Feast of the 7 Fishes fuels Christmas Eve frenzy in Pittsburgh’s Strip District
Brad Quartuccio refused to allow fate to disrupt a Christmas Eve tradition — prepping for his family’s Feast of the Seven Fishes, an Italian-American celebration revolving around succulent seafood. The Morningside resident and his son Sal, 7, marched proudly around 10 a.m. Wednesday through Wholey’s packed aisles, bags of shrimp...
Federal agency recommends 2 safety recommendations in Clairton Coke Works plant
An independent, nonregulatory federal agency investigating a deadly explosion at the U.S. Steel’s Clairton Coke Works plant this fall issued two interim safety recommendations Tuesday. The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board recommends U.S. Steel thoroughly evaluates all buildings at the Clairton facility that are currently occupied or could...
Court papers shed light on ICE arrest of Latino man in Mt. Washington
A man who struggled with federal immigration officers last week in Mt. Washington before being whisked away in a white van is a Nicaraguan national targeted after he tried to buy a gun, according to papers filed Tuesday in federal court. Darwin Alexander Davila-Perez, whose age is not listed in...
Toys for Tots campaign: More Western Pennsylvania children in need
Demand for Toys for Tots assistance climbed in the Alle-Kiski Valley this holiday season and held steady in Westmoreland County, reflecting continued financial strain on families. In the Alle-Kiski Valley, coordinators reported about 700 more children in need of holiday gifts this year, a significant jump from last year, when...
Gainey to let 2026 Pittsburgh budget become law without his signature
Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey plans to let next year’s $693 million, City Council-backed budget — and the 20% property tax hike set to come with it — become law without his signature. Gainey, in a letter Tuesday to council President R. Daniel Lavelle, called the 2026 budget he initially pitched...
Pirates outfielder Andrew McCutchen and wife welcome new baby boy
Pirates outfielder Andrew McCutchen and his wife, Maria, have something extra to celebrate this holiday season. On Tuesday, Allegheny Health Network announced that the couple’s third son, Suede, was born at AHN Wexford Hospital on Sunday afternoon. The McCutchens announced the impending arrival of their fifth child several months ago....
Heinz History Center to rename Sports Museum after Franco Harris
On Dec. 23, 1972 — 53 years ago — Pittsburgh Steelers running back Franco Harris made National Football League history with the Immaculate Reception. The Senator John Heinz History Center is celebrating the football legend by changing the name of the Western Pennsylvania Sports Museum to the Franco Harris Sports...
Year in Review: The best of Pittsburgh theater in 2025
Despite funding struggles and numerous other challenges, including the construction in the Cultural District, Pittsburgh’s theater companies and arts organizations staged a stunning slate of productions in 2025. While we didn’t get to all of them, here are some highlights to remember. The Top 5 Shows City Theatre’s “The Real...
Tax trifecta: Pittsburgh property owners take it on the chin
For Pittsburgh property owners, there’s no escaping a triple tax whammy. The city and school district are raising property taxes in 2026, piling on the pain of a 36% hike by Allegheny County that took effect this year. With the three tax increases, a Pittsburgh resident with a property assessed...
August Wilson Center raising funds with seat-naming opportunity
Theater-goers have a chance to make a visible investment in the August Wilson African American Cultural Center in Downtown Pittsburgh through new seat-naming opportunities. The initiative is a legacy-giving chance to support the center, which is among the nation’s largest Black multidisciplinary arts facilities. “A seat dedication is both deeply...
Supreme Court Justice Alito grants Post-Gazette time to fight 3rd Circuit panel decision
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito on Monday granted an emergency application by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s owners to delay a ruling from a federal appeals court panel that would send them back to the bargaining table with union employees. Alito granted a stay on the U.S. 3rd Circuit Court of...
New leadership to take over at B-PEP in the new year
At the beginning of 2026, there will be a changing of the guard at the Black Political Empowerment Project (B-PEP). Founder Tim Stevens, who has served as chairman of the board for the organization for nearly four decades, will be stepping down from that position, with Lorraine Cross taking over....
Pittsburgh council votes to scrap contracts for $6M master plan, but Gainey refuses
Pittsburgh City Council on Monday voted to cancel a pair of contracts prematurely for a 25-year master plan, which could save millions of dollars — but Mayor Ed Gainey said he won’t abide by the decision. The $6 million comprehensive plan is meant to guide zoning and development through 2050....
Weekend vandalism targets North Side Pittsburgh police facilities, vehicles
Someone vandalized Pittsburgh police headquarters, one of its precincts and a marked cruiser on the North Side over the weekend. Officers discovered early Sunday that the letters “ACAB” — a possible acronym, police said, for “All cops are (expletive)” — had been spray-painted on the police bureau’s headquarters on Western...
Pitt staff union members to get 2.5% wage increase
University of Pittsburgh staff represented by the United Steelworkers will receive 2.5% salary increases, retroactive to Aug. 1, starting with their paychecks in mid-January. That was the agreement reached between Pitt and the union last week. University spokesman Chuck Finder directed a reporter to Pitt’s staff unionization information website for...
Where was Coghill? Veteran Pittsburgh councilman misses key budget vote
Sunday’s vote on the Pittsburgh budget wasn’t Anthony Coghill’s first rodeo. The Pittsburgh councilman, who was just elected to a third term, has voted on budgets each year since 2018. That track record is tarnished now. When the time came for a final City Council vote on the $693 million...
5 things to know about the Pittsburgh budget, tax hike approved by City Council
Pittsburgh City Council on Sunday approved a 2026 budget with a 20% property tax increase, the first tax hike the city has implemented in more than a decade. Council members and Pittsburgh residents were starkly divided over the tax increase. No tax hike was included in Mayor Ed Gainey’s initial...
Morning Roundup: Police pursuit in the South Side; serious fire in New Castle
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Monday, Dec. 22: _______________________________________ Juvenile accused of leading police on chase Pittsburgh police were led early Monday on a high-speed chase near East Carson Street in the South Side that ended with the suspect’s vehicle crashing into a home....
International priests fill vital roles in keeping Diocese of Greensburg operating
After more than a decade of educating aspiring Catholic priests in his native Philippines, the Rev. Jay Jacinto was ready for a change. Jacinto, 48, was ordained in 2005. He worked in the Philippines for 17 years before volunteering to serve abroad in 2022. A year later, the bishop of...
Pittsburgh City Council approves 2026 budget with 20% property tax increase
Pittsburgh City Council voted Sunday to raise property taxes by 20%, down from an earlier proposal for a 30% tax hike. Council supported the 20% tax hike — the first increase in more than a decade — in a 6-2 vote after hours of deliberation Sunday. “I do feel this...
Pittsburghers share mixed opinions on significant tax hike proposal as council remains divided over budget options
About 24 hours before Pittsburgh City Council is scheduled to vote on a 2026 budget, council members remained divided on whether to cut services, raise taxes or find a middle ground that combines both approaches. Council on Sunday will take preliminary and final votes on the tax increase and budget....
Missing 83-year-old woman found safe, Pittsburgh police say
A missing 83-year-old woman with dementia and Alzheimer’s was found safe, Pittsburgh police said Saturday. According to police, Desiree Yates had last been seen Friday about 6:15 p.m. in the 800 block of Inwood Street in the city’s Homewood West neighborhood. She may have required medical assistance, police said. Pittsburgh...
Urban League of Greater Pittsburgh spreads joy, toys across Allegheny County
Members of the Urban League of Greater Pittsburgh took over a section of Petra International Ministries in Penn Hills a week before Christmas to sort through gifts for 500 children across Allegheny County. Mattie Woods of Penn Hills serves as developer of the Urban League’s Opportunity Broker Program. Her job...
Pittsburgh Public Schools student dies after being hit by sliding vehicle in Carrick
A Pittsburgh Public Schools student has died after being struck by a vehicle in Pittsburgh’s Carrick neighborhood. District officials said the deceased girl is Ishara Kami, 17, a senior at Carrick High School. Police responded to a vehicle versus pedestrian accident at about 2:50 p.m. Friday at the intersection of...
Shapiro designates $5M to state-funded research to tackle neuro diseases
Gov. Josh Shapiro chose the University of Pittsburgh as the backdrop Friday to unveil a new $5 million research grant in the state’s 2025-26 budget — a nod to Pitt’s prominent role in neurodegenerative disease research. Scientists based in Pitt’s Biomedical Science Tower in Oakland walked Shapiro and state Health...
