Western PA Local News category, Page 1510
Hot weather expected next 2 days, new record possible Saturday
The Pittsburgh region is set to get its first taste of 90-degree weather this year, but the heatwave is going to be brief. The high temperature is expected to get to near 90 on Friday and into the lower 90s for Saturday, National Weather Service meteorologist Bill Modzelewski said. The...
Abandoned Braddock row house collapses during fire
It took firefighters nearly four hours to get a blaze at an abandoned row house under control early Thursday in Braddock. The fire in the 200 block of Oliver Street was reported around 1:30 a.m., an Allegheny County 911 dispatcher said. Firefighters got it under control by 5:15 a.m. Firefighters...
The Stroller, May 19, 2022: Events in the Alle-Kiski Valley
Publicize your community events, fundraisers and club meetings for free in The Stroller. Send information at least a week in advance to vndnews@triblive.com. Please include a daytime telephone number. Touch-a Truck planned at Highlands High School Harrison Township Recreation Board will sponsor at touch-a-truck event from noon to 3 p.m....
Work to refinish New Kensington church’s ‘onion dome’ continues
The layers of the onion are being put back on a New Kensington church. It was finally warm and dry enough Tuesday to begin work to refinish the onion dome atop St. John the Baptist Orthodox Church on Elmtree Road. It’s the first time the “terribly weathered” onion dome, so...
Highlands School Board expected to approve 1% tax hike for next school year
Highlands School District residents will likely pay slightly higher property taxes, about a 1% increase, next school year. The school board on Monday approved a $50 million preliminary general fund budget, which calls for a 0.25-millage increase, from 24.88 to 25.13 mills. The owner of a home assessed at $100,000...
Shady Side Academy rallies support to build Bulldog statue on Fox Chapel campus
A new STEM-focused, 3-D fundraising project is under way at Shady Side Academy Senior School in Fox Chapel. The Build the Bulldog project is a crowd-sourced, collaborative, global effort where community members and makers work together to design and make a 3-D printed statue of the Shady Side Academy Bulldog....
Norwin area On the Move: Book presentation, contest winner
Penn-Trafford football coach John Ruane, whose 2021 team won the WPIAL and PIAA championships, received 90 copies of “A Noble Knight/Dan Priatko’s Story of Faith and Courage” to distribute to players. The inspirational book details the life of North Huntingdon resident Priatko, a 1984 U.S. Military Academy graduate who was...
Penn-Trafford On the Move: Book presentation, awards, more
Penn-Trafford football coach John Ruane, whose 2021 team won the WPIAL and PIAA championships, received 90 copies of “A Noble Knight/Dan Priatko’s Story of Faith and Courage” to distribute to players. The inspirational book details the life of North Huntingdon resident Priatko, a 1984 U.S. Military Academy graduate who was...
Court rejects John Lesko’s appeal in 1980 western Pa. ‘Kill for Thrill’ spree
One of the last appeals for Pennsylvania’s longest- serving death-row inmate has been denied. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit on Tuesday rejected 64-year-old John Lesko’s request for a new trial and sentencing hearing. He was convicted in the 1980 murder of Apollo police Officer Leonard Miller, 21,...
Commonwealth Court halts PennDOT bridge tolling project, including I-79 near Bridgeville
A Commonwealth Court judge on Wednesday granted a preliminary injunction to halt a statewide bridge-tolling project, saying that the plan likely violates state statutes and impacts local communities that PennDOT failed to consult. The ruling came in response to a suit filed by several municipalities that objected to tolling on...
Pittsburgh Cultural Trust president and CEO Kevin McMahon retiring at end of 2022
When J. Kevin McMahon arrived in Pittsburgh 21 years ago to work for the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, remnants of the seedy red-light part of Downtown that became the Cultural District were still in place. “The city was starting to emerge from its past, but I looked right out on Liberty...
Latrobe Elks hope to attract new members with new lodge building
The Latrobe Elks Lodge and Golf Club hopes to attract members with a new building. The Elks held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the building Wednesday. About two dozen people came to the Derry Township organization to celebrate and enjoy refreshments. The new building, which overlooks the Elks’ golf course, features...
State Rep. Emily Kinkead holds off Democratic challenger in the 20th State House District
State Rep. Emily Kinkead, D-Brighton Heights, won Tuesday’s Democratic primary in Pennsylvania’s 20th State House District, according to unofficial results. As of Wednesday afternoon, with 97% of precincts reporting results, Kinkead had collected 65.6% of the votes counted compared with challenger Nick Mastros’ 34.4%, unofficial tallies showed. Mastros, of Ross,...
Members of Ukrainian church in Carnegie deliver supplies to beleaguered nation
As humanitarian aid continues to head for Ukraine, reports inevitably crop up about supplies not necessarily reaching their intended destinations. “That may have been undermining the effort here to get people to assist Ukraine,” Alexander Konecky said. “So I felt that when I was finally able to go there and...
Inflation blamed for Westmoreland municipal authority cost overruns
Inflation led to an 11% increase in Municipal Authority of Westmoreland County expenses in March, and utility leaders said Wednesday they are bracing for more cost overruns in the months ahead. “I don’t think prices will get cheaper, and we will continue to look at overages,” authority business manager Brian...
Voter turnout strong for Westmoreland primary as political leaders look to fall campaign
More than 41% of Republicans and nearly 40% of registered Democrats in Westmoreland County voted in Tuesday’s gubernatorial and U.S. Senate primaries, numbers that have local political leaders predicting an energetic fall campaign. The county’s results closely mirror statewide totals as Democrats backed Lt. Gov. John Fetterman for Senate while...
State Rep. Jessica Benham wins Democratic nomination in 36th State House District
State Rep. Jessica Benham, D-South Side, trounced her opponent in Tuesday’s Democratic primary race in the 36th State House District, according to unofficial tallies. Benham was first elected in 2020 to a strong Democratic district that includes Brentwood, Mt. Oliver and several Pittsburgh neighborhoods, including all or parts of Arlington,...
Court rejects John Lesko’s appeal in 1980 western Pa. ‘Kill for Thrill’ spree
One of the last appeals for Pennsylvania’s longest-serving death row inmate has been denied. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit on Tuesday rejected 64-year-old John Lesko’s request for a new trial and sentencing hearing. He was convicted in the 1980 murder of Apollo police Officer Leonard Miller,...
State Rep. Rob Mercuri of Pine secures GOP nomination in uncontested primary race
First-term state Rep. Rob Mercuri, R-Pine, ran unopposed Tuesday to unofficially secure the Republican nomination in the 28th State House District. No Democrats appeared on the ballot. Mercuri collected more than 7,500 votes on Tuesday, according to unofficial election returns. He won the seat in 2020, replacing Speaker of the...
New lawsuit contends retaliation against Sewickley Academy in race debate
A lawsuit filed Wednesday against Sewickley Academy alleges that faculty members were told to teach “both sides” of issues such as slavery in the school’s Black history classes, after last year’s controversy over allegations about a social justice program. Michael-Ann Cerniglia, D. Barrett Gough, Jill Korber Small and Gail Wolfe...
Acme man jailed on $250K bond, accused of raping boy
A 33-year-old Mt. Pleasant Township man is accused of raping and sexually assaulting a six-year-old boy in 2020-2021. Brandon J. Hoffer of Acme was arrested and ordered held in the county prison after failing to post $250,000 bond after he was charged with 26 felony and misdemeanor criminal counts filed...
La’Tasha Mayes poised to win Democratic nomination in 24th State House District
Reproductive rights activist La’Tasha Mayes is poised to secure the Democratic nomination in Pennsylvania’s 24th State House District. As of Wednesday afternoon, Mayes had collected 46.7% of the votes counted compared with recently elected state Rep. Martell Covington’s 37.8% and fair housing activist Randall Taylor’s 15.5%, according to unofficial tallies....
Allegheny Valley School District agrees to 5-year contract with its teachers
Teachers and the school board in the Allegheny Valley School District have forged a new five-year contract. On Tuesday, the board unanimously ratified the agreement after the Allegheny Valley Education Association had done so earlier in the day. Under the new contract, the 78-member teaching staff will receive an average...
Ligonier Township property listed at $1.45 million was inspired by builder’s dream
Builder Joseph Minyon said the idea for the 12,000-square-foot, chateau-inspired home he built in Ligonier Township came to him in a dream. “I saw a bird in flight with wings outstretched — I’m not sure what kind of bird it was, but I’ll say it was an eagle,” he said....
Scott Township auctioning off 1972 Triumph Spitfire to help community
Call it a classic way to raise money. Scott Township is currently auctioning off a classic two-passenger British sports car, a 1972 Triumph Spitfire IV. All of the proceeds from the auction will go to Scott Township and can be used for the likes of road maintenance, community programs and...
