Renatta Signorini stories, Page 19
Greensburg plans zoning review for 1st time in 30 years
Greensburg is planning to revamp its zoning ordinance. It’ll be the first review of the city’s zoning ordinance in about 30 years, said Alec Italiano, director of planning and development. “There’s been a lot of Band-Aids put on the current code,” he said. City officials are seeking proposals from consultants...
Western Pa. represented at upcoming Westminster Dog Show
Declan will have his own cheering section when he hits the show ring Tuesday to compete in the Westminster Dog Show. The 4-year-old golden retriever will help his owner/handler Megan Ash of North Huntingdon achieve a goal in the process. “This has always been on my bucket list to go,...
Detectives say series of raids has put vape shop owners on notice
Westmoreland County vape shops are taking notice in the wake of police raids in the last several months at similar businesses. Westmoreland County Detective Tony Marcocci said a couple of shops checked recently by undercover officers had stopped selling illegal items as a result of raids on vape shops. “It’s...
Hempfield’s troubled High Park, West Point fire departments may join forces
High Park Volunteer Fire Department, which has been closed for the past year, is proposing a merger with West Point Volunteer Fire Department. Attorney Kim Houser said members of both departments have been examining the potential to join forces and could file a petition in the coming weeks in Westmoreland...
South Carolina man accused of killing girlfriend in Rostraver
A mother of three was fatally shot late Wednesday in Rostraver by her live-in boyfriend, according to police. One of three children living at the Route 136 home called 911 around 11 p.m. to report the shooting. Estela Rivera Vasquez, 35, was found in the basement with a gunshot wound...
Greensburg fire officials hope electronic signs will give recruits the message
Greensburg fire Chief Tom Bell wants to try out a new recruitment method — electronic signs. He is planning to buy four signs with a $109,600 state grant that could be installed outside three fire departments and city hall, as long Greensburg officials give the OK. “We picked the three...
Fayette County attorney’s license suspended 5 years because of money laundering case
A Fayette County attorney who completed a probation sentence for offering to launder drug money for clients had his law license suspended for five years, the Disciplinary Board of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania announced Wednesday. The license suspension is retroactive to April 2020 when the temporary suspension started for...
Police say owners of Mon View Heights stole $580,000, created public nuisance
Three men who own the Mon View Heights housing complex in West Mifflin were charged by police Tuesday with stealing $580,000 that could have been used to make improvements at the properties. Instead, authorities said, the trio diverted the cash into various bank accounts connected to the apartment complex, according...
Aide at Quality Life Services accused of stealing patient’s debit card
A traveling health care worker from Louisiana who police said has a history of theft is accused by Washington Township authorities of stealing a debit card belonging to a patient and using it at a grocery store, according to court papers. Family members of the patient at Quality Life Services,...
Newly approved painkiller Journavx is ‘potentially groundbreaking’
A new painkiller that is said to be free of addiction risks may be transformative for treatment of acute pain, according to local medical professionals. “I think it could be a potentially groundbreaking medication,” said Dr. Richard Gao, anesthesiologist and chronic pain physician with Allegheny Health Network. “I definitely think...
Jeannette couple plans to distribute $10K in scholarships through nonprofit
A $1,000 boost from a local nonprofit helped Jeannette native Noah Sanders buy books and pay for student housing at college while he works on a degree in business and finance. A 2024 high school graduate, Sanders is hoping to become an accountant after completing coursework at Defiance College in...
Massachusetts man accused of impersonating a police officer in Hempfield during alleged fraud scheme
A man who state troopers said portrayed himself as a Pittsburgh police officer on a Hempfield doorstep Friday morning is behind bars. State police said they were called to a home on Crows Nest Road just before 10 a.m. by a resident who reported a suspicious person knocking on her...
Hempfield woman charged after 7 cats found dead in Unity home
A Hempfield woman is accused by state police of leaving seven cats behind when she moved out of a Unity home, according to court papers. The felines were found dead amid garbage in the apartment after the new owner reported hiring a contractor to clean it out, troopers said. The...
Clairton man nabbed in West Newton drug sting
A Clairton man is behind bars after police said he sold 160 bricks of drugs to a confidential informant in West Newton and took $30,750 to settle drug debts, according to court papers. Ismail A. Hamlin, 28, is facing numerous drug and weapons violations in Westmoreland and Allegheny counties as...
Defense attorneys say aides in Greensburg Salem elementary school followed direction of supervisors
Defense attorneys sought to push blame Wednesday in criminal cases alleging mistreatment of three Greensburg Salem elementary students onto two women who led the classroom, not two aides who were essentially their subordinates. Attorneys for Lorraine F. Robertson, 75, of Greensburg, and Amanda Lehman, 40, of South Greensburg, argued during...
Paul Skenes drops by ‘Late Night with Seth Meyers’ to talk baseball cards, facial hair and staying composed
A familiar face — to Pittsburghers — dropped by Seth Meyers’ talk show last night: Pirates pitcher Paul Skenes. The reigning NL Rookie of the Year made an appearance on Tuesday night’s edition of “Late Night with Seth Meyers.” Meyers, whose father grew up in East Liberty and is big...
Hempfield OKs change in compensation rate for property tax collector
Hempfield supervisors agreed Monday to pitch in more for the township property tax collector’s compensation, a figure officials said had gone unchanged for decades. Supervisor Doug Weimer estimated it’s likely been 35 years since the elected office has gotten a raise. “I think we’re overdue on changing the compensation formula,”...
Hempfield delays decision on zoning change for proposed development near Valley Green
Hempfield supervisors are taking more time to mull over a request to rezone 100 acres of farmland to allow for a housing development after neighbors voiced concerns regarding flooding, traffic and wetlands on the property. Supervisors voted unanimously to table the measure. “Growth’s important to the township, I support controlled...
‘A freeing experience’: Guides help visually impaired skiers take to Seven Springs slopes
Editor’s note: The captions under the photographs associated with this story include a description of the image content so that information might be relayed to software assisting the visually impaired. Downhill skiing with a guide took away any fears for Amelie Colletti. Having the support close by to navigate the...
4 found dead in suspected Hempfield murder-suicide; victims include children ages 1, 5
Dick Shawley held back tears while standing on his Hempfield front porch Friday morning after learning four of his neighbors are dead in what police deemed a murder-suicide. He recalled all the times he gave the kids — Connor, 1, and Evelyn, 5 — money for their birthdays and Christmas...
Hempfield considers next step in possible demolition of former state prison
Hempfield supervisors are set to vote Monday on seeking bids for the demolition of the former SCI Greensburg state prison. Township manager Aaron Siko said if supervisors approve the measure, a contract could be awarded in March. With $2 million from the state Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program designated for the...
2 nabbed in burglary spree of 11 bars in Westmoreland, Washington, Fayette counties
State police announced Thursday that two people were arrested in connection with a string of bar burglaries in three counties, including Westmoreland, where $17,500 in cash and alcohol was stolen. Preliminary hearings are scheduled next week for David Alan Rice, 33, of Charleroi, and Stephanie Denise Hankle, 30, of Monongahela....
Tardy salt deliveries, dwindling supply prompt Ligonier borough and township to emergency declarations
At least two more Westmoreland County municipalities — Ligonier borough and township — declared a state of emergency this week related to a lack of road salt. Meanwhile, Jeannette’s emergency declaration this week led to an agreement with the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency to get salt from PennDOT, if necessary,...
Woman arrested after pursuit through North Huntingdon neighborhoods; drugs seized from car
A Wilkinsburg woman being pursued by police was traveling at least 80 mph Monday afternoon through residential areas of North Huntingdon, according to court papers. Magdelena Ludwig, 27, was denied bail during her Tuesday arraignment on charges of fleeing from police, resisting arrest and numerous drug counts. Township police said...
Single-digit temperatures make for trying night for South Greensburg firefighters
Icicles hung from a South Greensburg home Tuesday morning as firefighters hosed down the structure amid single-digit temperatures. It was a trying night for dozens of volunteer firefighters from around the region, said South Greensburg fire Chief Matt White. The fire on Parr Street was reported around 11:30 p.m. Monday....
