Western PA Local News category, Page 2538
Medical examiner IDs suspect killed in shootout that injured Pittsburgh police officerVideo
The Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s office has identified the suspect killed in a shootout with police as Elijah Jamaal Brewer, 25, of Pittsburgh. A Pittsburgh police detective was shot in the leg during a traffic stop on East Ohio Street in the city’s North Side just before 7 p.m. Thursday...
Wonderful Life: Mt. Pleasant, workers relish return of Robert Levin to family furniture businessVideo
Robert Levin might take issue with it, but longtime Mt. Pleasant Mayor Jerry Lucia says the scion of Levin’s furniture company is his small town’s answer to George Bailey. Like the star of “It’s a Wonderful Life,” Levin has stepped away from his own life — twice now — when...
Prize-winning golden retriever Daniel gets honor from Westmoreland CountyVideo
Daniel, the prize-winning golden retriever at the 2020 Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show in New York, took a star turn in Greensburg on Thursday. The dog, soon to be 6, was the guest of honor at the Westmoreland County Courthouse when he and owner Tammy Tomlinson of Hillock Golden Retrievers...
Pittsburgh group provides cleaning equipment for coronavirus protection
With the anticipated arrival of the coronavirus in Western Pennsylvania, businesses and families are looking for ways to keep employees and loved ones safe. A group called Women for a Healthy Environment wants to help. The group, based in Pittsburgh, addresses environmental concerns that impact public health. It has developed...
Attorneys differ over firing of PWSA worker who used medical pot
An attorney for Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority says PWSA was following its policies and abiding by federal law last year when it fired an employee who failed a drug test but has a state-issued card to use medical marijuana. The worker’s attorney says PWSA violated the state Medical Marijuana...
Pittsburgh seeks reimbursement for $400K in firefighter overpayments
A glitch in Pittsburgh’s new payroll system triggered overpayments totaling about $400,000 for nearly half of the city’s 600 firefighters, officials said. The city is now asking for the money back. The problem occurred in late December after arbitrators provided a new five-year contract to the International Association of Firefighters...
Businesses pair up with students at Deer Lakes Middle School to learn about their dayVideo
A different type of water cooler conversation took place at Deer Lakes Middle School on Thursday. Instead of the usual teachers and staffers, students in grades six through eight had the opportunity to chat with adult visitors from a variety of companies about their jobs. The event was part of...
Road work will close a portion of Pittsburgh’s Second Avenue starting Sunday
Pittsburgh is changing the traffic patterns starting on Sunday along heavily traveled Second Avenue. The Department of Mobility and Infrastructure announced Thursday that the inbound lane of the street will close from the Armstrong Tunnel to Brady Street until around November. All traffic will shift to the outbound lanes. DOMI...
1st lawsuit filed in deadly Pennsylvania Turnpike tour bus crashVideo
Two brothers from New Jersey who were aboard a tour bus that crashed on the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Westmoreland County in January, killing five people and injuring 60, filed a civil lawsuit Thursday against the bus company. Anthony Ellis, 39, and Quwanjay Ellis, 18, both of Irvington, N.J., accuse Z&D...
Westmoreland County inks deal with unions, doles out raises for nonunion workers
A new four-year labor deal with Westmoreland County’s largest unions was approved Thursday that gives raises to workers but also imposes a surcharge on employees who use tobacco. Commissioners ratified the deal with the Service Employees International Union Local 668 and SEIU HealthCare Pennsylvania, which represents courthouse employees and nursing...
Westmoreland commissioners fund tourism plan, earmark funds for marketing
The 2020 tourism plan for Westmoreland County includes more than $834,000 in new projects and reserves a large purse for what officials hope one day will be spent on an agressive marketing campaign to lure tourists — and their wallets. Projects include upgrades to county parks, financing for the annual...
Brief history of Levin Furniture and its Western Pennsylvania rootsVideo
A look back at the history of Levin Furniture, which has grown from its Westmoreland County roots into the region’s largest furniture retailer. 1920 | “Peddler” Sam Levin opens store at 600 W. Main St. in Mt. Pleasant, selling hardware items, furniture and other general goods, including flyswatters, expandable window...
Pittsburgh offers free parking, shuttles to South Side during St. Patrick’s Day celebrationVideo
Pittsburgh is once again offering free parking and transportation to its popular South Side bar and restaurant district during the city’s annual St. Patrick’s Day festivities next weekend. Visitors can park for free March 14 at a lot on Second Avenue on Downtown’s outskirts and catch a free continuous- loop...
Police ask for help to locate McKeesport man charged in alley shooting
A 19-year-old man accused of firing 14 shots from a rifle into a 2007 Ford Taurus driven by another 19-year-old and wounding him has been charged with attempted homicide and other charges, according to Allegheny County police. County police Wednesday filed charges of attempted homicide, aggravated assault, reckless endangering and...
Netflix donates to Project Prom gown giveaway in Allegheny County
Some lucky young ladies could find themselves attending the prom in a gown worn in a movie. The producers of “Sweet Girl,” a Netflix movie filmed in Pittsburgh, donated 150 dresses leftover from a gala scene in the film to the annual Project Prom giveaway. The Allegheny County Department of...
Driver in fatal 2019 crash on Tri-Boro Expressway charged
The driver of a pickup involved in an October 2019 rollover crash on the Tri-Boro Expressway between Turtle Creek and Wilmerding that killed a passenger has been charged in connection with the man’s death. Allegheny County police said Edward Wharton, 57, of North Versailles, was driving drunk and speeding on...
PennDOT looks to streamline traffic flow on Route 30
If you’ve ever waited for a green light on Route 30 in Hempfield, only to stop a few hundred feet later at another red light, you’re not alone. PennDOT is planning to change that. The familiar start-and-stop could become a thing of the past as the agency is planning an...
Budget to be focus of New Kensington-Arnold finance committee session
A committee of the New Kensington-Arnold School Board will review the district’s proposed final budget for the 2020-21 school year at a meeting on Monday, according to district business Manager Jeff McVey. In January, the school board approved a preliminary $38.96 million spending plan that would increase the property tax...
Man found with 70 bricks of heroin, fentanyl pleads guilty to federal drug charges
A Pittsburgh resident who was found with 70 bricks of heroin and fentanyl pleaded guilty to federal drug charges, U.S. Attorney Scott Brady announced Wednesday. Matthew Lacher, 40, was charged with one count of possession with intent to distribute heroin and fentanyl, according to a news release. The Allegheny County...
Highlands to buy metal detectors, cameras, fencing with state safety grant
Highlands School District will enhance and improve its security and safety measures using a nearly half-million-dollar state grant, a district spokeswoman said. The district received about $484,000 from the School Safety and Security Committee within the state Commission on Crime and Delinquency. Highlands was one of 524 school entities that...
Turf or grass? Burrell School Board to review stadium field bids
Burrell School Board is expected to discuss bids submitted for the Buccaneer Stadium renovation project when it meets at 7 p.m. Tuesday. The board will likely make a final decision on whether to install artificial turf or natural grass at its March 17 regular meeting, according to board President Tricia...
Saving jobs, legacy, Robert Levin buys back furniture empire bearing his family’s nameVideo
Levin Furniture’s former owner on Thursday entered the chain’s Monroeville store along Route 22 to the cheers of employees and managers — whose jobs he’d just saved. Robert Levin raised his arms in triumph as, in the background, the store’s sound system played the Mike & The Mechanics song “All...
‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin coming to Pittsburgh for WWE ‘Raw’
One of the biggest WWE stars of the past 25 years is coming back to Pittsburgh. “Stone Cold” Steve Austin announced via Twitter that he would be on the March 16 episode of WWE “Monday Night Raw.” That show is set to take place at PPG Paints Arena. The arena...
Brentwood looking for developers for old borough building site
Brentwood leaders are seeking developers who can turn the site of the borough’s 100-year-old municipal building into a mixed-use development, with retail storefronts on the main floor and market-rate apartments above. A request for qualifications from developers was issued on Feb. 24. In the first week of advertisement, four developers...
Computer problem resolved at Westmoreland jail
The Westmoreland County Prison was locked down for about six hours Thursday after a problem with the facility’s computer system, said Warden John Walton. Burned-out pieces of equipment may have been the cause and the system was back up and operating by 2:30 p.m. after they were replaced, Walton said....
