Western PA Local News category, Page 1299
Woman accuses West Deer man of sexually assaulting her while sleeping at friend’s house after party
West Deer police charged a man with sexually assaulting a woman after a party at her friend’s house, where he was living as a roommate. Dominic J. Richards, 27, of the 1200 block of Logan Road in West Deer was charged with four misdemeanor counts of indecent assault, according to...
3 shot, wounded in Pittsburgh’s Spring Hill neighborhood
Three people were wounded in a North Side shooting late Thursday. Pittsburgh police said a total of 34 rounds were fired on the 100 block of Rhine Place in Spring Hill around 11:55 p.m. Thursday. A woman suffered a gunshot wound to the arm, a second woman was struck in...
Big Sewickley Creek Watershed group using mini grants to shine light on conservation efforts
For the past two years, a group of residents has been monitoring the work of natural gas drillers operating in the Big Sewickley Creek Watershed to make sure they are following the rules to prevent polluting or damaging the waterway’s delicate ecosystem. But their conservation efforts go beyond just looking...
Harrison tree planting boosts experience for ballpark spectators
Anyone who has ever watched a game at the Natrona Heights Baseball Softball Association complex will likely enjoy the experience even more next year. Volunteers from the youth league in Harrison joined the township tree committee and the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy to plant more than a dozen Zelkova trees on...
Westmoreland broadband study set to end as early findings identify service gaps
More than 43% of county residents who participated in a study of Westmoreland County’s broadband have little to no internet service, according to preliminary results announced Thursday. Since July, the county has conducted a survey of homes and businesses to gauge broadband connectivity and early findings indicated that as much...
Vandergrift police shock man who bit officer, fought with others arresting him for warrants
Vandergrift police say a man wanted on multiple warrants had to be repeatedly shocked with a stun gun after he ran from officers and then bit one of them in the arm while being taken into custody. Antjuan Dewayne Smith, 39, of the 2600 block of Brown Avenue in Hempfield...
Hempfield native’s short film to be featured on WQED’s ‘Filmmakers Corner’Video
Lauren Keller was sitting in her childhood bedroom in 2019 after completing her first semester at Point Park University when an idea for a film script began to kindle. Three pages later, Keller had one of the first drafts of what would become the film “A Little Glass of Rum,”...
5 things to do in Westmoreland County this weekend: Oct. 28-30
Haunted history Glowing jack-o’-lanterns will light the way as a ghostly figure welcomes guests to “Hair-Raising History: Frightfully True Stories from the Ligonier Valley,” with tours from 6 to 9 p.m. Friday through Sunday at Compass Inn Museum, 1386 Route 30, Laughlintown. Storytellers will relate eerie tales of local 19th-century...
Lower Burrell police say man repeatedly fought officers during arrest — even in jail cell
A man wanted on an arrest warrant was charged with felonies by Lower Burrell police after they accused him of kneeing an officer who tried to take him into custody and spitting blood at officers while he was in a holding cell. Christopher A. Love, 38, of the 700 block...
5 things to do in Pittsburgh this weekend: Oct. 28-29
Natural wonders — like dinosaurs and other spooky specimens, talented teens and musical geniuses — are in the spotlight this weekend in Pittsburgh. Tyrannosaurus time Dinosaurs roam the earth again in the Jurassic World Live Tour, coming this weekend to PPG Paints Arena, 1001 Fifth Ave., Pittsburgh. Show times are...
Maggie’s Farm Rum to expand with new distillery in Upper St. Clair
Maggie’s Farm Rum has experienced years of awards for its Strip District-produced spirits, and the distillery now is parlaying that success into a new 22,0000-square-foot production distillery, tasting room and cocktail bar in Upper St. Clair. Allegheny Distilling, which produces award-winning Maggie’s Farm Rum and Personal Day Vodka Hard Seltzer,...
Student-run cafe reopens, expands at Leechburg Area School District
A new mobile food and beverage program is on a roll in the Leechburg Area School District. Students enrolled in the district’s learning support program introduced the Creation Cafe Coffee Cart in August, selling hot and cold beverages and snacks to teachers in the elementary school. The mobile cart is...
Pine-Richland’s Unified bocce ball team fosters high school engagement, community
A packed student section, excited cheerleaders and supportive signs filled a Pine-Richland gymnasium. The fans weren’t there to support the high school’s basketball team or volleyball team — but its Unified bocce ball team. The district’s inaugural bocce season kicked off in 2021. The team, which is part of the...
The Stroller, Oct. 28, 2022: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your non-profit’s community events, fundraisers and club meetings for free in The Stroller. Send information at least a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com or The Stroller, 210 Wood St., Tarentum PA 15084. Please include a daytime telephone number. Allegheny Valley Association of Churches to host Festival of Faith The...
Former basketball star, now an instructor, charged with sexual assault of student athlete
Police in Armstrong County charged a former standout high school and college basketball player with sexually assaulting a student at a skills school he operates. South Buffalo Township police charged Mark Anthony Shehady, 24, of the 500 block of Dorseyville Road in O’Hara with nine felonies: three counts each of...
Officials look to market shuttered Westmoreland test track
Westmoreland County officials will continue to pursue development of a $20 million test track facility despite the shuttering of Argo AI, a marquee tenant at the East Huntingdon site. “There’s a strong demand for test track space, and I’m pretty confident we will be able to back-fill this facility with...
State employees to get 20% discount for online courses from PennWest University
PennWest University will offer a 20% online tuition discount for all of Pennsylvania’s state employees offered through its PennWest Global Online. The reduction, announced Thursday, will be available on about 150 programs under a partnership with the state, effective for the 2023 spring semester. The discount applies for undergraduate and...
Pittsburgh community comes together for Tree of Life 4th-year commemorationVideo
Pittsburgh gathered to remember on Thursday, a bright, mild and sunny day that provided a stark contrast to the gloomy, rainy day when 11 worshippers were shot to death at the Tree of Life synagogue in Squirrel Hill on Oct. 27, 2018. An estimated 500 members of the Pittsburgh community...
Penn Hills School District hires Lazaron as chief of school police force
The Penn Hills school board made a bold new change to the district’s safety capabilities on Oct. 27 when they approved the hire of new chief of school police/school resource officer Keith Lazaron. Lazaron comes to the district with 21 years of experience and was working as a School Resource...
Allegheny Valley Hospital hosts Howl-O-Ween pet parade featuring therapy dog team
Staff and patients at Allegheny Valley Hospital in Harrison got a chance to forget about their daily stresses and concerns for a short time while a team of therapy dogs donned their favorite costumes for a Howl-O-Ween parade. “Nothing brings a smile to the face of a patient or employee...
Butler-Freeport’s ‘little trail that could’ celebrates 30th anniversary
In October 1992, Franco Harris, WPXI news anchor Della Crews and Belgian horses were on hand for the grand opening of the Butler-Freeport Community Trail. Then some unhappy landowners filed lawsuits, which took about a decade to settle. “Among other managers, our trail is known as the ‘little trail that...
Council delays vote on trash collection contract in Hampton
At its Oct. 26 meeting, Hampton Township Council delayed a vote until next month on a trash collection contract that would increase residents’ bills by about 33% because of a discrepancy with the bidder, Waste Management, regarding prices. Christopher Lochner, municipal manager, said that while township officials knew Waste Management...
Design work to begin on $22M expansion of IUP’s growing Academy of Culinary Arts
Design work for a $22 million project in Punxsutawney to expand and renovate Indiana University of Pennsylvania’s Academy of Culinary Arts is expected to start now that funding to develop drawings has been approved. The $2.9 million for that work, included in the State System of Higher Education’s recently adopted...
Man hid camera in Frick Pittsburgh bathroom, police say
Pittsburgh police are looking for a man suspected of hiding a camera inside a city museum’s bathroom to spy on museum-goers. The man is believed to have taken “multiple pictures and video of victims (ranging) from children to senior citizens” at The Frick Pittsburgh on South Homewood Avenue in Point...
Police departments, sheriff’s office collecting unused meds Saturday
The Westmoreland County Sheriff’s Department along with police in North Huntingdon, Penn Township and Murrysville are participating in the federal Drug Enforcement Administration’s National Prescription Drug Take Back Day 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday. The departments will take unused, unwanted or old pills and liquids at the following locations....
