Michael DiVittorio stories, Page 39
Body of Verona man who jumped from Hulton Bridge recovered from Ohio River
The body of a man who crashed his car on the Hulton Bridge in Oakmont on Nov. 7 and then jumped over the side into the Allegheny River was recovered on Wednesday afternoon from the Ohio River in Pittsburgh. Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office identified the deceased as Jeremy Gilroy,...
Leet officials approve budget with no real estate tax increase
Leet officials plan to hold the line on real estate taxes with next year’s budget. Commissioners voted 4-0-1 Nov. 13 to advertise the 2024 preliminary spending plan. The millage rate is expected to remain at 7.7 mills. It has been at least four years since the last Leet Township tax...
Sewickley real estate tax rate remains the same for next year
Sewickley officials plan to hold the line on real estate taxes next year. Council voted 8-0 Nov. 14 to advertise its proposed 2024 spending plan of $9.83 million. Council president Cynthia Mullins was absent. Proposed budget documents indicate the tax rate will remain 6.25 mills. The borough has not raised...
Blawnox real estate taxes to hold, other bills to increase
Blawnox property owners should not expect to pay more in real estate taxes next year. However, their water, sewage and garbage collection bills will increase slightly. Council voted 5-0 Nov. 8 to advertise its preliminary 2024 budget of about $1.557 million. Councilwomen Meghan Kennedy and Christine Carnevali were absent. The...
Sewickley Public Library back to regular operations following renovation project
Sewickley Public Library is back to regular operations following its $1.6 million renovation. The scaffolding that was at the main entrance and side of the facility has been removed and the second floor children’s section has been restored to its former glory after programs were moved to the first floor...
Greenberg’s Great Train & Toy Show rolls through Monroeville Convention Center
Greenberg’s Great Train & Toy Show rolled into the Monroeville Convention Center on Nov. 4 and 5. At least 1,000 locomotive enthusiasts and their families attended the two-day event. Show manager Neal Carnaby said there were between 300 and 400 vendor tables and a similar layout to previous shows. There...
Kiski Area High School marching band earns Class AA national title in IndianapolisVideo
Adalynn Jodon could hardly keep her feet still after getting off the bus at Kiski Area High School on Sunday evening. With a combination of excitement, fatigue, joy and relief, the trumpet playing senior stepped onto the familiar parking lot a national champion. “It feels awesome,” she said standing a...
Hydrant system where Plum house exploded not enough to fight fully engulfed house fire, Plum fire chief saysVideo
The fire hydrant system in the Rustic Ridge neighborhood of Plum, where a house explosion killed six people in August, is not adequate for fighting a single fully engulfed house fire, according to a borough fire chief who was on the scene that day. “Due to the fire load, the...
Aspinwall officials considering EV charging stations
Electronic vehicle charging stations could be coming to Aspinwall. Borough officials are exploring the installation of three stations each capable of charging two vehicles. They would be provided through Duquesne Light’s Community Charging Program. The three stations is a minimum program requirement. The six parking spaces needed for the three...
Clairton man charged in shooting of Monroeville officer
A Clairton man is charged with attempted homicide and other crimes in connection with the shooting of a Monroeville police officer during a police chase that ended with a crash in Allegheny Township. Bruce Alvarado, 38, remains in the Westmoreland County jail after being denied bail Saturday. Monroeville police Chief...
Pittsburgh’s 108th Christmas tree transported from SpringdaleVideo
Dolly Haggerty sat on her front porch swing, raised her red cellphone and documented some holiday history Saturday morning. The lifelong Springdale resident watched as Pittsburgh Public Works crews, assisted by Carl’s Tree Service, removed a 33-foot blue spruce from the former St. Alphonsus Church. The tree’s destiny was to...
Rumble strips being tested to stop speeders in Aspinwall
David Pankiewicz lives along Second Street in Aspinwall, and lately, he’s seen too many motorists going too fast. “We’ve been a detour zone the past three years,” he said, referring to heavy traffic along Freeport Road brought on by construction of new Highland Park Bridge ramps. “As long as somebody...
Leet commissioner facing charges filed by Sewickley police
Leet Commissioner Rody Nash is facing charges of indecent assault and harassment in connection with an incident involving a female employee. The woman accuses Nash, 63, of making inappropriate comments about her body and rubbing his hands on her back while the two were at a Sewickley property Aug. 15,...
Union workers at West View Water Authority poised to strike as contract negotiations drag on more than a year
Members of the Utility Workers Union of America Local 416 at West View Water Authority could go on strike at any time. Union president John Witheral said members voted in May to authorize a strike after negotiations with the authority stalled but have held off. Their last contract, a five-year...
Aspinwall to raise taxes about 22% next year
Aspinwall property owners should expect to pay about 22% more in real estate taxes next year. Council unanimously voted Nov. 8 to advertise its 2024 preliminary budget, which includes a 1.5-mill tax hike. Next year’s millage rate would go from 6.86 mills to 8.36 mills, should the spending plan be...
Quaker Valley area contested race winners
Several incumbents retained their seats while others were dethroned in contested Quaker Valley area races Nov. 7. Here are the winners, according to complete but unofficial returns from the Allegheny County Elections Division. Edgeworth council Republican incumbent Elizabeth Genter was the top vote getter in a four-candidate race for three...
Rosselli elected to replace longtime magistrate Ford on Leetsdale area bench
Democrat Giuseppe Rosselli has been elected as the new Leetsdale area magistrate, according to complete but unofficial returns from the Allegheny County Elections Division. Rosselli earned 5,737 votes and Republican challenger Joseph Bellissimo received 5,253 votes in a two-candidate race for the six-year judicial seat. There were eight write-in votes....
1 Indiana Township supervisor race tied, the other too close to call
Only two votes separate the winner and loser in one Indiana Township supervisor’s race, and another race ended in a tie, according to complete but unofficial returns from the Allegheny County Elections Division for the Nov. 7 General Election. The District 1 race for a four-year seat ended with Republican...
Aspinwall Council to have 2 incumbents replaced by political newcomers; 1 incumbent retains seat
A political newcomer was the top vote-getter and a council president was dethroned in Aspinwall, according to complete but unofficial returns for the Nov. 7 general election from the Allegheny County Elections Division. Louis Curcio Jr., a registered Democrat who did not succeed in earning his party’s nomination in the...
Edgeworth Council has 4 candidates seeking 3 seats
Editor’s note: The Sewickley Herald is featuring candidate interviews in contested municipal and school board races only. Four candidates seek three four-year seats on Edgeworth council, according to the Allegheny County Office of Elections unofficial candidate list. Republican incumbent and current council Vice President David Aloe and fellow Republican incumbents...
Volunteer search party being formed Sunday to find missing Springdale man
A search party is being formed to help locate a Springdale man who has been missing since Monday. Volunteers are wanted at 10 a.m. Sunday at Pittsburgh Syria Shrine Center at 1877 Shriners Way in Harmar. The goal is to locate Sean Dugan, who was reported missing by Springdale police...
Outgoing Quaker Valley School Board members honored for their years of service
Pennsylvania School Boards Association officials recently honored two Quaker Valley school directors for their years of service. Board vice president Marna Blackmer and board treasurer Jeffrey Watters were given certificates adding them to the PSBA Honor Roll of School Board Service on Oct. 30. Blackmer has served on the board...
Leet Civil Service commissioners uphold termination of former police chief, deny appeal
Former Leet Police Chief Michael Molinaro was rightfully fired for falsifying documents, insubordination and other actions, according to the township civil service commission. The three-person panel unanimously voted Nov. 1 to deny Molinaro’s termination appeal. None of the nearly 30 people in the audience spoke during the two public comment...
Pittsburgh Police seek public assistance in locating missing, at-risk teen
Pittsburgh police are seeking the public’s help in finding a missing teenager who they say is at risk. Twyla Hamilton, 17, was last seen Oct. 29 along Fleury Street in the city’s Homewood neighborhood, Public Safety spokeswoman Emily Bourne reported Wednesday. She stands 5 feet 6 inches tall, weighs 220...
Sharpsburg preliminary budget has no tax hike
Sharpsburg residents should not expect to pay more in taxes as part of next year’s budget. The borough’s preliminary spending plan for 2024 contains no tax hike or cuts to services. Borough sewer rates are also expected to remain stagnant. The property tax rate for the 2023 tax year spiked...
