Western PA Local News category, Page 507
Etna Center for Community project receives $2 million in grants
First came the announcement of a $500,000 grant. A couple of weeks later, another award was for triple that amount. All of which means that money available toward fulfilling the vision of the Etna Center for Community stands at just under $6 million. “That allows us to do the project...
Allegheny County judge orders removal of signs with false information at polling places
An Allegheny County judge on Tuesday afternoon ordered that signs outside of polling places in the state 44th legislative district targeting a Democratic candidate be removed, finding that they contain false information. “I’m going to order that the sign be removed or modified,” said Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge John...
Taxes would jump 11.4% under proposed Mt. Pleasant budget
Mt. Pleasant council is proposing an 11.4% property tax hike but still will need to draw money from the borough’s reserve fund to help support a tentative 2025 budget of about $1.5 million. With the 2 mill hike, to 19.5 mills, the borough would plan to draw almost $9,500 from...
No change in garbage fee for New Kensington residents after big hike this year
It won’t cost any more to throw out the trash in New Kensington next year. After a hefty increase for 2024, the annual fee for solid waste, leaf and branch collection and recycling will be unchanged for 2025. City Council on Monday voted 4-0 to approve the second year of...
Cambria County election results slow to come in after scanning glitch, voting extended
Election results in Cambria County are slow to come in after voters were given until 10 p.m. Tuesday to cast their ballots because of issues with scanning machines, according to the Pennsylvania Department of State. As of Wednesday morning, no results had been added to the county’s website. County officials...
Victim identified as Harrison man in Sheldon Park shooting; suspect in custody
A man was shot and killed Tuesday afternoon in Harrison’s Sheldon Park neighborhood, according to Allegheny County Police. The victim was identified as Jaysen Randall, 20, of Harrison, according to the county Medical Examiner’s Office. Mike Vogel, chief of police for the Allegheny County Housing Authority, confirmed one person was...
Southwestern Pa. sets record high of 81 degrees on Election Day
As voters turned out to polling locations across Southwestern Pennsylvania, unseasonably warm weather graced the region. Temperatures reached 81 degrees in the Pittsburgh area about 3:15 p.m., beating the previous 80-degree record high temperature for Nov. 5 set in 1948, said National Weather Service meteorologist Mike Kennedy. “It’s been warm...
West Deer eatery La Vite closed
A popular West Deer restaurant has closed without explanation. La Vite Ristorante shuttered its doors Oct. 30 according to social media posts. Joe Voloch, director of operations at No Offseason Sports, where the restaurant was located, confirmed the eatery had closed and said he doesn’t foresee it reopening. “It surprised...
Property tax in Lower Burrell expected to hold for 4th straight year
Property owners in Lower Burrell likely won’t be paying more in city taxes next year. Council approved a proposed budget last week that would set the city’s 2025 millage rate at 24.75 mills, the same rate as this year. It would be the fourth consecutive year without a tax increase,...
Pittsburgh man guilty of killing 3 in Homewood
The evidence, the judge said, was “compelling and uncontradicted.” Video, blood and ballistics put Ronald Steave inside the Hamilton Avenue home early on the morning of Dec. 31, 2021. And then, when he fled, the judge continued, there was more evidence of “flight, concealment and elimination.” “While not elaborate and...
Toys for Tots railcars November tour adds a stop in South Greensburg
A new stop has been added for this year’s caravan of railcars that collect donations for Toys for Tots around Westmoreland County. Organizer John Gonder said the railcars will take a spur on the Southwest Pennsylvania Railroad line to stop near Huff Avenue in South Greensburg about 12:45 p.m. “It’s...
Ross Park Mall store opening benefits nonprofits
Texas-based jewelry chain Kendra Scott hosted four fundraising parties for four local organizations to celebrate the grand opening of its new Ross Park Mall location. Each “Kendra Gives Back” party, held Oct. 25 and 26, lasted about two hours, with 20% of sales benefiting local organizations A Glimmer of Hope,...
Back to the drawing board for a solution to West Leechburg’s property tax inequity
Leechburg Area School District officials are back to square one in their search for a solution to rising property tax rates in West Leechburg. For almost eight months, district officials have been looking for a solution to the tax rates produced by a State Tax Equalization Board formula. The goal,...
Western Pa. voters cast their ballots amid expected record voter turnout
Polling places are closed for in-person voting across Pennsylvania, a swing state that will play a pivotal role in determining who will be the next president. Officials expected a record turnout of voters Tuesday amid a National Weather Service forecast of sunny skies with a high in the low 80s....
Harris and Trump make final pushes in Pittsburgh stops
The next American president rallied Pittsburgh-area voters Monday as a contentious campaign comes to a close. Both candidates — Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic heir to President Joe Biden, and former President Donald Trump, who has transformed the Republican Party with his bombastic, populist rhetoric — visited the region...
The Stroller, Nov. 5, 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. Free meal distribution planned...
Here’s your Election Day playlist, from the ‘Animaniacs’ to WilcoVideo
It’s Election Day, and if there’s one thing we can all agree on — an increasingly difficult concept these days — it’s a collective sense of relief that, no matter the result, it’s going to be over soon. But not yet — which is why we’ve compiled this list of...
In his final Pittsburgh rally, Trump laments results of 2020 election, attacks ‘fake news’
Former President Donald Trump rallied in front of about 11,000 people Monday at PPG Paints Arena, repeatedly complaining about the 2020 election, attacking what he calls the “fake news” media, touting celebrity endorsements, and reflecting on what he said will be his last rally in Pittsburgh. “We have been doing...
Vice President Kamala Harris rallies supporters in Rankin on eve of Election Day
Vice President Kamala Harris’ visit Monday to Pittsburgh region was succinct. It was the fourth of five stops in Pennsylvania on the eve of an election where the Keystone State has lived up to its nickname. Harris urged her supporters at Carrie Blast Furnaces in Rankin to get out and...
Controversial Mt. Pleasant Halloween parade entry not a hate crime, officials say
An entry in Mt. Pleasant’s annual Halloween parade that disturbed many people with an apparent depiction of Democratic Vice President and presidential candidate Kamala Harris handcuffed and tethered to a golf cart did not rise to the legal definition of a hate crime, according to borough officials. Borough Solicitor Leslie...
Charleroi Pyrex plant closing temporarily blocked
A federal judge has temporarily blocked the closing of the Pyrex-making glassware plant in Charleroi, which the company intends to shutter in February, according to the state Attorney General’s Office. If it goes through, operations would move to Ohio and eliminate some 270 jobs in the Mon Valley. Centre Lane...
Arnold man pleads guilty to killing pedestrian with car in North Braddock
An Arnold man will serve two to four years in state prison after pleading guilty Monday to homicide by vehicle in a crash that killed a 75-year-old Braddock man. Tyrell Jimmie Knight, 37, was charged in the Nov. 9, 2023 death of Harry Harold King. According to Allegheny County Police,...
McKeesport man gets 15 to 30 years for shaking infant son to death
A McKeesport man who pleaded guilty to third-degree murder for fatally shaking his infant son will serve at least 15 years in prison. Michael Barber, 31, pleaded guilty on Aug. 5 before Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge Jennifer Satler. On Monday, she ordered him to serve 15 to 30 years...
National Weather Service warns against outdoor burning, game commission prohibits camp fires as dry conditions linger
Exceptionally dry weather and wind gusts have created an increased brush fire danger, the National Weather Service warned in a special weather statement. It has been nearly a month since the Pittsburgh region has seen a “wetting” rain of at least one-tenth of an inch, meteorologist Bill Modzelewski said. The...
Judge mulls verdict in Homewood triple homicide after closing arguments
In the hours before prosecutors said Ronald Steave killed two women and a 12-year-old boy, videos showed the three adults having sex together. During Steave’s nonjury homicide trial Monday, the prosecution presented still images and video from late Dec. 30, 2021, into early New Year’s Eve that showed Nandi Fitzgerald...
