Top Local and National News Stories
Pittsburgh’s Arts Landing outdoor space is on schedule and on budget
Standing by what will soon be an 8-foot addition to Downtown Pittsburgh’s skyline, Pittsburgh Cultural Trust President & CEO Kendra Whitlock Ingram paused Monday to show reporters the view set to define Arts Landing: a clear stretch of the Allegheny River and a striking angle of the city’s iconic Three...
Paving begins on Pittsburgh Mills roads while mall owner fights $11 million in fines
Shoppers at Pittsburgh Mills didn’t seem to mind the maze of detours at the Frazer mall on Monday. They were too busy celebrating the milling and paving of the pothole-riddled Village Center Drive, which runs in front of Lowe’s, Ross and Aldi. The road had become notorious for massive craters...
Voter support for Trump remains a wildcard as Pa. approaches major election for governor
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan, and nonprofit newsroom producing investigative and public-service journalism that holds power to account and drives positive change in Pennsylvania. Sign up for our free newsletters. HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania Democrats feel confident they’ll prevail in next year’s gubernatorial race after recent election wins they believe...
Pittsburgh’s Arts Landing outdoor space is on schedule and on budget
Standing by what will soon be an 8-foot addition to Downtown Pittsburgh’s skyline, Pittsburgh Cultural Trust President & CEO Kendra Whitlock Ingram paused Monday to show reporters the view set to define Arts Landing: a clear stretch of the Allegheny River and a striking angle of the city’s iconic Three...
Pittsburgh councilman seeks partial clawback of $6M master plan
Councilman Anthony Coghill wants to claw back some of the money Pittsburgh intended to spend on a costly 25-year master plan after council last week lambasted the pricey process. The $6 million comprehensive plan is meant to guide zoning and development through 2050. Coghill told TribLive he does not want...
High-ranking cop in Allegheny County DA’s office arrested in domestic violence case
An assistant chief in the investigations unit of the Allegheny County District Attorney’s Office was charged last week with breaking into the home of a colleague he previously dated and assaulting her. Richard McDonald, 56, of Oakdale, is charged with burglary, simple assault, harassment and recklessly endangering another person. A...
FEMA acting chief David Richardson departs after 6 months on the job, officials say
SAN DIEGO — The acting chief of the Federal Emergency Management Agency left his job Monday after just six months, according to the Department of Homeland Security, the latest disruption in a year of mass staff departures, program cuts and policy upheaval at the agency charged with managing federal disaster...
Trump says he will sell F-35s to Saudi Arabia on eve of crown prince’s Washington visit
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said Monday he will sell F-35 advanced fighter jets to Saudi Arabia on the eve of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to Washington, as he praised the kingdom for its long partnership with the United States. “I will say that that we will be...
Judge scolds Justice Department for ‘profound investigative missteps’ in Comey case
WASHINGTON — The Justice Department engaged in a “disturbing pattern of profound investigative missteps” in the process of securing an indictment against former FBI Director James Comey, a federal judge ruled Monday in directing prosecutors to produce to defense lawyers all grand jury materials from the case. Those problems, wrote...
Fatal Plum house explosion spurs lawsuits from Rustic Ridge homeowners
Three dozen homeowners in Plum filed lawsuits Thursday stemming from the fatal 2023 house explosion in the Rustic Ridge development. The two complaints, filed in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court, name as defendants Penneco Oil Co.; Peoples Natural Gas; A.O. Smith Corp., which sold the water heater believed by the...
Heavy rain pummels East Coast and sparks isolated flash flooding
Strong rain storms lashed the East Coast on Thursday, delaying flights throughout the region and prompting emergency rescues of motorists trapped in deep water on busy highways from the Philadelphia area to New York City. In New York, flash flooding briefly closed sections of major roadways across the city just...
Deputy director hired for Westmoreland election bureau
For the first time in five years, Westmoreland County has a deputy director of the election bureau. The county commissioners on Thursday announced the hiring of Hannah Lindley, 31, of Bentleyville, Washington County, to serve as second in command of the office that oversees elections in Westmoreland County. Lindley served...
Search for answers after Texas’ deadly floods brings lawmakers to devastated Hill Country
KERRVILLE, Texas — A rural Texas county needed but lacked an updated warning system, local officials testified Thursday, when flash flooding swept away homes and vehicles and left families begging for rescue on the roofs of their homes earlier this month. Texas lawmakers searched for answers during a hearing on...
Rabbi enlisted to assess faith of Westmoreland jail inmate
A Pittsburgh rabbi was brought in to assess claims that a county jail inmate’s religious convictions qualify him to receive kosher meals while incarcerated, the Westmoreland County commissioners said. The lawyer for Kort Noel Eckman, who is awaiting trial in the attempted murder of his mother, said jail officials have...
Pirates trade 2-time All-Star closer David Bednar to Yankees for trio of prospects
The Renegade is heading to the Bronx. The Pittsburgh Pirates dealt two-time All-Star closer David Bednar to the New York Yankees on Thursday afternoon in a trade-deadline deal for 24-year-old minor league catcher/first baseman Rafael Flores and two Low-A prospects. Bednar was one of the most coveted closers on the...
Pittsburgh controller pushes City Council to make private meetings more transparent
Pittsburgh’s fiscal watchdog on Thursday recommended that City Council make more transparent — but not eliminate — controversial private meetings its members occasionally hold to discuss public business. The suggestion came in a performance audit released by Controller Rachael Heisler, which also recommended that council develop better policies to track...
Derry Township man charged in 2007 slaying accused of having drugs at prison
A Derry Township man awaiting trial in a 2007 homicide was arraigned Thursday on new police accusations that he had drugs at the Westmoreland County Prison. Charles Earl Ream, 55, was charged by county detectives this week with possession of contraband and conspiracy. Authorities said in court papers that June...
Trump signs order imposing new tariffs on a number of trading partners that go into effect in 7 days
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Thursday signed an executive order that would have new tariffs on a wide swath of U.S. trading partners to go into effect in seven days — the next step in his trade agenda that will test the global economy and alliances. The order was...
Campaign cash already flowing in Pa. ahead of pivotal 2026 midterms
Republican incumbents in Pennsylvania’s congressional delegation outraised their Democratic counterparts by nearly a 2-to-1 margin, on average, during the first half of the year, according to federal election filings. Chris Borick, a political science professor at Allentown’s Muhlenberg College, said the fundraising gap is less of a reflection of any...
Is a grocery store on tap for downtown New Kensington?
The new owner of Central City Plaza in downtown New Kensington hopes to fill vacant space there by the end of this year and to get a grocery store operational next year. “We’re pretty confident we can better manage the property, and we saw a lot of potential in the...
Indiana Township’s Emmerling Park to double in size with recent property purchase
Emmerling Park in Indiana Township is growing about twice its size after a recent property purchase. Supervisors recently authorized the purchase of nearly 60 acres of undeveloped commercially zoned land to effectively double the parkland off Cove Run Road. The new land encompasses Deer Creek near the pedestrian bridge on...
O’Hara resident joins charity swim in Monongahela River
Lizabeth “Libby” Ernharth of O’Hara is a lifelong swimmer about to experience a swimming first — she’s going to swim in the Monongahela River. Ernharth, 53, is set to participate in a non-competitive five-mile Mon River Mission charity swim on Aug. 2. Ernharth has plenty of memories spending time on...
Police say man killed himself after shooting woman in McKeesport
Allegheny County Police say they believe a man shot a woman before taking his own life early Thursday morning in McKeesport. County 911 was notified of a shooting in the 2300 block of Grandview Avenue just before 12:30 a.m. First responders found a man and a woman with gunshot wounds...
Kevin Gorman’s Take 5: Time for Pirates to be ‘ruthless’ by making moves at trade deadline
Since the trade of Adam Frazier at the All-Star break, the Pittsburgh Pirates have been abundantly aware of MLB’s trade deadline and the possibility that any player not named Paul Skenes could be dealt. One veteran noted that if you don’t want to see people get traded, you need to...
DA says New Kensington murder arrest 1st to come from Westmoreland grand jury
Criminal homicide charges filed in connection with the fatal shooting of a man in New Kensington more than two years ago was the first to result from a Westmoreland County investigating grand jury seated early last year, prosecutors said Wednesday. Larry Osborn Nix II, 41, of West Brownsville, Washington County,...
