Michael DiVittorio stories, Page 24
O’Hara, Blawnox councils formally approve police merger set to start in January
O’Hara and Blawnox officials have finalized an agreement that will have both communities patrolled by O’Hara police starting next year. The Blawnox police force will be absorbed in January by O’Hara and under the leadership of township police Superintendent Jay Davis. O’Hara Council passed its ordinance Sept. 10, and Blawnox...
Cochran Hose Co. showcases latest lifesaving equipment
Cochran Hose Company recently acquired a lifesaving device to bolster its medical service capabilities. The Sewickley volunteer fire company has about a dozen specially trained firefighters capable of using LUCAS, a mechanical chest-compression system. The device has been with the department for a few months and was on display as...
Girl critically wounded in Duquesne shooting
A 13-year-old girl was critically wounded after a shooting Tuesday afternoon in Duquesne, according to Allegheny County police. Officers were dispatched around 3:40 p.m. Tuesday to the 20 block of South 7th Street where they found a teen with a gunshot wound. She was taken to a hospital in critical...
Aspinwall launches EV charging stations in borough lot
Charging stations for electric vehicles in Aspinwall are up and running. The literal and figurative switch was flipped on Sept. 4 after several delays. Three charging stations, each capable of accommodating two vehicles at a time, were installed in the borough parking lot along Commercial Avenue. They are located on...
Crowd flocks to Sewickley Harvest Festival
Members of the service clubs that organized the Sewickley Harvest Festival are celebrating after the largest fall event in recent borough history. Nearly 150 vendors and more than 6,000 people were buying and selling a variety of items during the 33rd edition of the festival, held Sept. 7. It was...
Man stabbed, construction crew shot at in argument over parking in Turtle Creek, police say
A man was stabbed and a construction crew was shot at Monday afternoon in a Turtle Creek neighborhood after what authorities said was a fight over parking on the street. The man who was stabbed was in stable condition at a Pittsburgh-area hospital. He was stabbed near his home in...
Prost! Sprankle’s Octoberfest at Lernerville Speedway aims to be authentic
Lauren Stumpp of the South Hills has a special connection with her mother, Carol Killian. While growing up in New York City, the pair were part of a dance group at the Bavarian club Gemuetlichen Enzianer. Stumpp, the second of five children, learned traditional German dance moves and celebrated their...
Allegheny Valley Hospital nurses, staffers want the same deal offered to Allegheny General staff
Allegheny Valley Hospital nurses and staffers threatening to strike say they want to get the same deal Allegheny Health Network made with its employees at Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh. Service Employees International Union members and supporters held a vigil outside Allegheny Valley Hospital along Carlisle Street in Harrison Thursday...
Sculpture acknowledging indigenous land planned for James Sharp Landing in Sharpsburg
An Etna man who grew up skateboarding and kayaking at James Sharp Landing in Sharpsburg soon will have a work of art installed at the renowned Allegheny River launch site. Found and Forged owner Jimmy Olson is working on a metal sculpture as part of a community project to acknowledge...
Edgeworth amends zoning ordinance to ease solar restrictions, tighten dispensary regulations
Edgeworth officials have made it easier for residents to install solar shingles and harder for a medical marijuana dispensary to set up shop in the borough. Both actions are part of zoning ordinance amendments council passed at its Aug. 20 meeting. Solar shingles were not prohibited. They were treated the...
Leetsdale food pantry serves more residents than ever
Leetsdale Mayor Sandra Ford has seen the need for the borough’s food pantry grow since taking over operations several years ago. Run out of a downstairs room of the borough building with a couple of refrigerators and a recently installed freezer, volunteers prepare and deliver nutritionally balanced bags to at...
Pittsburgh’s Rib Fest kicks off, continues through MondayVideo
Art Rooney Avenue outside of Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh’s North Shore has been transformed into barbeque heaven for Labor Day weekend. The annual Rib Fest kicked off Thursday evening with a dozen award-winning vendors vying for various trophies, including best sauce, best ribs and people’s choice. The event runs through...
Edgeworth officials approve Beaver Road wall replacement contract
Edgeworth officials are moving forward with a long-awaited repair project along Beaver Road. The falling stone wall that supports the road between Church and Edgeworth lanes will be fixed and a new sidewalk installed. Access Limited Construction of Bethel Park, considered to be rockfall mitigation and steep slope specialists, was...
Man shot in leg in Pittsburgh
A man is recovering after being shot in the leg in Pittsburgh’s Northview Heights neighborhood Wednesday afternoon. Public Safety spokeswoman Emily Bourne said officers were dispatched around 4 p.m. to the 100 block of Hazlett Street for reports of a shooting. First responders located a 35-year-old man with a gunshot...
Leetsdale to seek bids for boat launch restoration early next year
Quaker Valley area fishermen and boating enthusiasts will have to wait until at least spring to launch into the Ohio River from Leetsdale. Borough officials said they plan to move forward with a boat launch restoration project next year despite having already secured funding. The borough was awarded $228,000 in...
Sharpsburg Council appoints familiar VP
Sharpsburg officials have appointed a familiar face to high seat on borough council. Karen Pastor was named vice president at the Aug. 22 council meeting. “I’m truly grateful for the trust the council members place in me to hold that position,” she said via email after the meeting. Pastor has...
Sewickley Public Library’s family storytime, other programs shifting to fall programming
The best part of Jennifer Farmerie’s day is seeing the smiling faces of families at the Sewickley Public Library. She has seen many as the children’s department head for the past eight years. From reading at storytimes to welcoming special guests at various programs, good vibes abound when Farmerie’s on...
New Kensington-Arnold School District to dismiss early Wednesday due to high temperatures
New Kensington-Arnold School District students will be dismissed early Wednesday because of high temperatures, district officials announced Tuesday evening. All schools will operate on a two-hour early dismissal schedule and students will be at their bus stops earlier than usual, according to a post on the district’s Facebook page. Meteorologists...
Sewickley Harvest Festival set to return Sept. 7
A fall tradition geared toward community engagement and supporting local businesses will soon sprout up again in Sewickley. The annual Harvest Festival is scheduled for Sept. 7. It will be the 33rd installment of the autumn jubilee presented by the Rotary Club of Quaker Valley and Kiwanis Club of Sewickley....
Woman severely injured in tractor crash in Allegheny Township
A woman was flown from Allegheny Township to a Pittsburgh area hospital with a severe leg injury sustained in a crash Monday afternoon. Westmoreland County Public Safety reported a tractor rolled over onto a woman shortly before 6 p.m. at 1357 Route 356, not far from Leechburg Road. Township police...
St. Januarius Catholic Church in Plum to close
St. Januarius Catholic Church in Plum is closing next month. The final day for the church along Renton Road that is part of Holy Family Parish is set for Sept. 23, according to a decree from Bishop David Zubik posted Sunday on the parish website. “The age and physical condition...
‘Band Blast’ supporters say new committees will keep event going in New Kensington
There was speculation whether music fans would be witness to the last “Band Blast” at New Kensington’s Memorial Park Sunday evening. But the annual musical tradition will continue, according to organizers and city officials. The event was started more than a decade ago by volunteers called the New Ken/Arnold Social...
Citizens Hose firefighters eschew boot drives for body slams as part of annual fundraising effort
Typical fire department fundraisers involve bingo or boot drives. Harrison-based Citizens Hose Fire/Rescue/EMS prefers something else — body slams. The fourth annual Battle in Birdville took place outside the station off of Burtner Road on Saturday evening. “We were looking to do a fundraiser outside the box, outside the traditional...
Mother recounts the pain of her loss as residents of Arnold and New Kensington hold anti-drug march, outdoor forum
Roxanne White, a mother from Arnold, has taken steps to ensure no other parent has to experience what she did on Mother’s Day. In fact, she took many, many steps Saturday afternoon as she joined about 30 others in a March to Save Our Community effort up and down the...
Wrestlers at Verona’s Battle in the Borough perform through raindrops and chest chops
Verona first responders answered an “unusual call” after a rainstorm earlier this month. Police, firefighters and Lower Valley Ambulance personnel responded to Cribbs Field along Second Street for a report of two men “fighting” the evening of Aug. 17. It was not a typical emergency. In fact, it wasn’t an...
