August 05, 2019 |
By Cami DiBattista | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
(Tube City Almanac file photo from 2012 by Denise L. Ritter)
CORRECTION: Fireworks are Tuesday, Aug. 13. We apologize for the error.
Renziehausen Park will soon be booming with the tastes, sights and smells of another International Village.
This year marks the 60th anniversary of the event, which has been a McKeesport tradition since its inception in 1960. International Village has grown to become the region's largest celebration of ethnic food, heritage and diversity.
This year’s celebration of the city’s distinctive ethnic diversity is slated for Aug. 13, 14 and 15.
“International Village is one of the many wonderful events that brings McKeesporters together, and it’s been a phenomenal success over the past 60 years,” said City Councilman Keith Soles, chairman of the International Village Committee. “Everyone comes together to celebrate years of tradition.
“I think, in addition to the tradition of their individual heritage, folks come out to celebrate the tradition of the Village itself,” he said. “It’s a grand event that truly represents what the McKeesport community has to offer.”
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August 05, 2019 |
By Chris Baumann | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
This new home in McKeesport's Library District is one of two that ACTION-Housing has planned in the Library District. (Photo special to Tube City Almanac)
A new house built in the city's Library District already has a buyer, and the non-profit agency that oversaw construction is hoping to do more.
Pittsburgh-based ACTION-Housing secured funding for the house through the state with assistance from the city of McKeesport.
“We are planning to reapply for funding in the fall to build a second house in the winter or spring,” said Joe Costa, a housing associate with ACTION-Housing.
The new house, with a list price of $130,000, has three bedrooms, two full bathrooms, one half bathroom and off-street parking. Located at the corner of Bailie and Cornell avenues, the house is also accessible for people with limited mobility.
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July 31, 2019 |
By Charlotte Hopkins | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
Members of the Allegheny County Council and Clairton City Council attended a public hearing Tuesday about a proposed settlement between U.S. Steel and the Allegheny County Health Department. From left, County Council Members Paul Zavarella (District 8), John Palmiere (District 6), Anita Prizio (District 3) and Bob Macey (District 9), Clairton City Councilman Tony Kurta, Clairton Mayor Rich Lattanzi and Clairton Councilwoman Denise Johnson-Clemmons. (Photo by Charlotte Hopkins/Special to Tube City Almanac)
“Enjoy your dinner with U.S. Steel.”
Those were the words of one Mon Valley resident to representatives of the Allegheny County Health Department at a public hearing on Tuesday.
He was critical of a proposed settlement between the health department and U.S. Steel over alleged violations of clean air standards by the company’s Clairton Plant.
The health department hosted the hearing at Clairton Municipal Building to hear comments from the public about the proposed settlement, announced in June. Under the terms of the agreement, U.S. Steel would pay $2.7 million in fines, with 90 percent set aside for a “community benefit trust.”
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July 21, 2019 |
By Staff Reports | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News, White Oak News
Children play in the spray area at Renziehausen Park in McKeesport on Saturday. After several days of temperatures near or above 90 in the Mon-Yough area, the weather is expected to return to more seasonal conditions. (All photos: Vickie Babyak/Special to Tube City Almanac)
Mon-Yough area residents found ways to beat the heat last week as temperatures crept into the 90s, with humidity that made it feel closer to 100 degrees.
Below: At Heritage Hills Pool in White Oak, Tina and Bob Baker from North Versailles Twp. are regulars. Tina Baker says her dolphin-decorated floating device also has been making the trip every day.
Above: Bobby Petrosky of McKeesport is a lifeguard at Heritage Hills and was getting ready to take a dive on Saturday morning.
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July 18, 2019 |
By Chris Baumann | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
Debra Green of Duquesne is a coordinating committee member with Pittsburghers for Public Transit. She rides public transportation every day. (Photo courtesy Pittsburghers for Public Transit)
A transit advocacy group has developed a unique new computerized tool that allows residents and bus riders to give their direct input into the planning of a campaign to extend the East Busway to the Mon Valley and the Eastern Suburbs.
“This would be an enormous, transformative improvement and change for our community,” said Laura Wiens, executive director of Pittsburghers for Public Transit, a non-profit organization.
The tool is now available online, and allows bus riders of the Mon Valley and the Eastern Suburbs to identify areas they believe are not given adequate service. It also allows riders to rank destinations in order of importance in their daily transit.
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July 12, 2019 |
By Staff Reports | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
(Both photos: Special to Tube City Almanac)
A long-awaited traffic light at the intersection of Long Run Road and Walnut Street in the city's 12th Ward is nearly complete.
A.J. Tedesco, McKeesport community development director, said the project was overseen by Trans Associates Engineering of Enola, Pa. Some additional work will be completed by the state Department of Transportation before the signals are activated, he said.
The $451,000 project was funded in part by a $316,000 grant from the multimodal transportation fund of the state Department of Community & Economic Development.
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July 12, 2019 |
By Staff Reports | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
The region is cleaning up --- again --- from the latest round of heavy rainstorms during a year that is likely to wind up as one of the wettest in recorded history.
Two lines of storms that moved through Western Pennsylvania on Thursday caused widespread road closures and flash flooding. This time, it seemed to be the Turtle Creek valley and Westmoreland County that took the biggest hit, at least in the Mon-Yough area.
North Huntingdon Twp. police reported that state Route 993 in Larimer and Irwin had reopened just before 9 a.m. Friday after being closed for most of Thursday, but that Brownstown Road near the Town House remained shut down, and that Pine Hollow Road near the Penn Twp. line would be closed "indefinitely."
The township's emergency management agency is providing cleanup kits for residents whose homes were affected by flooding. The kits are available in the lobby of the Town House and at the police station.
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July 05, 2019 |
By Jason Togyer | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
Jimmy Beaumont, shown fourth from left on the cover of The Skyliners' first LP, was born in Pittsburgh but lived in McKeesport for nearly 50 years until his death in 2017.
A portion of Tulip Drive near the Lions Bandshell in Renziehausen Park will be renamed for the late Jimmy Beaumont.
McKeesport City Council on Tuesday by 5-0 vote approved a proposal from Mayor Michael Cherepko and Council Vice-President Jamie Brewster-Filotei to rename the section of street for Beaumont, former lead singer of The Skyliners, who died Oct. 7, 2017, at his home in McKeesport at age 76.
Jimmy Beaumont Boulevard will be dedicated on Aug. 11, when the remaining Skyliners perform at Renzie.
Beaumont was born in Pittsburgh's Knoxville section but had lived in McKeesport's Myer Park neighborhood since the 1960s.
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July 05, 2019 |
By Vickie Babyak | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
(All photos: Vickie Babyak, special to Tube City Almanac)
The McKeesport area celebrated the 243rd birthday of the United States of America with a lively concert and fireworks at Renziehausen Park.
James Warren of McKeesport and his daughter Alaina, age 2, show off their holiday spirit with the red, white and blue.
Sal Ventura, lead singer for Zoot Island Band, tosses a hula hoop off stage to the audience during their concert in Renziehausen Park.
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July 04, 2019 |
By Richard Finch Jr. | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
From left, Michelle Matuch, McKeesport Mayor Michael Cherepko, Matthew Craig of the Young Preservationists of Pittsburgh, and Jason Togyer participated in a panel discussion entitled "The Past, Present and Future of the Penn-McKee Hotel" on Saturday at McKeesport Regional History & Heritage Center. (Photo courtesy McKeesport Regional History & Heritage Center)
The first thing you see driving into Downtown McKeesport from the Jerome Street Bridge or traveling on the river trail is the derelict Penn-McKee Hotel.
And thousands of people ride through McKeesport on the bike trail --- but don’t stop to spend any money, according to Jason Togyer, executive director of Tube City Community Media Inc.
Reversing those two facts --- and filling cash registers --- are the goals of a possible renovation of the hotel, Togyer said.
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