Pittsburgh category, Page 337
Appellate court allows federal discrimination suit at Allegheny County Jail to continue
A lawsuit by a former Allegheny County Jail captain who alleged he was fired for reporting a superior officer who called his biracial relative “a monkey” can move forward. The 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Thursday ruled in favor of former Capt. Jeffrey Kengerski, who was fired in...
Gardening goats return to Frick Park to munch on weedsVideo
The goats are back. Just after 10 a.m. Monday, 14 goats and their guardian, a donkey named Hobo, in a procession entered their temporary home and project site at the Frick Environmental Center in Pittsburgh. The goats were led to the Clayton Hill trail area of Frick Park to resume...
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...
Pittsburgh Public Schools board approves mask mandate
Students in Pittsburgh Public Schools will have to continue wearing masks during the upcoming academic year, according to the district’s health and safety plan. The plan — which requires masks indoors and keeps many covid-19 mitigation measures in place for the 2021-22 school year — was passed during Wednesday’s school...
Police: Man in critical condition, 2 others taken to hospital, after shooting in Pittsburgh’s Carrick neighborhood
A man is in critical condition, and two others were taken to the hospital, following a shooting in Pittsburgh’s Carrick neighborhood Wednesday night, police said. Pittsburgh police and EMS responded to the 1600 block of Brownsville Road around 11 p.m. where they found a man with multiple gunshot wounds, according...
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...
Whitehall man who threatened to ‘blow up’ Treasury Dept., attack CIA pleads guilty to explosives charges
A Whitehall man who made threats online to blow up government buildings in Harrisburg and Washington, D.C. using homemade bombs has pleaded guilty to gun and explosives charges. Kurt Cofano, 32, was convicted of three counts of five counts brought by a grand jury indictment in connection to his arrest...
Excited Steelers fans converge on Heinz Field for 1st open practice in 2 yearsVideo
Wednesday was Ellen Smith’s birthday and there was no other place she wanted to be than Heinz Field. Smith, a 55-year-old Mt. Airy, Md. resident, was standing in line with her husband, Rick, waiting to get into a Steelers training camp practice. The day marked the first time in two...
Weekend night restrictions coming to busy East Carson Street on South Side
Traffic and other restrictions are coming to the South Side on weekend nights, Pittsburgh officials said Wednesday. The move is meant to curb pedestrian and traffic congestion after weeks of overflowing sidewalks, gridlock and violence. Between 7 p.m. and 4 a.m. Fridays and Saturdays, East Carson Street will allow only...
Pittsburgh council sets community meetings on federal covid relief cash
A series of community meetings will be held in August to get more input about how Pittsburgh should spend the $335 million allotted to the city in the federal American Rescue Plan. Last week, city council approved a four-year plan to allocate the money, amid criticism by some residents and...
Contour to offer new flights from Pittsburgh International to Indianapolis, Milwaukee
Contour Airlines will begin nonstop flights from Pittsburgh to Indianapolis and Milwaukee on Oct. 12, the airline announced Wednesday. “Pittsburgh is a new market for us,” said Matt Chaifetz, CEO of the Smyrna, Tenn.-based airline. Contour had been in talks with Indianapolis Economic Development Corp. about adding flights to certain...
UPMC President Jeffrey Romoff to retire
Jeffrey Romoff, the architect of UPMC’s vast empire of hospitals in Western Pennsylvania and beyond, is set to retire Aug. 1, officials announced Wednesday. Romoff will be succeeded by Leslie C. Davis, who most recently served as executive vice president of UPMC and president of the health services division, where...
Police arrest carjacking suspect on Route 28; U-Haul employee shot when truck stolen
A carjacking and shooting near a U-Haul facility in Pittsburgh spurred a police chase that culminated in an arrest made on Route 28 during rush-hour traffic Tuesday evening, initial reports indicate. A Pittsburgh officer was injured when the suspect’s stolen rental truck struck him in the leg during the pursuit,...
‘Dormont called’: Pittsburgh residents may be able to use Dormont’s pool soon
The sunny skies and 88-degree weather Tuesday made for a perfect day for swimming. But in Pittsburgh, 10 of the city’s 18 pools are closed this year because of staffing and maintenance issues. It’s something that’s dogged council members through the Dog Days of summer. During the final city council...
Pittsburgh’s requirement for paid covid sick leave to last for a year
Pittsburgh businesses with more than 50 employees will be required to provide paid sick leave to workers who contract covid-19 or who are required to quarantine for at least the next year under legislation city council adopted Tuesday. The revised ordinance passed by a 7-1 vote, with Councilman Anthony Coghill...
Pittsburgh man serving life charged with smuggling synthetic drugs into prison as mail
A Lincoln-Lemington man serving life for first-degree murder was indicted by a federal grand jury on charges that he smuggled synthetic drugs into a state prison under the guise of legal mail addressed from the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas. Rodney Howard, 36, is currently incarcerated at the State...
PWSA receives $24 million state loan for sewer line repairs
The Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority has been given a $24 million low-interest state loan for wastewater infrastructure repairs. City officials announced the loan Monday. It’s part of a nearly $100 million Pennsylvania Investment Authority (PENNVEST) funding package for clean water infrastructure projects in 19 counties. The PWSA will put...
Enough to make you go ‘Wawa’: Sheetz isn’t coming to Oakland as sign indicates
Not yet coming to Pittsburgh’s Oakland neighborhood: A Sheetz store on Forbes Avenue. But a sign that appeared on chain link fencing surrounding a former Marathon gas station appeared to indicate otherwise over the weekend. It had the Sheetz logo on it and “Coming soon!” The site is set to...
Pittsburgh police identify teen charged in South Side shooting
Pittsburgh police on Monday identified the teenager charged in connection with a shooting last week on the city’s busy South Side. Taiden Harvey, 15, of Clairton, is charged with two counts of attempted homicide, aggravated assault, firearms violations and two counts each of criminal mischief and reckless endangerment. He is...
Empty South Side Burger King prompts police response
Pittsburgh police responded to a fast food restaurant Sunday night after they received reports there were no employees in the restaurant. Public Safety spokesman Maurice Matthews said police responded and found the Burger King on East Carson Street empty. He said police attempted to find someone to lock the door,...
Lawrenceville’s indie Row House Cinema set to reopen with themed film series
Lawrenceville’s indie movie theater, Row House Cinema, will reopen Sept. 3 after an 18-month, pandemic-driven closure. “Our whole staff is basically relearning how to run a movie theater this summer, and we’ve got some fantastic programming lined up for the remainder of 2021,” owner Brian Mendelssohn said. Film club members...
Pittsburgh firefighter dies while on family vacation
A Pittsburgh firefighter who died on a family vacation in Ohio over the weekend has saved dozens of lives even in death, his family said Monday. Lee Weber, 38, drowned in Lake Erie on Saturday in Conneaut, Ohio, according to Pittsburgh fire and public safety officials. Pittsburgh Bureau of Fire...
Police: Man in stable condition after East Allegheny shooting
A man was in stable condition after being shot multiple times Sunday night in Pittsburgh’s East Allegheny neighborhood, police said. Pittsburgh police responded to the 400 block of Cedar Avenue around 8:25 p.m. and found the man with multiple gunshot wounds to the lower body, according to Pittsburgh Public Safety...
Man, whose wife stole millions from Pittsburgh firm, gets 18 months for false tax returns
A man who lived a life of luxury off of nearly $13 million his wife embezzled from her Pittsburgh employer over more than a decade will spend 18 months in federal prison. Gary Mills, 61, was found guilty in 2019 of three counts of filing a false tax return following...
Pittsburgh cocaine dealer gets 10 years in prison
A Pittsburgh man has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for dealing cocaine, federal prosecutors said. Raymond Erfort, 45, was convicted of possessing nearly 500 grams of cocaine with the intent to distribute the drugs in Western Pennsylvania, Acting U.S. Attorney Stephen R. Kaufman said. Erfort will serve six...
