Tom Davidson stories, Page 7
Pittsburgh employees would get bereavement leave after miscarriages under proposal
About 500 nonunion Pittsburgh employees would be eligible for paid bereavement leave in the event a pregnancy ends under legislation Councilman Bobby Wilson introduced Tuesday. “When I think about workers’ rights, this is a piece that’s missing,” Wilson said in an interview after he introduced the legislation. It would amend...
Peduto seeks approval for $2.5M universal basic income program in Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto is seeking council approval to use $2.5 million in federal covid pandemic relief funding to start a guaranteed personal income program. The item is set to be introduced to city council Tuesday. The idea is being tested in cities throughout the country where people are given...
Pittsburgh looks to fill more than 100 jobs that were unfilled during covid
Pittsburgh is looking to hire people for more than 100 city positions that were left unfilled last year because of a hiring freeze spurred by the coronavirus pandemic. “Throughout the pandemic, our staff have been doing more work with less people,” Mayor Bill Peduto said in a statement. But $22...
Burlington to join Target on first floor of former Kaufmann building in Pittsburgh
The developer of the historic Kaufmann’s building has signed Burlington to lease a portion of the building that also will include a Target store. The art deco building is between Fifth and Forbes avenues and Smithfield Street and Cherry Way in the heart of Downtown Pittsburgh. Its large bronze clock...
Pittsburgh Public Schools, teachers union approve new contract
Pittsburgh Public Schools and its teachers union have a new four-year contract that’s retroactive to July 1, 2020, when the last contract expired. Superintendent Anthony Hamlet described the negotiations as “long and delicate” and said the covid-19 pandemic played a role in the delay. Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers President Nina...
Commission: Pittsburgh schools Superintendent Hamlet violated Ethics Act
Pittsburgh Public Schools Superintendent Anthony Hamlet violated the state’s Ethics Act with regard to travel expenses, accepting cash for speeches and failing to make required disclosures of financial interests between 2016 and 2018, the Pennsylvania Ethics Commission said in a report issued Thursday. At a news conference Thursday morning, Hamlet...
JCC of Greater Pittsburgh to require covid vaccination for members and staff
The Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh will require its staff, members and guests to be fully vaccinated within two months. The requirement is effective Oct. 18 at the center, based in Pittsburgh’s Squirrel Hill neighborhood, with facilities also in the South Hills and Monroeville. The JCC board unanimously approved...
Pittsburgh partners with JCC to get app for first responders wellness needs
Pittsburgh police, firefighters and paramedics will soon be able to use a mental health and wellness application on their smartphones to get the help they need. The city is working out the details of an agreement with Cordico Inc., a Frisco, Texas-based company that works with municipalities and organizations to...
Pittsburgh City Council returns to in-person meetings
After more than a year of virtual meetings, Pittsburgh City Council returned to in-person meetings this week at the City-County Building Downtown. People can also continue to participate online. Councilwomen Erika Strassburger and Deb Gross are continuing to join meetings virtually because of concerns for the health of their families...
Pa. report describes ‘gross incompetence’ at Shuman Juvenile Detention CenterVideo
State officials made the decision to revoke the license of the Shuman Juvenile Detention Center because of violations that constitute “gross incompetence, negligence and misconduct” that were found during inspections between July 24 and Aug. 4, according to a document detailing the violations sent Friday to county officials. It was...
‘We will find you’: Pittsburgh officials start illegal dumping crackdownVideo
Pittsburgh will be using hidden, high-resolution cameras to catch people dumping at sites around the city and Mayor Bill Peduto is proposing changes in the city’s laws to strengthen the penalties for those who are caught. “We will find you,” Peduto said. “We will have cameras up at those locations....
Shuman Juvenile Detention Center to close after state revokes license
Allegheny County’s juvenile detention center will close Sept. 18 after the state Department of Human Services revoked its license. The state notified county Manager William McKain the license for the Shuman Juvenile Detention Center was being revoked Friday. By Monday afternoon, McKain announced the closure of the 46-year-old facility in...
South Side’s Club Cafe latest to require proof of covid vaccination for entry
A South Side concert venue is the latest to require patrons to present proof of a covid-19 vaccination for entry. Club Cafe will also require its acts and touring parties to meet the same standard. “Club Cafe is a fully vaccinated workplace and we care about all of you as...
Pittsburgh Allegheny County Thermal building hits the market
A hot market is anticipated for a Downtown building where the steam heat for many office buildings has been generated for decades. The Pittsburgh Allegheny County Thermal building on Fort Duquesne Boulevard between Sixth and Stanwix streets is on the market. “We’re excited about the opportunity,” said Gregg Broujos, regional...
Allegheny, Butler, Washington counties show population growth in 2020 Census
Allegheny County’s population has increased for the first time in a census since 1960. The county’s population grew by 27,223 (2.2%) in the 2020 Census, released Thursday. The county’s population is more than 1.25 million. “For decades, it was resigned that when young people grew up they were going to...
Giant Eagle, GetGo now accepting PayPal, Venmo for payment
People shopping at Giant Eagle or GetGo can now pay using the digital wallets they have on their smartphones. The O’Hara-based chain now allows customers to pay using PayPal or Venmo mobile applications on their smartphones. Giant Eagle worked with Blackhawk Network, a Pleasonton, Calif.-based company to offer the option,...
Court rules UPMC can proceed with controversial South Hills hospital
A new UPMC hospital planned about a mile from an Allegheny Health Network hospital in Jefferson Hills can be built, a state appeals court has ruled. The 63-bed hospital, called UPMC South, has been in the works since 2018, and is planned off Route 51 along Elliott Road. But more...
URA set to approve $24 million for projects in 3 Pittsburgh neighborhoods
Twelve new single-family homes in Hazelwood, a new commercial space and affordable housing in the Hill District, and a recreation center in Larimer are set to receive a total of $24 million in investment from the Urban Redevelopment Authority of Pittsburgh. The money will come through the URA’s Avenues of...
Pittsburgh buys 14 new pickups that will help come winter, councilman says
Amid muggy, stormy weather Wednesday, Pittsburgh officials announced they were buying 13 pickup trucks and a dump truck that will bolster the city’s public works fleet and aid in snow removal come winter. “We’re always thinking about winter,” said Molly Onufer, Mayor Bill Peduto’s spokeswoman. The city received a reimbursement...
Peduto aide Majestic Lane leaving to work for Allegheny Conference
The leader of Pittsburgh’s Office of Equity, who also serves as outgoing Mayor Bill Peduto’s deputy chief of staff, is leaving next month to take on a similar role with the Allegheny Conference on Community Development. Majestic Lane has worked for the Peduto administration since 2016. He became deputy chief...
Pittsburgh Public Schools pushes back start of school
Students of Pittsburgh Public Schools won’t return to class until Sept. 8 to give the district more time to iron out transportation issues, administrators said Tuesday. “We are also listening to the concerns raised by our staff related to the impact traditionally high temperatures in August have on our facilities,...
Health Department to spray Pittsburgh’s North Side for mosquitoes infected with West Nile
Several neighborhoods on Pittsburgh’s North Side will be sprayed with a nontoxic mosquito pesticide after recent tests in the area confirmed mosquitoes that had the West Nile virus, according to the Allegheny County Health Department. Areas of Allegheny Center, California-Kirkbride, Perry South, Central North Side and Brighton Heights will be...
‘Welcome Home’ event planned at space that memorializes slain Homewood man
Kenneth Stubbs is not forgotten. The 53-year-old native of Pittsburgh’s Homewood neighborhood was found dead Feb. 23, 2014, in Penn Hills, in what authorities say was a homicide. He owned several properties in the neighborhood and operated Ken Stubbs’ Auto Sales. The investigation into Stubbs’ killing remains open and no...
Pittsburgh residents can use vouchers at Dormont pool
Pittsburgh youth will be able to use Dormont pool for free and adults can gain admission for $5 using vouchers, the city announced Thursday. The move is part of an effort to provide better chance for people to use a pool in light of a staffing shortage that’s caused 10...
East Liberty bank building fails to gain historical designation, could be demolishedVideo
An effort to preserve a 51-year-old Modernist bank building in East Liberty failed to gain the support of Pittsburgh City Council members this week. The building, at 6112 Penn Ave., is a landmark that should be preserved, Councilwoman Deb Gross said. But Gross was the only council member who thought...
