Brian C. Rittmeyer stories, Page 115
$1M instant lottery ticket sold at Harrison supermarket
A regular customer of Community Supermarket in Harrison won $1 million on a $20 scratch-off lottery ticket. “I was thinking, ‘Please don’t cry because I’m going to cry with you,’ ” said office clerk Niki Dickey, who talked with the woman when she brought her winning ticket back to the...
New Kensington-Arnold School Board approves preliminary budget with 8% tax hike
The new president of the New Kensington-Arnold School Board says they have no choice but to raise property taxes, but the board’s past president says it should consider cutting staff instead. “Education will not be sacrificed,” said board President John Cope, who was elected in November. “Isn’t that why the...
Pennsylvania reports 9 new flu-related deaths
After a two-week respite, Pennsylvania reported an increase in flu-related deaths in the past week, according to the state Department of Health. As of the week ending Jan. 25, a total of 33 flu-related deaths have been reported this flu season, which started Sept. 29. That’s up by nine from...
Drivers urged to wait to fill up as gasoline prices continue to tumble
Gasoline prices in the Pittsburgh area and nationwide continue to fall on oil prices that are nearing their lowest level since October, an industry analyst said. “While the national average could fall into the $2.30s before all is said and done, the downward move likely won’t last much more than...
Brackenridge, Harrison and Tarentum continue joint planning effort
An effort to develop a joint comprehensive plan for Brackenridge, Harrison and Tarentum is scheduled to take another step forward with a public meeting next month. “We want everybody to come,” said Elaine Kramer, a designer and planner with the Pittsburgh-based consulting firm Pashek+MTR, which has been working with a...
Fire heavily damages house under construction on Bagdad Road, Allegheny Township
Fire caused extensive damage to a house under construction in Allegheny Township on Sunday afternoon. The fire at 1241 Bagdad Road was reported shortly after 1 p.m., a Westmoreland County emergency dispatcher said. Volunteer firefighters from seven or eight departments from the Alle-Kiski Valley responded. No one was in the...
Week in review: Pitt mourns student’s death; Antonio Brown jailedVideo
It was a week of mourning and concern across the Pittsburgh area. The news included the tragic death of a promising University of Pittsburgh student, and several Mt. Pleasant students being hurt in a car crash. Crime news included Ex-Steeler Antonio Brown making headlines again, and a Latrobe man being...
Mediation fails to resolve former Highlands teacher’s federal lawsuit against district
Mediation has so far failed to resolve one former Highlands School District employee’s federal lawsuit against the district, while a related case is set to head into its mediation. A mediation session for teacher Jason Smith’s case was held Thursday, according to court records. Smith, formerly a fourth-grade teacher at...
Police investigate exchange of gunfire in Chalfant
Allegheny County Police are investigating after gunfire was exchanged in Chalfant Wednesday night. According to county police, officers from neighboring Forest Hills and Wilkins Township responded to a call of shots fired in the 700 block of Greensburg Pike around 10 p.m. Wednesday. Officers found damage to the front of...
Fire marshal to investigate cause of East Deer house fire
An East Deer man said he was trying to thaw frozen water pipes when his home caught fire Thursday morning. The fire at 931 Bellview St. was reported around 5:45 a.m., according to Allegheny County 911. No injuries were reported. Zachary Shutak, 24, said he was using a heat gun...
Air pollution warning in effect for Clairton, Liberty areas of Allegheny County
An air pollution warning is in effect Thursday for the Clairton and Liberty areas of Allegheny County. The National Weather Service had said the “code orange” alert applied to five counties in Southwestern Pennsylvania and parts of two other counties, but corrected its alert around midday Thursday to apply to...
Police: Carrick convenience store damaged in hit-and-run targeted by thief
Pittsburgh police are investigating a theft from a Carrick convenience store that was damaged in a hit-and-run earlier this week, according to Pittsburgh police. Officers went to the Uni-Mart in the 1900 block of Brownsville Road just before 12:30 a.m. Thursday in response to a reported theft. Police said a...
Former Highlands principal’s federal lawsuit going to mediation
A former Highlands School District principal’s federal lawsuit against the district is going into mediation, according to court records. Attorneys for the school district and Heather Bigney have agreed to evenly share the costs of mediation. Bigney resigned as principal of Highlands Early Childhood Center in October 2019 . She...
Rate of new flu cases slows in Western Pennsylvania
Confirmed cases of the flu in Western Pennsylvania increased at a slower rate last week than in either of the previous two weeks, according to state Department of Health data. “While it is far too early to say that flu season has peaked, we have seen fewer cases over the...
Highlands hires new principal for elementary school
Highlands Elementary School has a new principal. Stan Whiteman was hired at an annual salary of $108,000. His start date is not yet known, school board President Misty Chybrzynski said. Whiteman is coming to Highlands from the Duquesne City School District, where he was director of curriculum, instruction, assessment and...
Outbound Parkway West reopens after crash
The outbound Parkway West has reopened after a crash caused it to be closed Tuesday morning, according to PennDOT. Westbound I-376 was closed between the Banksville Road on-ramp and the Parkway Center exit, Exit 68. It caused traffic to back up through the Fort Pitt tunnel....
Driver crashes car into, flees from Carrick convenience store, police say
No one was hurt Tuesday when a car crashed into the front door of a convenience store in Carrick, according to Pittsburgh police. Pittsburgh police said officers were called shortly before 3:30 a.m. to a Uni-Mart in the 1900 block of Brownsville Road. Officers said they spoke with a clerk...
Police: 17-year-old shot in arm in North Braddock
A 17-year-old was shot in North Braddock on Sunday night, according to Allegheny County police. The shooting happened in the area of 4th Street and Hawkins Avenue shortly before 5 p.m. According to county police, the victim and another person were walking onto Hawkins from 4th when a man began...
Police: Man drunk, driving over 100 mph in fatal Whitehall crash
A Pleasant Hills man was driving at 101 mph and with a blood alcohol content more than two times the legal limit when he crashed his car on Brownsville Road in December, killing his girlfriend, Whitehall police said. Whitehall police charged Tyler Jesse DeGraffenreid, 24, Sunday with homicide by vehicle...
Gasoline prices fall on sagging oil prices, low demand
Sagging oil prices have opened the door for a notable drop in U.S. gasoline prices, industry analyst Patrick DeHaan of GasBuddy said. “The Midwest has been the largest beneficiary of seasonal effects thus far with prices in several areas there declining upwards of 10-to-15 cents per gallon,” he said. “The...
Highlands to lose $260K in yearly revenue after Heights Plaza assessment drops
An assessment appeal that slashed nearly $11 million from the value of the Heights Plaza shopping center will cost the Highlands School District $260,000 in revenue each year, according to district Business Manager Lori Byron. The total value of four parcels making up the plaza dropped from $17.3 million to...
State Sen. Lindsey Williams opening district office in Harrison
State Sen. Lindsey Williams will be opening an office in Harrison. The new district office will open sometime this spring in the Heights Plaza. “Currently, we have a signed lease, and there is some work being done to update the space,” said her spokeswoman, Becky Boyle. “Bringing a full-service office...
Trials postponed for teens accused of damaging West Deer parks
Summary trials for three 19-year-olds accused of damaging several West Deer sports fields by doing donuts on them in a pickup in November have been postponed until March. Township police charged Ethan Adamiak, Devin Andrew Colucci and Dalton James Shoop with criminal mischief in December, about a month after the...
Arnold girl, 6, aims to sell 4K boxes of Girl Scout CookiesVideo
Stella VanWhy is one determined Daisy. The 6-year-old Arnold girl told her troop co-leader she was going to sell 2,020 boxes of Girl Scout Cookies so she could pay for Girl Scout camp this summer, said Alicia Phillips, Stella’s mom. “That’s what I want to do most, because I love...
Free and low-cost cat spay, neuter clinics scheduled in Tarentum
A dozen free and low-cost spay and neuter clinics will be held for feral and pet cats in Tarentum from now through June. The Homeless Cat Management Team holds the clinics at 207 Allegheny St. Pre-registration is required and walk-ins are not permitted. Free clinics for feral cats only are...
