October 30, 2019 |
By Staff Reports | Posted in: Announcements
(Illustration courtesy Clipart-Library)
A windy, wet weather forecast has spurred several municipalities to change or reschedule their Halloween activities, but McKeesport is not one of them.
Trick-or-treating will proceed as scheduled from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday, said a spokeswoman for McKeesport Mayor Michael Cherepko.
"This decision was made because it is very difficult to communicate any changes effectively in a timely manner," the spokeswoman said. "Changes may be easy for some, but please consider families who have made adjustments to their work and/or personal schedules with Halloween in mind."
The National Weather Service in Moon Twp. is predicting a cold and windy Halloween night, with as much as a half-inch to an inch of rain, an overnight low of 35 degrees and winds from 16 to 20 mph with gusts as high as 40 mph.
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October 29, 2019 |
By Bonnijean Cooney Adams | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
Senior drum major Olivia Bakaturski looks over Tiger Band members in the stands at the Franklin Regional away game on Oct. 18. (Bonnijean Cooney Adams photo, special to Tube City Almanac)
McKeesport Area High School Tiger Band senior Olivia Bakaturski has come a long way musically since she first considered learning to play clarinet back in in fifth grade.
“I originally wanted to do percussion,” she said with a little laugh following a recent halftime show she directed as drum major.
Bakaturski and her band mates found success this season with the group’s industrial-themed “A Day in the Mill,” performed at football games and competitions. The Tiger Band was named Tournament of Bands Chapter 8, Group 2-0 Champions on Oct. 25.
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October 29, 2019 |
By Richard Finch Jr. | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
Author, teacher and philosopher Cornel West meets with Penn Staters prior to Friday evening's discussion at Wunderley Gymnasium in McKeesport. (Photo courtesy Penn State Greater Allegheny via Facebook)
Cornel West is not optimistic about the triumph of equality and justice. But he's hopeful.
There's a difference, he said.
During a discussion Friday night at Wunderley Gymnasium of Penn State Greater Allegheny Campus in McKeesport, West, a philosopher, author and activist, was asked if he found reasons to be hopeful and optimistic about the future lives of Black Americans.
“There is a difference between hope and optimism,” he said. “I'm not optimistic at all, I've never been an optimist.”
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October 29, 2019 |
By Staff Reports | Posted in: Crime and Police News, North Versailles Twp. News
Two people have been charged after a car chase and shooting in North Versailles Twp. that left a Pittsburgh man dead and closed Route 30 for nearly 12 hours.
Several people were injured during the incident, which ended with a three-car crash Sunday night between Great Valley Shopping Center and the George Westinghouse Bridge.
Richard N. Littlejohn Jr., 32, of Pittsburgh's Hill District was pronounced dead at the scene, the Allegheny County Medical Examiner's Office said Monday. He had suffered a gunshot wound to the head.
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October 27, 2019 |
By Richard Finch Jr. | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
Mary Jane Keller’s final meeting as a McKeesport Area School Board member was a bittersweet occasion for district officials and her fellow school directors.
At Wednesday's school board meeting, Superintendent Mark Holtzman Jr. presented Keller with a bouquet of flowers as well as a plaque recognizing her for a combined 45 years of service to the district, first as a teacher, and later as a school director.
Keller has been on the school board for eight years and served as vice-president for the past four.
An emotional Keller said, “It is my hope that I have been a positive voice for children.”
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October 23, 2019 |
By Jason Togyer | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
(Tube City Almanac photo)
The owner of the old McKeesport Connecting Railroad roundhouse in the city’s industrial park will use a state grant to remove environmental hazards and prepare the building for potential new tenants.
Regional Industrial Development Corp. has received $671,200 to perform remediation at the roundhouse; the old U.S. Steel National Works guardhouse on Locust Street; and the open hearth building at the old U.S. Steel Duquesne Works.
The grant, announced Wednesday by state Rep. Austin Davis, is from the state Industrial Sites Reuse Program, which helps fund the cleanup of environmental contamination at industrial sites that are going to be used for housing, businesses or recreation areas.
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October 23, 2019 |
By Jason Togyer | Posted in: White Oak News
The owner of the contracted trash hauler for White Oak borough said Wednesday that charges made against his company at a recent council meeting were not accurate.
Joe Eori Sr., who has owned Big's Sanitation since 1999, said the company is not mixing waste with recycling --- in fact, he said, Big's is trying to encourage recycling.
"I want everyone to recycle, because (Big's) pays by the ton" for landfill disposal fees, Eori said Wednesday. "The more (residents) recycle, the less tonnage I take in."
At Monday's meeting, residents said Big's crews were dumping recyclables into a trash truck. Eori said Big's is using a trash truck to haul recycling.
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October 23, 2019 |
By Staff Reports | Posted in: Crime and Police News, North Versailles Twp. News
A pedestrian died Wednesday morning after being struck by at least two cars on Route 30 in North Versailles Twp.
One of the vehicles fled the scene, police said.
Allegheny County police Sgt. Venerando Costa said 63-year-old Ritchie Holmes of North Versailles was struck near the intersection of Route 30 and Taylor Street at around 7 a.m.
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October 22, 2019 |
By Christy Walters | Posted in: White Oak News
White Oak residents voiced their opinion at Monday’s council meeting that Big’s Sanitation is not fulfilling its contract, or meeting the needs of the community.
Former councilman Rich Bryce spoke during the public comments section of the meeting to address the issue.
He claimed that workers from the Belle Vernon-based sanitation company pull their trucks up to homes and put both trash and recycling into the same trucks.
“I voted for (Big’s) when I was on council because they had a good reputation and everything else,” Bryce said. “They’re breaking their contract. They’re screwing up. They’re charging us for two things and only doing one.”
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October 22, 2019 |
By Staff Reports | Posted in: Crime and Police News
Schools in North Huntingdon Twp. and Jeannette were locked-down and some students were sent home early on Tuesday after police received what they regarded as credible threats of violence.
Police allege that a man from the Dayton, Ohio, area made the threats, apparently to create a diversion as he robbed a bank in the Circleville area of the township.
No injuries were reported, but Clay Pike and Robbins Station Road were closed for several hours while the investigation took place.
Police said the suspect, Luke J. Dell, 35, of Beavercreek, Ohio, was taken into custody before he got to the bank. Dell is being held without bond in the Westmoreland County Prison pending a preliminary hearing Nov. 6, court officials said.
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