March 15, 2018 |
By Submitted Report | Posted in: Announcements
A day of "prayer for the healing" of people with HIV and AIDS will be held Saturday at Zion Baptist Church.
The event, called "The Balm in Gilead," begins at 11 a.m. at the church at 1300 Locust St., a spokeswoman said.
In addition to the church, sponsors include the Partnership for Minority HIV/AIDS Prevention.
March 15, 2018 |
By Jason Togyer | Posted in: Crime and Police News
A former attorney who was accused of funnelling money from one of his client's accounts into his personal businesses --- including the Mon Valley Independent newspaper --- has been sentenced to 33 months in federal prison for mail fraud.
Keith A. Bassi, 61, of Jefferson Twp., Fayette County, also must pay more than $505,000 in restitution and a $100,000 fine, and forfeit more than $235,515, U.S. Attorney Scott Brady said Wednesday.
The sentence was imposed by U.S. District Judge Arthur J. Schwab.
A graduate of Yale and Duquesne universities, Bassi was a partner in the Charleroi law firm of Bassi, McCune & Vreeland and a well-known attorney in the mid-Mon Valley, serving as solicitor to several communities and school districts and as general counsel to the former Charleroi Federal Savings Bank, now CFSBank.
March 14, 2018 |
By Jason Togyer | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
Above: McKeesport public works crews clear flooding at the end of the Mansfield Bridge following a severe storm June 13, 2017. (Tube City Almanac file photo)
McKeesport officials are hoping to have a lasting solution this summer to flooding problems that have forced repeated street closures at the southern end of the Mansfield Bridge.
Council this month authorized the administration to seek $255,000 from the state's Small Water and Sewer Program for repairs to a storm sewer under West Fifth Avenue.
The city will be required to match the grant, if received, with at least $45,000 of its own funding, Mayor Michael Cherepko said.
City engineer Jim Garvin said the grant money would initially fund a thorough inspection of the line, so that the scope of the work can be planned out.
March 14, 2018 |
By Josh Rizzo | Posted in: Sports
(Photo courtesy Ringgold Hockey Association, via Facebook)
Clayton Colecchi doesn’t feel any different aversion to playing hockey with a different high school on the front of his sweater. The South Allegheny High School sophomore wanted a chance to compete in the PIHL -- the governing body for high school hockey in Western Pennsylvania -- and playing under the Ringgold Hockey banner was his only option.
South Allegheny is part of a wide-ranging agreement that features eight schools, including Belle Vernon, Bentworth, Brownsville, California and Yough.
“I’ve embraced it and so have the other kids in my school,” Colecchi said. “They come out and watch the games and support it. They don’t care if it’s Ringgold, they consider it South Allegheny.”
March 11, 2018 |
By Submitted Report | Posted in: Announcements
Students from area schools were recognized for their citizenship and scholarship this month by the Queen Alliquippa Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution.
Spokeswoman Sharon Wallhausen said the local chapter of the DAR, founded in McKeesport in 1911, recently reinstituted its Good Citizen Award program. This year's winner is Owen Meilander (above right), a senior at Elizabeth Forward High School, shown with Maria Ferguson, regent of the Queen Alliquippa Chapter.
Meilander was recognized during a meeting at Norwin Public Library. His name will be submitted to the DAR's Pennsylvania State Competition, Wallhausen said.
Other finalists, who were nominated by their schools for the award, included Julia Conway, Gateway High School; Dana Ewing, Norwin High School; Kayley Bayne, Franklin Regional High School; Ashley Sandella, Serra Catholic High School; and Samuel Wilshire, Redeemer Lutheran School.
March 09, 2018 |
By Staff Reports | Posted in: Crime and Police News
Allegheny County sheriff's deputies serving a family court warrant Friday morning wound up recovering six bricks of suspected heroin and arresting five men on unrelated drug charges.
Tony Griffith, spokesman for the Allegheny County sheriff's office, said deputies and McKeesport police went to an apartment in the Crawford Village housing complex before 8 a.m. to arrest Troy L. Brown, 20, of Elizabeth Twp. on a warrant for failing to appear for a hearing in family court.
Upon arrival, Griffith said, police and sheriff's deputies found "multiple tenants" within the apartment, as well as "a lot of activity," and observed a brick of what they suspected to be heroin in plain view.
March 09, 2018 |
By Jason Togyer | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
(Photo courtesy state Sen. Jim Brewster)
* UPDATED at 8:35 p.m. with comments from McKeesport Area School District.
State Sen. Jim Brewster on Friday proposed placing armed security guards inside all school buildings in Pennsylvania.
The McKeesport lawmaker, who represents parts of Allegheny and Westmoreland counties, said the recommendation is just one of several proposals he is making that are intended to protect students and teachers from violence.
Last week, Brewster said he was drafting legislation to create an 11-member Statewide School Safety Panel to examine security at Pennsylvania's schools and recommend areas for improvement.
“Students must be better protected,” Brewster said Friday in a prepared statement. “Parents deserve assurance that school buildings are safe and secure environments.”
March 09, 2018 |
By Jason Togyer | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
A pet cat is credited with alerting two city residents to a fire in the attic of a Lamont Street home.
The Allegheny County Fire Marshal's Office is investigating the blaze, which happened early this morning, but McKeesport Deputy Fire Chief Tom Perciavalle said that it may have been caused by faulty wiring.
Perciavalle said the residents of the home at 2005 Lamont were awakened just before 1:30 a.m. when one of their two cats bolted, frightened, from the bathroom adjoining the upstairs master bedroom.
"They felt it was unusual behavior, because the cat is fairly sedentary," Perciavalle said.
March 08, 2018 |
By Jason Togyer | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
A portion of Kennedy Park on Lysle Boulevard may be removed to provide parking for what is being called the McKeesport Multi-Media Building. (Photo special to Tube City Almanac)
McKeesport is aggressively moving forward to prepare the former Daily News Building for new tenants.
At Wednesday's meeting, city council voted 6-0 to apply for a $200,000 grant from Allegheny County's Community Infrastructure & Tourism Fund for renovations and repairs to the building. Councilwoman Jamie Brewster-Filotei was absent.
The first tenants could be moving into the building as early as May, McKeesport Mayor Michael Cherepko said.
In addition, city public works crews will probably be turning part of Kennedy Park at the corner of Lysle Boulevard and Walnut Street into a parking area for the building.
The work would not affect the statue of President Kennedy or the plaza around it, Cherepko said, but would require removal of the small fountain at the corner.
March 06, 2018 |
By Submitted Report | Posted in: Announcements
The region's "fascinating women" will be the topic of a special Women's History Month program at the McKeesport Regional History & Heritage Center.
"Fascinating McKeesport Women" will highlight the work of women who left their mark on the community in a variety of fields, including journalism, aviation and philanthropy, as well as those who influenced social and political movements or broke barriers.
The program will be presented at 2 p.m. March 24 by local historian Ellen Vasey Show, a spokeswoman said.
