Tom Davidson stories, Page 8

The development of the former Civic Arena site in the Lower Hill District cleared another hurdle in approvals for its $1 billion plan. But it took more than five hours of testimony Tuesday at the Pittsburgh Planning Commission before the vote to approve the first phase of the project. It...

Pittsburgh City Council will be considering legislation to restrict single-use plastic bags under a resolution introduced Tuesday by Councilwoman Erika Strassburger. “It’s not the kind of product that should be used once and then thrown away,” Strassburger said. “If we’re truly going to have a circular economy, we have to...

The Pittsburgh Planning Commission on Tuesday will consider approving plans for the first phase of development of the former Civic Arena site in the city’s Hill District. The plans are centered on a 24-story, $200 million office tower that will be the new headquarters for FNB Corp. Construction on the...

A former Penn Plaza resident who was displaced when the East Liberty apartment building was razed in 2017 is part of a group seeking acknowledgement from Pittsburgh leaders that Black people are leaving the city in large numbers. “This is an injustice,” said Randall Taylor, who now lives in Homewood...

Pittsburgh’s finance department “made a mistake” when it didn’t include tax discounts or abatements on thousands of tax bills this year, city Finance Director Douglas Anderson said Thursday. “The mistake was made,” Anderson said. It means several thousand taxpayers in Pittsburgh who use programs like the Homestead exemption or the...

A divided Allegheny County Council on Tuesday approved creating an independent police review board. The board won’t be created until 2022 and it will only have jurisdiction over Allegheny County Police Department. Other municipalities with police departments in the county can opt-in to the board’s oversight, but that move would...

As FNB Corp. and the Pittsburgh Penguins work to redevelop the former Civic Arena site that will be anchored by a new FNB headquarters, the company Tuesday announced $7 million in other investments to improve the neighborhood. A new $5 million gap lending program will provide loans of up to...

Finding ways to get motorists to slow down on residential streets has been a longtime issue in Pittsburgh. City council members Tuesday took action to lobby for more authority to decrease speed limits in some neighborhoods. It’s something they’re not allowed to do under state law. “We know that slower...

Pittsburgh’s LGBTQIA+ business owners will be able to register on the city’s online procurement platform and will gain access to business development and trainings under legislation introduced Tuesday by city council members Erika Strassburger and Bruce Kraus. “This bill represents one more step in our march toward equity here in...

Allegheny County residents will again have input about creating an independent police review board. But council may have already approved the legislation if the meeting is even held. “This is a very important issue that establishes a newly created board and I believe every resident that wants to be heard...

Pittsburgh’s leaders and its largest steel company are committing to become carbon neutral by 2050. Mayor Bill Peduto used Earth Day, marked Thursday, to issue an executive order that commits the city to 12 initiatives designed to achieve the goal of eliminating carbon dioxide emissions. The order came the day...

As Michael Keaton prepares to reprise his role as Batman in an upcoming movie, the Pittsburgh-area native also is a partner in a business venture that could create more than 300 jobs in the region. Keaton, a Robinson native, is partnering with Emsworth developer Craig Rippole and Nexii Building Solutions,...

There are many questions, but few definitive answers about exactly how much federal stimulus money the city of Pittsburgh will receive and how it can be spent. City council members Wednesday asked council Budget Director Bill Urbanic and Kevin Pawlos, director of the city’s Office of Management and Budget, a...

Nobody likes paying taxes. But after they’re paid, it’s easier if the check clears quickly so one can forget about them (until the next time they’re due). In Pittsburgh, that hasn’t been the case. There’s a six- to eight-week backlog processing real estate and parks tax payments, according to a...

Hill District residents and others who want one of the thousands of jobs when construction starts on the redevelopment of the former Civic Arena site will soon have a resource to seek employment. The Lower Hill First Source Employment Opportunity Center will open in mid-May at the Hill House, 1835...

You’ve heard of Christmas in July. How about Thanksgiving in April? Mad Mex, the regional restaurant with 12 locations in the Pittsburgh region, will be selling its signature Gobbleritos on Tuesday. The Gobblerito is among the biggest burritos crafted at Mad Mex, the flagship of Big Burrito Restaurant Group, and...

Six people have been killed in 17 shootings throughout Pittsburgh since April 3, part of a surge of violent crime in the city this year, officials said Monday. As of Monday, police have investigated 20 homicides and nearly 50 non-fatal shootings in 2021, according to numbers provided by the city’s...

Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto used Thursday — April 15, traditionally the deadline for tax filings — to announce an executive order to crack down on construction companies that skirt tax laws. Although the tax deadline has been extended until May 17 this year because of the coronavirus pandemic, Peduto used...

More than 20 million users of an app used to pay for parking were exposed to a data breach last month, the company that administers the app said. Included among them are those who use the Pittsburgh Parking Authority’s app, Go Mobile Pittsburgh. The data that was accessed includes license...