Western PA Local News category, Page 850
Washington County controller’s dead dog prompts investigation, records show
North Strabane police said they are investigating a possible case of animal cruelty after removing a dead dog from the home of Washington County’s top elected financial officer. A search warrant affidavit said Washington Area Humane Society received a report that a dog owned by Controller April Sloane had died...
5 things to do in Westmoreland County: Dec. 8-10
Chestnuts are roasting on the open fire, and Jack Frost is already starting to nip at noses. If that isn’t enough to get you in the holiday spirit, there are plenty of activities that will this weekend in Westmoreland County. Free improv workshop Leaders of StoryZ, a nonprofit theater and...
Murrysville council approves budget, beer distributor, short-term rental regulations
About $2.7 million in capital projects including road work and park improvements is funded in Murrysville’s 2024 budget. The spending plan, approved Wednesday does not include a tax increase. Property taxes will remain at 12.15 mills in the $15.6 million budget. Just under 3.5 mills dedicated for Murrysville’s capital improvement...
Community Market developer calls zoning rejection for Bloomfield site ‘arbitrary’
The developer of a proposed mixed-use housing and grocery store site in Bloomfield is challenging the city’s zoning variance rejection that stalled the project last month. O’Hara-based Echo Realty sought to increase the maximum height allowed on a site at the intersection of Liberty Avenue and the Bloomfield Bridge. Echo...
Plum School Board names new officers
Plum School Board has three new members and new officers. Newly elected to the nine-member board this year are Lindsay Arenth, Renee Richardson and Mark Stropkaj. Members Michael Caliguiri and Michelle Stepnick won reelection to their seats. Former Plum District Judge Linda Zucco swore in all five during the board’s...
Riverview caps tax increase
The Riverview School Board approved a resolution limiting the impact of a real estate tax increase while welcoming four new members. During the board’s Dec. 4 reorganization meeting, election winners Leanne Jacobs-Rohan, Roger Pogoda, Erin Shuetz and Bridget Seery were sworn in, as were incumbents Jennifer Chaparro and Antonio Paris....
Any Hempfield Area tax hike capped at 6.5% next year
The Hempfield Area School District board approved a resolution that limits any tax increase to support the 2024-2025 budget to the 6.5% ceiling set by the state. Any increase above that index would have required approval from voters in the district or the state in a process governed by a...
No tax increase for Frazer property owners
Frazer property owners won’t see a township real estate tax increase in 2024. The township supervisors on Tuesday approved a $1.13 million budget for next year, said Township Secretary Lori Ziencik. The millage rate will remain at 3.5 mills. A Frazer property owner with the median property tax assessment of...
Few remain to remember infamous Pearl Harbor attack 82 years ago today
The Japanese attack on the U.S. naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, was 82 years ago today. With a death toll of more than 2,400, it was the deadliest attack on the United States prior to 9/11 and hastened the country to enter World War II. Here are a few...
New Kensington slaying co-defendant testifies shooting victim was feared
One of the seven people charged with robbery and murder of a man last year in New Kensington told a Westmoreland County jury that the shooting victim was a known drug user and thief who was feared in the community. Raquan Carpenter, 20, of Pittsburgh testified Wednesday for the prosecution...
Malnourished cat found at Pittsburgh airport begins new life with officer
A new chapter for Spirit began last week at Pittsburgh International Airport. Spirit the stray cat, not the airline. An Allegheny County Police officer stepped up to provide a home and a name for the female cat, the department reported on its Facebook page. The cat was “extremely malnourished” and...
Morning Roundup: 1 injured in fire at Fayette County business
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Thursday, Dec. 7: 1 injured in fire at Fayette County business One person was injured after a fire broke out Wednesday evening at a Fayette County business, according to a county 911 supervisor. The fire was reported shortly before...
The Stroller, Dec. 7, 2023: 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. Kiski Township church to host drive-thru live Nativity A drive-thru live...
Unity man stabbed, 2 suspects identified
A gathering among friends Monday evening in Unity turned violent when a group of people stabbed a man in the leg, took his guns and $5,000, according to state police. The wounded man was taken to AHN Forbes Hospital in Monroeville for treatment and charges were filed against two suspects....
Volunteers sought for North Huntingdon trail work
A North Huntingdon group is seeking volunteers to do light maintenance work from 9 a.m. to noon Dec. 9 and from 9 a.m. to noon Jan. 14 on at least two trails at Braddock’s Trail Park in North Huntingdon. The Friends of Norwin Trails plans to clear existing trails and...
Pittsburgh police seek missing juvenile
Pittsburgh police are seeking information about a male teen reported missing on Wednesday. Police said they are looking for Sh’Kia Ross, 14, of Pittsburgh, last seen Downtown on the 1400 block of Forbes Avenue. He is a Black male, 5-feet-9-inches tall and 150 pounds with brown eyes and black hair....
Warner voted in as president of North Allegheny School Board
The North Allegheny School Board will be led by two Democrats. School board members elected Democrat Elizabeth Warner as president during a board reorganization meeting Dec. 6 by a vote of 7-0 with two abstentions. Democrat Paige Hardy was elected vice president on a 5-4 vote. Warner, who was re-elected...
Murrysville Council OKs lease for gas, oil rights under 2 parks
Murrysville Council has approved oil and gas rights leases for several hundred acres of land beneath its two largest parks. Council voted 4-2 Wednesday to enter into separate leases with the sole bidder, Olympus Energy, for 74 acres below Duff Park and just under 306 acres of Murrysville Community Park,...
2 men accused of releasing alligator spotted this summer along Kiski River ordered to pay fines
Two men who sparked a series of alligator sightings along the Kiski River this summer have been ordered to pay fines for allowing a pet reptile to escape into the waterway. Austin Randall, 23, of Lyndora, Butler County, told investigators that he lost his pet alligator, Neo, when he tried...
New Kensington slaying co-defendant testifies shooting victim was feared
One of the seven people charged with robbery and murder of a man last year in New Kensington told a Westmoreland County jury that the shooting victim was a known drug user and thief who was feared in the community. Raquan Carpenter, 20, of Pittsburgh, testified Wednesday for the prosecution...
Pitt students, friends hold memorial vigil for pedestrian killed by UPMC shuttle bus
Emily Watson read books voraciously, exercised each day at the gym, and drove frequently to Presque Isle Beach, where she liked to watch the sun set over Lake Erie and reflect. A Pittsburgher and Point Park University alumna, Watson supervised the transport department at UPMC Presbyterian hospital in Oakland and...
Rankin police Chief Jeremi Gregory remembered as a champion of the community
Rankin police Chief Jeremi Gregory was the embodiment of a man walking in his purpose, with a magnanimous presence and a genuine soul, according to those who knew him best. He was a cop’s cop, according to those who knew him well. “He wouldn’t ask his cops to do anything...
Ex-con headed to Allegheny County court in fatal Stowe Township shooting
A jitney-driving ex-con who said he was looking to buy drugs is headed to Allegheny County court next month in connection with the fatal Nov. 22 shooting of a Stowe Township man, authorities said. Allegheny County Police had charged Arrmon Hagans, 43, of Wilkinsburg, with criminal homicide; three counts each...
Western Pa. lands $144M in federal funding for expanded passenger rail service
It’s all aboard for more passenger rail service in Western Pennsylvania. Federal lawmakers said Wednesday that the Federal Railroad Administration is putting $144 million toward a project that will add a daily round trip on Amtrak’s passenger rail line between Pittsburgh and New York City. The funding will be used...
Greensburg woman charged after police say she boarded school bus, berated driver
A woman is charged with disorderly conduct and unauthorized entry of a school bus after police said she boarded a Greensburg Salem School District bus and berated the driver a few days before Thanksgiving. City police were called to Allegheny Street near the Autumnbrook Apartments on Nov. 20 for a...
