In brief: Happenings across the North Hills Journal area
North Hills kicking off holiday season The North Hills School District will host its annual Hilltop Holiday Town and A Night Around the World from 5:30 to 8 p.m. Nov. 21. Lighted and decorated displays from parent and community groups, sports teams and clubs will be outside on the hilltop...
Northland Public Library secures bump in funding for staffing costs; renovation nears completion
Municipalities in the North Hills are agreeing to a slight increase in funding for Northland Public Library’s 2026 budget, which will help keep staff pay competitive and cover rising health care costs. The library’s 2026 $3.5 million budget reflects an overall 5.7% increase. “This budget will help us to continue...
Reverse Trick-or-Treat brings young, old together
Halloween is for everyone as one recent event showcased. Chrildren at the Vincentian Child Discovery Center in McCandless kicked off their Halloween celebrations early with a Reverse Trick-or-Treat party Oct. 24. Instead of collecting candy themselves, the preschoolers handed out treats such as lottery tickets and decks of cards to...
2 arrested after North Huntingdon vape shop raid
Two men are behind bars after police raided a North Huntingdon vape shop Wednesday and seized numerous items authorities said were illegal, according to court papers. Al Merdaie Mohamed, 41, of Irwin, and El Hacen Mohamed Najem, 27, of Brooklyn, N.Y., were charged with drug offenses after an undercover officer...
$5 million gift to Slippery Rock, largest in university history, names business school
A $5 million gift to Slippery Rock University — the largest in its 136-year-history — will fund scholarships, faculty research and add opportunities in Slippery Rock’s business program, officials say. Slippery Rock officials announced Thursday the university had received the donation from Rhonda and Elliott Haverlack, of Estero, Fla. Elliott...
Murrysville area: Delmont police food drive, Salvation Army bell ringers, holiday events, more
Email news briefs and event listings to pvarine@triblive.com. Delmont police host food drive The Delmont Police Department will host a Nov. 23 food drive for the Westmoreland Food Bank. It will be from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Delmont Borough Garage, 30 Bierer St. Only nonperishable food items...
Federal workers in Western Pa. cheer shutdown end but remain uneasy
Elizabeth McPeak on Thursday was glad to be driving to work for the first time since she was furloughed in early October, one of hundreds of thousands of federal workers shut out of their offices during a lengthy government shutdown. McPeak is vice president of Chapter 34 of the National...
Plum searches for 4 new patrol officers
Plum Police say they soon plan to hire four new patrol officers. Department spokesman Det. Joe Little said the department is hiring in anticipation of retirements to bring the force up to its “typical compliment of officers.” The borough’s website states the department has 29 officers, including the chief and...
Food drive to support Harrison’s 1st Ward residents
Harrison Commissioner Justin Johnson has organized a food drive for 1st Ward residents to help neighbors in need. Though federal and state budgets were approved this week and SNAP benefits are expected to be restored, Johnson said “people in need are still going to be in a deficit. They have...
Garbage pick-up day changed in Freeport
Garbage pick-up day for most residents of Freeport has been moved up a day. Pick-ups normally scheduled for Friday will now take place on Thursdays, according to borough Manager Tina Ferringer. For residents of Laneville and Franklin, Washington and Buffalo streets, garbage day will remain on Tuesday....
Norwin area: Holiday parade, new code enforcement officer, more
Irwin sets holiday parade, free parking The annual Light Up Norwin event will usher in the holiday season with a parade and entertainment on Nov. 20 along Main Street in Irwin. Festivities begin at 5 p.m. with the East End Kids, followed by Main Street Music students at 5:30 p.m....
Lots of work, planning go into school musicals as North Allegheny preps for ‘Schoolhouse Rock’
As the cast and crew prepared to rock some knowledge in “Schoolhouse Rock Live Jr.,” which hits the stage Nov. 12, 13, 15 and 16 at North Allegheny Senior High School, music department chair Bob Tozier shared what it’s like to pull off a top-notch performance. In his experience, the...
Sen. John Fetterman hospitalized after fall near Braddock home
U.S. Sen. John Fetterman was hospitalized Thursday after suffering facial injuries in a fall while walking near his Braddock home, according to his office. Fetterman was taken to a Pittsburgh hospital “out of an abundance of caution,” his office posted on the X social media platform. “During an early morning...
Mayor-elect O’Connor taps veteran officer Jason Lando as next Pittsburgh police chief
Pittsburgh Mayor-Elect Corey O’Connor on Thursday tapped Jason Lando, a 21-year Pittsburgh police veteran now running a police department in Maryland, as the next chief of the city’s 750-officer bureau at a time when it is struggling with low morale, leadership woes and staffing declines. “I think you’ll see Chief...
Freeport Councilwoman resigns; spot to be filled next year
Freeport Councilwoman Lori Miller resigned from her post on Wednesday. Miller had served as council Vice President. Her term was set to expire in 2027. She declined a TribLive request for comment. Borough Manager Tina Ferringer cited “personal reasons” as the reason for the resignation. She said the council would...
Black hat found at crime scene leads to arrest in McKeesport slaying
DNA from a black hat found last year near a shooting scene in McKeesport led to an arrest Wednesday in the slaying of a man in his car. Allegheny County Police charged Daemond Artemus, 18, of McKeesport in the May 2, 2024, slaying of Brandon Dean. Artemus was taken to...
Burrell fans to line Leechburg Road to support girls soccer team’s state championship bid
Burrell High School girls’ soccer fans can send the team off in style Friday morning as they head to play in the state championship game. “We are over the moon here,” said Chelsey McMahon, president of the Burrell Girls Soccer boosters. “We are trying to get as many people as...
Starbucks union strikes stores in Pittsburgh area on Red Cup Day
Starbucks union organizers said Thursday they’ve shut down five stores across Southwestern Pennsylvania in the first day of what they’re calling an “open ended” strike over stalled contract talks. Thursday isn’t just any day in Starbucks-land. It’s Red Cup Day, a key sales day for the Seattle-based coffeehouse chain where...
Indiana County man pronounced dead after crash in West Wheatfield
A man was pronounced dead after his vehicle crashed Wednesday afternoon in Indiana County. Indiana County Coroner Jerry Overman said Stanley Clay Henderson, 54, of the West Wheatfield Township village of Robinson, may have suffered a medical emergency prior to the crash on Reynolds Road in the township. The crash...
Democrats sacrifice climate program for $50.1B budget agreement
HARRISBURG — Environmental advocates and a handful of Democratic lawmakers are lambasting legislative leaders for agreeing to pull Pennsylvania out of an interstate cap-and-trade program as a part of the state’s long-awaited $50.1 billion budget. The Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) would have capped the amount of carbon that companies...
Questions remain after dueling meetings for Springdale data center proposal
The latest data center discussions in Springdale may have raised more questions than they answered Wednesday night. Local people gathered at From Italy Pizza for a packed open forum with environmental groups to organize the community, while developers fielded questions and revealed new details a half-mile away in the Springdale...
Boil water advisory for Harmar, Indiana Township, O’Hara and Fox Chapel
Portions of Harmar, Indiana Township, Fox Chapel and O’Hara are without water after two major line breaks late Wednesday. Residents in impacted areas should boil water as a precaution, according to the Fox Chapel Authority. As a result, Fairview Elementary School in the Fox Chapel Area School District is closed...
Property taxes in Lower Burrell to hold but sewage, recycling hikes expected
Lower Burrell property owners won’t see an increase in their real estate taxes next year but they will likely have an increase in their recycling and sewage bills. Council this week approved a budget plan for 2026 that holds the millage rate at 24.75 mills. A home at Lower Burrell’s...
Coroner identifies 3 killed in Fayette County crash
The Fayette County Coroner’s office has identified all three people killed Monday in a wreck along Route 40 in Henry Clay Township. Delroy Henry, 66, of Hollywood, Fla., was named Wednesday as the deceased driver of a tractor-trailer that police say started a three-way, chain reaction crash. Pickup driver Nikki...
Greensburg man dies in wrong-way crash on Route 22
A wrong-way driver died after a head-on crash in Murrysville Thursday morning, said Police Chief Tom Kusinsky. Authorities aren’t sure why a 72-year-old Greensburg man was traveling east in the westbound lanes around 6:15 a.m. before slamming into another vehicle. Kusinsky said police received a call at 6:08 a.m. to...
