James Engel stories, Page 5

Shaler Area students have collected more than 200 pounds of plastic caps that will eventually be recycled into two benches for the upcoming Rainbow Raccoon Park in Millvale. But those 200 pounds are only a little more than half of their goal, according to Shaler Area High School teacher Abby...

Medicap Pharmacy, a longtime Millvale enterprise, was named the “most transformed” pharmacy of 2024 by the Flip the Pharmacy organization. The organization, which focuses on steering pharmacies toward more clinical care rather than solely filling prescriptions, awarded Medicap for several recent changes in care options. Elaine Trapani, who started the...

Randi Pink, an Alabama-based author, said she will visit Northern Tier Library on Feb. 22 after the district’s school board voted not to include her novel, “Angel of Greenwood,” in its ninth grade language arts classes. The novel, a young adult romance set during the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, was...

The Clubhouse, the beloved longtime restaurant and sports bar in Richland, soon will be under new ownership. While his status as sole owner is new, Mark Baranowski is not new to the Clubhouse. He and Greg Maggio founded the Clubhouse in 1995 after the two had previously established the North...

The Northern Regional Police Department, which covers several municipalities in northern Allegheny County, plans to purchase a driving simulator with a recently awarded grant. The simulator, according to Capt. Jeff Jones, will mainly be used as an educational tool to teach about impaired or distracted driving. It will include several...

Pine-Richland Middle School students will begin a series of three performances of “School of Rock” this evening, Jan. 31. The musical, based on the 2003 comedy film, follows a wannabe rock star who, through a case of mistaken identity, begins teaching students rock and roll at an elite prep school....

In Etna and among those who knew him, Pete Ramage will be remembered as someone who always “stepped up.” The longtime community pillar died on Jan. 17 at 86. Ramage was born Oct. 30, 1938, to the late Peter and Margaret Ramage. He graduated from Etna High School in 1956...

Seven new stores, a restaurant and a bank-cafe are set to open this year at Ross Park Mall, some of which are new to the region, according to Simon Property Group, the mall’s owner. Upstairs, there will be a Capital One Café, which will offer customers “a full range of...

McCandless Council unanimously approved the construction of the Carey Lane Apartments at its meeting Jan. 27, marking the final active project in the McCandless Crossing development. The apartments, which will go up on Carey Lane, just off McKnight Road, will sit adjacent to the Remington senior center in a currently...

A new Crispy Cones location, the first in the state, is set to open this spring along Route 8 in Hampton. The ice cream shop offers soft serve in a sugary rotisserie-baked dough cone rather than a traditional hard cone, which it says is inspired by similar confections in the...

The A.W. Beattie Career Center soon will have a “true-to-life” ambulance simulator in one of its classrooms. The school, a technical high school open to students in nine North Hills school districts, was among dozens of institutions awarded with competitive equipment grants from the Pennsylvania Department of Education. Beattie received...

Colleen Kasenic has never owned a business before. But she is planning to give it a go with West View Brew, a new coffee shop set to open at 442 Perry Highway in West View. After more than 30 years working at a travel company, Kasenic said she wants to...

Shaler police Chief Sean Frank recently was named president of the Western Pennsylvania Chiefs of Police Association. The organization, which spans 21 counties, seeks to “secure personal and professional relationships” between local chiefs and advance law enforcement standards and goals, according to its website. Frank said he has been involved...

The Shaler Area School District recently presented six staff members with its annual Kim Baysek-Young Extra Mile Award, which recognizes those who have “gone above and beyond” in their work for the district. On Jan. 21, Lisa Anderson, Greg DeFazio, Monica McElwain, Cristin Pintar, Steve Siedelson and Mitch Stivason received...

The Pine-Richland School Board again fell into turmoil as it sought to revise its Board Procedure policy at a meeting Jan. 22. Though most changes met with little to no debate, a brief spat arose when board member Amy Terchick sought to revise a policy that asks members to sign...

A Pine-Richland 11th grader has gathered nearly 1,900 signatures for an online petition against the Pine-Richland School Board’s controversial library policy revisions. Elise Duckworth said she created the change.org petition on Jan. 12 as an outlet for those in opposition to the board’s proposed policy changes and to insist the...

Etna Council accepted, “with regrets,” the resignation of longtime member Megan Tuñón at its Jan. 21 meeting. Tuñón, who has served on council since 2018, submitted her resignation earlier this month because of her “increasing duties” as executive director of the Etna Community Organization. That organization will oversee the construction...

Students from McKnight Elementary School recently returned from Philadelphia with a first-place prize in hand after competing in the Citizenship Challenge, a civics competition. The competition, organized by the Rendell Center for Civics and Civic Engagement, asked students to consider whether the Constitution should be amended to remove the Electoral...

Alabama-based author Randi Pink announced her hope to visit Pine-Richland after the district’s school board voted not to include her novel, “Angel of Greenwood,” in its ninth -grade language arts classes. The novel, a young adult romance set during the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, was rejected 3-5-1 during the board’s...

Allegheny County police arrested a 25-year-old man on homicide charges Thursday in connection with a body found in Shaler the day after Christmas. Eugene Jones of Pittsburgh is charged with criminal homicide, aggravated assault, attempted criminal homicide, carrying a firearm without a license and recklessly endangering another person for an...

John Kettering was sworn in as the newest Ross Township commissioner during a brief special meeting of the board on Jan. 13. He will serve the township’s sixth ward for the remainder of 2025 after former Commissioner Jason Pirring resigned to coach North Hills girls basketball. Kettering, 36, said he...

For youth interested in learning the nuts and bolts of lacrosse, North Allegheny Youth Lacrosse is set to hold three free clinics beginning in January. The clinics, which will be held at the North Park Sports Complex, are open to kindergartners through eighth graders in North Allegheny School District. Private...

Richland supervisors honored the recently retired chief of the Richland Township Volunteer Fire Department during their meeting Wednesday evening. Jim Kelly served as the department chief for 15 years, opting to retire in 2024 after 28 years of service. Richland Manager Brian O’Malley thanked Kelly for his “dedication and devotion”...

The investigation into a body found Dec. 26 in Shaler is still ongoing, according to Jim Madalinsky, public information officer for the Allegheny County Police. Allegheny County detectives are investigating the body as a homicide because the victim had an apparent gunshot wound to the head, but Madalinsky said he...

Among the 10 high school finalists in Allegheny County’s “I Voted” sticker contest, four come from one place — North Hills High School. The contest asked local high schoolers to design a 2-inch sticker to be given to Allegheny County voters in the upcoming primary and general elections in 2025....