westmoreland County, this is just one of many items where we’re looking to spur new economic growth,” said chamber President and CEO Dan DeBone. “We’re...
Fox Chapel officials plan no tax increase with next year’s budget
Fox Chapel property owners should not expect to pay more in borough real estate taxes next year. Council unanimously voted Nov. 18 to advertise its proposed 2025 spending plan. Budget documents indicate the millage rate will remain at 2.95 mills. The borough has not raised taxes since 2019. Projected revenues...
O’Hara property taxes could spike by 14% as part of township 2025 budget
O’Hara property owners could see their real estate tax bills go up by about 14% as part of the township’s 2025 budget. Township officials mulled over next year’s budget at a special workshop meeting Nov. 19. Financial documents indicate the millage rate would increase from 2.1 mills to 2.4 mills....
Light Up Fox Chapel set for Dec. 4
Fox Chapel officials, hoping to build on a resurging holiday tradition, have added more activities to the borough’s upcoming celebration. The second annual Light Up Fox Chapel is set for 5 to 7 p.m. Dec. 4 outside the borough building, 401 Fox Chapel Road. New things this year include performances...
Allegheny County Council slashes Innamorato’s budget proposal
Allegheny County Council members presented their plan Tuesday to make over $70 million in cuts to Allegheny County Executive Sara Innamorato’s budget proposal as a means to lower the proposed property tax increase rate that could hit residents next year. An amendment introduced by Allegheny County Councilman John Palmiere, D-Baldwin,...
Arnold man ruled competent to stand trial in mother’s stabbing death
An Arnold man charged in the fatal stabbing of his mother last summer has been ruled competent to stand trial. Brian Rebold, 38, has been in jail since he was charged with criminal homicide and first-degree murder Aug. 4 in connection with the death of his 73-year-old mother outside her...
New Kensington fire hall shooting ruled suicide, coroner says
The death of a man found outside New Kensington’s No. 5 fire hall Tuesday has been ruled a suicide, according to the Westmoreland County Coroner’s office. A shooting at the fire hall in the 500 block of Camp Avenue was reported to county 911 shortly after 4:30 p.m. The man,...
‘Your situation is a tragedy’: Former Penn Hills basketball standout sentenced in killing
Jeremiah Ligon had a lot going for him. A standout guard on his Penn Hills basketball team, he got a scholarship to play basketball at Clarion University in 2016. But he dropped out after less than a semester. A few years later, he was charged with killing a man. On...
Judge to decide if ex-girlfriend’s texts are bullying or free speech in Hempfield man’s suicide
A Westmoreland County judge will determine if text messages sent by a woman were a criminal attempt to bully her boyfriend into killing himself, or a form of free speech. Defense attorneys for Mandie Reusch, 36, of South Greensburg, claim charges of aiding suicide and involuntary manslaughter should be dismissed,...
Brian Leri, longtime chef at Hoffstot’s Cafe Monaco, remembered for devotion to restaurant, customers
Brian Leri, 51, of Natrona Heights, the longtime executive chef at Hoffstot’s Cafe Monaco in Oakmont, died Monday, Nov. 25, 2024. Leri spent 30 years at the eatery after graduating from the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, N.Y., in 1994. He became the restaurant’s executive chef in 2002....
Charah subsidiary sues demolition contractors over Springdale chimney, boiler house implosions
The June 2023 implosion of two chimneys at the former power plant in Springdale, and the lawsuit that followed, now has the plant’s property owner and its demolition contractors at odds legally. Attorneys representing Cheswick Plant Environmental Redevelopment Group — a subsidiary of Charah Solutions — filed the lawsuit Monday...
Judge denies bond for man accused in Parkway West road rage shooting
A McKeesport man accused of shooting another in the face during an alleged road rage incident on the Parkway West this summer will remain in jail pending trial. Rashawn Hall, 22, asked the court earlier this month to reconsider his request to be released on bond, arguing that he has...
Record number of travelers expected to take to skies, roads over Thanksgiving holidayVideo
Annette Santilli was pleasantly surprised when she arrived at Pittsburgh International Airport early Tuesday. With some forecasts calling for a record number of travelers over the Thanksgiving holiday, Santilli, 62, of Clarksburg, W.Va., had expected to see long lines at the Findlay airport. Instead, Santilli and her 20-year-old daughter, Stephanie...
Vandergrift man sentenced to up to 24 years for shooting at homes in 2021
A Vandergrift man was sentenced Friday to 12 to 24 years in a state prison for firing more than a dozen shots into three occupied homes in 2021. Javon Michael Thorn Lambert, 25, entered a general plea Friday to 17 charges against him, which included aggravated assault, discharge of a...
Pittsburgh officials to tear down homeless camp under 16th Street Bridge
Pittsburgh officials plan to tear down a homeless camp under the 16th Street Bridge at the border of the city’s North Shore and Troy Hill neighborhoods. City officials on signs posted around the encampment said the decision to remove the camp was based on concerns at the site, including “evidence...
Highmark posts $529 million profit in 3rd quarter
One of Pittsburgh’s health giants has continued its turnaround from the pandemic, posting $529 million in profit through the first nine months of 2024. Pittsburgh-based Highmark Health reported its multi-million profit Tuesday. The $529 million mark for the first nine months of this year is just a tick below the...
What stores are open on Thanksgiving?
The National Retail Federation believes 34.3 million Americans may spend part of Thanksgiving shopping. Those in Southwestern Pennsylvania who choose to make purchases in person instead of online will find options limited, as many major retailers are planning to keep their doors closed on Thanksgiving Day. That includes Target, Walmart,...
New Kensington woman accused of striking woman with SUV in Giant Eagle parking lot
A New Kensington woman is accused of hitting another woman with her SUV on Monday after arguing in the Giant Eagle parking lot. New Kensington police charged Tyonna Lashay Kirk, 29, with felony counts of aggravated assault, aggravated assault by vehicle and accidents involving death or personal injury. She also...
No property tax hike planned for North Apollo
North Apollo’s proposed budget for 2025, if passed, would come with no increase to real estate taxes. The millage rate would remain at 12.09 mills, meaning the owner of a home with the median assessed property value of $25,000 would continue to pay $302 a year to the borough. Expenses...
Bishop T.D. Jakes sues Homestead pastor, alleges extortion attempt
The founder of a Dallas megachurch is suing a former Homestead pastor convicted of sex assault for libel, accusing him of making false claims in an online podcast and attempting to extort him out of millions of dollars. Bishop T.D. Jakes, also renown as a motivational speaker and author, filed...
Lower Burrell man accused of shooting at neighbors through apartment wall
A Lower Burrell man is behind bars after police accused him of shooting through his apartment wall at his neighbors early Saturday. Lower Burrell police charged Khalil Shawn Pryor, 23, with attempted homicide, four counts of aggravated assault, two counts each of recklessly endangering another person and simple assault, and...
Man claims he shot another in Strip District club after hearing girlfriend’s plea for help
A man told police he heard his girlfriend call for his help before shooting and critically injuring a man early Friday inside a Strip District club, according to court records. Officers went to Club Pittsburgh in the 1100 block of Penn Avenue shortly after 2 a.m. in response to a...
North Apollo mayor quits as the borough’s police options dwindle
North Apollo may have no choice but to stick with Kiski Township for police coverage as alternatives dwindle and the force’s leading critic, former Mayor June Kilgore, leaves office following her resignation. Since September, Kilgore has been asking council to consider another option for police coverage, when she raised doubts...
