Inside-out: Open space outside, privacy inside become homebuyer priorities in wake of pandemic
Editor’s note: This is part of an occasional series on real estate market trends in Western Pennsylvania. The pandemic may have ended, but its impact on how people live — and buy homes — hasn’t. Real estate agents say the once-coveted “open concept” is not as popular as buyers reshape...
North Huntingdon zoning board rejects request for gun shop at banquet center
A North Huntingdon man’s attempt to sell guns in the family’s banquet facility was rejected by a zoning panel. The North Huntingdon Zoning Hearing Board last week rejected an appeal from James Stratigos, owner of JGS Arms LLC, for an occupancy permit for a gun shop in a section of...
Developers of would-be data center in Springdale offer first testimony to council
Developers presented the first part of what could be monthslong testimony on Thursday in an effort to earn approval for a massive data center project in Springdale. Allegheny DC Property Co. offered new details about potential tax revenue from the proposed project to a packed council chamber filled with more...
Coroner’s ruling pending in Westmoreland jail inmate’s death
A female inmate was found dead in a jail cell this month, the Westmoreland County Coroner’s Office said Thursday. Deputy Coroner Al Lonzo said Amber Knepshield, 32, was pronounced dead at 12:22 a.m. in a Westmoreland County prison cell Oct. 3. Lonzo said the office is awaiting results from an...
Pine-Richland celebrates 2025 homecoming
Pine-Richland School District marked Homecoming 2025 on Sept. 19, capping the day with a 56-14 win over Plum. The celebration began with a Staff vs. Students softball game, followed by the Homecoming Festival and student-led parade, complete with decorated floats and candy tossing, before the football game. Members of the...
TribLive collects 42 awards for excellence in journalism
TribLive garnered 42 awards for journalistic excellence Thursday in the Keystone Media Awards and Keystone Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists annual contests. The awards are presented annually to news organizations in Pennsylvania for print, online and broadcast journalism. TribLive’s awards included first-place honors in the categories of headline...
North Hills marks Homecoming 2025 with close pink-out game against Shaler, night of dancing
North Hills School District celebrated Homecoming 2025 with a close game against Shaler on Oct. 10 and a dance the following evening. Friday night’s game was a pink out, with proceeds benefiting 412Thrive, a local nonprofit that helps people impacted by breast cancer and genetic mutations that lead to cancer....
Leda Health, a Pittsburgh company that makes at-home rape kits, settles false claims lawsuit
The Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office on Thursday announced a settlement with a Pittsburgh company that sells at-home rape kits. Under the terms of the settlement, Leda Health must provide a written warning that its products do not meet the same standards as hospital-based evidence collection services. The state sued Leda...
Pitt trustee loses lawsuit claiming lack of access, retaliation
A longtime University of Pittsburgh trustee who sued during a bitter dispute with the board and its chairman has lost his case. John H. Pelusi Jr., who joined the board in 1994 and became an emeritus member last year, sued the board and its chairman, Jonathan J. Verbanac Sr., in...
‘Healing held hostage’: Sex assault survivor warns Pa. budget impasse imperils rape crisis centers
With trembling hands but a steady voice, Maria Gardner stepped up to the podium outside city hall in Downtown Pittsburgh to speak publicly for the first time about the day she was sexually assaulted. Flanking Gardner were her husband and an advocate from Pittsburgh Action Against Rape, a quiet show...
5 candidates vie for 4 seats on Verona Council
There are four seats up for grabs on Verona Council. Voters in the Nov. 4 election will select four members from the five candidates seeking seats. The ballot is a mix of incumbents and newcomers. Democrats have four candidates on the ballot, while Republicans have one, according to the Allegheny...
Murrysville area: Horse-farm fundraiser, middle-school play and more
Fundraiser for horse rescue farm The Pleasant Valley Rescue Ranch will host a fundraiser to help collect donations for veterinary care of its horses on Nov. 16. “Rein In the Magic of Christmas” will take place from 1-4 p.m. Nov. 16 at the ranch, 2205 Pleasant Valley Road in Murrysville....
North Huntingdon man accused of recording police, disrupting meeting, endangering official ordered to stand trial
A North Huntingdon man will face further prosecution on police accusations that he illegally recorded video in the township police lobby, put an officer in danger and disrupted a township commissioners’ meeting. Nicholas A. Carrozza, 36, maintained that he was exercising his rights in all three misdemeanor cases against him....
Arnold man charged after kids test positive for cocaine
An Arnold man faces three counts of endangering the welfare of children after his 5-, 3- and 1-year-old each tested positive for cocaine. Westmoreland County detectives say they began investigating Josiah Hughes, 30, in May with a case involving child endangerment, according to the District Attorney’s Office. A ChildLine report...
State-owned universities to recruit former students who never completed degrees
If you’re one of the 130,000 people who obtained course credits at one of the state system’s colleges but never finished your degree, you’ll be hearing from the university soon. Pennsylvania’s State System of Higher Education will be rolling out a program reconnecting with and recruiting former students who didn’t...
Pittsburgh, Strip District merchants compromise to resolve bike lane brouhaha
Pittsburgh’s bike-lane battle appears to be over. The Strip District Business Association on Thursday struck a reluctant compromise with the City of Pittsburgh on plans to convert a portion of Penn Avenue to a one-lane road with a bike lane. The city initially wanted to add a protected bike lane...
Plans for future of Penn State’s closing campus properties to be set by 2027
A second round of meetings with Penn State leadership and communities where branch campuses are closing, and what the future holds for those properties, will soon be underway, university administration said Thursday. Seven branch campuses — New Kensington, Fayette, Shenango, Mont Alto, DuBois, Wilkes-Barre and York — will close at...
Research shows annoying sounds might not be in your ears, but in your brain
The sound of someone sniffling can be irritating, but that has almost nothing to do with the sound itself, new Carnegie Mellon University research shows. “It’s not the sound, it’s how I feel about the person sitting next to me, and how it’s rude to sniffle,” said Laurie Heller, a...
Report claims Heritage Valley Sewickley, St. Clair hospitals perform needless back surgeries
Two Pittsburgh-area hospitals and one near State College are being called out by a health care think tank for performing what it calls unnecessary back surgeries. A report released earlier this month by the Massachusetts-based Lown Institute says around 38% of spinal fusions performed at Heritage Valley Sewickley weren’t warranted,...
Bids for Plum’s O’Block Elementary addition, renovations come in $2M under projection
The Plum School Board is moving forward on a set for bids that are about $2 million under initial projections for multimillion dollar renovations at O’Block Elementary. Earlier estimates showed the “hard costs” of the large-scale project sitting at $21.6 million, but that number ended up closer to $19.6 million....
Oakmont Recreation Board addresses concerns regarding field lights, some residents unconvinced
Some community members’ worries were put to bed Wednesday night after the Oakmont Recreation Board held a second public meeting regarding lighting at the sports fields at Riverside Park. Riverview High School uses the park fields for its home football, soccer, baseball and softball games. “The goal of this project...
AHN signs deal to pull Heritage Valley hospitals into its network
Allegheny Health Network and the much smaller Heritage Valley Health System have signed a merger agreement, marking the latest push by the Pittsburgh region’s biggest hospital systems to expand their reach. Officials on Thursday announced the deal, which requires state and federal government approval. It would bring Heritage Valley hospitals...
1 injured in crash on I-79
One person was taken to the hospital after a wreck on I-79 in Kennedy Township Thursday morning. The crash was reported just after 7:15 a.m. on I-79 northbound at Forest Grove Road, according to an Allegheny County 911 dispatcher. The northbound lanes had been closed but reopened around 8:10 a.m.,...
Suspect in Ross Park Mall shooting surrenders to police; 2 other juveniles charged
One teenager is being charged as an adult in connection with a shooting at Ross Park Mall last month, and two others face juvenile charges, according to Ross police. Myshawn Scott, 16, of Pittsburgh’s East Hills neighborhood is charged with aggravated assault, possession of a firearm by a minor and...
Pittsburgh City Paper ends weekly print editions
Pittsburgh City Paper on Wednesday announced it is cutting its weekly print edition. Executive Editor Ali Trachta in a letter posted to the paper’s website said the alternative newspaper would continue posting content online and social media pages and will publish four print editions annually. “Like many newspapers — especially...
