Top Stories category, Page 632
Pittsburgh officials look to tweak controversial purple curb loading zone program
Pittsburgh officials are considering tweaks to the city’s smart loading zone pilot program after some local business owners voiced concerns the new initiative was a hindrance. City officials have touted the smart loading zones — which are marked with purple-painted curbs and matching signage — as a way to make...
Judge blocks zoning variance for affordable housing project in Pittsburgh
A zoning variance for an affordable housing project in Pittsburgh’s Fineview neighborhood has been overturned by a judge, forcing the project back to square one. Earlier this month, Common Pleas Judge Mary McGinley ruled that a variance should not have been granted to the community group the Fineview Citizens Council...
Pittsburgh to require inspections, permits for rental units, Airbnbs
Owners of rental units and Airbnbs in Pittsburgh will need to go through a permitting and inspection process after City Council on Tuesday approved legislation that aims to regulate such properties. People who own long- or short-term rental units will need to apply for a permit annually. They will need...
Updated covid vaccines can be covered for uninsured by federal Bridge program
Uninsured individuals can get an updated covid vaccine at no cost through a new federal program. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Bridge Access Program, a new public-private partnership, works to maintain access by providing free covid vaccines to adults who are underinsured or uninsured. Covid vaccines were free...
At White House meeting, Trib CEO urges support of bill to save local news
Trib Total Media President and CEO Jennifer Bertetto met Wednesday with White House officials to advocate for legislation that would allow local news outlets to negotiate for fair compensation from large digital platforms that use their content. The Journalism Competition and Preservation Act would allow news publishers to collectively negotiate...
Raising Cane’s to open 3 restaurants in Pittsburgh area
“Caniacs” will soon be able to get their chicken fix locally. The Raising Cane’s location at 3610 Fifth Ave. in Oakland is set to open on Oct. 10. A second restaurant, at 384 Lincoln Hwy. in North Versailles, should open in early November. The Oakland restaurant will be located in...
Black Americans express concerns about racist depictions in news media, lack of coverage efforts
NEW YORK — In a new study, Black Americans expressed broad concerns about how they are depicted in the news media, with majorities saying they see racist or negative depictions and a lack of effort to cover broad segments of their community. Four in five Black adults say they see...
House Speaker McCarthy is back to square one as the Senate pushes ahead to avert a federal shutdown
WASHINGTON — As the Senate marches ahead with a bipartisan approach to prevent a government shutdown, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is back to square one — asking his hard-right Republicans to do what they have said they would never do: approve their own temporary House measure to keep the government...
U.S. secures the release of soldier who crossed into North Korea 2 months ago
WASHINGTON — The United States has secured the release of a U.S. soldier who sprinted across a heavily fortified border into North Korea more than two months ago, and he is on his way back to America, officials announced Wednesday. U.S. ally Sweden and rival China helped with the transfer....
Morning Roundup: Shaler officer and driver injured in head-on crash; gas leak in Collier
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Wednesday, Sept. 27: Police officer and driver injured in head-on crash in Shaler Two people, including a police officer, were taken to the hospital following a head-on crash early Wednesday in Shaler. The crash occurred around 3:30 a.m., near...
Police say Carrick woman set boyfriend on fire
A Carrick woman is accused of setting her boyfriend on fire and then trying to make it look like he had done it to himself. Dispatchers received calls Sunday night for reports of a 43-year-old man on fire. When officers got to the scene, they spoke to Cecilia Perez, 47,...
Duquesne Light employees authorize strike
A workers union representing Duquesne Light employees voted Tuesday night to authorize a strike. The 711-14 vote triggers the process for a potential walkout Saturday. The union members’ current contract expires at the end of September, and the union is working to negotiate. In a statement, Duquesne Light said it...
Hempfield to seek bids for outside professional to navigate delayed high school project
Hempfield Area School District is a step closer to hiring an outside professional to oversee its stymied $150 million high school renovation, one of the first public steps forward since the project ground to a halt this summer. The school board this week approved advertising for possible candidates for an...
5th-generation brewer gets ‘memory for a lifetime’ making Iron City in East Deer
Sitting in the brewery control room at Pittsburgh Brewing Co. in East Deer, Justin Puharic clicked on his computer mouse, initiating the process of making Tuesday’s fourth batch of Iron City Beer. The click marked a historic moment for the Puharics. Justin, 27, became the fifth generation of brewers in...
Over 50 arrested after mobs ransacked Philadelphia stores. Dozens of liquor outlets are shut downVideo
PHILADELPHIA — Dozens of people faced criminal charges Wednesday after a night of social media-fueled mayhem in which groups of thieves, apparently working together, smashed their way into stores in several areas of Philadelphia, stuffing plastic bags with merchandise and fleeing, authorities said. Police said they made at least 52...
Westmoreland 250: 10 things to see in the Scottdale area
(Editor’s note: To mark Westmoreland County’s 250th birthday this year, we’ve come up with a list of 250 things — 10 things in 25 communities — that we consider to be important to the makeup of our area. This series will appear each week through December. If you have a...
Pennsylvania residents getting health insurance through Medicaid have to reapply, state secretary says
An important deadline is looming for millions of Pennsylvania residents who get health insurance through Medicaid that, if missed, could result in losing coverage. But even if residents find themselves no longer eligible for Medicaid, there is another way to keep coverage. Dr. Val Arkoosh, secretary of the state Department...
Biden urges striking auto workers to ‘stick with it’ in picket line visit unparalleled in historyVideo
VAN BUREN TOWNSHIP, Mich. — President Joe Biden grabbed a bullhorn on the picket line Tuesday and urged striking auto workers to “stick with it” in an unparalleled show of support for organized labor by a modern president. Donning a union ballcap and exchanging fist bumps, Biden told United Auto...
Pittsburgh police arrest suspect in East Hills murder
A Pittsburgh man was arrested Tuesday and accused of fatally shooting a man last Saturday in the city’s East Hills neighborhood, police said. The suspect, Trevon Taylor, 20, was arrested in connection with the death of Allen Jarrone Stevens in the 2300 block of East Hills Drive, police said. A...
Review board votes to investigate Pittsburgh police’s use of force during Downtown arrest captured on video
Pittsburgh’s Citizen Police Review Board voted Tuesday night to launch an investigation into whether Pittsburgh police officers used excessive force when arresting a Garfield man Downtown last month. Pittsburgh police arrested Jashon Martin, 32, around 8:30 p.m. Aug. 25 in the Smithfield Street corridor near Mellon Square Park on multiple...
Dale Earnhardt Jr. draws crowd to Lernerville Speedway
With a large group of people around him, hoping for a picture or an autograph, Dale Earnhardt Jr. walked along the front of the grandstands at Lernerville Speedway. It was a major moment in the long, storied history of the Buffalo Township racetrack, and it brought out a standing-room-only crowd....
Allegheny County Council to sue over reopening of juvenile detention center
Allegheny County Council voted Tuesday to sue to determine if council has a say in the future reopening of the county’s juvenile detention center. Last week, Allegheny County’s court system announced that Latrobe nonprofit Adelphoi will take over providing juvenile detention services at the Shuman Juvenile Detention Center as soon...
Pittsburgh had record low unemployment rate in August, state says
The number of people applying for unemployment benefits in the seven-county Pittsburgh region hit a new low in August. The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in the area fell one-tenth of a percentage point over the month to a record low of 3.6%, the lowest level since record-keeping began in 1976,...
Judge rules Donald Trump defrauded banks, insurers as he built real estate empire
NEW YORK — A judge ruled Tuesday that Donald Trump committed fraud for years while building the real estate empire that catapulted him to fame and the White House. Judge Arthur Engoron, ruling in a civil lawsuit brought by New York’s attorney general, found that the former president and his...
Pittsburgh woman accused of stealing more than $800K from Castle Shannon learning center
The head of a Castle Shannon learning center is accused of stealing more than $800,000 from the organization’s coffers. Sammi Jo Whittaker, 36, of Beechview, was arraigned Tuesday on charges of forgery, theft by unlawful taking, access device fraud, receiving stolen property, dealing in the proceeds of illegal activity, unlawful...
