A new member was appointed to the Jeannette City School Board this week to fill the seat left behind after Janice Smarto’s death last month. The board voted 6-2 to appoint Susan McFarland to the vacant seat. She will serve until the board’s reorganization meeting in December. Smarto died Aug....

Church News • First Baptist Church of Jeannette, 131 N. Second St., will host “Back to Church Sunday” at the 10:45 a.m. service on Sept. 21. The Rev. Jeffrey Johnson, former head of evangelism for American Baptist Churches of Pennsylvania and Delaware, will be the guest speaker. Cake and refreshments...

Southmoreland School District is in a legal battle with its teachers union over insurance coverage for prescription weight-loss drugs. The district has filed a lawsuit in Westmoreland County, asking a judge to overturn an arbiter’s decision that sided with the union. According to court filings, the district’s decision to stop...

A Westmoreland County man charged with rigging a lawn mower to explode has been arrested in Indiana County. James Sever, 54, of New Alexandria was taken into custody early Tuesday evening, according to state police. An off-duty trooper reported seeing Sever about 7 p.m. along Hoodlebug Trail in Center Township....

Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Wednesday, Sept. 17: 18 arrested as guns, drugs seized in McKeesport A joint operation between local and state authorities in the McKeesport area this summer yielded 18 arrests, 17 firearms and about $40,000 worth of cocaine, according to Attorney...

Westmoreland County Housing Authority board members on Tuesday approved the agency’s annual operating budget that officials hope will be an accurate spending plan for the upcoming fiscal year. Rachel Fritz, the authority’s chief financial officer, told board members the budgets for administrative costs and public housing programs total $17.1 million...

The Norwin Art League’s studio in downtown Irwin has undergone a significant transformation, offering a completely refurbished space for artists to learn and create. The recent renovations, which began in June, included a full overhaul of the facility. To create a more open and natural environment, the league removed old...

A Derry Township woman is accused by police of forging a death certificate for her husband in an effort to get out of a $14,800 contract for a metal garage to be built at her house, according to court papers. Lori L. Shawley, 54, was charged this week with felony...

A Jeannette man who state police said owned the car involved in a fatal hit-and-run in Hempfield was charged Monday in connection with an alleged incident at his home during the investigation. Troopers said they were led to the North Third Street home of James S. Grady II, who was...

An eastbound lane of the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Westmoreland County is now open after bring closed for more than eight hours Tuesday. Turnpike crews made emergency repairs to a void discovered under the surface . The problem was discovered at about 10 a.m. Tuesday near mile marker 62.4, between the...

Greensburg’s police pension board voted Monday to suspend benefits paid to two former officers, both of whom are serving sentences for federal drug crimes. Notice of the suspensions will be provided to Shawn Denning, 41, of Delmont and Regina McAtee, 52, of New Kensington. They have 30 days to appeal...

North Huntingdon is considering a new set of rules for anyone who wants to lease township-owned land. The township commissioners are expected to vote Wednesday to advertise a new ordinance that aims to prevent the kind of controversy that arose last year when officials considered leasing land for a $30...

Therapy dogs and a youth boxing demonstration will be first-time features at this year’s National Night Out in Latrobe, set for Wednesday at Memorial Stadium. The free event, meant to promote police-community relations and crime prevention, will be held from 5:30 to 8 p.m. In addition to seeing a Westmoreland...

Flowers were left at the entrance to Franklin Regional Senior High School on Monday, a gesture of sympathy after a student committed suicide behind the school early Sunday morning. Franklin Regional officials said resources from Westmoreland County Behavioral Health as well as the University of Pittsburgh’s youth counseling service will...

A North Huntingdon resident’s attempt to get Norwin School District to spend money on retrieving deleted school board meeting videos has been denied. Bill Bojalad, board president, said last week there is no support among board members to hire a data recovery company to try to find the videos that...

If the “Seussical” musical was a person, it would surely be related to Mallory Grantz’s Monroeville family. “This is the fifth time in our family that one or more of us has been involved in ‘Seussical,’” said Grantz, 39, who will direct a production of the show to kick off...

An arbitration decision calls for wages for new Jeannette police officers to decrease in an updated contract, a change that concerns union representatives. Under the pact that expired Dec. 31, new officers hired in 2024 earned a percentage of the $78,502 base rate their first year, based on experience, and...

An acid mine water remediation project, first pitched to Murrysville officials three years ago, has received $2 million in support from the state Department of Environmental Protection. As part of more than $5 million in mine-related grant funding, the department awarded $2.1 million for the Murrysville Area Watershed Association to...

Irwin borough officials have approved a plan for the fire department committee to develop a new fire safety inspection program. The committee will work in collaboration with the Irwin fire department and community stakeholders. The borough council voted unanimously to approve the initiative, which will be spearheaded by council members...

Two public information sessions are scheduled to share the Jeannette Initiative’s plans for revitalization as the organization prepares to apply for Main Street Matters designation in mid-October. Program manager Kristie Linden held the first session Sept. 10 and discussed the ideas that initiative committee members have identified to push revitalization...