Jack Troy stories, Page 14
U.S. Steel, Nippon argue in court for new federal merger review
U.S. Steel and Nippon Steel laid out their case Monday that then-President Joe Biden hamstrung a national security review to justify blocking the companies’ merger. An opening brief filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia claimed the companies had their due process rights violated when...
Faces of the Valley: 12-year-old Harrison boy a model railroad tycoon
A miniature world revolves around 12-year-old Tristan Eberle in the basement of his grandparents’ Harrison home. His train display fills up half the room, and even then, it’s only just enough space for several circular railways, a turntable and dozens of buildings. The citizens of this shrunken town have access...
Federal judge rejects Gilpin man’s claims of harassment by police, prosecutors
A federal judge dismissed a Gilpin man’s claims that local police engaged in a pattern of harassment and humiliation toward him. In March, Dennis Kreashko put forth a series of accusations against Gilpin and the Southern Armstrong Regional Police Department, the regionalized successor to the Gilpin Township Police Department. He...
U.S. Rep. Chris Deluzio and State Rep. Joe McAndrew sharing office in Penn Hills
Residents of Penn Hills and several surrounding communities can now access state and federal constituent services under one roof. The offices of U.S. Rep Chris Deluzio, D-Fox Chapel, and state Rep. Joe McAndrew, D-Penn Hills, are sharing a space at 77 Universal Road in Penn Hills. At least one Deluzio...
In new book, Penn Hills pastor teaches families with sick children to ‘Stand’
When Jay Mitlo’s editors tried to bill his new book as a Christian memoir, the Penn Hills pastor bristled. Yes, the book recounts his son Trey’s journey with terminal cancer, and yes, faith is woven throughout. But above all, “Stand: Emotionally and Practically Surviving When a Child Gets a Life-Threatening...
Kiski Area High School student injured by school bus while crossing road
A Kiski Area High School student was taken to a hospital Wednesday morning after walking into the side of a moving school bus. The 16-year-old boy was attempting to cross three lanes of traffic to reach the On The Fly convenience store, according to Allegheny Township police Chief Dan Uncapher,...
Kiski Township planning massive public sewage expansion
Public sewage in Kiski Township could go from a rarity to standard in most well-populated areas of the township before the end of the decade. A draft comprehensive sewage plan introduced this month details intentions to hook up nearly 1,000 homes in and around the township’s Orchard Hill and Spring...
Allegheny Township Big Lots appears to be in jeopardy as partial liquidation unfolds
The future of Big Lots’ footprint in Western Pennsylvania remains unclear, but it’s not looking good for the Allegheny Township location. Its lease was recently available for transfer, which is a sign it could close as part of the struggling bargain retailer’s acquisition by a Boston-based asset liquidation firm. Locations...
Funding comes through to replace roughly 1,000 lead water lines in the Alle-Kiski Valley
The Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County has the cash on hand to start ripping out approximately 1,000 lead water lines in its five-county network. The Pennsylvania Infrastructure Investment Authority came through earlier this month with a $4.6 million grant and a $5.4 million loan to fund most of the project....
New player arrives in U.S. Steel-Nippon takeover saga with the goal of quashing it
An asset manager based in Cleveland is seeking to quash a Japanese takeover of U.S. Steel and oust its leadership after buying a minor stake in the company. The activist shareholder, Ancora, recently acquired less than a quarter-percent stake in the company. It said in an open letter Monday the...
Grants are an imperfect lifeline for volunteer fire departments
Until a few weeks ago, some Vandergrift No. 1 volunteer firefighters would answer rescue calls in one-piece cotton jumpsuits ripped from decades of crawling into mangled vehicles and performing hillside rope rescues. The rescue gear wasn’t specially rated for safety — or especially well-fitting, according to Chief Randy Dunmire. “Just...
Southern Armstrong police settling into Freeport headquarters
The Southern Armstrong Regional Police Department now has a proper headquarters. After two years of performing key functions in a cramped Gilpin basement, the force moved this week to a roomy station at 235 Fifth St. in Freeport. “Finally, we found somewhere that worked, made sense, was big enough for...
Steel-processing furnace confirmed as source of Lower Burrell explosion, but details remain scant
Few details have been released about a Lower Burrell steel plant explosion that killed a Tarentum man. Brennan Sites, chief of Lower Burrell No. 3 Fire Company, confirmed a steel-processing furnace was the source of the explosion. Daniel R. Vakulick, 20, died from injuries sustained in the blast just before...
Starbucks and Bealls coming to Allegheny Township’s Hyde Park Plaza
The rumors are true: Starbucks and Bealls are moving into Allegheny Township’s Hyde Park Plaza. Jeff Paul, owner of the once-beleaguered shopping center, confirmed the incoming tenants Thursday after months of online speculation. A Starbucks spokesperson, however, said the company has “no store opening plans to announce.” Even so, Paul...
Franchising equal parts rewarding, rigorous for new owners of McDonald’s stores in Penn Hills
Eugenia and Michael Cassidy took over the two McDonald’s stores in Penn Hills last year, and, so far, they’re “lovin’ ” it. But there’s more to getting in on one of the world’s most recognizable brands than just pooling together at least $500,000 in nonborrowed funds, the minimum for prospective...
Repurposed rails from Brilliant Branch to make line running through Penn Hills, Verona quieter
A more than 2-mile stretch of rail line passing through Penn Hills and Verona is set to quiet down. In the coming months, Allegheny Valley Railroad will pull up track from its soon-to-be abandoned Brilliant Branch and use it along part of the Allegheny Subdivision, which follows the south bank...
Kiski Township hires interim manager to keep basic functions afloat as it seeks full-time replacement
Jason Dailey has become the go-to managerial stopgap for municipalities in the Alle-Kiski Valley facing the sudden departure of their chief administrators. He might have his work cut out for him in Kiski Township. The township supervisors hired Dailey this week just days after former Township Secretary Patrick Bono abruptly...
Freeport high school renovations could cost up to $55M, raise taxes for years to come
Proposed renovations at Freeport Area High School would cost between $20 million and $55 million and result in tax increases for years to come, officials said. The $20 million proposal would include upgrades to roofing, lighting, windows and heating and cooling, while the $55 million plan would also include sewage...
Freeport’s new sewage treatment plant to cost $134K more than expected
A new West Penn Power policy will force Freeport to spend an additional $80,000 on electrical work for its new sewage treatment facility. Crews must lay power lines between the perimeter fence and control room underground instead of overhead, leading to the change order requested by Robert Horvat of KLH...
Casino revenues boost long-delayed projects in Alle-Kiski Valley communities
Oklahoma Borough, with a population of 788, doesn’t have hundreds of thousands of local tax dollars laying around to overhaul its community park, let alone pave the parking lot there. “(Officials) have talked about it in the past, and that project was just put on the back burner because of...
Shrinking council could be an option for Freeport amid retention issues
Two members of Freeport’s depleted council have expressed interest in shrinking the body from seven to five members. Council President Rick Fennell and Councilwoman Kimberly Barr mulled the idea during an informal feedback session Tuesday night. “It’s a conversation worth having, is all I’m saying,” Barr said. A voting meeting...
Cleveland-Cliffs still interested in U.S. Steel if pending merger fails
Cleveland-Cliffs CEO Lourenco Goncalves said Monday his company is ready to make another offer for U.S. Steel if its attempted merger with Japan’s Nippon Steel fails for good. “We have an all-American solution,” he said during a fiery news conference at the company’s stainless steel plant in Butler. Details were...
Teacher’s surgery recovery at center of lawsuit between Freeport Area School District and union
Freeport Area School District has sued its teachers union in a bid to overturn an arbitrator’s ruling that an employee was not required to use Family and Medical Leave Act time off. A lawsuit filed last week in Butler County Court against the Freeport Education Association claimed first-grade teacher Claudine...
2050 look-ahead: Same diseases, new approaches mostly ahead for health care sector
Editor’s note: Almost one-fourth of the way through this century, TribLive is looking ahead to the next 25 years, using the events of the past 25 as a road map of what possibly is to come. This installment of the occasional series looks at health. Pam Surano knew it would...
Summer Hill woman dead after Fort Pitt Tunnel crash
A woman from Pittsburgh’s Summer Hill neighborhood died Saturday after a crash that briefly closed the eastbound lanes of the Fort Pitt Tunnel. The Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s office identified the deceased as Marcia Winston, 62. The incident happened around 1:45 p.m., according to the medical examiner’s report. Winston was...
