Bob Bauder stories, Page 5

Pittsburgh is recruiting lifeguards to work at city pools in anticipation of opening this summer if the coronavirus restrictions are lifted. The city needs lifeguards to work at the city’s 18 outdoor pools and is offering two free lifeguard training courses for candidates to become certified or update certifications. Officials...

Two local restaurant owners are suing their insurance provider, claiming the company has refused to honor claims for damages to their businesses caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Joseph Tambellini and HTR Restaurants Inc. filed separate lawsuits Friday in the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas against Erie Insurance Exchange. Both...

The Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank plans to have enough food on hand Wednesday for 1,500 vehicles during a drive-up food giveaway at Pittsburgh International Airport, the organization announced Monday. The event is scheduled for 1 to 3 p.m. in airport parking lots. “The airport is an ideal location,” Lisa...

Mayor Bill Peduto on Monday asked President Trump for funding to help cities provide essential services during the coronavirus pandemic, saying Pittsburgh is facing a $127 million deficit in 2020 and $239 million in losses over the next five years. Peduto in a letter urged the president to provide at...

If it helps keep people healthy during the coronavirus pandemic, the statewide order requiring customers and employees of businesses to wear masks makes sense, people in the region said Sunday evening. It went into effect at 8 p.m. The order, announced Wednesday by Pennsylvania Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine,...

A Plum police officer discovered possible human remains while patrolling the borough Sunday morning, Allegheny County police reported. The officer was in an area known for illegal dumping and off-road vehicles around 10:20 a.m. and spotted a suspicious garbage bag. Upon a closer look the officer found what appeared to...

Pittsburgh is planning to purchase a nine-block section of abandoned rail line in the Strip District for an extension of a riverfront trail that officials hope will someday run unobstructed from Point State Park to the Highland Park Bridge. City Council this week introduced a resolution that would authorize officials...

A truck driver from Pittsburgh’s Department of Public Works Environmental Services Bureau has died from covid-19, officials said Wednesday. He is the first city employee to die from the coronavirus, officials said. “I am praying for his family, friends and co-workers in these tragic times. The pandemic may be global...

Pittsburgh is preparing to refinance $161 million in debt while interest rates remain low, a move that officials say will result in significant savings. Margaret Lanier, the city’s treasurer and finance director, said the refinancing of nearly $161.3 million would cover capital bonds issued in 2012, 2014 and 2018. She...

Pittsburgh’s Mt. Washington could be in line for a giant face-lift. Officials are set to apply for a $20 million federal grant that would pay for the stabilization of the landslide-plagued hill offering panoramic views of the city. Council plans to introduce a resolution on Tuesday that would authorize an...

Pittsburgh plans to offer free grass cutting again in 2020 for seniors, veterans and people with disabilities, but is uncertain when the service might begin because of the coronavirus pandemic. City Council on Tuesday voted 8-1 to allocate $300,000 for the City Cuts program. Dan Gilman, Mayor Bill Peduto’s chief...

Three Allegheny County Jail inmates sued the county Wednesday — the same day the jail reported its first case of an inmate testing positive for covid-19 — claiming they are at risk of being infected because of dangerous conditions inside the facility. Inmates Michael Graham, Alexus Diggs and Heather Connolly...

It’s almost impossible to access the Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board’s online sales site these days, but residents can buy booze online through several independent distilleries. Repeated attempts to access the Fine Wine & Good Spirits online store brings up the same message: “Thank you for being a valued customer. Due...

Pittsburgh’s technology sector is pulling together to provide computers for more than 7,000 city schoolchildren who need them for virtual learning during the coronavirus pandemic. The Pittsburgh Technology Council organized a teleconference and group chat on Tuesday where Gerardo Interiano, who heads government relations for Pittsburgh-based self-driving vehicle company Aurora,...

Western Pennsylvania residents tonight at 8 can salute essential workers — first responders, grocery store employees, health care providers and others — by switching on lights and standing outside applauding, cheering and banging pots and pans. The grassroots event dubbed “Illumination Ovation” has roots in the United Kingdom, where residents...

A Pittsburgh Police Academy firearms instructor tested positive for covid-19, prompting officials to suspend a 28-member recruit class The city’s Public Safety Department is working to identify everyone, including recruits, who came into contact with the instructor. Officials sent the instructor home on Wednesday after he began exhibiting symptoms similar...

The U.S. Postal Service is hiring temporary workers to fill mail handling and processing positions at various locations in Western Pennsylvania, the agency announced Monday. People are needed to serve as mail handler assistants, mail processing clerk assistants, clerk assistants and city carrier assistants, according to the postal service. The...

Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto has asked City Council to approve an extension of his disaster declaration until early May. Council is scheduled to introduce a resolution on Tuesday that would authorize an extension of the declaration until May 5. Peduto issued the declaration March 13. It allows the city to...

Pittsburgh’s Original Oyster House has operated through two world wars, floods, the Spanish flu pandemic, the Great Depression and the collapse of the steel industry. Owner Jen Grippo is confident it can get through the coronavirus pandemic. “If we can survive all that, I would hope that we can survive...

Steel Valley residents with children age 5 and younger can enroll their kids to receive one free book each month through Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library. Mary Denison, founder and executive director of Reading Ready Pittsburgh, said residents of the 15120 ZIP code — generally Homestead, Munhall, West Homestead and parts...

Duquesne Light is expanding its assistance program to help income eligible customers pay their utility bills during the coronavirus pandemic. The company announced Friday a $375,000 grant from the Pennsylvania Office of Consumer Advocate and matching funds from Duquesne Light would add $750,000 to the Dollar Energy Fund, administrator of...

Peoples Gas will donate $100,000 to the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank to provide community support during the coronavirus pandemic, the utility announced Thursday. Hundreds of people lined up in vehicles on Mondayto receive free boxes of dried goods and meats from the Duquesne-based food bank. The food bank had...

When Martina Hanoglu saw people in her native Czech Republic making homemade facial masks for possible protection against the coronavirus, she pulled out her small sewing machine. For the past two weeks, Hanoglu stitched together cotton masks and distributed them to employees and Downtown Pittsburgh neighbors from her pizza shop...

Pittsburgh has updated its covid-19 website to offer more information in six additional languages, according to the Mayor’s Office. The site contains links offering public health and safety information from federal, state and county sources. It also includes city operational changes and press releases about the coronavirus pandemic. Important announcements...