September 25, 2020 |
By Staff Reports | Posted in: Crime and Police News
A nearly five-month investigation by Allegheny County detectives led to charges being filed this week in connection with the April shooting death of a McKeesport woman.
Gerald Lamar Walker, 37, of Penn Hills is being held in the Allegheny County Jail without bond on charges of criminal homicide, unlawful possession of a firearm and carrying a firearm without a license.
Walker is charged in connection with the April 26 shooting death of Amber Rose Dolby, 38, also known as Amber Bailey. Walker was arraigned Monday and faces a preliminary hearing Oct. 16 before Magisterial District Judge Kim Berkeley Clark.
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September 23, 2020 |
By Submitted Report | Posted in: Announcements
(Tube City Almanac photo)
In its first week of operation, a drive-through COVID-19 testing site at the Industrial Center of McKeesport served more than 180 people, county officials said.
Up to 250 people per day can be tested at the site, located just off of Lysle Boulevard, officials said. Samples are taken by courier daily to a state lab in Harrisburg, they said, and results of most tests will be available in 48 hours or less.
Persons who want to be tested may schedule an appointment online, or by calling (412) 209-2262 during normal business hours (8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday).
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September 23, 2020 |
By Jason Togyer | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
Local legislators split Wednesday on an effort to overrule Pennsylvania’s governor and allow school districts to decide whether to permit spectators at athletic events during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Gov. Tom Wolf on Monday vetoed House Bill 2787, which would have allowed local school boards to sidestep the state Health Department and set their own COVID-19 health and safety protocols.
On Wednesday, the state General Assembly voted 130-71 to override Wolf’s veto. The move fell five votes short of the two-thirds majority necessary.
While state Rep. Austin Davis, McKeesport Democrat, called the attempt to override Wolf’s veto “a waste of taxpayer money,” state Rep. Bill Kortz, Dravosburg Democrat, said it was “extremely disappointing” that the vote failed.
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September 23, 2020 |
By Kristen Keleschenyi | Posted in: North Versailles Twp. News
North Versailles Twp. commissioners have approved the promotions of two part-time police officers.
At the September meeting, commissioners approved moving Michael Sharp and Lucas Pici to full-time status, effective Oct. 4.
In other business, commissioners authorized township solicitor Greg Evashavik to draft an extension to the current trash-hauling contract with Big’s Sanitation to continue garbage pickup in North Versailles for another year without a price increase.
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September 23, 2020 |
By Submitted Report | Posted in: Announcements
(File photo by Stuart Spivack, licensed under Creative Commons CC BY-SA 2.0.)
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, McKeesport Little Theater is looking for ways to keep its programs in the public eye and raise funds.
The non-profit theater is planning several events, including a “drive-through” spaghetti dinner on Oct. 17 and a series of one-act and radio-style plays to tap the talents of its volunteers and actors, says Jennifer Vertullo, vice-president of the MLT board.
Based on Coursin Street in the city’s library and cultural district, MLT was preparing to celebrate its 60th anniversary season this year. Instead, the 2020-21 season has been canceled.
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September 23, 2020 |
By Kevin Kino | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
In a photo titled “Edgar Thomson Looms,” U.S. Steel’s plant in Braddock and North Braddock is visible above rooftops of nearby houses. (Photo by Macwagen/Strongbox Magazine. Licensed under Creative Commons BY-NC-ND 2.0)
Lisa Graves-Marcucci calls it a “pollution parfait,” and she says it’s just as unappetizing as it sounds.
That’s how the lifelong Mon Valley resident describes the sky some mornings in Jefferson Hills.
“When I would drive over to take (my kids) to the elementary school, which sits right on the hilltop overlooking the Clairton Coke Works, certain summer mornings, you could see this ‘pollution parfait,’” says Graves-Marcucci, who serves as Pennsylvania community outreach coordinator for the non-profit Environmental Integrity Project. “There would be like, lines of different colors of pollution in the sky.”
Graves-Marcucci was one of the people who participated last week in a county-wide campaign for cleaner air.
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September 22, 2020 |
By Kristen Keleschenyi | Posted in: North Versailles Twp. News
Residents of North Versailles Twp.’s Fairhaven neighborhood told commissioners that several dogs, including a pit bull and a German shepherd, are creating a dangerous nuisance.
At the September meeting, Daryl Anderson told commissioners that he didn’t report a recent incident when he was bitten by a dog while walking along Joan Drive — but he now wishes he had.
“I’ve lived here my whole life and I’ve been walking the streets for 11 years since I retired, and I never had a dog problem,” Anderson said. “And that dog came from the garage door — didn’t bark, didn’t growl, jumped up and bit me and broke my skin.”
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September 22, 2020 |
By Submitted Report | Posted in: Announcements, West Newton News
West Newton Public Library is encouraging patrons to consider honoring a friend or loved one by purchasing a book in their name. The cost is $25, a spokeswoman said.
People who want to memorialize someone should tell the library about their favorite author or their interests so that the library can purchase an appropriate item. The acknowledgement will be placed inside the front cover.
The person being honored, or their family, will receive a notification of the gift.
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September 21, 2020 |
By Jason Togyer | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News, Politics & Elections
(Tube City Almanac file photo)
Allegheny County will open additional elections offices in October so that voters who want to return paper ballots in person may do so safely.
Although the county plans to have more than 1,300 polling places open for the Nov. 3 election, officials expect heavier than usual use of vote-by-mail and absentee ballots due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The county board of elections last week unanimously approved a proposal in which the Elections Division will open additional offices on specific dates and times.
Each office will provide opportunity for voters to provide over-the-counter voting, and the return of voted ballots to a fully-staffed, secure office, a county spokeswoman said.
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September 21, 2020 |
By Richard Finch Jr. | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
A truckload of computers donated by Comcast is unveiled Friday morning during a live broadcast of NBC’s “Today” from McKeesport Area High School. (Richard Finch Jr. photo for Tube City Almanac)
Students, parents and staff were speculating about the news cameras — and a large truck parked in the middle of McKeesport Area High School’s football field on Friday morning when they entered the stadium for what they thought was a pep rally.
What they got instead were 2,500 laptop computers for students and staff at McKeesport Senior High School and Founders’ Hall Middle School — a donation from Comcast Corp., the region’s dominant cable TV and Internet provider.
The “Today” show, a production of NBC, a Comcast subsidiary, was on hand to show the surprised students.
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