Some Leechburg Area School District residents complain of unfair tax burden
Property owners in the Westmoreland County portion of Leechburg Area School District are demanding a new tax structure that doesn’t dip as deeply into their pockets as the current one does. “You’re picking the pockets of the 1,300 residents of West Leechburg,” Jake Heasley told Leechburg Area School Board members...
Appeals court allows whistleblower lawsuit against Pa. GOP caucus
A whistleblower lawsuit filed by the former chief of staff for state Rep. Eric Davanzo can proceed, Pennsylvania’s Commonwealth Court has ruled. A three-judge panel this month rejected an effort from the Pennsylvania House Republican Caucus to dismiss the lawsuit filed in 2022 by Marcel Nicole Ingram, who claimed she...
‘Momentous’ legal settlement promises better treatment of mentally ill Allegheny County Jail inmates
A lawsuit against the Allegheny County Jail and its leadership over the treatment of mentally ill inmates has settled, resulting in what both sides called “meaningful changes” for those incarcerated there. The parties — the county and the mentally ill inmates who sued — filed a motion in federal court...
Pittsburgh reinstates limited spay and neuter program for feral cats
Pittsburgh City Council on Tuesday approved a contract for spay and neuter services for the city’s feral cats, but the troubled program itself remains on hold. The city in February abruptly halted its spay and neuter services. Officials cited concerns that suburban pet owners were faking their address to make...
‘Kidnapping 2’: Escape room in Ross offers new optionVideo
Breakout Games, a national escape room brand with a location in Ross, announces its newest room. “Kidnapping 2: Afraid of the Dark” challenges players to escape total darkness and an abandoned asylum before time runs out and their captor returns. As dim lights flicker on, participants will discover a room...
‘Local 1196: A Steelworkers Strike’ details economic, emotional toll of 2021 ATI strike
A bitter, three-month walkout by ATI employees in 2021 — and the impacts of sudden unemployment for families of striking steelworkers — will be the focus of a free documentary showing Thursday at Pittsburgh Mills. “Local 1196: A Steelworkers Strike” will be offered at GQT Movies, featuring behind-the-scenes footage from...
Police respond to domestic dispute in Brackenridge; no injuries reported
No one was injured following a domestic situation Tuesday afternoon at a home on Ninth Avenue in Brackenridge. Tarentum police, which serves Brackenridge, were dispatched for “reports of a domestic situation involving the threat of weapons and potential violence,” according to a news release from the Tarentum Police Department. Police...
Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh to offer free admission on the late Fred Rogers’ birthday
Pittsburgh’s favorite neighbor would have turned 96 on Wednesday. To celebrate the life of Fred Rogers, host of the long-running WQED children’s show “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood,” the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh on the North Side is offering free admission on March 20. Rogers was born on that date in 1928...
Pine-Richland approves firms for HVAC project at 2 elementary schools
Efforts to replace the heating, ventilation and air-conditioning systems at Wexford and Richland elementary schools moved forward with the approval of two firms to provide professional services for the project. Pine-Richland School Board voted unanimously at its March meeting to hire Tower Engineering Inc. of Ross Township and Eckles Construction...
1 hospitalized in critical condition after Sharpsburg stabbing, borough man arrested
A Sharpsburg man has been charged with attempted homicide and aggravated assault for allegedly stabbing a 71-year-old woman multiple times at a borough home Tuesday afternoon, according to Allegheny County Police. Aspinwall and Etna police responded at about 2 p.m. to the 1600 block of Middle Street where the woman...
Plum, Oakmont police warn residents to secure cars, valuables after series of thefts
Plum and Oakmont residents are being advised to lock their vehicles and remove valuables from them after a string of thefts that may be connected to a gang in Pittsburgh. Police from the two boroughs, Allegheny County Police and Pittsburgh police are investigating the thefts, which happened Feb. 9. Plum...
Ligonier Township man charged in stabbing at his home
A Ligonier Township man is behind bars in connection with a stabbing at his home Sunday. Michael G. Glass, 46, is charged with attempted homicide, aggravated assault, simple assault and possession of an instrument of crime. Ligonier Valley police reported they were called to Green Valley Drive at 5:30 p.m....
Missing Springdale Township county tax bills could prompt extension of discount period
Some Springdale Township residents have not received their 2024 Allegheny County property tax bills. Township Manager William McElligott is advising residents to call the Allegheny County Treasurer’s Office at 412-350-4100 if they have not received their property tax bill. The deadline to pay a discounted rate is March 31. The...
Man who triggered Pittsburgh gunfight that left toddler dead gets harsher sentence than killer
Marvin Hill didn’t fire the stray bullet that killed Zykier Young. That was Andre Crawford. But it was Hill, the prosecution said, who started the chain of events in August 2020 that ultimately led to the 17-month-old’s death as he lay in bed on Pittsburgh’s North Side. And it is...
Hempfield plans virtual auction of items at former state prison property
Tools, equipment and furniture inside buildings at the former SCI Greensburg property will be up for grabs as a virtual auction is being planned. Officials are looking to liquidate the contents of buildings at the Hempfield complex before demolishing it, said Jason Rigone, executive director of the Westmoreland County Industrial...
Norwin assistant superintendent’s new 5-year deal is too costly, school board member says
Norwin’s assistant superintendent received a five-year contract Monday, but not before a school board member questioned whether the salary in her new deal was too high. Natalie McCracken, who has been the assistant superintendent since 2019, was approved for the new contract on a 6-1 vote, with one abstention by...
PennEnvironment limited study shows compliance with Pittsburgh bag ban, but also gaps
A limited study of 50 Pittsburgh businesses revealed that most are complying with the city’s ban on plastic bags, though restaurants seem to be slower to conform than retailers. The PennEnvironment Research & Policy Center, an environmental advocacy group, randomly visited businesses throughout the city to investigate which retailers and...
North Hills’ NHthon returns April 20 in West View
The annual NHthon returns to North Hills School District’s Martorelli Stadium on April 20. The daylong celebration features dancing, games, food and fun in support of the Make-A-Wish Foundation and UPMC Children’s Hospital Foundation. Last year’s event raised $19,116. NHthon occurs in two parts at the stadium, 5336 Perry Highway,...
National Library Week activities scheduled at Northland Public Library in McCandless
National Library Week The American Library Association has deemed April 7-13 as National Library Week. This year’s theme is “Ready, Set, Library!” The idea is that in our always-online world, libraries give us a green light to something special: a place to connect with others, learn new skills and focus...
Trib Lunch Box: Shooting, spring arrives, March Madness, breweries
Here are some noon headlines from TribLive, Tuesday, March 19, 2024: • 1 dead, 1 injured, 1 in custody after shooting at Blawnox company A woman was fatally shot and a man was wounded inside a Blawnox company Tuesday morning during what police said was a domestic dispute involving a...
Chartiers Valley Primary School Principal named Penguins’ MVP
Deidra Stepko wasn’t too sure of being an administrator when she became the interim principal of Marion Elementary School in the Belle Vernon Area School District in 2018. She had taught first and third grades at the school, and she was uncertain if she’d like being in the principal’s office...
Westmoreland happenings: Living Stations of the Cross, Easter egg hunts, wrestling fundraiser, more
Church news • SS. Joachim and Anne Catholic Parish will a host a free presentation of living Stations of the Cross at 7:30 p.m. March 24 at St. Michael Church, 101 McClay Drive, Elizabeth. The St. Mark the Evangelist Youth Group Ministry from Cranberry Township will perform. Details: 412-741-0663. •...
Murrysville teen competes at regional ski championships in Vermont
During the recent rash of t-shirt weather, Becket Pottinger has been seeking snow anywhere he can find it. Pottinger, 15, of Murrysville, recently qualified for the U.S. Ski & Snowboard’s U16 Eastern Championships, taking place this week in Burke, Vt. Pottinger is one of six teens in Pennsylvania to earn...
Jeannette extends garbage rate hikes through 2027
Businesses in Jeannette will see their garbage rates increase starting next year. And an ongoing plan to increase residential rates through 2026 has been extended. The increases, which will be incremental through 2027, were necessary because of rising costs associated with disposing trash at a landfill, said city manager Ethan...
Police link fatal shooting at Blawnox company to workplace love triangle
A workplace love triangle ended in death Tuesday at a Blawnox warehouse. Sean Black and Courtney Smith, who both worked at Tri-Arc Manufacturing Co. on Blawnox’s Fountain Street, were raising three children together and had been in a romantic relationship “for several years,” police said. But the couple separated recently,...
