Top Stories category, Page 1048
3 popular Oakmont restaurants have new owner; The Chelsea Grille to go Mexican
The end of 2021 also became an end of an era as three beloved Oakmont restaurants have been sold. Hoffstot’s Cafe Monaco, The Chelsea Grille and Oakmont Tavern were purchased by Oakmont resident and entrepreneur John Keefe. Keefe owns three other eateries in Oakmont — The Lot at Edgewater, Pub...
Nutting family completes sale of Seven Springs, Hidden Valley, Laurel Mountain to Vail Resorts
The Nutting family and Vail Resorts have completed the sale of Seven Springs Mountain Resort, Hidden Valley Resort and the Laurel Mountain Ski Area for $118 million. “Looking back over the past 15 years, I am proud to be leaving all three properties much better than we had found them,”...
Betty White dead at age 99
Betty White, whose saucy, up-for-anything charm made her a television mainstay for more than 60 years, whether as a man-crazy TV hostess on “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” or the loopy housemate on “The Golden Girls,” has died. She was 99. People and the Washington Post reported White’s death. She...
Notable deaths in Pittsburgh and Western Pa. in 2021
A look back at some notable Pittsburgh-area people the world lost in 2021. Joanne Rogers, a concert duo pianist and wife of the late Fred Rogers “She wasn’t going for the spotlight but she was very happy to respond to the national and worldwide interest in what Fred was offering...
Surging covid prompts some Pittsburgh-area restaurants to cancel holiday service
As covid-19 cases skyrocket, many Pittsburgh-area restaurants and bars have temporarily closed their doors for safety issues after staff illnesses. At Roundabout Brewery in Pittsburgh’s Lawrenceville neighborhood, owners made the decision to move to take-only over the weekend. Co-owner Dyana Sloan said a staff member tested positive last weekend. All...
Pittsburgh unveils large electric vehicle charging depot for city fleet
City officials on Thursday unveiled a new electric vehicle fleet charging depot at Pittsburgh’s Second Avenue Parking Plaza and announced plans to buy new electric recycling trucks. The charging station, housed in the Pittsburgh Parking Authority’s lot in the city’s Bluff neighborhood, is the largest in Western Pennsylvania, according to...
Penn State announces in-person spring semester classes despite omicron
Despite covid-19 surging throughout the country, and with health experts warning of challenging weeks ahead, Penn State announced Thursday night that it will start the spring semester in person, as planned, because it feels it can do so “safely but carefully.” Still, according to the university, conditions around University Park...
5 things to do in Pittsburgh this weekend: Dec. 31, Jan. 1-2
Happy New Year. Here are some ways to welcome in 2022. First Night Highmark First Night Pittsburgh will kick off Friday at 6 p.m. The event which welcomes the new year will feature four large inflatable rabbits, part of an art installation called “Intrude” by Parer Studio. There are indoor...
Hope springs eternal: Community leaders look forward to better 2022
Seen in a meme: “The fact that 2021 is almost over proves that time also flies when you’re NOT having fun.” Wasn’t 2021 supposed to be the year that life returned to normal — or at least a reasonable facsimile thereof? At the beginning of the year, it seemed as...
2 of the 3 people found shot dead in Homewood South have been identified
Pittsburgh police responded to a report of shots fired early Friday and discovered three people shot and killed inside a home in the city’s Homewood South neighborhood, according to a spokesman for the department of public safety. Police said officers were dispatched to the 7500 block of Hamilton Avenue around...
Westmoreland County stories of the year in 2021Video
The covid-19 pandemic continued to make news locally in its second year, from continued illness and deaths to vaccinations and heated discussions and demonstrations about how best to keep children safe at school. But life in Westmoreland County continued in 2021, and other important and newsworthy events happened — including,...
North Apollo vintage stainless steel Yak Diner hits the road for move to new home
There’s more than meatloaf and homemade mashed potatoes keeping the old stainless steel Yak Diner in North Apollo going. The manufactured 1955 O’Mahony diner is a movable prefab building, and it has to go. The new diner owners will hook the Yak to a semitrailer Monday to move it just...
2 in critical condition following hit-and-run crash in Tarentum
Allegheny County Police investigators are pursuing information on a hit-and-run crash that critically injured two pedestrians Thursday on the Tarentum Bridge. The two people injured — an adult and juvenile — were transported by ambulance to undisclosed area hospitals after the 6:04 p.m. crash. Police reported the collision occurred in...
Biden, Putin talk nearly an hour as alarm rises over UkraineVideo
WILMINGTON, Del. — Presidents Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin spoke frankly for nearly an hour late Thursday amid growing alarm over Russia’s troop buildup near Ukraine, a simmering crisis that’s recently deepened as the Kremlin has stiffened its demands for increased security guarantees and test fired hypersonic missiles to underscore...
Colorado wildfires burn hundreds of homes, force evacuationsVideo
DENVER — An estimated 580 homes, a hotel and a shopping center have burned and tens of thousands of people were evacuated in wind-fueled wildfires outside Denver, officials said Thursday evening. Boulder County Sheriff Joe Pelle said only one injury has been reported, but didn’t rule out finding out later...
UPMC receives limited supply of preventative antibody treatment for the most immunocompromised
George Spine Jr. thought it was a scam when he first got a call from UPMC around 7:45 a.m. Thursday offering a new antibody treatment meant to protect the most immunocompromised before they’re exposed to covid-19. “I thought it was a scam, so I gave the girl a hard time,”...
University of Pittsburgh issues shelter-in-place request, required covid testing for students
The University of Pittsburgh’s Covid-19 Medical Response Office has released a plan for the spring semester that includes a phased move-in beginning Jan. 8 along with a shelter-in-place request and testing for students. Pitt will make available one covid-19 test through Quest Diagnostics for all of the approximately 34,000 students...
Notable deaths in Westmoreland County in 2021
Here are a few of the notable people who lived, served and loved Westmoreland County who died in 2021. State Rep. Mike Reese State Rep. Mike Reese, 42, of Mt. Pleasant Township, was a 12-year House veteran representing Westmoreland and Somerset county residents in the 59th Legislative District....
Allegheny County covid cases skyrocket as omicron spreads
The number of new covid-19 cases in Allegheny County has grown exponentially this week, with nearly 2,000 new cases reported Thursday — a sign health director Dr. Debra Bogen said is a likely due to the quick-spreading omicron variant. From Monday to Tuesday, the county recorded 654 new cases, followed...
Pittsburgh Cultural Trust unveils 50-foot rabbit installation for First Night
Easter is months away. But that didn’t prevent this bunny family from hopping into town on Thursday. The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust inflated a large 50-foot animal with floppy ears and three smaller similar creatures as part of its Highmark First Night Pittsburgh event, which is happening from 6 p.m. to...
Pittsburgh public safety leader will not be part of new mayor’s administration
Pittsburgh Public Safety Director Wendell Hissrich said he’s been informed that he will not be retained under Mayor-elect Ed Gainey’s incoming administration. “We’ve seen lots of change, and even trying times together, and hopefully we were able to make a positive difference over these past six years,” Hissrich said Thursday...
Longtime Shanksville fire chief, who responded on 9/11, in need of heart transplant
The Somerset County area is digging deep to help longtime area firefighter Terry Shaffer, who was Shanksville Volunteer Fire Department’s chief when United Airlines Flight 93 crashed on 9/11. Shaffer, 66, was admitted last week to UPMC Presbyterian hospital in Pittsburgh for treatment of congestive heart failure, according to his...
Pittsburgh and Allegheny County stories of the year in 2021
The covid-19 pandemic continued to dominate daily news cycles this year in Western Pennsylvania and beyond. But many other news events occurred in Pittsburgh and Allegheny County in 2021 — including the election of Pittsburgh’s first Black mayor and the arrests of dozens of Western Pennsylvanians after the riot at...
U.S. unemployment claims drop to 198,000
WASHINGTON — The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits fell below 200,000, more evidence that the job market remains strong in the aftermath of last year’s coronavirus recession. Jobless claims dropped by 8,000 to 198,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. The four-week average, which smooths out week-to-week volatility, fell...
Powerball jackpot will climb to $483 million on New Year’s Day
Looks like 2022 is going to be a great year for someone. The Powerball lottery jackpot will climb to $483 million on New Year’s Day after no one matched the five numbers and Powerball in Wednesday’s drawing, according to state lottery officials. The numbers drawn were 2-6-9-33-39 and the Powerball...
