December 04, 2018 |
By Jason Togyer | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
After an absence of three years, vintage neon holiday decorations have returned to the windows of the former McKeesport Daily News building.
The lights --- a staple of the holiday season in McKeesport for decades --- returned just in time for the planned lighting on Wednesday night of the city's official Christmas tree.
The ceremony in Kennedy Park will follow Wednesday's regular council meeting, which begins at 7 p.m. Local gospel group "Chalice" is scheduled to perform.
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November 29, 2018 |
By Jason Togyer | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
(Above: Crews renovate a pavilion at Renziehausen Park this summer. Photo courtesy Tom Maglicco, City of McKeesport.)
Allegheny County's 25th Regional Asset District budget includes $908,000 for capital improvements and operating expenses at McKeesport's Renziehausen Park --- an increase of $111,000 over last year.
Also included in the budget, approved Thursday, is $8,600 for the McKeesport Little Theater and $6.89 million for the Allegheny County Library Association, which provides support to the Carnegie Library of McKeesport, Braddock Carnegie Library and other member organizations.
The Regional Asset District is funded largely by Allegheny County's 1 percent sales tax, created in 1993. The first RAD budget provided just $53 million to 46 organizations.
In 2019, RAD will disperse $108.6 million to support 104 different non-profit groups and organizations. It's the first time the RAD budget has ever topped $100 million, according to a spokeswoman.
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November 29, 2018 |
By Jason Togyer | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
A patient from Kane Community Living Center in McKeesport died at the emergency room Thursday after suffering respiratory distress.
Despite rumors that the patient was exposed to a hazardous chemical or other contaminant, emergency officials said there was no evidence of that, and the facility was open as normal on Thursday evening.
McKeesport police, firefighters and McKeesport Ambulance Rescue Service were dispatched to the 360-bed facility at the foot of Ninth Avenue at about 1:20 p.m. Initial reports from Allegheny County 9-1-1 were that a patient was in cardiac arrest after being exposed to a "powdery substance."
Those reports were incorrect, McKeesport fire Chief Jeff Tomovcsik said Thursday night.
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November 21, 2018 |
By Jason Togyer | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
(Photo courtesy state Rep. Bill Kortz, via Facebook)
Crews will be drilling along Washington Boulevard in Port Vue next week as they try to determine the cause of a cave-in that has damaged one lane of the state-maintained road.
Steve Cowan, district spokesman for the state Department of Transportation, said there is no timeframe yet on how long the investigation will take, or when the repairs will begin.
The cave-in near Dersam Street in the borough's Westwood Hills section was reported Monday. The southbound lane is closed and Washington Boulevard is restricted to one alternating lane, controlled by stop signs.
Council President Mark Tortorice praised state Rep. Bill Kortz for helping to coordinate the quick response of PennDOT and other agencies.
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November 19, 2018 |
By Staff Reports | Posted in: Crime and Police News, McKeesport and Region News
A McKeesport Area High School student who was injured by a car on Eden Park Boulevard on Wednesday morning was back in class Thursday, a spokesperson said.
Neither school officials nor McKeesport police would identify the student or release their class year.
A district spokesperson said the unidentified student stepped from behind a parked car near the entrance to the high school at about 6:25 a.m. Wednesday and was struck. Start time at the high school is 7:22 a.m.
The accident happened about 35 minutes before students generally start arriving, and flashing yellow "school zone" lights designed to slow traffic on Eden Park were not yet lit, the district said.
The student was taken by ambulance to a local hospital where they were treated for their injuries and released, the district said.
No further information was released.
November 19, 2018 |
By Jason Togyer | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
(All photos: Richard Finch Jr. for Tube City Almanac)
The grand marshal of McKeesport's 54th annual Salute to Santa parade needed planes, trains and automobiles to make it to the McKees Point Marina on Saturday morning -- but said she "wouldn't miss it for the world."
Olympic gold medalist Swin Cash, who now works as an analyst for CBS Sports and MSG Networks, was covering the New York Knicks from a studio in Manhattan on Friday night.
She took an overnight train to Philadelphia and a plane to Pittsburgh to make it to McKeesport in time to ride in the parade less than 12 hours later.
"As a young girl, I remember marching in this parade with the Black Berets," said Cash, who was born in McKeesport and grew up in the Harrison Village housing complex before leaving the city to attend the University of Connecticut. "It is a blessing and an honor to be back here in McKeesport," she said.
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November 15, 2018 |
By Jason Togyer | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
TriWire Engineering Solutions has relocated its regional headquarters from Westmoreland County to this building on Peebles Lane in McKeesport's Third Ward. (Photo special to Tube City Almanac)
A technology company has relocated its regional headquarters to McKeesport's Third Ward and is looking to add 50 employees.
TriWire Engineering Solutions --- a Massachusetts-based company that installs fiber-optic cable, telephone and networking cable and copper wiring for major utilities such as Comcast --- this month moved into a building on Peebles Lane, just off of Market Street.
The company is holding a hiring fair between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Saturday.
Applicants should have a valid Pennsylvania driver's license and a social security card, said Barry R. Jennings Sr., a TriWire vice president.
"Anyone who comes in, we'll interview," Jennings said. Prior experience in construction or electronics is helpful, he said, "but what I really want is someone who wants to show up for work --- and work."
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November 08, 2018 |
By Richard Finch Jr. | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
McKeesport Area School District will consider creation of its own police department.
At October's meeting, the school board authorized the administration to investigate and see if creation of the district-run police department is feasible.
Several school districts, including South Allegheny and Pittsburgh Public Schools, have their own police officers. McKeesport Area School District currently pays for a school resource officer from the City of McKeesport police. That SRO divides their time between the high school and the middle school.
Superintendent Mark Holtzman Jr. said determining whether a school police department makes sense financially depends on whether grant funding is available to significantly offset the costs associated with the plan.
“We hire a lot of extra security for ball games and things of that nature and it becomes a huge expense for us,” he said in an interview. Having an in-house police department “would probably save us a little bit of money, along with continuing to utilize our local departments for extra support,” Holtzman said.
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November 07, 2018 |
By Staff Reports | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
A two-alarm fire that damaged a house on Grandview Avenue Saturday afternoon is under investigation by the Allegheny County fire marshal's office.
McKeesport fire Chief Jeff Tomovcsik said four adults and three children were displaced by the blaze in the two-story wood frame home at 1704 Grandview. The fire, which began on the second floor, was reported at about 1:57 p.m. All of the occupants escaped without injury, Tomovcsik said.
Although the cause and origin of the fire are still yet to be determined, officials do not believe the blaze is suspicious in nature, Tomovcsik said.
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November 07, 2018 |
By Jason Togyer | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
Work will begin soon to repair the roof of a one-story annex to McKeesport's city hall that was damaged by debris from a neighboring building.
At Wednesday's meeting, city council by 7-0 vote awarded a $265,000 contract for construction of a roof "enclosure" and relocation of rooftop equipment to Kucich Construction of McKeesport.
Kucich was the lowest responsible bidder, McKeesport Mayor Michael Cherepko said.
In May, the city hired Lutterman Excavating to tear down a vacant three-story office building at the corner of Sinclair and Ringgold streets because debris --- including bricks --- falling off of that structure was damaging the city hall annex.
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