Brian C. Rittmeyer stories, Page 95

Allegheny Health Network is opening a drive-up covid-19 testing site to serve the Alle-Kiski Valley area at Heights Plaza in Harrison, the network announced Thursday. The location, the network’s seventh drive-up collection site, will operate Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. It will then be open Tuesdays and Thursdays,...

Nearly 100 school districts and schools statewide are getting part of nearly $5.1 million in state grants to help pay for remote learning efforts while classrooms are closed during the covid-19 pandemic. The grants can be used to buy laptops, tablets and internet hot spots; paper, postage and shipping; and...

Smoking sparked a fire at a Brentwood apartment building on Easter Sunday, resulting in some of its residents dangling from windows to escape the smoke and flames. The fire at Brentwood Manor in the 3300 block of Brownsville Road was reported around 9:30 a.m. April 12. The fire was caused...

A freeze warning will be in effect from midnight to 10 a.m. Wednesday. Temperatures in the upper 20s are expected, according to the National Weather Service. The warning covers parts of Western Pennsylvania, east-central Ohio and northern West Virginia. The cold will kill crops and other sensitive vegetation and could...

Harrison is considering making improvements along nearly two dozen roads and alleys this year. The township has budgeted $450,000 for road work. Most of that — almost $408,000 — is expected to be spent on repairing and resurfacing 16 roads and alleys. About $40,000 is expected to be spent seal...

The Pittsburgh law firm Andrews & Price has been named the new solicitor for Highlands School District. The firm replaces Weiss Burkardt Kramer effective Tuesday. Highlands didn’t disclose payment or other contract details. School board members Bob Betts and Debbie Beale voted against the change during a meeting Monday that...

An unprecedented decline in demand is “dismantling expensive gas prices everywhere,” an industry analyst says. The national average has been declining for two months, said Patrick DeHaan, head of petroleum analysis for the price-tracking service GasBuddy. “With oil again at new multi-decade lows, we still have room for prices to...

Arnold Council approved new regulations governing handicapped parking at homes in the city. Under the ordinance, residents issued handicapped or severely disabled veteran license plates by the state are eligible to receive permits and have handicapped parking signs placed in front of their homes. The spaces would be solely for...

New Kensington-Arnold School District scrapped a proposal last week to award a $3.8 million contract for a roofing project because some board members raised concerns that bids were obtained by a Tennessee group purchasing company, not the district. Under the state’s School Code, districts are required to obtain sealed bids...

Dawn Galia hasn’t been able to work since being involved in a car crash that she said nearly killed her and her husband in 2018. But when someone she knows put out a request for face masks to help combat the spread of the coronavirus that causes covid-19, Galia knew...

Efforts to restore Harrison Township’s Honor Roll memorial are being impacted by the coronavirus pandemic and the discovery of additional damage. The 75-year-old stone memorial at Freeport and Springhill roads bore the names of nearly 2,000 World War II veterans painted in gold on black glass panels. Work to shore...

A New Kensington man is accused of assaulting a 2-year-old child who police said had to undergo “life-saving measures” after being taken to a Pittsburgh hospital last month. City police and Westmoreland County detectives have been investigating since March 26, when police and paramedics were called to the 1100 block...

Arnold is trimming a planned road paving project to fit it into the city’s budget, and doing that changed which company is the apparent low bidder. Arnold opened bids last week from nine companies for the Fifth Avenue and Freeport Road street improvements, said city Engineer Mark Gera said. Youngblood...

New Kensington police on Wednesday identified the man who died after the motorcycle he was driving hit a deer on Sunday. Police Chief Bob Deringer identified the man as James R. Snyder, 49, from the North Hills area. Snyder died from his injuries at Allegheny Valley Hospital in Harrison. The...

Highlands School District is considering operating its own autism classroom at its high school next school year in a move that would save the district $231,000. The district signed a contract for autism services with the nonprofit Merakey Innovative Care and Education Solutions six years ago. Merakey spokeswoman Trish Pisauro...

The Highlands School Board unified in choosing new leadership Monday, in contrast to when the board last reorganized in December. The nine-member board had to select a new president and vice president following the resignation of former President Misty Chybrzynski in March and the appointment of Nicole Kocon to replace...

A proposal to abolish Tarentum’s planning commission and replace it with a committee of professionals and council members was met with resistance from council members who opposed removing borough residents from the zoning and land use process. Borough Manager Michael Nestico argued the planning commission can only make recommendations to...

A man was killed and a woman hurt Sunday night after the motorcycle they were on struck a deer in New Kensington, police Chief Bob Deringer said. The crash happened shortly after 9 p.m. on Route 366, Stevenson Boulevard. According to Deringer, a 49-year-old man from Pittsburgh was operating the...

An OPEC deal to cut oil production will not have an immediate impact on gasoline prices, which have fallen for a seventh straight week as the covid-19 pandemic and stay-at-home orders crush demand, according to an industry analyst. “Establishing a floor on ultra-low oil prices will hopefully keep U.S. oil...

The Highlands School Board scheduled a second special meeting in as many weeks. The board will meet virtually at 7 p.m. Monday to elect board officers. Meetings are being held virtually because of the covid-19 pandemic. Residents will be able to participate in the meeting through a Zoom livestream video...

The New Kensington-Arnold School Board and Arnold Council have each scheduled their first virtual meetings — for the same night. Government bodies have begun holding virtual meetings in response to the covid-19 pandemic. Both meetings will be held Tuesday using Zoom, a computer-based service that connects users by video and...

Nicole Kocon is the newest member of the Highlands School Board. Kocon, of Brackenridge, was one of two candidates the board interviewed for a Region 2 seat in an online meeting Tuesday. The meeting was held virtually due to the covid-19 pandemic. Kocon replaces Misty Chybrzynski, former board president, who...

Two weeks after fleeing her burning home in Plum with her three children, Monica Hanner is again worrying about keeping a roof over their heads. The house Hanner shared with her children — ages 15, 12 and 8 — on Emerald Drive in Kellywood Estates was destroyed the morning of...