Natasha Lindstrom stories, Page 35
Landslide-damaged Prospect Road in Baldwin Borough reopens to traffic
Prospect Road in Baldwin Borough reopened to traffic Thursday following a landslide that shut down the South Hills thoroughfare earlier this week, officials said. A landslide during Tuesday’s severe weather conditions prompted Allegheny County Department of Public Works crews to close Prospect Road between Beryl Drive and Streets Run Road....
State Police nab 1,800 drivers for ignoring restrictions during winter storms
Pennsylvania State Police issued citations to more than 800 drivers of commercial vehicles — including tractor-trailers, flatbeds, box trucks and buses — for ignoring or violating emergency road restrictions during severe storms this week. Troopers have issued more than 1,800 such citations so far this year, figures provided by state...
Truck spills load on Parkway West, snarls traffic between Green Tree, Robinson
A truck lost its load along the Parkway West midday Thursday, snarling traffic for hours while crews worked to clear metal debris from the interstate, officials said. By 5 p.m., about five hours after the incident, Interstate 376 reopened to traffic after closing to a single lane in both directions...
Pittsburgh jury indicts 2 in bank robbery spree case; 3rd suspect to plead guilty
A federal grand jury this week indicted two of three people accused of a string of armed bank robberies in Pittsburgh and its suburbs in October, U.S. Attorney Scott W. Brady said y. Nicole Wallace, 34, of Carnegie and Edward Hooten, 42, of Pittsburgh face charges that carry maximum sentences...
Package thief who stole from Pittsburgh apartments gets 15 months in prison
A Duquesne man will spend 15 months behind bars for stealing packages from more than 40 residents of Pittsburgh apartment buildings, federal prosecutors said Wednesday. Ron Matthew Sharp, 42, pleaded guilty in October to mail theft after stealing dozens of packages and mail addressed to residents of apartment buildings in...
Grand jury: Penn Hills school leaders plunged district into ‘economic ruin’
A scathing grand jury report released Tuesday says Penn Hills School District leaders are guilty of “inexcusable” carelessness that brought the district to “economic ruin” but failed to find any cause to bring criminal charges. The grand jury, convened by Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr., worked for...
I-376 to close to 1 lane in both directions from Ft. Pitt Bridge to Squirrel Hill next week
Drivers traveling after-dark along Interstate 376 next week could confront delays because of overnight lane restrictions for road improvements, PennDOT officials said Friday. From 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. Monday through Thursday, I-376 will be reduced to one lane in both directions at various locations between the Fort Pitt Bridge...
Port Authority’s ConnectCard kiosks repaired; free rides end Friday afternoon
Two days of free rides using the Port Authority of Allegheny County public transit system came to an end Friday afternoon. With temperatures climbing and the authority’s ConnectCard kiosks no longer malfunctioning, regular fare collection resumed at 2 p.m., said Port Authority spokesman Adam Brandolph. The outdoor kiosks had malfunctioned...
Allegheny Health Network reports $3.3B in operating revenue, up 6.9% from 2017
Allegheny Health Network took in $3.3 billion in revenue last year, up 6.9 percent from 2017, as the health care provider and hospital system moves on aggressive expansion plans to reach more patients, financial statements filed Thursday show. Total operating revenue in 2018 increased by $213 million from the previous...
Temporary head of Mattress Factory aims to set museum right after scandal
The temporary head of a North Side art museum will be laser-focused on an overarching goal when she starts next month. Hayley Haldeman, newly tapped interim director of the museum in Pittsburgh’s North Side, will work to prove to employees as well as the public that the Mattress Factory art...
Record-breaking cold snap kicks Allegheny County warming center, shelters ‘into overdrive’
More than a dozen people bustled about the basement of The River - A Community Church in New Kensington on midday Wednesday. Pots of chicken noodle and vegetable broth soups simmered on a stovetop while flaky, doughy biscuits baked in the oven below. Some volunteers prepped a refreshment area offering...
Peoples Gas wants to raise rates by 14 to 19 percent to pump $95M into replacing pipelines
Peoples Natural Gas is seeking permission from state regulators to increase rates for its customers by 14 to 19 percent so the utility can pump $95 million into replacing aging pipelines, officials said Monday. Typical residential customers would see an increase of about $10 per month, or 14 percent, under...
Mattress Factory art museum taps Hayley Haldeman, wife of Conor Lamb, as interim director
The Mattress Factory contemporary art museum has tapped Jones Day attorney Hayley Haldeman for its new interim leader as the popular tourist destination in Pittsburgh’s North Side rebounds from allegations that supervisors retaliated against employees who reported sexual harassment. Haldeman is a litigator based in Pittsburgh who specializes in complex...
Fans of Netflix shows can take home props at 3-weekend sale in Marshall
Netflix is offloading its latest batch of leftover props and set decor in greater Pittsburgh. Fans interested in adorning their homes or businesses with props from the streaming service’s original shows have the chance to choose from thousands of items during a three-weekend liquidation sale that begins Saturday in Marshall...
McCandless Catholic deacon in child sex sting gets probation, community service
A Roman Catholic deacon from McCandless was sentenced Thursday to two years of probation and 100 hours of community service for convictions related to sending sexually explicit material to an undercover police officer posing online as a teenage boy. Deacon Rosendo “Ross” Dacal, 74, pleaded guilty in October to felony...
24 neighborhood nonprofits share in $341K ‘Small and Mighty’ grants
The Black Urban Gardeners and Farmers of Pittsburgh Co-Op plans to spend a $15,000 infusion on expanding a neighborhood nutrition program and planning a co-op grocery store and farmers market in Homestead. Raising Achievement in Monroeville and Pitcairn, a volunteer-led organization known as RAMP, plans to offer $1,000 stipends to...
Western Pennsylvania municipalities will vie for landslide, flood relief
Matt Brown, emergency services chief for Allegheny County, Wednesday urged municipalities battered by landslides and recurring flooding to compete for a new pot of federal funding. Up to $10 million in hazard-mitigation grants has been made available statewide, despite the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s denying Western Pennsylvania’s request to declare...
Penn Hills School District, facing $10.9M budget shortfall, accepts state oversight
The state-tapped chief recovery officer set to begin work at Penn Hills School District next month will confront an anticipated 2018-19 budget shortfall of $10.9 million, looming spikes in debt payments and a proposed property tax rate hike that would make residents in Penn Hills among the highest-taxed in Allegheny...
Water line leak forces closure of 40th Street Bridge ramp to Route 28
A water line leak has prompted crews to shut down the ramp that links the 40th Street Bridge to northbound Route 28 in Millvale, PennDOT officials said Monday night. The ramp will be closed to traffic “until further notice” because of “safety reasons,” PennDOT spokesman Steve Cowan said shortly after...
Beaver County driver dies after crashing into Pennsylvania Turnpike building
A Beaver County woman died Monday after her SUV crashed into a Pennsylvania Turnpike building near a toll plaza in Lawrence County, officials said. The crash, which happened just after 10 p.m., caused traffic delays and temporarily blocked the right lanes of the Turnpike near mile-marker 18.6 between the Moravia...
3 injured in crash involving Port Authority bus, car in Pittsburgh’s Strip District
A crash involving a Port Authority of Allegheny County bus and a car in Pittsburgh’s Strip District sent three people to the hospital Monday afternoon with minor injuries, officials said. “None of the injuries are considered to be serious,” Port Authority spokesman Adam Brandolph said. A Route 88/Penn Avenue bus...
Officials see better financial days for the beleaguered Penn Hills School District
Days after Penn Hills School District’s plunge into financial recovery status, state lawmakers and district officials are touting optimism that state intervention will catapult the debt-ridden district out of its dire straits. “Locally, we feel we have exhausted all reasonable options to manage the burden of our crushing debt, most...
Wanted people can clear warrants via Allegheny County’s ‘amnesty program’
Allegheny County has opted to cut hundreds of wanted people some slack over the next two weeks. Anyone who has a bench warrant out for failing to appear in court can go to the Allegheny County Courthouse in Pittsburgh through Feb. 1 to clear their warrant and schedule a new...
Eurasian eagle-owl chick hatches at National Aviary in Pittsburgh, encounters available
If you’d like to meet a baby owl, you might want to plan a trip to Pittsburgh’s North Side. A Eurasian eagle-owl chick has hatched at the National Aviary on Arch Street, caretakers announced Friday. The 6-day-old owlet weighs about 80 grams, or as much as a small peach. But...
Highmark Health’s IT business eliminates 40 positions, including 25 in Pittsburgh
Highmark Health’s information technology division axed 40 positions on Thursday, including 25 in Pittsburgh, officials said. HM Health Solutions, which supports 13 Blue Cross/Blue Shield plans and nearly 10 million members in multiple states, eliminated the positions as part of staffing adjustments aimed at “the best long-term interest of our...
