Brian C. Rittmeyer stories, Page 20
Arnold councilman champions regionalizing New Kensington, Arnold police forces
If New Kensington and Arnold are able to share a school district, the cities should also be able to share a police department, according to an Arnold councilman. “It’s time,” said Aaron Moore, who was elected to Arnold Council in the 2023 election. He said he received positive feedback to...
Police say man sexually assaulted child in Arnold
Editor’s note: This story was updated on Thursday, March 6, 2025. A manfaces trial after being accused by Arnold police of sexually assaulting a child. James Benitto, 40, was held for court on March 6 on felony charges of aggravated indecent assault of a child, indecent assault of a person...
Plum Creek watershed project aims to address flooding, pollution concerns
Conservation officials hope a project to manage stormwater in the uppermost area of the Plum Creek watershed will help reduce downstream flooding and pollution into the creek. The nearly 21-square-mile Plum Creek watershed covers parts of Plum, Penn Hills, Oakmont and Verona, according to the Allegheny County Conservation District. A...
Bloser Mansion sold; will remain restaurant, bed-and-breakfast with new name
New Kensington’s historic Bloser Mansion has a new name but will remain a restaurant and a bed-and-breakfast under new owners. Lost Dreams Awakening, founded in 2014 by the husband and wife team of VonZell Wade and Laurie Johnson-Wade, bought the mansion on Sixth Avenue in the Parnassus section of the...
Junior ROTC programs on solid ground thanks to change in federal law
Krysta Harper’s education wasn’t going well when she was a freshman at Plum High School. “My grades were failing and absolutely miserable,” she said. Now a senior, her grades are up and she’s preparing to graduate, thanks in part, she says, to the school’s Air Force Junior ROTC program. “ROTC...
Morning Roundup: Another pedestrian hit in Pittsburgh; fire damages East Huntington home
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Friday, Feb. 21, 2025: Another pedestrian hit in Pittsburgh For the second day in a row, a pedestrian has been hit by a vehicle in Pittsburgh. Police, firefighters and paramedics responded early Friday to a report of a pedestrian...
Tickets available for 4th annual New Kensington Restaurant Ramble
A dozen New Kensington restaurants will participate in the fourth annual Restaurant Ramble in March. The event featuring the city’s downtown eateries will be held from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, March 22. It is sponsored by Shop Small Shop New Ken, Voodoo Brewing New Kensington Pub and the...
Memories, sympathies shared following the death of Penguins broadcaster Mike LangeVideo
Condolences, sympathies and memories were being shared on social media following the death of Mike Lange, who will forever be remembered as the voice of the Pittsburgh Penguins. Lange died Wednesday. He was 76. “The Penguins organization joins the family, friends and fans of legendary broadcaster Mike Lange as we...
Snow may impact evening commute more than morning, forecasters say
Snowfall Thursday may have a greater impact on the evening commute than in the morning, according to the National Weather Service. Less than an inch of snow is expected through the morning hours, meteorologist Jason Frazier said. As of about 5:30 a.m., snow was seen sticking primarily to side roads....
Not wearing a seat belt leads to New Kensington man’s arrest on 4-year-old warrant
A New Kensington man wanted for breaking into his then ex-girlfriend’s home four years ago was arrested Tuesday after he was seen riding in a vehicle without wearing a seat belt, according to court records. Arnold police charged Robert James Dorsey, 60, with three felony counts of aggravated assault and...
Elderly man suffers hypothermia after spending night in crashed SUV in Lower Burrell
An elderly man was suffering from hypothermia Tuesday morning after spending the night in his crashed SUV in Lower Burrell, a city deputy fire chief said. The man told authorities he had been trapped in his vehicle in a ditch between Hill Crest Country Club and Hillcrest Drive since 5...
Morning Roundup: Subzero windchills cause school delays; shots fired in Shadyside
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Tuesday, Feb. 18, 2025: Subzero windchills prompt school delays Windchills below zero prompted school districts across the Pittsburgh region to delay the start of classes Tuesday. While no snow is expected and sunshine is in the forecast, it’s forecast...
Bellefonte native found second career as history teacher at Valley High in New Kensington
As a father, Ronald Lee Sheetz was fun, but you couldn’t pull anything over on him, according to his daughter, Michelle VanHorn. “I was never given a curfew, but I knew I needed to be home,” she said. “I never wanted to be an embarrassment to my parents because I...
Railing installation to restrict New Kensington bridge traffic
Traffic will be restricted on the New Kensington Bridge next week, PennDOT announced Friday. The two-lane bridge over the Allegheny River between East Deer and New Kensington will be reduced to a single, alternating lane from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday, the agency said. Crews will be...
Plum awards road paving contract, seeking slide repair bids
Plum plans to resurface seven roads and six alleys in the borough this year, while also repairing a slide on another. Council on Monday accepted a bid of just over $680,000 from Tresco for the resurfacing work covering about 4 miles of road. Councilwoman Vicky Roessler was absent. The company...
At fire academy, high school students earn class credit while training to be firefighters
Desiree Schramm wasn’t looking to become a firefighter when she was choosing electives during her junior year at North Hills High School. “I was scheduling for classes and, ‘What’s this?’ ” said Schramm, of Ross, now 18 and a senior. “This is actually pretty cool.” What Schramm stumbled across was the...
Weapons, drug charges against former Pagans member dismissed in New Kensington
Weapons and drug charges against a former member of the Pagans motorcycle gang have been dismissed. The charges, including prohibited possession of a firearm, against Bill Robert Rana, 44, of Sharpsburg were dismissed after a preliminary hearing Thursday before New Kensington District Judge Frank J. Pallone Jr. Rana and three...
Heroin or litter box: Arnold stabbing suspects don’t agree on cause of fight
Two men who police say stabbed each other in an Arnold apartment Sunday morning were fighting over either heroin or a dirty kitty litter box, according to a criminal complaint. Police charged Michael James Holliday, 43, of Arnold and William Johnson, 54, of Pittsburgh’s Homewood neighborhood each with felony aggravated...
Plum School District planning $270K replacement of tennis courts
Replacing the tennis courts at Plum High School is a matter of safety, Superintendent Rick Walsh says. The courts are in such bad condition that students will play this coming season on courts at Allegheny County’s Boyce Park. “A few years ago we put a Band-Aid on the tennis courts,”...
Sheriff: 2 stolen guns recovered at New Kensington home
Westmoreland County authorities recovered two stolen guns while serving protection from abuse and eviction orders in New Kensington on Wednesday morning. The Westmoreland County Sheriff’s Office charged Ralph Earl Scott Jr., 18, of New Kensington with two counts of prohibited possession of a firearm and two counts of receiving stolen...
Federal funding availability, other concerns lead some schools to cancel electric bus plans
Uncertainty over the availability of previously promised federal funding has some local school districts rethinking their plans to buy electric buses. The unpredictability of the funding is among several reasons Plum Superintendent Rick Walsh cited for pulling the plug on the district’s plan to purchase 25 electric buses. “With the...
New Kensington planners recommend changing Carl Avenue house to commercial use
While a New Kensington property owner wants to provide space for more small business near Tarentum Bridge Road, city planning officials want to draw a firm line between commercial and residential areas. Jack Bellone wants to change the zoning of a house between Tarentum Bridge Road and 759 Carl Ave....
Plum’s John Anthony’s grows from a good-time bar to family restaurant over 40 years
For her 21st birthday, Gina D’Acierno’s parents bought her a bar. The next 40 years would see D’Acierno grow from a bartender into a business owner, and John Anthony’s evolve from a rowdy bar into an Italian restaurant with a focus on quality, consistency and treating diners like family. “In...
Plum’s John Anthony’s grows from a good-time bar to family restaurant over 40 years
For her 21st birthday, Gina D’Acierno’s parents bought her a bar. The next 40 years would see D’Acierno grow from a bartender into a business owner, and John Anthony’s evolve from a rowdy bar into an Italian restaurant with a focus on quality, consistency and treating diners like family. “In...
Milltown Road in Penn Hills scheduled to reopen after slide repair
A section of Milltown Road in Penn Hills closed since early December is expected to reopen on Friday, a PennDOT spokeswoman said. PennDOT closed Milltown between Newfield Drive, not far from Community Market, and Hulton Road, near JD Auto Body, on Dec. 3 while crews repaired two slides. The two-lane...
