Michael DiVittorio stories, Page 39
CMU grad and Hollywood icon Ming-Na Wen to be at Steel City ConVideo
Hollywood icon and Carnegie Mellon University grad Ming-Na Wen returned to the Pittsburgh area this week to cheer on her beloved Steelers and meet with fans in Monroeville. She will be among the celebrities at Steel City Con at the Monroeville Convention Center Friday and Saturday, the first two days...
Liberty Tunnel, McCardle Roadway reopen after nearly 5-hour closure due to multi-vehicle crash
The Liberty Tunnel has been reopened after a multi-vehicle crash at PJ McCardle Roadway had it closed for nearly four hours Thursday. Pittsburgh Public Safety officials said nine cars were involved in a collision around 5:15 p.m. and remained closed until about 10 p.m. Public Safety spokeswoman Cara Cruz said...
Indiana Township officials plan to hold the line on real estate taxes in next year’s budget
Indiana Township property owners should not expect to pay more in real estate taxes as part of the township’s 2024 budget. Supervisors recently approved a preliminary spending plan for next year, which holds the line on taxes. There are no cuts to programs or services. The budget was scheduled for...
Leetsdale officials hope to hold the line on real estate taxes in 2024, boost community program spending
Leetsdale property owners should not expect to pay more in borough real estate taxes next year . Council approved its 2024 preliminary budget Nov. 9. However, it was not made available until about week later. The tax rate remains at 9 mills. Of that, 8 mills is planned for general...
First responders honored for saving Fox Chapel man’s life
A Fox Chapel man is alive thanks to the quick work of some first responders and bystanders in Aspinwall. Tony Suleksi, 81, suffered a cardiac arrest in front of the Aspinwall Borough Building in the early evening of Oct. 4. His wife, Magdeline Jensen, said they were about to head...
Sharpsburg officials hold the line on property taxes in 2024, maintain sewage rates
Sharpsburg officials held the line on real estate taxes for next year. Council unanimously voted Nov. 16 to pass its 2024 budget and maintain the millage rate at 9.75 mills. Borough sewer rates also remain the same. Council approved its preliminary budget last month. Borough Manager Christine DeRunk said after...
First responders honored for saving Fox Chapel man’s life
A Fox Chapel man is alive thanks to the quick work of some first responders and bystanders in Aspinwall. Tony Suleski, 81, suffered a cardiac arrest in front of the Aspinwall Borough Building in the early evening of Oct. 4. His wife, Magdeline Jensen, said they were about to head...
Blawnox food pantry hours noted
Blawnox’s food pantry will be open from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Nov. 24, Dec. 18 and Dec. 29. No proof of residency or income required to receive items at the borough office, 376 Freeport Road. People can donate nonperishable foods and personal hygiene products for the food pantry from...
Quaker Valley School Board-elect members see recent election as referendum on proposed high school
Winners of the Quaker Valley School Board race feel the election served as referendum on the proposed high school project. Candidates who were in favor of the estimated $105 million development and how the school district has proceeded thus far defeated challengers who voiced concerns about the school and wanted...
Sewickley Public Library’s 150-year history celebrated
Dustin Shilling spent the past several months rummaging through countless documents and photos in order to showcase a major part of Sewickley’s history. The more he researched, the more his interest grew. The result was a near seven-minute slideshow with music and narration projected on a screen surrounded by various...
Fox Chapel to host inaugural ‘Light Up’ event
Fox Chapel officials hope a new community event will become a holiday tradition. The borough has partnered with Cooper-Siegel Community Library to present the inaugural Light Up Fox Chapel from 5-7 p.m. on Dec. 6 at the borough building, 401 Fox Chapel Road. Festivities include a visit from Santa, children’s...
Body of Verona man who jumped from Hulton Bridge recovered from Ohio River
The body of a man who crashed his car on the Hulton Bridge in Oakmont on Nov. 7 and then jumped over the side into the Allegheny River was recovered on Wednesday afternoon from the Ohio River in Pittsburgh. Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office identified the deceased as Jeremy Gilroy,...
Leet officials approve budget with no real estate tax increase
Leet officials plan to hold the line on real estate taxes with next year’s budget. Commissioners voted 4-0-1 Nov. 13 to advertise the 2024 preliminary spending plan. The millage rate is expected to remain at 7.7 mills. It has been at least four years since the last Leet Township tax...
Sewickley real estate tax rate remains the same for next year
Sewickley officials plan to hold the line on real estate taxes next year. Council voted 8-0 Nov. 14 to advertise its proposed 2024 spending plan of $9.83 million. Council president Cynthia Mullins was absent. Proposed budget documents indicate the tax rate will remain 6.25 mills. The borough has not raised...
Blawnox real estate taxes to hold, other bills to increase
Blawnox property owners should not expect to pay more in real estate taxes next year. However, their water, sewage and garbage collection bills will increase slightly. Council voted 5-0 Nov. 8 to advertise its preliminary 2024 budget of about $1.557 million. Councilwomen Meghan Kennedy and Christine Carnevali were absent. The...
Sewickley Public Library back to regular operations following renovation project
Sewickley Public Library is back to regular operations following its $1.6 million renovation. The scaffolding that was at the main entrance and side of the facility has been removed and the second floor children’s section has been restored to its former glory after programs were moved to the first floor...
Greenberg’s Great Train & Toy Show rolls through Monroeville Convention Center
Greenberg’s Great Train & Toy Show rolled into the Monroeville Convention Center on Nov. 4 and 5. At least 1,000 locomotive enthusiasts and their families attended the two-day event. Show manager Neal Carnaby said there were between 300 and 400 vendor tables and a similar layout to previous shows. There...
Kiski Area High School marching band earns Class AA national title in IndianapolisVideo
Adalynn Jodon could hardly keep her feet still after getting off the bus at Kiski Area High School on Sunday evening. With a combination of excitement, fatigue, joy and relief, the trumpet playing senior stepped onto the familiar parking lot a national champion. “It feels awesome,” she said standing a...
Hydrant system where Plum house exploded not enough to fight fully engulfed house fire, Plum fire chief saysVideo
The fire hydrant system in the Rustic Ridge neighborhood of Plum, where a house explosion killed six people in August, is not adequate for fighting a single fully engulfed house fire, according to a borough fire chief who was on the scene that day. “Due to the fire load, the...
Aspinwall officials considering EV charging stations
Electronic vehicle charging stations could be coming to Aspinwall. Borough officials are exploring the installation of three stations each capable of charging two vehicles. They would be provided through Duquesne Light’s Community Charging Program. The three stations is a minimum program requirement. The six parking spaces needed for the three...
Clairton man charged in shooting of Monroeville officer
A Clairton man is charged with attempted homicide and other crimes in connection with the shooting of a Monroeville police officer during a police chase that ended with a crash in Allegheny Township. Bruce Alvarado, 38, remains in the Westmoreland County jail after being denied bail Saturday. Monroeville police Chief...
Pittsburgh’s 108th Christmas tree transported from SpringdaleVideo
Dolly Haggerty sat on her front porch swing, raised her red cellphone and documented some holiday history Saturday morning. The lifelong Springdale resident watched as Pittsburgh Public Works crews, assisted by Carl’s Tree Service, removed a 33-foot blue spruce from the former St. Alphonsus Church. The tree’s destiny was to...
Rumble strips being tested to stop speeders in Aspinwall
David Pankiewicz lives along Second Street in Aspinwall, and lately, he’s seen too many motorists going too fast. “We’ve been a detour zone the past three years,” he said, referring to heavy traffic along Freeport Road brought on by construction of new Highland Park Bridge ramps. “As long as somebody...
Leet commissioner facing charges filed by Sewickley police
Leet Commissioner Rody Nash is facing charges of indecent assault and harassment in connection with an incident involving a female employee. The woman accuses Nash, 63, of making inappropriate comments about her body and rubbing his hands on her back while the two were at a Sewickley property Aug. 15,...
Union workers at West View Water Authority poised to strike as contract negotiations drag on more than a year
Members of the Utility Workers Union of America Local 416 at West View Water Authority could go on strike at any time. Union president John Witheral said members voted in May to authorize a strike after negotiations with the authority stalled but have held off. Their last contract, a five-year...

