Regional category, Page 21
When it comes to assessed property values, what is a mill, anyway?
Taxpayers know their property taxes are expressed in terms of mills or “millage.” The higher the millage number, the bigger the tax bill. But many don’t understand where that comes from. For taxing purposes, a mill is 1/1,000th of a dollar. So a tax rate of 100 mills means the...
Nonprofit’s ‘Frog Week’ a leap into education, improving habitat
AAron Capouellez wants people to know everything they can about how to create, maintain and foster nurturing habitats for Pennsylvania’s frogs and toads. But he doesn’t want them to know where those habitats are, necessarily. It’s one of the odd contradictions of amphibian conservation and a bit of a catch-22...
Penn State buys former fraternity house where Timothy Piazza was fatally hurt
Penn State trustees on Friday authorized the purchase of the former Beta Theta Pi house where hazing led to the death of student Timothy Piazza in 2017. The university will pay $7.3 million for the 0.92-acre property, located at 220 N. Burrowes Road, State College. Sara Thorndike, senior vice president...
Starbucks makes secret menu official
For the first time, Starbucks is acknowledging its secret menu. Though countless “secret menu” items at Starbucks have been circulating online and on social media for years, this week, the coffee giant made the secret menu official. Starbucks Rewards members can now order the top drink customizations, including twists on...
Penn State increases 2026-27 tuition rates for University Park, some branch campus students
Penn State’s budget for the 2026-27 academic year raises tuition for all of its students attending University Park and some of its students that attend branch campuses. The $10.2 billion budget, approved Friday by the board of trustees, includes a 2% tuition increase for in-state undergraduate students attending University Park,...
Flash flood warnings are being issued in W.Pa. at their fastest rate in 20 years
Western Pennsylvania has been awash in flash flood warnings this year. The National Weather Service has issued 112 such warnings so far in 2025, Alicia Miller, hydrologist at the weather service in Moon, said Thursday. That’s more than the past three years combined and more than any year since 2003....
Tuition increase approved for state-owned universities for 1st time in 7 years
Tuition for state universities is set to increase by 3.6% for students this fall, but that figure could decrease if state funding increases, the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education said Thursday. In-state undergraduate tuition for this academic year will increase by $139 per semester, to $3,997 per semester, according...
Standing-room-only crowd gets detailed look at plan for Homer City natural gas plant
Members of the public got their first detailed look Wednesday evening at what would be the largest natural gas-fired power plant in the U.S. if it’s built: a 3,200-acre project in Homer City, Indiana County. Representatives from Homer City Redevelopment were on hand alongside officials from local trade unions and...
Morning Roundup: Cooling centers open in Allegheny, Westmoreland; Fayette fire hospitalizes 4
Here are some of the latest news items happening this morning, Wednesday, July 16: Cooling centers open in Allegheny, Westmoreland After issuing a heat advisory Tuesday, Allegheny County will keep its cooling centers open Wednesday as temperatures reach into the upper 80s. Cooling centers will be open in Allegheny County...
Ex-Beaver County cop who assaulted witness pleads guilty to involuntary manslaughter
A former Beaver County police officer pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter and other offenses just as his trial was set to begin, the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office announced Tuesday. John J. Hawk, 38, was charged after assaulting Kenneth E. Vinyard, 48, of Industry at the scene of a shooting outside...
Police charge Canon-McMillan high school teacher with having sex with student
A Washington County science teacher was arrested on Tuesday on charges he had a monthslong sexual relationship with one of his students at Canon-McMillan High School. Justin White, 48, of Canonsburg is charged by North Strabane police with 13 counts of institutional sexual assault and criminal use of a communication...
‘A superpower for energy’: Homer City power station developers to present site plans
Developers will present plans Wednesday for a $10 billion, 3,200-acre, natural-gas power plant in Indiana County. The former Homer City Generating Station, once a coal-fired plant, is being proposed to provide the electricity required for artificial intelligence and high-performance computing. Members of Homer City Redevelopment Group will host an open...
Cat rescue in Bethel Park rehomes felines after car crashes into building
A Bethel Park cat rescue had to scramble to find homes for several felines after a car crashed into the charity’s community room on Monday. In a Facebook post Monday evening, Cali Cats Rescue said that its power had been shut off after the accident, making it impossible for cats...
New college admission test gaining popularity
The SAT, accepted by almost all of the nearly 4,000 colleges and universities in the U.S., may have some growing competition. The Classic Learning Test (CLT) has proved quite the competitor against other admissions exams, including the SAT and ACT. Since its release in 2015, the CLT has reached more...
Politics from the pulpit now OK, IRS says
The Rev. Bob Ross’ weekly messages to parishioners at Heritage Baptist Church in Jeannette never tackle politics. It’s the way Ross views his role as a local faith leader. “I”m not political, so I’m not going to talk about politics from the pulpit,” Ross said. “My job is not to...
Butler ‘united and stronger than ever’ year after Trump assassination attempt, Kelly says
A year ago today, U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly didn’t know what to make of the loud popping sounds he heard. Then, after hearing another burst, he realized they were gunshots. What to that point had been a jubilant campaign rally for Donald Trump at the Butler Farm Show grounds was...
Here’s how weather alerts, warnings make it to the public in Western Pa.
The repercussions of fatal flooding on the Fourth of July in the sun-scorched Texas Hill Country are being felt more than a week later and 1,500 miles away in the similarly hilly terrain of Western Pennsylvania. Those reflecting on the tragedy are not just people shaken by the loss of...
With 911 working normally, investigation continues into cause of outages
Pennsylvania’s 911 system is again functioning normally. Late Friday, 911 calls resumed routing normally across the state, after what were described as “intermittent outages” earlier in the day. The root cause of the issue is under investigation, and an independent review will be performed to determine what can be done...
Fireflies are making a noticeable return to Western Pa.
The flickering fields of summer nights are back. Fireflies, it seems, are abundant again. Throughout the region, people are noticing more of the largely nocturnal, flashing insects. Once a staple of summer evenings, lightning bugs had seemed to become scarce over the past few years thanks to a loss of...
A general’s defeat: Anniversary will be observed in North Braddock
At the eastern edge of Westmoreland County’s Route 30 corridor lies one of the state’s best example of a colonial fort — Fort Ligonier, the site of the October 1758 battle where British and Colonial forces repulsed an attack by French and Native Americans. But it may not have been...
911 service restored in Pennsylvania; state official says investigation underway
911 service has been restored in Pennsylvania. Late Friday, 911 calls resumed routing as normal across the state and an investigation into what caused an hours long outage was ongoing, according to the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency. In a post on social media just before midnight, the agency reported 911...
VA insists veterans services remain robust in Pittsburgh despite staff departures nationwide
Pittsburgh-area veterans won’t see any interruption to their care or benefits, the Department of Veterans Affairs claims, even as thousands of its employees head for the exits nationwide. The department is on pace to lose nearly 30,000 employees, or about 6% of its workforce, by the end of September. Already,...
AAA will host Monroeville event to replace peeling, illegible license plates
AAA East Central will host an event in Tuesday in Monroeville for drivers to replace license plates that have begun peeling. In Pennsylvania, drivers can be pulled over and fined up to $100 for an illegible license plate, defined as a plate where one or more characters cannot be recognized...
Morning Roundup: 2 pit bulls fatally attack smaller dog in Carrick
Here are some of the latest news items happening this morning, Friday, July 11: 2 pit bulls fatally attack smaller dog in Carrick A pair of pit bulls fatally attacked a smaller dog in Carrick, Pittsburgh police said Thursday via a social media post. Police and Animal Care and Control...
Safe to splash? State parks, watershed associations monitor rivers for E. coli contamination
When it rains, it pours E. coli. That’s what water quality testers across Western Pennsylvania might tell you right now. Every week during the summer months, volunteers and employees monitor the region’s public waterways for E. coli, which can flow into lakes and streams from agricultural and sewer systems overwhelmed...
