Page 2 - Lee Schmidt News Today

No one will be manning Pittsburgh’s police precincts overnight any longer under policy changes announced Friday by Chief Larry Scirotto for the 743-officer force. The changes, which have already begun, affect all six zone stations across the city and the new Downtown substation from 3 a.m. to 7 a.m., seven

Pittsburgh’s Planning Commission is poised to vote Tuesday on a controversial zoning change meant to tackle homelessness, one of the city’s most vexing and intractable problems. The move, pushed by two City Council members, would permit regulated homeless camps Downtown complete with utilities and perhaps even tiny houses. They would

When news broke on Jeff “Mac” McCafferty’s TV about the Kansas City Super Bowl parade shooting, the retired Pittsburgh Public Schools history teacher instantly thought of two things. Pittsburgh. And St. Patrick’s Day. The longtime St. Patrick’s Day Parade chairman has for eight years helped organize the city’s largest annual

More than a dozen Pittsburgh police officers were promoted Friday, including several to some of the force’s highest-ranking posts, during a ceremony in the City-County Building, Downtown. Three commanders took the oath to become assistant chiefs, overseeing the roughly 800-strong Pittsburgh Bureau of Police. The new assistant chiefs — Chris

Animal advocates are “frustrated” after the City of Pittsburgh announced that it’s suspended a longtime program that provided free spay and neuter surgeries for cats and dogs.

Pet owners from outside Pittsburgh, some of them with designer dogs, faked city addresses to nab free, taxpayer-subsidized spay and neuter services intended for city residents in financial need, which led the city to announce Tuesday that is abruptly pausing the program, officials said. Animal advocates believe the move will

The City of Pittsburgh announced Tuesday that it’s pausing its Spay and Neuter Program.

Pittsburgh officials are decommissioning a homeless encampment after first responders had to rescue a man from floodwaters in the Mon Wharf area. The homeless man was rescued with a ladder from about a foot of water around 9:30 p.m. Sunday as the rivers rose, public safety spokeswoman Emily Bourne said.

It took Gina Pelusi’s mother, Ruthanne, a music teacher, at the front door of her home on Feb. 6, 2014. On Aug. 5, 2008, it came for Vaughn Rivers’ brother, Anthony, on a Garfield Street after his basketball team had been crowned Connie Hawkins League champs. In 1993, Geraldine Massey

First responders will be stationed throughout Downtown Pittsburgh to ensure safety during the Highmark First Night Pittsburgh celebration on New Year’s Eve, officials said. Public Safety Director Lee Schmidt said the city is “committed to ensuring residents and visitors are able to celebrate this annual, family-friendly tradition in a secure