September 17, 2024 |
By Adam Reinherz | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
(Adam Reinherz photo for Tube City Almanac)
Three McKeesport Area School District employees have been moved from paid leave to unpaid leave as an investigation continues into the administration’s handling of an alleged sexual relationship between a former school contractor and a student.
A fourth employee, previously on leave, has been reinstated, effective Sept. 13, District Solicitor Gary Matta said.
The employees’ names have not been officially released or confirmed.
The district has retained an outside law firm, Dillon, McCandless, King, Coulter & Graham, to investigate what happened when the administration learned that a former school security guard, Alexis Brown, had been accused of having a sexual realationship with a student.
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September 17, 2024 |
By Tom Leturgey | Posted in: Duquesne News
This abandoned home on Auriles Street in Duquesne is targeted for demolition by city officials. (Tom Leturgey photo for Tube City Almanac)
Duquesne City Council has approved the demolition of another 21 vacant properties.
During a special session Sept. 3 before the regular monthly meeting, council and Mayor R. Scott Adams unanimously agreed that one house on South Fifth Street, nine on Seventh Street, two on Auriles, one on Klere, two on Earl and six vacant homes on Erwin should be razed.
The properties are vacant and, according to records, behind on Allegheny County taxes.
However, that doesn’t mean that a wrecking ball will start soon. Mayor Adams and Councilwoman Elaine Washington noted that they will have discussions with Allegheny County Councilman Bob Macey, as well as County Executive Sara Innamorato’s office, about obtaining funding to begin work.
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September 16, 2024 |
By Staff Reports | Posted in: Crime and Police News
A city woman who died Saturday morning at a hospital emergency room told police before her death that her husband shot her.
Tammy E. Cox, 51, was pronounced dead just after 6 a.m. in the emergency department at UPMC McKeesport hospital, the Allegheny County medical examiner’s office said. According to a police report, she had suffered a gunshot wound to the chest and another to the back.
Her husband, Robert G. Cox, 50, is being held in the Allegheny County Jail without bond pending a preliminary hearing Sept. 27 in Pittsburgh Municipal Court in connection with her death. Cox is charged with homicide by Allegheny County police.
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September 14, 2024 |
By Adam Reinherz | Posted in: McKeesport and Region News
Rev. Richard Truss testifies during Thursday’s McKeesport Area School District board meeting. (Screenshot from YouTube)
The loss of the superintendent, the arrest of the school police chief, and an investigation of multiple employees are taking their toll on McKeesport Area School District, one community leader said on Thursday.
“This city is on fire,” Rev. Richard Truss, pastor of Zion Baptist Church, told the school board. “The city is on fire, and you all are like Nero fiddling around while the city burns.”
At Thursday’s meeting, the board began filling administrative and other staffing holes. The district agreed to hire Albert Educational Consulting to conduct a superintendent search not to exceed $10,000.
The consulting firm is headed by Edward Albert, a former superintendent, who according to his resume has conducted “several superintendent searches throughout Pennsylvania.”
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September 14, 2024 |
By Bonnijean Cooney Adams | Posted in: Entertainment
The entire cast of “Ride The Cyclone: The Musical” all appear onstage for the entire production. In front, Sarah Sidorchuck as Constance Blackwood and Sierra Mitchell as Ocean O'Connell Rosenberg. Center row, Caedon Vogel as Mischa Bachinski and Sam Savolskis as Noel Gruber. Back row, Matthew Mlynarski as The Amazing Karnak, Joe Kosha as Ricky Potts, Randi Walker as Jane Doe, and Jade Goodes as Talia, Virgil, and various other ensemble roles. (Photos by Bonnijean Cooney Adams for Tube City Almanac)
If you go...
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“Ride The Cyclone: The Musical”
Where: McKeesport Little Theater
1614 Coursin St.
412-673-1100
www.mckeesportlittletheater.com
When: Friday, Sept. 13, Saturday, Sept. 14, Friday, Sept. 20, and Saturday, Sept. 21 at 7:30 p.m. and matinees Sunday, Sept. 15 and Sunday, Sept. 22 at 2 p.m.
Tickets: $20 for adults, $15 for students available through the MLT website or www.onthestage.tickets/show/mckeesport-little-theater
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The death of six members of a private Canadian high school chamber choir in a roller coaster accident might not seem a likely subject matter for a musical – especially one with lots of comedic and sometimes raunchy moments, and a variety of song-and-dance numbers mixed in.
Brooke Maxwell and Jacob Richmond wrote the book, music, and lyrics for “Ride The Cyclone The Musical,” which opened Friday night and continues through Sept. 22, at McKeesport Little Theater.
First performed in 2008, it is a relative newcomer to the world of musicals, but its popularity has grown.
“I’m thrilled to have the regional premiere of ‘Ride The Cyclone’ happening at McKeesport Little Theater,” producer Jennifer R. Vertullo said. “It’s a rising cult classic that has the attention of our next generation of theater-goers.”
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September 13, 2024 |
By Submitted Report | Posted in: Announcements
Celebrating the construction of a new studio for Tube City Online Radio on Tuesday were McKeesport Mayor Michael Cherepko, McKeesport City Council Member Amber Webb, State Rep. Matt Gergely, State Rep. Nick Pisciotanno, Tube City Community Media Executive Director Jason Togyer, and State Sen. Jim Brewster (Vickie Babyak photo for Tube City Almanac)
Local elected officials and leaders joined volunteers from Tube City Community Media Inc. today to celebrate the opening of a new digital media and podcasting studio inside the former Daily News Building.
The studio — which also includes an extensive music archive as well as a library of books about local journalism, radio and TV broadcasting, and media — is designed to spur interest in media careers for local high school and university students, says Jason Togyer, executive director of Tube City Community Media, which operates the Tube City Almanac website and Tube City Online Radio.
Funding for the studio equipment was provided by a grant from a Pennsylvania Department of Education job training program with assistance from state Sen. James R. Brewster and his staff. Labor to construct the new studio — in a room that was formerly a storage closet — was donated.
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September 13, 2024 |
By Kristen Keleschenyi | Posted in: North Versailles Twp. News
Chris Cornelius practices his Rocky victory pose before their performance last Saturday at Penn-Trafford. (Photo courtesy Jillian Miller)
A new generation of fans is delivering up the beloved saga of the Rocky movies with their 2024 field show.
The East Allegheny High School Marching Band will perform this exciting soundtrack in front of a local crowd at their home competition this Saturday (Sept. 14) at Churchman Stadium in North Versailles.
EA Band Director Justin Rosco says, "This has been on my bucket list for a long time. I was a big Rocky fan when I was young. This has always been in the back of my mind."
There isn’t a lot in the vault to choose from in terms of arrangements or blueprints for a show of this type. Rosco says they borrowed some ideas from a Drum Corps International show from the early 2000s called “The Contender” but everything else has been a creative effort by staff to bring the story of a small-time boxer from Philly who gets knocked down in life, but with the help of his scrappy manager, always finds a way to get back up.
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September 13, 2024 |
By Submitted Report | Posted in: Announcements
Walkers set off from Kane McKeesport during a Joan Burns Fun Walk 4 Kane several years ago. (Photo courtesy Janet Kulis)
Family members and friends of residents at McKeesport’s Kane Regional Center will hold their 13th annual walk on Saturday to benefit programs at the assisted-living facility.
Registration for the 13th Annual Joan Burns Kane Foundation Fun Walk 4 Kane begins at 8 a.m. Sept. 14 at Kane McKeesport, 100 Ninth Ave., a spokesperson said. The walk begins at 9:30 a.m. with a picnic immediately following the event.
The registration fee is $25 and the first 100 people receive a free T-shirt. Prizes will be distributed and the picnic will include grilled picnic food, snacks, dessert, music and karaoke. For more information, visit the website.
Participants are encouraged to ask friends, family, neighbors or co-workers to sponsor walkers so that Kane residents may benefit, the spokesperson added.
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September 13, 2024 |
By Staff Reports | Posted in: Announcements
(Photo courtesy Mon-Yough Trail Council)
The Mon-Yough Trail Council plans a day of music, games, food trucks and prizes along the Great Allegheny Passage when the 30th annual “Yough ‘n Roll” festival gets underway on Saturday.
“We have a bicycle ride in the morning, and then a party on the trail from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.,” said Ken Medved, event coordinator for the MYTC, which serves as a steward of 15 miles of the bicycle trail that connects Pittsburgh with Cumberland, Md.
The trail council has been one of the original, all-volunteer, nonprofit “rails-to-trails” organizations in Western Pennsylvania since 1991, he said.
The focus point for tomorrow’s events is the Boston access point to the trail in Elizabeth Twp., under the Boston Bridge off of Route 48. Although participants don’t have to ride their bicycle — or bring it to the event — many participants do, Medved said.
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September 12, 2024 |
By Staff Reports | Posted in: Crime and Police News, North Versailles Twp. News
An 18-year-old from Wall Borough died Wednesday evening after a two-car collision on Route 30 in North Versailles Twp.
Emergency personnel said the wreck happened at around 5:30 p.m. near the Dunkin location and Dairy Queen at the corner of Lincoln Highway and Isaac Street.
Xander Wehrhan, also known as Xander Maxwell, was pronounced dead at the scene. Friends said he was a recent graduate of East Allegheny High School.
Allegheny County police said in a prepared release that a car driven by Maxwell was traveling east on Route 30 when it crossed the center line and collided head-on with a box truck.
The driver of the second vehicle, whose name was not release by police, remained on scene, police said. Allegheny County detectives are initiating the investigation.
Route 30 was closed for about two hours on Wednesday evening as emergency crews worked in the area.
Maxwell’s friends have created a GoFundMe to help pay for funeral expenses.
Anyone with information concerning this incident is asked to call the county police tip line at 1-833-ALL-TIPS. Callers can remain anonymous.
