Allegheny category, Page 5
Crews battle blaze at Wilkinsburg home
Several fire crews responded to a residential fire in Wilkinsburg on Tuesday night. Allegheny County 911 dispatchers said the blaze began around 7:40 p.m. on the 1000 block of North Avenue. No injuries were initially reported, according to dispatchers. The Pittsburgh Bureau of Fire provides fire protection in Wilkinsburg. The...
Shaler Area retains leadership as 3 new members join school board
Leadership of the Shaler Area School Board is unchanged following the November election, which saw three new members join the board. James Tunstall was reelected president of the board at its Dec. 3 reorganization meeting. Eileen Phillips was reelected vice president. Their seats were not up for election this year,...
Local lawmakers, librarians celebrate $5M increase in Pa. budget for public libraries
Librarians and others joined local legislators Dec. 5 at Northland Public Library to celebrate a $5 million increase in the Pennsylvania budget for public libraries. The extra funding is reflected in the statewide public library subsidy of $75,470,000 for the coming fiscal year and is part of the $50.1 billion...
Taxes to spike 63% in Franklin Park as borough adopts ‘fiscally proactive’ 2026 budget
Franklin Park residents will see a 63% jump in taxes in 2026. The millage rate was increased by 1 mill, to 2.59 mills from the current 1.59 mills, to address deficits in the budget and reserve funds. While the budget passed unanimously Dec. 3, the millage rate passed 4-2, with...
Reserve commissioners approve $6M 2026 budget with no property tax increase
Reserve commissioners have approved the township’s $6 million budget for 2026, which carries no property tax increase. The township’s property tax rate will remain at 6.47 mills. For a property at the township’s median value, the annual township property tax bill will stay at about $615. Commissioners approved the budget...
Food truck found operating without permit
The Cousins Maine Lobster food truck operating in Richland last week was ordered to close by the Allegheny County Health Department — for operating without a permit. However, a week later, Annalisa Sangiovanni, an administrator for Cousins Maine Lobster’s Pittsburgh franchises, said the issues have been remedied. “Our original Pittsburgh...
Morning Roundup: Water main repairs close section of Route 28
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Tuesday, Dec. 9: Water main repairs close section of Route 28 A section of inbound Route 28 has been closed as crews repair a water main break. The issue was reported Monday afternoon on a hillside across from the...
MicroSociety builds confidence, challenges students at Penn Hills Charter School of Entrepreneurship
Mini-city Soarmania is celebrating its fifth anniversary. Not a place found on the map, Soarmania was meticulously created and carried on by students of Penn Hills Charter School of Entrepreneurship. For one period each day, PHCSE transforms into the MicroSociety Soarmania, where students apply academics to real-life experiences. Running from...
Without closures, Pittsburgh Public Schools projects $6M deficit with 4% tax hike
Pittsburgh Public Schools officials plan to move into the new year with a more than $6 million projected budget deficit despite a proposed 4% tax hike. In a budget hearing Monday night, multiple district residents implored school board members and administrators to find creative ways of raising revenue beyond the...
Allegheny County sheriff admitted to hospital last week, in stable condition
Allegheny County Sheriff Kevin Kraus is in stable condition after being hospitalized last week, according to spokesperson Mike Manko. Kraus was “under the weather” all of last week and decided to see a doctor on Thursday, Manko said. “That doctor suggested he go to the hospital where doctors made the...
Soxman Funeral Homes in Penn Hills marks 3rd annual Children’s Grief Awareness Day
Children learned about grief and how to process it while enjoying snacks, listening to a storytime, crafting and hanging out with Lilo, a bereavement care dog, during Soxman Funeral Homes’ third annual Children’s Grief Awareness Day event Nov. 22. Created by The Highmark Caring Place in 2008, Children’s Grief Awareness...
8 taken to hospital following Monroeville crash involving school bus
Five children and three adults were taken to local hospitals after a crash Monday morning between a Gateway school bus and another vehicle, school officials said. First responders were called to Monroeville Boulevard near the entrance to Target around 8:30 a.m. The bus collided with an SUV, which overturned. Gateway...
North Hills School Board approves limiting any potential property tax increase to state limit
The North Hills School Board has agreed to limit any potential property tax increase in the district’s 2026-27 budget. At its Dec. 2 meeting, the board approved a resolution stating it would not seek to increase the property tax rate by more than 4.2%, the district’s inflation limit imposed by...
PennDOT announces overnight closures of Route 8 in Etna
Southbound Route 8 in Etna will be closed overnight Tuesday through Friday, Dec. 9-12, PennDOT announced. The closures between Kittanning Street and the Route 28 interchange are scheduled for 10 p.m. to 3 a.m. each night. The ramps from southbound Route 8 to northbound and southbound Route 28 also will...
Municipal manager talks ‘All Things Monroeville,’ including mall’s fate, town’s future
During Monroeville Rotary’s town hall meeting Dec. 4 at Monroeville Public Library, municipal Manager Alex discussed “All Things Monroeville.” Fittingly, Graziani was introduced by Rotary President Tim Little, who served as Monroeville’s manager from 2010 until his retirement in December 2023. Graziani said he met with Little around the time...
Sharpsburg, Rankin mayors attend Mayors Summit Against Antisemitism
Sharpsburg Mayor Kayla Portis visited New Orleans for the first time with a heavy heart. Portis attended the 2025 North American Mayors Summit Against Antisemitism held Dec. 2-4 in New Orleans. “The Tree of Life shooting is a tragedy that continues to weigh heavily on our region,” said Portis, invited...
Gateway High School’s ‘Almost, Maine’ production a fitting debut for director
The first time Kaylie Wallace saw her grandfather, Larry Cervi, direct a play was about a decade ago when Gateway High School performed “Almost, Maine” — the 2004 show written by John Cariani. Recently, Wallace stepped into Cervi’s (dancing) shoes as the artistic director and choreographer at the nonprofit East...
Man pistol-whipped during armed home invasion in Swissvale
A man was pistol-whipped during a home invasion in Swissvale on Sunday, Allegheny County Police said. The armed home invasion in the 2500 block of Delaware Avenue was reported to 911 shortly before 6 p.m. First responders found a man suffering from head lacerations. He was taken to a hospital...
3 injured in Penn Hills crash
Three people were injured early Sunday morning in a two-vehicle accident on Verona Road early Sunday morning, Penn Hills Fire Department No. 7 said in a Facebook post. Penn Hills police said the accident was reported at 2:15 a.m. and that the injuries were minor. One man was...
Substitute teacher shortages leave some districts scrambling to avoid ‘vicious cycle’ in schools
During Allegheny Valley School District’s two-month search for a consistent high school biology teacher, Superintendent Patrick Graczyk said other teachers, outside substitutes and even school principals stepped in to keep the science class going. Eventually, the district found a long-term substitute with an emergency biology certification to fill the role...
Robert Morris University to pay $948K to settle pandemic-learning lawsuit
Robert Morris University will pay just under $1 million as part of a proposed settlement of a lawsuit filed by a student who alleged the Moon Township college breached its contract when it transitioned to online instruction during the covid-19 pandemic. Allegheny County Judge Alan Hertzberg this fall preliminarily approved...
Chartiers Valley girl, family sue district over alleged sexual abuse by fellow pupil in 3rd grade
The family of a student at Chartiers Valley School District is suing the district for negligence claiming officials there failed to protect their daughter from sexual harassment — and then sexual abuse — by a fellow third-grader. The abuse, according to the complaint filed Friday in Allegheny County Common Pleas...
Bomb squad sweeps Pittsburgh Symphony’s chartered plane in response to threat
Allegheny County Police on Thursday investigated a security threat impacting a plane chartered by the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. A note “that was deemed to be potentially threatening” was found at Pittsburgh International Airport around 10:35 a.m. Thursday, Jim Madalinsky, a county police spokesman, said Friday. The county’s bomb squad swept...
Realtor: North, South Hills real estate markets have more similarities than you’d think
Editor’s note: This is part of an occasional series on real estate market trends in Western Pennsylvania. Twenty-six years ago, Bob Topich broke the age-old social norm of Pittsburgh suburbanites — departing his native South Hills for a home north of the city. Topich, 65, of Franklin Park, has never...
Frank Lloyd Wright-inspired property listed for $1.5M in Upper St. Clair
Dr. Allen Axelson is preparing to bid farewell to his beloved, nature-infused home, which he designed himself in the 1970s in Upper St. Clair. Axelson drew from his lifelong admiration of famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright to build a contemporary home on seven acres for his growing family. “I’m a...
