April 03, 2018 |
By Cami DiBattista | Posted in: Duquesne News
(Cami DiBattista photo for Tube City Almanac)
With the help of a donation from a local congressman, Duquesne's mayor and city manager recently completed the Local Government Academy's Newly Elected Officials Course.
Duquesne Mayor Nickole Nesby said the tuition for her and Manager Cha Sayles was donated by U.S. Rep. Mike Doyle.
According to the academy's website, more than 1,000 local officials have completed the course over the past 30 years.
“This was a learning experience I will never forget,” Nesby said. “It was a great opportunity to learn about how our local government functions. I met some outstanding individuals and built relationships that I may have never had. Personally, I feel this course should be mandatory for every elected official.”
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April 02, 2018 |
By Cami DiBattista | Posted in: Duquesne News
(Updated to clarify suspension versus termination.)
Duquesne City Council has voted to fire a longtime police secretary in a move that upset some residents.
At its March 27 meeting, council voted unanimously to terminate city employee Lori Achtzehn, who had worked for Duquesne for more than 40 years. Achtzehn was suspended at the time of the vote.
Mayor Nickole Nesby said that an investigation revealed Achtzehn violated Pennsylvania Justice Network and PennDOT Driver License Information System policies.
Nesby said Achtzehn accessed records and files from the system without cause and accused Achtzehn of 21 violations over a two-year timeframe.
But Achtzehn said Nesby's comments at the council meeting were slanderous and that the mayor is attacking employees held over from former Mayor Phil Krivacek's administration.
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March 29, 2018 |
By Jason Togyer | Posted in: Crime and Police News, McKeesport and Region News
A fire on top of a kitchen stove forced the evacuation Wednesday night of the Midtown Plaza Apartments.
All 131 apartments in the building had to be evacuated and all off-duty McKeesport firefighters were called to the scene, along with volunteers from Glassport and Duquesne Annex.
McKeesport deputy fire Chief Tom Perciavalle said crews were finishing up at a call in the 500 block of Walnut Street just after 10 p.m. when they were dispatched to the senior-citizen high rise.
Firefighters forced entry to a locked second-floor apartment and found it filled with thick, black smoke, Perciavalle said. The residents were not home at the time of the fire.
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March 28, 2018 |
By Submitted Report | Posted in: Announcements
The date by which Allegheny County property owners can pay their 2018 taxes at a discount is being extended.
Allegheny County Treasurer John K. Weinstein said Wednesday that the deadline for the 2 percent discount --- which was originally this Saturday --- is being extended to Monday, due to the weekend.
In addition, the treasurer's office will stay open until 7:30 p.m. Monday for the convenience of taxpayers.
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March 28, 2018 |
By Submitted Report | Posted in: Crime and Police News
A McKeesport woman has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Pittsburgh and charged with Social Security fraud.
Federal prosecutors today accused Kristin Hope Lucas, 44, of receiving $19,289 in supplemental security income benefits to which she was not entitled, said U.S. Attorney Scott W. Brady in a prepared statement.
The benefits were paid out between November 2012 and October 2014, Brady said.
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March 28, 2018 |
By Submitted Report | Posted in: Announcements
Three local clubs for coin collectors have scheduled their April meetings.
The Mon Valley Coin Club will meet at 2 p.m. April 15 at 303 Chamber Plaza in Charleroi, a spokesman said. The general public is welcome and applications for membership will be available, along with prizes for kids.
The South Hills Coin Club will meet at 8 p.m. April 10 at Bethel Presbyterian Church, 2899 Bethel Church Road, Bethel Park. The public is invited and April's program is on "the many faces of Abraham Lincoln," a spokesman said.
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March 28, 2018 |
By Submitted Report | Posted in: Announcements
McKeesport First Steps and other area agencies will partner to hold the sixth annual "Spring Around Storytime" at 5 p.m. April 4 at Jacob Woll Pavilion, Renziehausen Park.
A spokeswoman said the event is intended for children ages 2 to 8. There will be six activity stations, community information and light snacks provided. Each child will receive a free story book and can listen to stories being read.
Participating agencies include Carnegie Library of McKeesport, McKeesport Area School District, McKeesport Head Start, McKeesport Family Center, Clairton Family Center, Duquesne Family Center and the Mon River Fleet Lions Club.
For more information, call (412) 672-6970.
March 28, 2018 |
By Staff Reports | Posted in: Crime and Police News, Duquesne News
A Duquesne man has been indicted by a federal grand jury after prosecutors said he was caught with quantities of heroin and so-called "designer drugs" related to the tranquilizer fentanyl.
Marquis Brown, 29, also is charged with violating federal firearms laws, U.S. Attorney Scott W. Brady said in a prepared release.
Brown is currently being held in Allegheny County Jail in lieu of $15,000 bond after being arrested Monday by Duquesne police on charges of possession of controlled substances with intent to deliver, tampering with evidence and resisting arrest.
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March 27, 2018 |
By Jason Togyer | Posted in: Duquesne News
Crews from Gulisek Construction of Mt. Pleasant Twp. begin repairs on Route 837 in Duquesne. Work also will begin soon on the ramp leading to the McKeesport-Duquesne Bridge from Dravosburg. (Photo special to Tube City Almanac)
Rainy weather hasn't deterred construction crews from beginning work on a pothole-strewn section of Route 837 near Kennywood Park.
And more work is planned on Route 837 near the McKeesport-Duquesne Bridge, with a ramp expected to close in April.
Steve Cowan, district spokesman for the state Department of Transportation, said Gulisek Construction of Mt. Pleasant Twp., Westmoreland County, was awarded a $7.08 million contract to repair concrete, replacing curbs, and upgrading signage, traffic signals and drainage.
Lane restrictions began on Monday between North Second Street in Duquesne and Hoffman Boulevard in West Mifflin. The work will eventually continue from Hoffman Boulevard to the Rankin Bridge in Whitaker.
The repairs were planned before the 2.5-mile stretch of Route 837 sprouted a bumper crop of deep potholes, but Cowan said area roads took a beating this winter.
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March 26, 2018 |
By Staff Reports | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
(All photos: Vickie Babyak, special to Tube City Almanac)
Mon Valley residents joined a crowd estimated at more than 30,000 who took to the streets of downtown Pittsburgh on Saturday to protest gun violence.
The rally was one of dozens held Saturday in cities across the United States --- one source says as many as 450 events were held --- under the banner "March for Our Lives," and organized in the wake of a mass shooting at a high school in Parkland, Fla., in which 17 people died and another 17 were injured.
All 50 states hosted at least one March for Our Lives rally, with at least 1.2 million people believed to have participated nationwide. A March for Our Lives rally in Washington, D.C., attracted upwards of 200,000 people, according to crowd estimates made from digital photos.
Tube City Almanac correspondent Vickie Babyak attended the Pittsburgh event with a friend from the Mon Valley. "Both of us work with students and have children --- and I have grandchildren," she says. "We are concerned with the violence and the lockdown drills schools put students through because of mass shootings."
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